NewsPrints student book review by Rua

This book is about a girl who dresses up as a boy in order to stay at a specific orphanage and work as a Newsie (a boy who sells newspapers). While she is doing her job she meets a peculiar boy who doesn’t have a home and can repeat voices exactly as heard. So she brings him with her and shows him what life and joy is. As the story progresses, they go through some troubles because the boy was a wanted robot who could bring life to a strong weapon that will be used in the military. When she figures out her new friend is a weapon and everyone is out to get him, she doesn’t give up on him and helps him against the scientists and military who want to use him.

I am a sucker for graphics novels, and love how unique each art style is to the book. The art style always brings life to the characters and make the story more alive, allowing for the readers to connect with the characters on a deeper level. This book has a cartoon-y with a hint of a realistic style to it, creating a book that is open for all ages to read. It gives off a welcoming vibe, family friendly but with an edge of realistic themes that are not always happy. This is what first enticed me to read it, since it was a fictional book with a realistic edge to it, centering around a kid main character.

Graphic novels also bring in an element that novels don’t have: facial expressions. Actions speak louder than words, and having a panel on a character’s face and what emotions are being displayed can give so much more to the story than just writing “he looked almost… sad”. It gives the readers an insight into what might have made the character sad and what he will do. It allows for more dramatic irony because the readers can see more of the whole picture on all sides of the story, than just having the main characters’ points of view and no insight into the side characters. This book used dramatic irony heavily, hinting on the fact that there are many characters in the book that don’t seem to be who they say they are, hooking me to continue reading in order to find out the truth. Also, since this book’s plot was based on a mystery, facial expressions were really important because it allowed the reader to understand the mystery without anything being said, but rather what the artist shows them in each panel and how the artist focuses on specific things in each panel to clue the reader in. This only made it more interesting to read because I had a guess that the boy was a robot from the beginning, and as the story moved along more and more pieces fit the puzzle, as well as some things that tried to throw the readers off, making me want to know the truth even more and continue reading.

The art style also signals the setting of the world, where this one hints to a less modern futuristic feel and more of a older steampunk feel. As far as plot goes, this story is very unique, mostly being based on mystery and friendship, and something I loved to read. I couldn’t put it down, instead reading it all in one sitting and groaning since I didn’t have the second book yet. I believe this book is suited for younger students, elementary to middle school, because the art style is colorful and inviting, but the themes teach the children to not judge a person by one look, but rather take the time to get to know them and labels shouldn’t be what determines one’s future.