The Comic Book War

by Jacqueline Guest

It’s 1943 and World War II is raging. 15-year-old Robert Tourond is home in Calgary, but his three brothers are all fighting the Nazis.Robert follows the exploits of his favourite comic book heroes who also battle bad guys in the comics Robert spends his allowance on. When Robert finds a meteorite in Nose Hill Park near his home,in the same week that a meteorite features in his heroes’ stories,Robert is convinced that a magical link exists between them, and that the superheroes will protect his brothers.Robert has a nemesis of his own on the streets of Calgary – a girl they call “Crazy Charlie”. When Robert gets a job delivering telegrams,Charlie does too, cutting into his profits. Then they discover exactly what news those telegrams they’re delivering have for the recipients.Then Charlie has to deliver one to Robert’s house. Can Robert and his heroes really protect all three brothers and bring them home? What will happen if reality comes crashing into his world,like a meteorite falling from space? Who will help then?

Genres: Canada, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, War, World War II, School

200 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 15, 2014

Reviews

[Sylvia McNicoll · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all a big congratulations to the author Jacqueline Guest who has just been appointed as a member of the Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honour. She is a lively writer who strives to encourage kids to rise to their full potential.
Honestly, it's a strange coincidence that I just finished reading The Comic Book War. I'd put it off because I didn't want to read yet another story with the backdrop of World War II. But the cover kind of pulsed at me from my bedside pile of potential.
I loved The Comic Book War.
First of all it's a great home front story with a different perspective on the war. Robert Tourond is the youngest brother of four left behind as his siblings go off to fight. The way he deals with his anxieties about them is to read comic books and predict the outcomes of battles through their plotlines. He develops a deep superstition that he must read every new issue to keep his brothers safe. In order to earn money for his obsession he works as a telegraph delivery boy alongside a wonderful strong girl character Charlie. It was fascinating to read about this delivery process. I can't imagine having to deliver countless missing in action telegraphs to parents after a big battle.
Jacqueline used great skill to incorporate comic books we won't know in a way that we can feel the main character's passion for them. The takeaway for me is that art, in this case comic books, can be a great source of comfort and distraction in times of trouble. As a grandparent of eight, arts educator, and writer (and former comic book lover) myself, I also am reminded that we should honour whatever our young people are interested in.

[Randy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Robert lives in Calgary. It's 1943, and his three older brothers are overseas fighting in WW2. When Robert finds a meteorite, he begins to see coincidences between the story lines in his favourite comics, and the events his brothers' are describing. In order to keep buying new comics, Robert gets a job delivering telegrams. He must compete for this job with his arch nemesis, Charlie Donnelly.

I picked this book up solely because it is one of this year's Red Maple nominees.

I finished it for the same reason. Yes, it did get better as the story progressed, but it was predictable.

I would recommend this to Joshua. He might like the comic book part.

[Brayden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this book a four stars because it was very detailed,interesting,suspenseful,and realistic. I would recommend this book to all ages because the story takes place in 1943 so older people may have some sort of connection. Maybe they had relatives fighting in the war and experiencing the hard times they were going through.May I also recommend this book to kids about nine and up just because it's a really exciting and may appeal to comic book fans. The reason I did not give it all five stars is because it has some really dull parts. Read this book if you like action and suspense!

[Eva · Rating 3 out of 5]

The use of comics as a coping mechanism was realistic for the time period and an interesting way to show how kids can process grief and worry. It was sad but a fairly accurate portrayal of war time in Canada. I liked Charlie and wanted to experience more of her journey.The Métis piece was a nice way to integrate diversity into the story and I wish it had been included a little more.

[Scout Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading the book and learning more about World War 2. It was a great piece of historical fiction. And the characters were interesting too, I liked Robert and Charlene's friendship a lot.

[ThottieKatrina · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was increasingly disappointing with no hint of character development to be seen. I am honestly confused on how this book was published and given to seventh graders.

[Olli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very enjoyable children's book! I thought some parts of it were a little strange, but I suppose that makes sense because the whole plot is a little strange (in a good way) :)

[Alex Baugh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really think this should be 3 1/2 stars, but Goodreads doens't allow partical stars.

It's 1943 and Robert Tourand, 15, misses and worries about his three older brothers who are off fighting in Europe with the Canadian armed forces. So when he finds a small piece of a meteorite, it becomes a kind of magical charm for him. Thanks to it, Robert soon, he begins to see and believe a cosmic connection between what his brother write about from the front line in their letters, and the heroes in the comic books he obsessed with.

And so, he pairs brother to comic according the their parallel experiences: favorite brother Patrick is assigned The Maple Leaf Kid, brother James and Sedna of the Sea go together because James could use her wisdom, brother George, a pilot, is paired with flying ace Captain Ice. Their assignment: to keep his brother's safe.

It all works nicely until his mother finds a pair of torn pants and decides Robert need to be taught a lesson. Now, she decides, his weekly allowance, his only means of buying the newest editions of the comic book that contain secret messages about his brothers, would be better spent on war stamps. Now, Robert needs to figure out a new way to make sure he can buy his three favorite comics every month.

And it seems that ever since his found his magical piece of the universe, luck has been with him. When his teacher announces that the student who collects the most fat for the war effort will win four completely filled books of war stamps, valued at $4.00, Robert thinks he's found the answer to funding his comic addiction. But despite his best efforts, he didn't expect such stiff competition from Crazy Charlie (Charlene) Donnelly, a girl as much on a mission as Robert.

So, when fat collection doesn't yield the needed money, Robert decides to take a job as a telegram delivery boy. Trouble is, Crazy Charlie has the same idea. They are both hired, and as more and more telegrams need to be delivered, Charlie seems to be able to get around Calgary some much faster than Robert on her dilipated second hand bike compared to his sleek newish Raleigh. Robert is so busy thinking about his comic books, he never bothers to ask Charlie about herself. Nor does he think about what is in the telegrams he is delivering, until one arrives at his house in Charlie's hands.

At first, I didn't much care for The Comic Book War. I found Robert to be a very unappealing character, too focused on himself and completely lacking in empathy for anyone else. Ironically, Robert and Charlie are both loners, outsiders that could have been friends from the start, if Robert had been able to see beyond himself. But as I continued to read, I began to see Robert in a different light, as a person who could actually have some compassion for the recipients of the telegrams he was delivering.

I also thought that Robert was a little too old to be so obsessed with comic books, even for the WWII time frame. But this is, after all, a coming of age novel. I began to think about how kids will use all kinds of ways to cope with fear, loss and trauma. Robert keeps his fear about his brothers (and about growing up) from overwhelming him using magical thinking (always a good defense mechanism) that his comic book heroes will keep his brothers (and him) safe.

Charlie, who was much more in touch with reality, was a good contrast to Robert, despite her own problems in life. I would have actually liked to have read more about Charlie, who is a story in her own right.

It is always interesting to find a Canadian story about kids in WWII because they have such a distinct perspective. Canada was still part of the British Commonwealth in 1939, and even though it declared war on the Axis powers independently of Britain, it sent troops overseas to fight with the British Expeditionary Forces and the RAF.

Two nit-picky things did bother me. Kids did not carry their school books to school in backpacks back them. They used school bags or carried them in their arms. And I did wonder about why lights were left on so freely at night. I thought all of Canada had blackout precautions during the war. But I could be wrong on these.

This book is recommended for readers age 11+

This review was originally posted at The Children's War

[HuanYi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most “magical” war with the comic book...
Today, we talk about “The Comic Book War”. I just finished reading this book at Feb. 22, 2015. I think this is a very cool book. This book was written by Jacqueline Guest. It’s about an adventure in comic book and the real world war...
Robert: doing the good jobs in this book. He also is the hero in this book. He lives in Canada. He is grade 10 (15 years old). He likes reading the comic books very much, but his parents are very poor. He needs a job to get money, and buy those comic books. He has three brothers whoethe Second World War in the other side of the world. And then the interesting things happen...
This book starts from Robert found a meteorite after a thunderclap. After that, every time he reads a comic book, he found he can be in the comic. And, more impotent thing is when he gets a book, he always found there were some letters came from his brothers. And the same things happen in the comic book too. He found he can read those comic books to get the news about his brothers before other people. But Robot needs more money to buy the comic books, so he can know more about his brothers and help them in the war. But no one believed him and they want to stop him spending that money on those comic books. But he didn’t listen to them. He gets a job and also has a competitor, Crazy Charlie (girl, same age with Robert). Crazy Charlie also is the heroine in this book. At first, she is the colleague with Robert but they are good friends later. Sometimes, they will meet at some race. She said she also needs the money, but Robert didn’t know why. Then they were friends. At the same time, one of his brothers is lost in the war...
I think this is an interesting book. There don't have so many people can put a comic book and a war together. At last there have all the answers for those interesting questions: why Charlie needs that money? Are Robert brothers all live? Are there any people will believe Robert’s story? Why he can use that meteorite to contact his brothers? I can’t understand why Robert’s parents and other people didn’t believe him. There already have many clues they can see. Why Robert didn’t show them the meteorite at the first time, is he the only person who can see it or is there any other reason?
I give this book four stars out of five. I Choose this point because this book full of imagination. There have many problem you can get the answer only after you finish reading this book. In this book, the beginning and the ending echoes to each other. But there still have some place is not really reasonable. So that is why I give it an 80% mark.
I think this is about interesting, explored, science fiction and war. This is also good for grade 7 and 8, but I think they are good for all the younger and older people to read, because the book can increase your imagination, can help you to think in the other way. If you are this type of person, you will like this book.

This review is by Huan yi
In Feb. 25.2015
Huan yi is a student at University Heights public school; grade seven, like to read books, computer, and sport.

[CanadianReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's 1943 and Robert, 15, has three brothers overseas battling Hitler. He believes that his three favourite comic books intimate the challenges these brothers face and that by reading the comic books, which always end well, he can ensure that things go well for his brothers, too. When Robert's mother decides to direct his allowance toward the purchase of war savings certificates, he takes a job as a telegram delivery boy. He's hired along with his arch-nemesis, Charlene--a.k.a. "Charlie". A neighbour, a Polish refugee called Mr. Glowinski, plays a role as advisor to Robert, but his story testifies to the tragedy and human cost of war. Events ultimately conspire to cure Robert of his defensive fantasy. (Adult readers can't help but wonder if Robert isn't mentally ill, so powerful are his fantasies. However, I'm not sure how much these concerns would trouble younger readers.) In the end, he realizes real war is not a comic book narrative.

While Robert seems a great deal younger than his age and the conclusion of the book is far too pat, THE COMIC BOOK WAR is a satisfying read for its target audience of upper elementary students. The plot is enjoyable and moves along very briskly. The text could have done with a far better edit. I saw a number of spelling and grammatical errors--principal for principle; might for mite etc.

[Anne Patton · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1943 a tiny meteorite slammed into Nose Hill on the northern outskirts of Calgary and 15 year-old Robert Tourond chased it down, proclaiming that "he'd found a small piece of heaven".
A loner at school, Robert preferred the parallel universe of his Canadian comic books, the only ones available during W.W.II. He spent his weekly allowance buying the latest editions. Trouble was, 25 cents wasn't enough to buy all the comics he wanted, so Robert jumped at the chance to get a job delivering telegrams.
Tension escalated when a strange girl masquerading as a boy also got a delivery job. Both young people experienced the agonies of war as they delivered telegrams from the War Office and had to comfort devastated families. Still, Robert knew his three older brothers were protected by the meteorite and the comic book heroes. Until they weren't.
I appreciate how Metis culture is woven into the story, as when Robert mailed a sash to his brother in Italy. The over-the-top lingo of comic book heroes also threads through the book, creating humorous breaks from the story tension.
This is a tightly written story about friendship, growing up and facing tragedy. The W.W.II setting gives a realistic portrait of the stresses and privations suffered by families far away from the battlefields.

[Mabel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Robert thinks that the comic books that he reads leads to answers on how his 3 brothers are doing. Nobody believes him, but he continues to think that comic books tell the answer. However, Robert needs money to buy them, so he decides to apply for a job. At the same time, his rival Charlie also does the something, cutting into his profits. Will Robert save his brothers by reading comic books? OR was this all just a misunderstanding?

I picked up this book because it was one of this year's Red Maple nominee and because one of my friends recommended it to me.

I finished it for the same reason and also because my friend kept on telling me that it would get better. Honestly though, I was not impressed by how the author wrote the ending. However, if the author decided to write a sequel then it would make a lot more sense.

I didn't really like this book because I found it kind of boring, too predictable, not much action and i didn't understand some parts of the book. I don't really understand how this book was a Red Maple nominee because in my opinion it wasn't that good.

I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone because I didn't like it and I don't think that any of my friends would like it too.

[Jocelyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Robert lives in 1943 in the midst of World War Two and his brothers are overseas fighting that Hitler. Robert loves comic books and when he realizes a connection between his brothers letters and his favourite comic book characters' stories he's convinced that the comic book characters are watching over and protecting his brothers. Now, all he has to do to confirm his brothers' safety is to buy comics, but when his mothers uses his allowance to buy war certificates, he must get a job and make his own money. The problem is, every time Robert finds a way to make money, a girl they call Crazy Charlie always intervenes.

I picked up this book as my last Red Maple nominee book. I finished this book because I wanted to know if there was actually a connection between Robert's brothers and the comic book characters.

Did I like this book? Not really. It was kind of boring, and I didn't really understand the part about the war saving certificates. But if I had the option, I would've rated this 2.5 stars instead of two.

I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. I didn't think it was very good, and I don't know anyone who I think would enjoy this book.

[Aiyana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robert is an average kid living in 1943, only the comic books he reads correspond to his brothers safety. Maybe he's not so average. Robert knows that as long as he keeps buying and reading his comic books, his brothers will be safe and alive, and will defeat 'that Hitler'. Robert does everything in his power to make more money, to buy more comics. He meets friends along his journey, and learns about life, and about himself.

I chose this book because it was on the Red Maple reading list. I also thought it was going to be boring so I wanted to get it out of the way, boy was I wrong.

I finished this book, because I wanted to see how the author was going to find a way to explain why the comic books related so precisely to Robert's brothers. I have to say, I'm not too impressed with the ending.

I would recommend this book to Jackie. I'm not sure if this is the genre he enjoys, but I think he would enjoy the plot, and enjoy the character of Robert.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robert Tourond is from 1943. All his brothers are all overseas fighting in the war versus Hitler. One day, Robert saw a falling meteorite and soon in one of the letters of his brothers, one of them managed to see a meteorite as well. Robert soon realized that all the comic books have something to do with his brothers in war. So he keeps buying the comic books. To have enough money to buy comic books, he found a job for delivering telegrams and so did Crazy Charlie, so they both soon had the job delivering telegrams to different people.

The reason that I picked up this book is mainly because it is a red maple nominee.

The reason I finished the book is because I thought it was really interesting that Robert and Charlie were friends around the middle of the book.

My recommendation for this book would be for Jocelyn because I know she would pick up this book because it would be a red maple nominee and also Im pretty sure she would have enjoyed this book as much as I had.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Comic Book War was a slow moving book. It took the author a while to get to the part everyone knew was coming, halfway through to book. When I had read it, it started getting interesting, then went to being boring, but picked its self back up.

The main character, Robert, is in love with comic books and has three brothers, George, James, and Patrick, who are fighting in the war. He was convinced that his three favorite comic books were telling him what his brothers were up to.

The book starts in the year 1943 and ends in 1944, when WW2 was going on. The book talks a lot about the war and how difficult it was for lots of families.

I have this book 3 stars only because how many times the book lost my focus because it started to get boring at some points then picked it's self back up then got boring again.

[Jack · Rating 1 out of 5]

the comic book war was a slow book it did not have much action it was about a kid named robbert that finds a metiorite and thing it coneccts to his brothers who are fighting over seas at world war2 he also thinks that the things that happen to his brother get printed in his comics. he has a friend carzy charlie who fights with him over a telegram job so they both get it. one day charlie delevers a telegram that tells him his favorite brother patrick is missing in action. he rushes to the comic book store and finds that the comics went out of print. then he gets one more telegram that says his brother is dead. the book wasent the the best but it was ok

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Micro Review for the less-then-willing reader.
Stars: 3/5 or 7.5/10
About: Robert has to keep on buying comic books so his heroes keep his brothers safe while they're fighting overseas in WWII. (World War Two)
One word to describe how you felt reading it: Intrigued



The action kept me on my toes and reading bits of the book whenever I could. Its a heart stopper and very surprising results come up.

Even though there was a few *Face palm* moments!

[Niki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in 1943, young Canadian, Robert Tourond, believes that he has a cosmic link to his brothers that are fighting overseas, but struggles to have anyone believe him. Woven through the story is also Robert's budding friendship with his kind and helpful neighbour, as well as the more tumultuous relationship Robert has with his classmate Charlene. This story was somewhat interesting and a slight deviation from the standard war stories, with a "at home" focus and somewhat unpredictable ending.
2.5/5 stars.
Shortlisted for the 2016 MYRCA.

[Colette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robert considers himself very lucky after finding a meteorite and he begins to notice some strange coincidences: great things happen when he holds it and his 3 brothers who are away fighting WWII could use all the luck they can get. But in the days of rations, his parents are using his allowance for victory bonds and Robert needs to find a job to be able to pay for his favorite comic books. Recommended for middle grade readers who enjoy a gripping plot and realistic characters.

[Ethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book Comic book war is a very good book. It has a bunch of things going on the book. I thought that the middle was a bit slow but in the end it got really good and exciting. Robert has three brothers and they are all in the army fighting hitler. Robert goes on a bunch of adventures with his new friend, I recommend this book to people that like a little fantasy and adventure. Overall I rate this book four stars.

[Rebecca Mckenzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved Ghost Messages, and was really intrigued to read this book after meeting Jacqueline Guest! The research put into this book was fascinating and I appreciate learning about what life was like at 'home' in Canada during the war My daughter and I had the pleasure of meeting the author a couple of months ago and I have to say that we learned so much history in that 1 hour that it was totally worth pulling her out of school for a day!

[Riley 17 · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Comic Book war was a very good book. It was filled with suspense. The comic book war is about a boy named Robert Toround. Roberts brothers went away to fight against Hitler. Robert was really worried about his brothers so he read comics to get his mind off his brothers. I would recommend this book to all the red maple people.

[Amy Mathers · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://amysmarathonofbooks.ca/the-com...

[jing | aperipateticbibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

70% — 3.5 stars

The Comic Book War was an interesting read, and Robert has a very imaginative and inspiring belief that it seems eccentric yet so real...

[Shawn Bird]

Charming book about WW2 on the home front in Canada. Suitable for age 9-12 particularly.

[Mags · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and well-written book. I enjoyed the story and the way the character uses comic books as a type of shielding from reality.

[PugFlakez · Rating 1 out of 5]

Its retarded.