Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Jellaby: Monster in the City

Book two follows the adventures of Portia, Jellaby, and Jason as they venture into Toronto to find a way for Jellaby to get home. Along the way they learn to navigate transit systems and traffic and come to an amusement park. There they take rides, run into a tough trio of kids, and also encounter a mysterious masked stranger who seems to know a lot about where Jellaby is from. A major threat also arises, threatening their lives and friendships, making them question who they can trust.

This second book from Kean Soo, a cartoonist who started publishing stories about Jellaby in the Flight anthologies and who posts his work online at The Secret Friend Society, goes beyond their initial encounters and focuses on how being friends with a little dragon might play out. Reviewer Dave Ferraro was disappointed by how this focus worked and hopes that Soo "will return the character to his playful roots." The School Library Journal's Ernie Cox differs in opinion and felt the book would be a strong contender for the Caldecott Award. The School Library Journal also put this book on their Best Comics for Kids 2009 list.

Although volume one is still out of print, this one is still available from Disney Hyperion. A preview is available here from the author.

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