Gray Horses Paperback – February 28, 2006

Being a fan of Hope Larson comics I was excited to add Grey Horses to my collection. Her artwork is very nice, what surprised me was how short the story was but I nevertheless enjoyed it. It was a quirky and fun mini adventure for the heroine.

The point of Hope Larson’s comics is never the destination but the journey. Raina Telgemeier calls them “visual poetry”, just the right description. Gray Horses opens with travel, as French exchange student Noémie reaches her new city, taking the subway from the airport to her rooming house. While she adjusts to her foreign surroundings, she dreams of a girl named Marcy riding a wild talking horse.In the daytime, she makes friends with a neighbor, a girl who’s in her art history class and lives at the bakery across the street. As the book progresses, we learn more about what happened before Noémie came to the US, her discoveries within the city, and how various symbolic elements echo themselves in her life. It’s a coming-of-age tale about acceptance and discovery, gloriously and uniquely told.The art consists of fluid lines contained within borderless panels unrestricted and shaped far more organically than the usual squares and rectangles. The balloon tails similarly twist and curl, showing how speech carries through air on waves, while sound effects and background smells and actions are indicated by small cursive words. Noémie’s thoughts are in French, simultaneously translated for us in text that wraps around the edges of the scene. The entirety is welcoming and dare I say it, feminine in its use of curves.The tan color used for backgrounds and other various elements has a peachy sepia tone that gives the whole thing a feeling of memory. Against it, the white figures and foreground elements immediately draw the eye. Larson’s techniques demonstrate her thorough knowledge of the comic medium; they couldn’t be done as elegantly anywhere else. They don’t draw attention unless you’re already looking to see how she accomplishes her stunning effects.Given her fondness for the arcing line, Larson’s drawings of Marcy riding the horse are lovely, appropriately dreamlike and flowing. They have a childlike simplicity to them that I’m sure took much practice and skill.Noémie’s city, although an analogue of Chicago, is called Onion City, and much like that namesake, this book reveals itself in layers over time. It’s immediately rereadable and will continue to reward the reader, who will find new meaning in it every time. (Review originally posted at ComicsWorthReading.com.)

We are on the cusp of a new era. An era in which children's librarians like myself must wade through pools of graphic novel dreck to find those few shining books to add to our library collections. Teen librarians have it SO much easier. I mean, try naming ten fabulous children's graphic novels off the top of your head. Go on. Name 'em. Fortunately, publishers are sensing this immediate need and they are acting accordingly. Now we have books like Raina Telgemeier's, "The Baby-sitter's Club: Kristy's Great Idea" and Jennifer Holm's, "Babymouse" filling our shelves. Less flashy, but no less impressive, is Hope Larson's quiet and mysterious, "Gray Horses". If I were to call any cartoonist the Marjane Satrapi of children's GNs, Ms. Larson would earn herself the title. High praise. Good book.Noemie is new to America. Coming straight from Dijon, France she's living on her own and attending college here in the U.S. for the first time. Initially shy, Noemie quickly captures the attentions of two other people. One is Anna, Noemie's neighbor and classmate. The two quickly become fast friends. The other person is a mysterious boy who takes pictures of Noemie when she's not looking. Noemie would probably spend a lot of her time worrying about this boy if it weren't for the dreams she has at night. Each night she dreams of a girl who's attempting to ride a horse as far from her mother as possible. As Noemie learns more about her home and draws some connections between herself and her horse, she begins to unravel the mystery of a young girl who left behind a part of her herself long long ago.So is this book children's? Obviously the heroine is college aged. Would kids be able to find anything a young adult like Noemie did exciting? Certainly. "Gray Horses" is remarkable partly because its story is interesting to kids of all ages. Also, the dream story definitely involves a child and not a young woman, so the mystery is perfect for children of all ages. Now obviously your average "Captain Underpants" reader is not necessarily going to be able to follow and enjoy "Gray Horses". But for those girls who love Paul Danziger, Phyllis Naylor Reynolds, and want a GN equivalent, this is the book for them. Noemie's tale itself is very low-key. Concerned parents won't find a drop of sex, violence, or even off-color language here. Two of the characters take a slug from a flask, but who's to say what's in it? This is just a beautifully drawn story with a measured mystery.Larson is clever with her storytelling. Since Noemie is French it wouldn't make any sense at all for her to think her own personal thoughts in English. For that reason she is subtitled much of the time. The real French words and phrases pop up throughout her speech while their English equivalents hover not far below. And the illustrations in this book as a whole are beautifully put together. Larson weaves together a horse motif throughout the pictures that's easy enough to miss if you're not looking for it. Her particular style is more rounded and adept than many of the graphic novelists working in children's literature these days. And just as a side note to all you librarians out there, the binding job on this book is heads and tails better than that cheap manga you keep having to replace. Thumbs up to Oni Press for their stronger glue!So if you're in the mood for some high quality graphic novels that are child appropriate and written with more than a little pep, "Gray Horses" may certainly be for you. As good a tale as any of the children's books being written today and a lovely example of everything that's great about graphic novels. A GN book worth fighting for.