El chico perdido

by Greg Ruth

Cuando Nate encuentra una vieja grabadora en su nueva casa, se sumerge sin querer en la misteriosa desaparición de un chico, ocurrida hace muchos años. Es entonces que unos extraños seres comienzan a perseguirlo, y para descifrar lo que sucede, Nate debe hacer equipo con Tabitha, una chica del pueblo. No obstante, mientras un mundo increíble se revela ante sus ojos, las Sombras ganan fuerza… y los acechan desde lo profundo del bosque.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Comics, Mystery, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Fiction

192 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 27, 2013

About the author

Author, Illustrator and comic book artist.

Reviews

[Forrest · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a huge fan of the game "Capture the Flag". I played a few times as a young man, but as an adult, I've become an aficionado. This is the result of several campouts as a leader of youth through BSA or being the leader of my church's youth group. I've played it dozens of times in a wide variety of areas. There's something thrilling about this game, especially if it's played over a wide expanse of forest. One tactic that I've used successfully involves teasing out the opposing players and noting their limits. While they might send out a couple of runners to go after your flag, chances are that there are at least a few of the opposing team who will stay close, but not too close, to their flag, tied by an invisible tether to its location. Once you work around and "pull" the opposing players out as far as they're willing to go, you can determine the whereabouts of their flag. You "pull" by intentionally exposing your position without being caught. The key is dropping hints that you are around, but not directly showing yourself. Rocks and sticks are best for this, if you have a good throwing arm. Or shaking a tree when you are certain you are out of the opposing team's direct line of sight tends to draw their attention. Throughout the course of several games, however, there will be times when you are seen and may be caught in the very act of deception. Sometimes you can still salvage the game, but you usually have to pull back and start approaching the enemy from a different angle. Once your cover is blown, your entire plan of attack can be ruined.

And this speaks to my only strong complaint about "The Lost Boy," by Greg Ruth. The artwork is amazing, the plot is stronger than many I've seen in graphic novels, and the characterization, for the most part, is good to great (more on that later). My biggest problem with the book is that Ruth plays his hand a little too strongly in a couple of places. Had he done so only once, I think this would be a strong contender for a five-star rating. But the mistake is made in a couple of places: foreshadowing becomes over-exposure, and the reader can easily guess key elements of how this is going to end up. Too easily. Toning down the foreshadowing would have done a great deal to push this graphic novel to near-perfection.

Back in the 1950s, a boy, Walt, disappears from a small town. In the present day, another boy, Nate, discovers an old tape player under the floorboards of his bedroom after he moves with his family into town. Nate listens to the tapes, which are narrated by Walt, so many decades ago, and begins to discover that Walt had learned of a fae world beyond the mundane in which dog-riding crickets and talking dolls are the norm. Nate's neighbor, Tabitha, seems to know something about this world, as well. The two of them team up to solve the mystery of where Walt disappeared and find themselves embroiled in events that will have consequences for far more than them or the small town in which they live. As the story progresses, we are introduced to more and more characters and slowly, a picture emerges of several factions vying for control of The Key, which will assure dominance in both the fae world and in the mundane world. Ruth does a masterful job of slowly introducing the different character's motives and intentions, but, in doing so, lets foreshadowing show a bit too much about future plot twists. In fact, what should have been a major plot twist is telegraphed far too plainly (and too early) by a conversation between the talking doll Tom Button and Haloran, an older man who serves as Walt's, then Nate and Tabitha's, guide to the other world.

All of the characters are strong and unique. None of them "bleed" into the others, as I've seen in too many graphic novels. I found the characters of Walt, Tabitha, and Baron Tick to be the most compelling and interesting. My one complaint is with Haloran, who becomes a sort of flawed messiah figure who knows his place in the worlds, but is not always sure how to act in them. While interesting, I felt that Haloran was flat, maybe a bit rushed. There are some deep, poignant moments, but the long stretches of silence, which were probably meant to imply an aloof wisdom, end up reading as a simple omission on the part of the writer.

Besides its flaws, "The Lost Boy" is a graphic novel that deserves your attention. It's not perfect, but it might have been. And the ending leaves the door open for possible future volumes, which I will watch for with keen interest.

It was a close game, this time. Maybe next time, Ruth will lure me out enough to sneak up, then rush in to capture the flag.

[Liz B · Rating 2 out of 5]

The artwork was amazing. (And if you've read my reviews of graphic novels & picture books, you know that's not something I usually lead with. Or even mention sometimes.) It's black and white and detailed and photographic, and each human character has his or her own distinct features.

The lettering was annoying. Pretty much every speech bubble had something that looked bolded/ emphasized. Maybe that's a comics style but I can't emphasize enough how much I hated it and how much it detracted from my enjoyment of the story. When EVERY thought seems to have something VITALLY important included in it, it TENDS to make you not pay ATTENTION when some THINGS are actually IMPORTANT, especially when the WORD that is emphasized seems at TIMES almost random.

And now for the story. It reminded me of the fantasy stories my eighth graders try to write (before I make them write plot treatments/ storyboards), where they write themselves into a corner so they just make something new and magic up to solve their problems. Oh look Tom BUTTON can't get into the magic world! What shall WE do? Oh let's CALL on the squirrel! My main reaction while reading was, "What? Huh? Oh, that's creepy. Oh, that's gross. Wait, which creepy little things are the bad guys again?"

So no. No interest in reading additional installments (the ending was open to the possibility), and I won't be buying it for my classroom or for book clubs.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

so there's Crow's Woods, The Kingdom, Buttonfolk, Buglings, Woodlanders, The Shadows, Laamia Trees, The Gate Key, The Gate Tree, Haloran, Curly Bill, Pettibone, The Vespertine, Tamalane, The Barrowlands, Owlrider Clans, Whining Moss, Mousefoot Tribes, Tupperton, Laamia Berries, Morphic Fields, Apelings, Mount Larkin, The Saltless Sea, Willow Women, Baron Tick, Mikken, The Vale of Isobel, The Great Accord, Buttonton, The Outlands, Harker's Drop, Walt, Nate, Tabitha, Ten Men, The Barrowood, The Giant Soldiers, Twirken's Beard, Jeff...

AAAAAAARRRRRGGGHH!!

The artwork is fantastic, but the plot line seemed just a tad convoluted. I feel like I would have enjoyed the story more were it set in a less complicated landscape. As it is, it's as though Harry Potter joined forces with a hobbit on a quest to Oz. Not that that is a horrible thing, it's just a lot to remember.

[Raina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kid finds audio recordings and another world opens up to him.

I go back and forth about this one a lot. Some of the illustration work feels awkward, but some of it blows me away. There's a darkness to this story - feels quite like Coraline. I never got a good sense of the characters, but so many of the creatures were awesome and cool. Creepy dolls, clothinged squirrels, crazy landscapes - fun and wild and slightly disturbing.

We shelve this in J, and that fits with the characters, but it's definitely on the dark side.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started at new school in Washington DC last week. On the first day of school, I stopped through the library to see what our students were checking out. It was my first trip through the collection and I couldn't have been more impressed with the graphic novel selection. Not only did I find an incredible amount of complete series, they had many of the obscure titles that have been fan favorites. More importantly, every one of the graphic novels looked beat up. Not that it was a surprise to see the signs of heavy circulation.

Greg Ruth's Lost Boy is a welcome addition. The images Greg creates in black and white are among the most intricate I've seen from a middle grade graphic novel. In a story spanning five decades, Nate's discovery of an old tape recorder unlocks a mysterious disappearance leading to secret and dangerous world. It's clear that Greg Ruth has developed an incredibly intricate story around his ancient world and its inhabitants. At times, the complexity of the background world mixed with the time shifts makes the story, as a whole, difficult to fully grasp. Fortunately, the illustrations are compelling enough to pull the reader through.

I've watched kids who tell me, "they're not readers" devour Doug TenNapel's similarly creepy stories for years now. In an era where there is still not enough material to satiate these readers' needs, Lost Boy will be a welcome addition to any collection. For Greg Ruth's first middle grade graphic novel, the illustrations are nothing short of triumphant. The precision and detail could only be matched if Chris Van Allsburg fell down the rabbit hole and came back with a graphic novel.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely graphic novel! It was dark with wonderful art. I loved Haloran, in my head he was Bill Nighy, which just made the book that much better!

[Shannan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this graphic novel as I tend to enjoy creepy tales, but this one just fell short for me. It started out with a suspenseful mystery, but the characters and the story were not as well developed as I wanted.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so fun. Definitely an adventure story. Perfect for a 12 year old. I absolutely loved the Bugling storyline.

[Seth T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

After Bone, I didn’t know what to do for my daughter. She’s four-and-a-half now and ready for more fantasy-adventure that’s top-of-genre caliber. I read her Bone when she was two (and crossing over into three) and since then, we’ve been pretty hungry for something similarly incredible.

We’ve found books to fill in the gaps, of course. She was a sucker for the joie de vivre and wonder of Zita and her Spacegirl derring-do. She gobbled up Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise (mostly for sightings of Momo and Appa). She was briefly engaged with Mr. Wuffles and dimly impressed with the dour and mediocre Amulet series. But Bone is the basement-level foundation for all her comics joys. And she wants to read through all nine black-and-white volumes with me again. She keeps suggesting, prodding. And who could resist, really. But I was concerned, needing something to follow Bone up—something with a bit of flash and depth that could keep up the adventure without slack. I don’t want her ever to imagine that Bone will always be the best she’ll find (even if, for a long time, it might be). I needed something that could at least go toe to toe with the giant. So it’s rather nice that The Lost Boy came along when it did.



My daughter prefers strong and memorable characters, which is why I haven’t tried Mouse Guard out on her just yet (the mice, for all their distinct little personalities, just don’t stand out enough from each other). She needs Phony Bones and Big Red Dragons and Bartlebys and Rock Jaws. I think she’ll find those in The Lost Boy. While the book’s two or three human protagonists exhibit a kind of character that may be too subtle for her to discern, she’s almost certain to be captivated by the fine-cutting figure of the Baron, a top-hatted cricket who rides atop a former-pet-dog steed. There are other animal amusements to be found as well—Pettibone the squirrel, Plikt the Owl, an army of dapper, well-dressed insects. Et cetera.

This is a tale of the woodland kingdoms creeping in to reassert command over the realm so long ago thefted by the avarice of men. It’s an old story, told over and again, one of the most common tropes of the fantasy genre, speaking to human guilt accrued from our sometimes violent domination of the natural realm. It would have been easy for Ruth to have produced something boring, just as ninety-nine percent of fantasy writers tackling the sub-genre have. But apparently, he’s too good for mediocrity.


[She says that, but really, which one of them is
riding command over a beast eight times their own size?]

Really, and I mean it, this book is gorgeous and contains a story that is both a kind of lived-in-comfortable as well as sparkling with an intelligence and verve we don’t often see in books of this ilk.[1] To the art, we find in Ruth a masterful, confident creator whose ink-and-wash combination (whether digitally or traditionally achieved) is a visual wonder. In some ways, the work resembles the real-world segments of The Nao of Brown, only with greater detail and less left to the work of Dillon’s kind of sense for colour. While dynamic, Ruth’s illustrations are firmly grounded in a realism that lends the book a gravity that a more cartoony artist would have to compensate for by using other techniques (probably relying too heavily on the writing and dialogue). By proposing realistic crickets and owls and trees and humans, Ruth raises the stakes of his story, allowing us to more easily imagine its events occurring in some suburban neighbourhood within twenty miles of where we sit while reading his book.

Also, as a side note: I am deeply deeply envious of Greg Ruth’s abilities. If I were at all the type, I would very likely cry a little tonight after reflecting on the distance between my own talents and Ruth’s.[2]



The way Ruth unfolds his story is well-conceived. He bounces between the present and the early ‘60s by means of several tapes worth of rediscovered vintage recordings—tapes that hold a peculiar mythos in the town. Like many such fantasy stories, our entry point is a newcomer, someone unfamiliar with lore and legend—someone through whose eyes we might become gently acquainted to the weirdness in store. Through Nate, the newcomer, we encounter an earlier newcomer, Walt, child of the ‘60s.[3] We see that strange things have been afoot and boiling to a head for a long time, decades at the least. And because the rate of a newcomer’s apprehension of the world he’s entered might be a bit slow, we’re also given Tabitha, the townie who’s been on the trail for years and has a pretty stock of files on the case already. The combination of the three characters and their specialties allows Ruth to reveal tale, trials, and consequences at essentially the perfect rate. 

All three of the principal child characters are written well and Ruth builds enough meat on their psychological bones that none of their decisions come out of left field or are even at all unpredictable. Even better, for any inadequacies Ruth has built into their characters, each of the three is likable enough that we can pretty easily empathize with their plights. I enjoyed watching them sound out their place in a world whose seams are unstitching at too quick a rate.


[He found my hand]

Though it’s not clear within The Lost Boy and the story comes to a satisfactory (though open-ended) conclusion, Ruth has planned this as a trilogy. Which is heart-warming, actually. That he’ll have the opportunity to expand his mythology and throw his characters into more trials and woes is fantastic news. I was looking for another Bone and while this really isn’t very much like Bone at all, it very much is a delightful fantasy adventure probably aimed at kids but best appreciated by those of us with true grit.

And we are chock full of that, man.
_______

[Review courtesy of Good Ok Bad.]
_______

Footnotes
1) The word “ilk” is only ever used pejoratively and I use it here to signal to the uninformed my general distaste for the fantasy narrative. It wasn’t always the case that distrust was the starting point from which I approached any work of fantasy. When I was younger, I devoured the genre, mining it for gems and turkish delights. It, of course, turned rotten in my mouth—like day-old manna. Since then, I’ve soured on the stuff and have no problem saying: I don’t like fantasy. Reserving the right, of course, to make exceptions for the Good Stuff. Lord of the Rings. Bone. Nausicaä. In any case, I don’t have a whole lot of respect for fantasy (because it doesn’t generally respect its readers) and so when I speak highly here of Ruth’s work, you can be certain that I really do think highly of it.

2) Instead, I will merely cross my fingers that my winning personality will help make up for my lack.

3) Ruth uses the trick of the tape recorder’s click to signal that we’re now beginning or concluding our reading in the era from fifty years back, but before we might notice that’s the overt narrative clue, we still get a sense of which era’s which through the use of fashion. Walt and his father have a very Wonder years vibe about them. Nate pretty clearly dresses in the contemporary fashion. Because of this carefulness, we’re never far from knowing where we are in the story’s flashes, backward or forward.

[Literary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Synopsis :

Some mysteries are too dangerous to leave alone . . .
Nate's not happy about his family moving to a new house in a new town. After all, nobody asked him if he wanted to move in the first place. But when he discovers a tape recorder and note addressed to him under the floorboards of his bedroom, Nate is thrust into a dark mystery about a boy who went missing many, many years ago. Now, as strange happenings and weird creatures begin to track Nate, he must partner with Tabitha, a local girl, to find out what they want with him. But time is running out, for a powerful force is gathering strength in the woods at the edge of town, and before long Nate and Tabitha will be forced to confront a terrifying foe, and uncover the truth about the Lost Boy.

Review :
I have never much read graphic novels. To be very much truthful, The Lost Boy is my first proper graphic novel read and I guess I am pretty please with myself for picking it up. Actually it's not me though who bought the book but my younger brother. I saw the artwork and it was pretty amazing so I gave it a try. And boy! such talented a man the author is. The story-line and artwork, both are awe-striking. Since the graphic is a short read and the synopsis alone gives away the most spoiler free inside idea of the story, I will not go into describing it any further for it might the mysterious atmosphere thus created by the synopsis. I will thus go on complimenting on the book itself. 

The story-line is interesting, catchy and well thought. The artwork is . . . EVERYTHING! I literally would give anything to have such skillful hands. I feel I would  have enjoyed the book more if I had been a little younger and thoughts were less complex. But what I experienced was a box full of thoughts forming in my head. The one thought I had after reading (thanks to my overthinking mind) is perhaps that lost boy was not really lost in a different world but inside the darkness of his mind. Perhaps his life background forced him to run away from the ever changing and dominating world where his words were unheard of. The darkness slowly, gradually manifested his mind and instead of using the good of it, he chose to drown in it's unknown depths. Nate was probably nothing but a medium to cleanse the accumulating layer of anger and rage stuck on the skin of the Lost Boy. The different world was perhaps the hidden society comprising of people who chose to differ from the destructing outside world. 

The story made me dive further in the depth of human consciousness. The lost boy, when freed from the ugly form covering him up, it is said that he is found to have remained of the same age as at time of his disappearance. Perhaps it is not his physical age but the mental one that had remained unchanged. For, he was but living in darkness for so long, his mind feeding on rage, hunger of power and dark thoughts, that he had missed out the growing of mental age, the gradual feeling of dawning maturity. He had been till now thriving on the thin string of hope attaching him to the world.

I would like to stop my theories here as I find loss of words to express the rest of my thoughts. But I am satisfied with how much I could write down. Write down in the comments whether you approve of my theories or not. Thank you for taking out time enough to read the constant talkativeness of my mind.

[Gisela · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story had a very interesting concept and I really like it. It had a ton of potential, but it fell short. I didn't care about the characters and the climax was meh to me.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I purchased this graphic novel geared towards children, I bought it because I deeply love all things creepy, eerie, and terrifying, and all the more so when aimed at children. Alvin Schwartz’s Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark remains one of my all time favorites in the genre of young adult horror. I’ve also greatly enjoyed more recent entries such as The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls and Charlie and the Grandmothers. So, when I saw this text, with its creepy premise and spectacular, eerie art-style, I thought I would soon be reading an instant classic in the young adult horror genre. Admittedly, I am no huge fan of comic books—but I have greatly enjoyed several graphic novels including V for Vendetta and The Complete Persepolis, and am open to the form. The Lost Boy, unfortunately, does not live up to its expectations. Apart from admittedly creepy and beautiful art, it seems very little time was put into the pacing or direction of this story’s plot. The back of the book almost sells the text as a detective story—and it has all the right set up—a young boy moves into a new house and discovers a mysterious old tape recorder under the creaking floorboards of his new room. Furthermore, the tape recorder holds the final thoughts of a young boy who went missing from his very house. A very promising premise! However, it seems Greg Ruth has only ever read the beginnings of great horror/detective fiction, since beyond the initial set-up the plot seems rushed, haphazard, and fickle. Character’s motivations are shaky, we know very little if anything about the protagonist or his friend, and the “Tom Button” character is needlessly aloof and unbelievable. I think that perhaps this was originally several different projects, or maybe planned as a much larger series that got shuffled together into the hodge-podge that it is. The environment might be the only saving grace of the text, and it does seem that genuine thought was put into the creation of layered and complex environments for the characters to interact in. However, a unique world does not a compelling fantasy story make. 2/5 for the consistency of the art style and the originality of some of the settings.

[Jenna · Rating 2 out of 5]

While it's a two-star rating, I have to say that if I was simply looking at the artwork, it'd have been a 3-4 star rating. The art is gorgeous in this children's graphic novel, almost as if you could take any panel and put it on the wall and frame it (hopefully having owned the book, first). The story itself also had some intriguing ideas that caught my attention.

That being said, I just couldn't get into it at all. The story, while interesting, hopped from bit to bit without really feeling connected to anything. There were magical woodland creatures that talked and insect warriors that rode birds and a mystic and mysterious evil and forces of good that looked remarkably like the forces of evil and for some reason the main boy was chosen for no discernible reason. The girl character had hints of being interesting, but never really was fleshed out at all other than a sort of plucky party member of sorts.

Could've been mind-blowing fantasy that swept you away to dark and haunted worlds, but instead it was just a book with pretty illustrations.

[Elsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

As someone who read manga to help them to read novels graphic novels have always been an amazing read for me. This book was very interesting and you really get curious on what happened to Walt mostly once you find out more from his tapes. I found the ending a little predictable though which was sad but they also give you an ending with more questions then answers. I can see why graphic novels can be difficult for some people to read because the narrative bubbles can be hard to figure out. But this book was a decent graphic novel. The thing about this graphic novel that I feel was the most interesting is the story, because its about a world hidden within our own with secrets and danger that seems to be coming into our world.

[KatelynnCurl]

I like this book because it's about a mysterious boy and he moved into this neighborhood and he found this tape recorder and he taped all the stuff he can and he meets a girl and her new about this boy that use to live in the same house that the old boy lived in. In the middle of the story, the boy and the girl goes in the woods to find this other boy that use to live in the old house that the new boy lived in. I'm not going to tell you about the other side of the story to find out at your library.

[Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Things I enjoyed about the book are the absolutely STUNNING artwork, I was however incredibly confused by the story. It feels a bit like you've been dropped into the Chronicles of Narnia, but halfway through the series and you've not read the preceding books. It leaves you feeling a bit confused, but I suppose it helps you understand how Nate and Tabitha feel.

[Britt Meter · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars 🌟 🤩 ✨️
Note moves into a new house and finds records of the missing boy Walter, and every creature is following and showing Nate and Tabitha a new world that needs saving from. I was surprised how quick I read it, and I liked the art and the storyline, reminded me of Spiderwick.

[Anais · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read, it had an engaging story and the art is good.

[Sus · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun graphic novel with a unique set of characters, easy read.

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great artwork, but a bit confusing!

[Mary Mason · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is really good and if you like crime stories this book is for you!

[Kathrine Whitfield · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is really good. The lost boys name is Walt and he is trying to find his way back home. Also there are these two other kids their names are Nike and Kathleen a there trying to find him to bring him back home.

[16elliots]

The Lost Boy is by Greg Ruth. The Lost Boy is a very engaging form of graphic novel. It is not a joke like Breaking Up. It has a serious story. It is definetly fictional but it fits in with the world of the book. The artwork is very detailed and engaging. It is all in black and white and is drawn to show that this is somewhat of a dark story. The Lost Boy takes place in a small town. He moved to house where a boy who disappeared years before used to live. Nate is a very interesting character. He came to the small town with no friends. He made friends with this girl next door named Tabitha and the woodlanders. When Nate moves into his new room, he finds a tape recorder under the floor boards with a post it that has his name on it. When he listens to the tapes, he finds out that they are about the boy who disappeared. They were a sort of a diary. After a while of listening to them, the neighbor named Tabitha approached him and told him that she knew about the tapes. After that, Nate and Tabitha started listening to the tapes together, and used them to help find the missing the boy. In this town there were mysterious creatures called the woodlanders. The woodlanders helped Nate and Tabitha try and figure out what happened to the missing boy. This led into a engaging and detailed storyline.
In my opinion, graphic novels are an amazing type of book. I feel like they can be so many different genres. Graphic novels are amazing because they show all of the details and excitement of a novel, and they add a lot of pictures to more show you what is happening. My favorite part about reading The Lost Boy was comparing what I imagined from the words to the pictures that accompany them. My least favorite part about this book was that it ended. Graphic novels ending, a lot of the time, mean the end to the story because graphic novels usually don't have sequels. When I was reading this book, I felt like I was just waiting to see what each mishap lead to. Anyone who likes a good mystery, with some fantastical elements accompanying it, would absolutely love this book. I think the detailed black and white look really expressed the feeling I felt while reading the book. I think the major motif in this book was the doll. I think it represented the missing boy. It shows this by being everywhere while still being nowhere to be found. I think the major themes to take away from this book are the woodlanders and the missing boy. They both are the main sparks to the storyline. Someone could gain curiosity from reading this book. This book shows that if you just keep looking there is always something new to discover. Overall, I would give this a 4/5 stars because although this book was interesting and very detailed, it was not the most impressive piece of litterature.

[Joella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nate and his family just moved to a new town. But strange things are happening in this town. For one there are black birds that watch Nate as he moves into his new house. Then there is the way the neighbor girl reacts when he meets her. And there are some reel to reel tapes that are hidden in his new room. As he starts to listen to the tapes, he and Tabitha (the neighbor girl) realize that things around this town are even more crazy then they thought possible. There are animals–Woodlanders–who go around dressed in clothes. And then there is a boy who looks like a rather large doll that can talk. As Nate tries to make sense of what is going on, he realizes that he must venture into the woods where few (if any) have come back in order to save a place he has just started to call home from a dark evil that he doesn’t even understand.

This graphic novel is great. First of all the illustrations are amazing. What with darkening the outer bits of the pages (for when they are listening to a tape recording) to having everything on a grey-scale (for when one is remembering the past or telling Nate about something that happened in the past) and having a the normal white pages with no light-grey (for the “present” day Nate and Tabitha story) there is no confusion as to what happened when. Plus, the story has just enough complexity and foreshadowing (look at the panel that takes up all of page 2 after you have read the whole book and you will understand what I had forgotten once I was into the book, yet totally got when I had to go and look at the book again) to keep the reader wondering–and dreading and hoping–for what is coming next. And the use of how the panels were thought out was great. It wasn’t all the same amount of panels on each page. It all varied based on the pacing and importance of the story–which is just as it should be. With all the branches and animals dressed in clothes (also riding other animals) there is quite a bit that is strange happening in the book. And some parts I got a bit confussed about. For example, there are the twigs and whatnot that Haloran uses and then there are the branches from the Vespertine and Tom Button have for body parts (the Vespertine being bad and Tom being good). Plus there are good animals who wear clothes and bad animals who wear clothes. Basically, the fact that there is so much that is happening would make it hard to understand without the clues that can only be seen and not just read in text. This is the type of graphic novel to give to adventure or fantasy lovers who aren’t just wanting a simple plot to keep their mind occupied. This is for a serious reader who will work a little for the wealth of a good story.

[Kristen Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I received The Lost Boy in the mail, I knew I had to read it that week. A fantasy graphic novel that was so pleasing to the eye, I could not resist diving into it, pushing a lot of books on my list. I was not disappointed and from the first page was captured by the story. Nate has just moved into town and finds a tape recorder under the floorboards of his new room. The story told on this tape is nothing short of fantastical. With the help of a neighbor girl named Tabitha, they delve into the tapes, recorded 50 years ago by a boy who later disappeared.

I loved the darkness of the illustrations that matched the story perfectly. Nate starts seeing the creatures most cannot see and finds himself involved in the tale personally, not just listening to it. I don't want to give too much away but the story was wrought with danger and a variety of fantastical creatures. I loved the twist and I felt I never wanted the book to end. I have a feeling this is the first in a new series (hopefully!) as there is a lot left at the end that can be turned into a series.

Nate and Tabitha are both characters that you want to root for and I found myself loving each character encountered, whether bad or good. The illustrations really brought the whole story to life and reminded me of Doug TenNapel's darker graphic novel Cardboard. I'm really excited to see what will be next for Nate in the next book and will probably revisit this book frequently while I wait.

Final Verdict: A dark fantasy that is still appropriate for middle grades and contains illustrations that will blow the reader away.

[Stacy Palm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've fallen in love with graphic novels for children! I was first introduced to this genre with the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick, and immediately begun looking for other books that captivated my attention with their mix of words and art. This lead me to my most recent discovery of The Lost Boy by Greg Ruth. I was actually familiar with some of his earlier illustration work completed in collaboration with other children's writers. He is incredibly talented and has a skill for producing pencil drawings that are realistic and dimensionally intriguing.

The story behind this graphic novel is just as intriguing. It's a mystery that has elements both strange and eerie. I found myself thinking more in depth about the surrounding atmosphere of the story due to the illustrations that provided additional character to the plot. If you have never had the opportunity to read a graphic novel or have read many I encourage you to take a look at this novel, which will lead you on a wondrous and mysterious adventure.

[ashes ➷ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Look, the illustrations are phenomenal. I'd recommend giving this a read just for that.

But I couldn't get into the story... I found myself halfway through the book and kind of just wondering, so what does the bad guy want? Why does he want it? What's he gonna do when he gets it, anyway? What's the point?

And, really, that's what detracts from an easy 4-5 star rating (for the artwork!!! Sigh... Such beautiful work) for me. I could not make myself feel things for these characters, despite a lot of wonderful work done on them...

And, okay, I'm annoyed at the 'abused kid becomes a villain' stuff. Sorry, but Walt was not at all evil to begin with, and to go 'he has darkness in his hard because his father is a neglectful bastard'... It hurts. I did not like that one bit.

[Aiza Idris (biblio_mom) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my very first review of graphic novels. So lets get this over with. By the way, before getting started, since this is by scholastic, I am reviewing this as an 11 year old girl.

(okay Aiza, take a deep breath and be 11)

The graphic is good, the dialogue came along nicely, there is a strong plot to the story and it goes flawlessly and did not end abruptly. The story was intensifying towards the ending, but it was a nice scene with a kindness element in it. A kind of surprise that I needed.

The characters and world built nicely. The main and supporting characters are likeable too. Its adorable to see tiny creatures riding animals (I had imagined chucky riding a crab or something).

At time like these (pandemic, lockdown, MCO, whatever you called it), its suitable to read something lighter, such as graphic novels, especially for middle schoolers like this one.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't believe so few people are talking about this wonderful graphic novel... The artwork alone is simply stunning and the story - while clearly a fantasy - is anything but typical. Drawn in absolutely gorgeous pencil and ink, Greg Ruth has created a story that's just as strong as his artwork. Nate's family has just moved to a new town and a new house, where Nate discovers an old tape recorder and reels of tape in his room. What he hears sends him on a quest to discover a place called The Kingdom.... And that's all I'm going to tell you. Read it.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fine black and white artwork, solid scary story, good characterization, better than most graphic novels for children, produced by Scholastic, so you'll see it in your schools a lot, and it should be. Harry, 9, liked it, and said he was afraid it might "give him a bad dream," which to me is a pretty good thing about a kid scary story. Kind of Gaiman story, with loss and real scary and a talking baby doll and talking animals and a lost boy in a dark forest…. Good stuff! I didn't absolutely love it, but it's very good, for sure!