The Dragon Slayer (Toon Latin American Folktales)

by Jaime Hernandez (Author)

The Dragon Slayer (Toon Latin American Folktales)

How would a kitchen maid fare against a seven-headed dragon? What happens when a woman marries a mouse? And what can a young man learn from a thousand leaf cutter ants?

Famed Love and Rockets creator Jaime Hernandez asks these questions and more as he transforms beloved myths into bold, stunning, and utterly contemporary comics.

Guided by the classic works of F. Isabel Campoy and Alma Flor Ada, Hernandez's first book for young readers brings the sights and stories of Latin America to a new generation of graphic-novel fans around the world.

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ALA/Booklist

This beautifully designed collection, with amiable art in lovely full color, is perfect for bedtime read-aloud or a lesson on traditional folktales.

Kirkus

Starred Review
Rousing tales, spirited artwork, and rich backmatter ensure that this slim graphic novel for kids becomes a rich resource for all caregivers, not just those of Latinx children.

None

The (mostly) six-panel pages feature expressive characters and colorful tones that add to the playfulness of the stories.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6--This is the first children's book by groundbreaking comic artist Jaime Hernandez, one of the three Hernandez brothers responsible for the comic "Love and Rockets." Readers will most likely skip over the old-fashioned, didactic introduction by F. Isabel Campoy on the power of folktales to get to the fun part, and what fun it is. In "The Dragon Slayer," a resourceful farm girl refuses to let a seven-headed dragon interfere with her plans of marriage to a prince. "Martina Martinez and Perez the Mouse" centers on a foolish young bride who, when her mouse husband falls into a pot of soup, cries instead of rescuing him. And in "Tup and the Ants," a lazy young man goes far on his wits and ability to get others to do his work. Hernandez's colorful, expressive drawings are full of movement, helping the stories extend beyond the concise, direct text. As so often happens in folktales, humans and animals exist on the same plane, adding to the whimsy. A brief discussion of the three selections closes out each volume. VERDICT These delightfully rendered stories should easily find a home in the folktale/fairy-tale section of any library.--Lucia Acosta, Children's Literature Specialist, Princeton, NJ

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

TEXAS BLUEBONNET AWARD 2019-20 MASTER LIST
WINNER 2018 AESOP PRIZE (AMERICAN FOLKLORE SOCIETY)
NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS' CHOICE
NAMED TO KIRKUS' REVIEWS BEST BOOKS OF 2018
NPR 2018 GREAT READS

Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781943145287
Lexile Measure
570
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Toon Graphics
Publication date
April 03, 2018
Series
Toon Latin American Folktales
BISAC categories
JUV012020 - Juvenile Fiction | Fairy Tales & Folklore | Country & Ethnic - General
JUV008070 - Juvenile Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | Fairy Tales, Folklore, Legends & Mythology
Library of Congress categories
Folklore
Tales
Latin America
Cartoons and comics
Comics (Graphic works)
New York Times, 05/13/18

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