Zawa + The Belly of the Beast

by Michael Dialynas

The GLAAD Award-winning co-creator of Wynd delivers a timely and topical fable, for fans of Twig and Marceline the Scream Queen!

The elusive guardian spirit Zawa is eternally trapped inside her mountain, a folk legend with only industrial sludge to eat, and nothing to nourish her. The result is nothing but bitterness, paranoia, and an existence that no one would envy. But when two siblings from a nearby village, Bandit and Thatcher, help her escape, they’ll quickly learn that the way to calm Zawa’s heart is through a good meal shared with friends! But with a corrupt mayor and his private army enraged at the prospect of Zawa being free, it will take more getting involved to truly set things right… From GLAAD Award-winning and Eisner Award-nominated cartoonist Michael Dialynas (Wynd, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), this macabre yet charming eco-fable about the freedom in friendship and nature overcoming greed will charm the hearts of readers of all ages. Collects Zawa + The Belly of the Beast #1-5.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics, Young Adult, Adventure

160 pages, Paperback

First published October 29, 2024

Reviews

[Marnie (Enchanted Bibliophile) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3⅓ ✨

5 ✨ Art
The colourful art really made this spectacular, it was a feast for my eyes.
2½ ✨ Story
The story made me think of Moana but without the demigod, and sass.

[Δημήτρης Μπ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael Dialynas has made an excellent job (as he has done many times in the past) crafting a very interesting story that you can somehow relate to, by parallel to the modern world and humanity's undeniably dark consequences on nature - although sometimes it can get predictable - and mixing it with some captivating, well drawn and beautifully coloured illustrations.

[Mario Alba · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite comics of the year: great art, amazing colors, and a fun, original, unpredictable story.

[Ιωάννα Μπουρνουσούζη · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 ⭐️

[Jennifer Dawes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Geared towards a young reader audience this story threads in (gentle - not in your face) messaging about friendship, misinformation, industrialization leaning into nutrition, colonization, and ecology on an island nation. The theme of things are not always what they seem runs throughout the story. Is Zawa a monster or a guardian?
Bandit and Thatcher run their family bakery. Their mother works for the Mayor, who runs the food factory, after the death of their father. With limited access to fresh food, the kids decide to raid the factory on the eve of the feast celebrating the awakening of the Guardian of the Mountain. Of course, the raid leads to Bandit's discovery of the prisoner Zawa. Escaping, Zawa becomes friends with Bandit, Thatcher, Belle their cat, and Spot the chicken.
The art and storytelling are really good. I liked the color choices and how it further depicts personalities. The Mayor, who controls the factory and distributes the highly processed food, is the obvious villain and that plotline is predictable. Other supporting storylines build up the other characters and tell the more compelling story.

[Alicia · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 almost a 3 but I was so distracted by the visual art style that the message almost didn't make it through. It used the comparison to Twig, which I adored and both the art and story worked together, in this case, one fell flat- a chaotic vibrant style on it's own but didn't match well to the story.

I do like the approach of a girl being fed nothing but sludge and horrible stuff and that's why she's beastly, however once she's fed good nutritious food with caring individuals, things change pretty quickly for the girl under the mountain.

[Dave Archer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pulled this one off the shelf in the teen library while working a shift. The testimonial on the front described beautiful worlds created by the author/illustrator, which I agree with, but that's pretty much where the appreciation ends. I read more into the message than what was presented as a moral at the end, and the story provided too much narration, telling the reader what was happening rather than letting us infer. It is meant for teens though, so maybe I'm too harsh a critic. Either way, I'll be on the lookout for better YA graphic novels.

[Ανδρέας Μιχαηλίδης · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite the enjoyable ecological/anti-capitalist fairy tale, with darker tones in places that definitely does not make it geared exclusively towards children.

I find it doesn't quite take off immediately and the very last page/epilogue is a bit weaker than it could have been, but overall, the play between folktale, real-world symbolism and a sort of tribal island mythology work very well and the art is fun and beautiful.

[eva ⚘ · Rating 4 out of 5]

[4.5⭐]

what a GREAT graphic novel 💗 very unique, vibrant and detailed art and the plot was very refreshing! the eco-critical and anti-capitalist commentary was spot on and was weaved smoothly into the narrative. uhh i just wanted it to be a tad bit longer; the last part could have been stretched a bit more imo 🤍

highly recommend it to children and teens for its educational value, too!

[Mulberrys_Book_Corner · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting premise and story, but sadly suffers from telling and not showing a lot of aspects, feeling underdeveloped overall as a result.
The timeframe is far too short for real bonds to develop between each character enough for the climax to feel resonant.

Love Zawa's design though, super cute! The art throughout is gorgeous, certainly the standout of the story.

[Clint · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zawa is so cute, and the emotional highlight of this story for me. The rest of this comic is a pretty familiar allegory about corporate exploitation of the environment, but Dialynas’s imaginative world-building elevates the specifics.

[Raven Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

Edgy and humor mixed to have a story of consumerism, environmentalism and compliancy with the status quo. Wild illustrations show the beauty and ugly of the action. I would have liked to have known a little more about the background of the characters as well as who some characters are at the end, but overall a good story that might be familiar, but that makes it all the better.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the story of this graphic novel isn't my favorite, the illustrations are just absolutely captivating! Vibrant colors and extremely detailed. This will appeal to fantasy graphic novel readers.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

adored the art style. story-wise, I just wasn't feeling it. kinda generic story about humans polluting the earth, but it doesn't really engage with that on a really meaningful level and the plot just kinda goes through the motions.

[Alana · Rating 3 out of 5]

eARC

I think if I'd read the praise, I would've had better expectations. This is definitely for kids and kind of what I assumed Moana was about??

[Mee Too · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of those good for all ages reads. Good message good story.

[Jordan Henry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great look into environmentalism, the future of the environment, and an updated scary Lorax-like guardian who craves food!

Great tale of the power of personal choice.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an amazing story about the importance of treating the planet with kindness, otherwise it will turn into a giant mountain rage monster and destroy everything you love.

[Eric Edwards · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like the art though it gets a bit confusing at the end. The story started out strong but kind of petered out. Also the recipes mostly sound gross.

[Al Capwned · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wholesome story combining food with environmental issues.

[Anthony Medina · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was fine. Not really made for adult dudes, but a cute story.

[Sarah AK · Rating 4 out of 5]

More like a 3.5, but THAT ART, THO! I live for color and chaos.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story is fairly simplistic but the art is gorgeous and just because a story is predictable does not mean it isn't still enjoyable to experience.

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

awesome art style, superbly rendered. not much story yet but enjoyed it so far!

[Juni Zavala · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, fast pace

[Dimitris Patriarcheas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Εξαιρετικό σχέδιο αλλά όχι τόσο εξαιρετική η δομή της ιστορίας που πραγματεύεται αυτό το graphic novel.

[Lea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good message and GREAT illustrations!

[Βιβή Κανάρη · Rating 5 out of 5]

cozy ανάγνωσμα με έμφαση σε γαστριμαργικά και οικολογικά στοιχεία. Ωραία κοσμοπλασία και ωραία χρώματα

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this delightful. It's about an island nation that is much like the modern world. It's homogenized the food into garbage while abusing its natural resources. A brother and sister come across Zawa chained in a basement and free her. Zawa is the island's connection to the earth. Setting her free sets off a chain of events that will forever change it all. I thought it was a great all-ages story. Some people are going to say it's woke. I say "Who cares what it is?" A good story is a good story.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read more graphic novel reviews at The Graphic Library.

On the remote island of Mesa's Boon, Bandit and Thatcher run an underground kitchen providing fresh meals to locals using recipes their dad taught them. But, if only they had more ingredients, which are usually hoarded by a greedy company that squanders resources on the island. In an ill-conceived attempt to sneak in and stockpile fresh foods, the siblings find much more -- Zawa, a creature of myth, but also of cookies? She's been trapped below the surface, feeding on garbage and industrial waste, but she also could be the Spirit of the Mountain, and she also loves Bandit's cookies he fashioned to look like the Spirit. After an escape and some helpings of fresh food, Zawa's temperament completely changes, though her appetite is still ravenous! There's much more going on behind the company's door than shackling spirits and hoarding resources, including what Bandit and Thatcher's mom has been up to at work, and it all shakes the very foundation of the town, forcing the citizens to question the relationship they have with the natural world around them.​

What started as a sweet story about taming a monster through the power of food turned into a story asking readers to question environmental sustainability, resource depletion, and our responsibility as humans on this planet. But, where some stories fail by doing this in an obvious, obnoxious way, Dialynas wove these concepts in with adorable spirits, cats, and delicious food. At the end, there is a sense of hope, but it's going to take some work to get there. Readers are probably going to want some Spirt-of-the-Mountain-shaped cookies afterwards, so this could have some culinary tie-ins to inspire a few junior bakers.

​Dialynas' art is beautiful and vibrant as always. If readers love the lands outside the walls of Pipetown in Wynd, there's more where that came from in Zawa with the bright colors of Mesa's Boon village and the wilderness that surrounds it.

Sara's Rating: 9/10
Suitability Level: Grades 5-12