I Survived the Battle of D-Day, 1944: The Graphic Novel

I Survived Graphix #9

by Brian Churilla (Illustrator), Lauren Tarshis

A bold graphic novel adaptation of Lauren Tarshis's bestselling I Survived the Battle of D-Day, 1944 with text adapted by Georgia Ball and art by Brian Churilla.

A battle that changes the course of the war... ​​​​​​​Paul Colbert’s French village has been under Nazi control for years. His Jewish best friend has disappeared. Food is scarce. And there doesn’t seem to be anything Paul can do to make things better. ​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​Then Paul finds an American paratrooper stuck in a tree. When Paul helps the soldier, he discovers a secret resistance movement—and he learns the Allies have a plan to crush the Nazis. But first, the resistance needs Paul’s help. ​​​​​​​ This is Paul’s chance to make a difference. Soon he finds himself in the midst of the largest invasion in history. Can he do his part to turn horror into hope? ​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​Lauren Tarshis's New York Times bestselling I Survived series comes to vivid life in graphic novel editions. Perfect for readers who prefer the graphic novel format, or for existing fans of the I Survived chapter book series, these graphic novels combine historical facts with high-action storytelling that's sure to keep any reader turning the pages. Includes a nonfiction section at the back with facts and photos about the real-life event.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Historical, Childrens, War, Comics

160 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 2, 2024

Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

My child saw this at his school book fair and wanted to read it, but the school said you had to be older.

So as parents we did the responsible thing and got it from the library to evaluate its age appropriateness ourselves.

The book does an excellent job presenting a very mature topic to a younger audience. I would certainly recommend parents read it first to decide *when* to let their child read it.

It's an important topic and it's well presented so I definitely recommend reading it when your child is ready.

[Sierra Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

shoutout to maman’s absolutely stunning coiffure and the pivotal pigeon character

[Mark Will Never Cry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not that surprising seeing that this is concentrated on the D-Day, but this is a very US forward retelling of the tensions during WW2. There are a lot of important things discussed, such as anti-semitism (never mentioned directly by the name) and the way that members of resistance suffered, but I find it somewhat weird that the resistance is portrayed as a group of like 5 people, when in reality resistances consisted of way more.
Nazis, as usual, are portrayed as a grey mass of anger with the exception of a single boy, who is portrayed as being like 9, which would not have happened in reality, as even though there were a lot of german soldiers who were around the age of 16, 16 is still a far cry from 9. It is dangerous to portray nazis like this, because among the people who will just accept without thinking that nazis were basically a hive mind, there will be those, who will start questioning it and end up discovering the information spread by neo-nazis and radical right which could lead them down a dangerous path.
This book is not bad, it is trying it’s best at recounting one of the big battles of the WW2, but as a writer, specifically a writer for kids, it is important to make sure that the information you are presenting would not lead your readers into a dark place.

[pam fraser · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Andrew Heitland · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars! Good historical fiction and the storyline is very good.

[Jill D Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this series, but WHERE ARE THE GIRLS??? We need some female main characters! If an adult woman like me enjoys reading these, you can bet young girls do too and they need some representation!

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This spent a lot of time on lead up, so the D-Day stuff felt a bit rushed. And the final reunion seemed a bit unearned. I bet it’s better in the text one.

[Wyatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hey, my son Morgan has me reading these and we’re having a good time. That’s all that matters!

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again, the graphic novel is so well done. So many young kids got involved in wars and did so much to help. A fascinating story, with real life information. I love this series.

[Law · Rating 4 out of 5]

Representation: Black character
Trigger warnings: Military violence and war themes, blood, grief and loss depiction, World War Two, explosions, gun violence, death of a father implied in the past, antisemitism, physical injury, near-death experience
Score: Seven out of ten.

The illustrated adaptation of I Survived the Battle of D-Day, 1944, part of the illustrated adaptations of the I Survived series by Lauren Tarshis, adapted by Georgia Ball and illustrated by Brian Churilla, was enjoyable.

It starts with Paul, who discovers an American paratrooper. The paratrooper tells him about the Allies' plan to take back German-occupied territory, and there is little plot, but Tarshis did the best she could.

The art is strong, especially with the minimal dialogue. However, the full-colour palette is limiting and the illustrated novel could have benefitted from another single-colour palette. The characters have likeability value but lack depth or development, but more could help. The pacing is swift at 150 pages, but isn't too overwhelming. The illustrated adaptation of I Survived the Battle of D-Day, 1944 is an intriguing look into what D-Day was like, and while the extra material helps, someone would be better off researching the topic if they want to know about it in detail.

The conclusion is engaging.

[Skye · Rating 1 out of 5]

During WW2, the armed forces were still largely segregated. Having the main paratrooper being African American isn’t historically realistic. As sad as that is, I wish the author would have stuck to the historical accuracies of the time instead of trying to change things. I think changing history in historical novels for children is equal to intentionally erasing what African Americans suffered.

[Bella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. It is about a boy named Paul and how he helped fight the Nazis. There are a lot of exciting parts and alot of cool heroes. There wasn’t a boring spot in this book and that's why I liked it so much.

There were a lot of things I liked about this book. I really liked that it was exciting from the start and didn’t have an uneventful introduction. The writing style was great. It was very descriptive but easy to understand. My two favorite characters were Ellie and Mr. Leon. I liked Ellie because she was very smart and it was unusual that a bird would do the things that she did. I liked Mr. Leon because he was kind and brave. My favorite part was the end of the book because it showed Paul’s life 15 years after the war. It was very relieving to know that everyone was okay in the end. “You could find courage, inside a heart pounding with fear”(Tarshis 110) I really liked the message of the book. I also liked when Paul got to play like a child even though he was grown because he didn’t really get to be a kid during the war. There were a lot of good things about this book.

The biggest thing I didn't like about this book was how mean the Nazis were. It made me very angry the way they treated people. In the beginning they almost ran Paul over and he ruined his cookies that were for his moms birthday. There were a lot of parts in the book that made me feel nervous, like when Paul and Victor almost got attacked by a dog. Or when Paul and Mr. Leon had to put explosives in the Nazis cannons to blow them up and they could’ve got caught.
“Heart pounding, Paul reached into a barrel”(Tarshis 78) The worst was when Paul got hit by part of a plane and was knocked out. Then when he woke up he got caught by a Nazi commander. I thought it was sad when Marie died because she was very nice. I didn’t like that Mr. Leon was “dead” because Paul made him sound really cool.

I would definitely recommend this book to everyone. Especially people who are younger or who don't really like reading because it is kind of an easier book to read but it's very exciting. I would also recommend it to anyone who likes reading about history or world war II because that's what the book was about. I give the book a 4.5 out of 5

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paul is a boy in Normandy, France in 1944. His father was taken to join the fighting, his best friend disappeared, and his mother is so busy trying to keep them both alive. Paul tries to do something nice for his Maman's birthday, but the plan is foiled by Nazi soldiers. He gets upset and charges off into the brush where he accidentally finds an American parachutist caught in a tree. Paul frees the soldier but knows they have to hide him fast or they will both be in mortal danger. In finding a hiding spot Paul finds himself swept up in the Resistance's part in D-Day, the secret Allied invasion of France to free it from the Nazis.

This is a quick introduction to some of the basics of D-Day for a middle grade audience. I like how it gives them a taste for what the Nazi invasion was like for the average French non-Jewish citizen and why they would have been excited about the Allies arriving. The book portrays the seriousness of the situation without excessive gory details. It is kept middle grade appropriate. Even the illustrations that show shooting or soldiers dead in battle is done tactfully and not gorily.

Notes on content:
Language: None
Sexual content: None
Violence: Deaths are mentioned and the battle is shown to a certain extent. Minimal blood and no gore shown.
Ethnic diversity: Paul is white French and so is most of his town. The Nazis are white German. The soldier Paul rescues is Black American.

[Katarina]

The battle that changes the course of the war. Paul's French village has been under Nazi's control for years now. His best friend has disappeared, food is scarce, and their isn't anything he can do to make it better. Paul finds an American paratrooper stuck in a tree. When Paul helps the paratrooper he learned of a secret resistance movement. He learns that they have a plan to crush the Nazis.

I love learning about history, especially when they have the actual history in the back of the book, like these books do. So far all the main character that I have read are male, now I don't know if that's because they don't write female main character or I just haven't found one or picked it up yet. Other than that I enjoyed this book and loved it. Again great for kids middle school age or even younger that love history and learning new things about the world. The story was sad, but also good with the way they told it.

Happy Reading!!!!

[B.D · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75🌟
I read so many books about World War Two so this mainly just felt like every other World War Two book. It was good and I liked the characters but the story felt kind of plain to me. The art was really good in this one, it’s my favourite art so far but for the rest of my thoughts on the book, just look at one of my previous reviews because pretty much all my other thoughts on this one is in those. For ages 11 and up.

[Esme_weatherwax · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read two of the i survived series. I think that they are excellent historical fiction for children. They are historically accurate and the story line is interesting. The pictures are bright and historical accurate as well. I am pleased that they have made some of the books into graphic novels to make them more appealing to a wider range of people. I also really liked that they had more facts on the event of the book at the back of the book. I highly recommend this series.

[Julesy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story 4 stars
Artwork 4 stars
Color 5 stars
Lettering 5 stars

Overall rating: 4.5 stars Didn't like this one as much as previous entries. The previous book in the graphic novel series was also about war and I guess I've been reading too many war graphic novels lately which is wearing on me. Glad the next one is NOT war-themed.

Theme/genre: War
Setting: Normandy Beach, France
Likeable characters: Paul, Gerard

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I never really knew what D-Day was, until I read this graphic novel. I personally love the I survived graphic novels, because of the real historical facts and the fictional inside perspective of kids.

This definitely helped me figure out where D-Day fits into history and what it actually is. Great work on the art!

[Ellon · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars (I liked it)

This is a bit dark (I mean, it is about WWII so it's to be expected) but not overly so. I think older elementary aged students would be fine with it. There is death and some blood shown but nothing is too graphic. It's an interesting way to cover the history with a big focus on the French Resistance.

[Alexis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This felt very surface level as far as bringing us along with the character unlike the other books I have read in this story. Sad story that needs told.

As always I love the real story touch in the back that adds to the story.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

The amazing people of Scholastic sent me a copy of this! I love this series and so do my class - they’re always a real hit. This one retells the story of the D-Day Landing, the French Resistance and so much more! Just brilliant… and will be perfect for my class library!

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paul is a young boy in Normandy during the time of WWII. With war raging around him and his Maman, Paul discovers some secrets that inevitably pull him into the dangerous action around him.

In graphic novel form, there is death and war depicted but it is not bloody nor overly explicit.

[Ethan Givogue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to follow at the end

[David Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great Tarshis thriller about the D day invasion of the French resistance fighting the Nazis.

[Marisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Panda Incognito · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is really intense and powerful, and includes historical notes at the end.

[Laura Faulkner]

A powerful story

[wildct2003 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good story and facts at the end of the book. High school history class ended before WWII, so this helped fill in some gaps.

[olivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations were not that great

[Nanny B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story.
Graphics are always great in the I survived series.