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Hocus & Pocus #1
The Legend of Grimm's Woods
Introducing a new series of interactive graphic novels--first published in France, and translated/transported to English language readers by Quirk Books.
Enter a world inspired by all of your favorite fairy tales--complete with gingerbread houses, a girl dressed in red, and seven children lost in the woods. Hocus & Pocus offers a new kind of reading experience--part game book, part graphic novel, and part Choose Your Own Adventure story. Readers can play as Hocus (a girl) or Pocus (a boy), choose a magic animal companion, and enter a colorful fairy tale forest of riddles, magical objects, and unusual characters. Succeed or fail, it's all up to you!
Enter a world inspired by all of your favorite fairy tales--complete with gingerbread houses, a girl dressed in red, and seven children lost in the woods. Hocus & Pocus offers a new kind of reading experience--part game book, part graphic novel, and part Choose Your Own Adventure story. Readers can play as Hocus (a girl) or Pocus (a boy), choose a magic animal companion, and enter a colorful fairy tale forest of riddles, magical objects, and unusual characters. Succeed or fail, it's all up to you!
152 pages, Paperback
First published September 4, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
September 4, 2018
I loved Choose Your Own Adventure books as a kid and I’ve loved graphic novels since then so a combination of these in game form seemed like a trifecta that couldn’t fail. In Hocus & Pocus you have the choice of character and which magical creature you will take on your adventure. Aimed at kids in middle school this interactive graphic novel includes “choices, puzzles, mysteries, and powerups”. For this adventure you will need a die, pencil and eraser.
Pocus has pink hair so naturally she was who I wanted to be for my first adventure. My choice of magical creature was also easy; the Boxobullfrog, “who keeps a bunch of weird things in its mouth to take when you need them”. I barely looked at the other options. Why wouldn’t I want a creature that produces handy weirdness when required?!
So with my character and creature chosen I took off on my adventure and fairly soon I was lost. I ended up on the exact same path in the forest several times and I thought for a while that I was going to be lost forever. There were times where I wandered around paths with no story. I went from a panel where all I needed to do was choose a number, flipped to the number and found another panel where all I needed to do was choose a number.
On my second adventure I decided to be Hocus with his hair sprayed pompadour. I kept my Boxobullfrog because “weird things in its mouth”! There was no other option for me although this little critter wasn’t as useful to me this time around. While I didn’t get lost on a path this time I had to return to the map of the castle so many times I felt the urge to scream in frustration. If I wound up at the Groundhog Day map again in a future adventure I’d write down each number I followed from it so I didn’t accidentally wind up at the same placeso many times more than once.
There are rules to follow regarding whether your magical creature is awake or asleep which involve searching for its food in the drawings and marking boxes on your Adventure Tracker. I probably would have loved this part when I was in the age group the book is intended for but now that I’m old it felt too much like homework to me and so I may have cheated, deciding that my magical creature was always going to be awake when the story gave me the option of obtaining their help. I expect a lot of kids will enjoy making notes each time they find some food for their creature or a star.
Because my brain has a habit of connecting pieces of information that have no relevance to one another (thanks, brain!) this book reminded me of an article I read last week where someone was discussing the differences between Pass the Parcel from the good ol’ days and now. Back when I was a child sometimes the music stopped on you during a game and sometimes it didn’t. When the next layer was opened there’d be a cheap plastic toy or a lolly or nothing. Apparently every layer now has a toy (that’s not some cheap plastic thing) and everyone has to win something or they’ll feel left out. Hold on; my brain is about to try to connect the dots for you.
In this story it felt as though no matter what I chose everything would end up fine in the end and that it was more an illusion of choice than the real deal. There was always the possibility in the Choose Your Own Adventures of my childhood that the wrong choice could be dangerous for the character and potentially lead to their demise but when I read this graphic novel straight through I didn’t uncover anything dastardly, which was disappointing. I was encouraged by the amount of panels I came across when I read from cover to cover that I hadn’t already seen so you could potentially read this a number of times and discover different parts of the story, albeit with the same ending.
The illustrations were cute. I particularly liked the tree at the crossroads in the Woods of the Treemen that looked like it was shrugging, not knowing which path to choose either.
Thank you to NetGalley and Quirk Books for granting my wish and giving me the opportunity to read this book. I’d give this 3.5 stars but am rounding up.
Pocus has pink hair so naturally she was who I wanted to be for my first adventure. My choice of magical creature was also easy; the Boxobullfrog, “who keeps a bunch of weird things in its mouth to take when you need them”. I barely looked at the other options. Why wouldn’t I want a creature that produces handy weirdness when required?!
So with my character and creature chosen I took off on my adventure and fairly soon I was lost. I ended up on the exact same path in the forest several times and I thought for a while that I was going to be lost forever. There were times where I wandered around paths with no story. I went from a panel where all I needed to do was choose a number, flipped to the number and found another panel where all I needed to do was choose a number.
On my second adventure I decided to be Hocus with his hair sprayed pompadour. I kept my Boxobullfrog because “weird things in its mouth”! There was no other option for me although this little critter wasn’t as useful to me this time around. While I didn’t get lost on a path this time I had to return to the map of the castle so many times I felt the urge to scream in frustration. If I wound up at the Groundhog Day map again in a future adventure I’d write down each number I followed from it so I didn’t accidentally wind up at the same place
There are rules to follow regarding whether your magical creature is awake or asleep which involve searching for its food in the drawings and marking boxes on your Adventure Tracker. I probably would have loved this part when I was in the age group the book is intended for but now that I’m old it felt too much like homework to me and so I may have cheated, deciding that my magical creature was always going to be awake when the story gave me the option of obtaining their help. I expect a lot of kids will enjoy making notes each time they find some food for their creature or a star.
Because my brain has a habit of connecting pieces of information that have no relevance to one another (thanks, brain!) this book reminded me of an article I read last week where someone was discussing the differences between Pass the Parcel from the good ol’ days and now. Back when I was a child sometimes the music stopped on you during a game and sometimes it didn’t. When the next layer was opened there’d be a cheap plastic toy or a lolly or nothing. Apparently every layer now has a toy (that’s not some cheap plastic thing) and everyone has to win something or they’ll feel left out. Hold on; my brain is about to try to connect the dots for you.
In this story it felt as though no matter what I chose everything would end up fine in the end and that it was more an illusion of choice than the real deal. There was always the possibility in the Choose Your Own Adventures of my childhood that the wrong choice could be dangerous for the character and potentially lead to their demise but when I read this graphic novel straight through I didn’t uncover anything dastardly, which was disappointing. I was encouraged by the amount of panels I came across when I read from cover to cover that I hadn’t already seen so you could potentially read this a number of times and discover different parts of the story, albeit with the same ending.
The illustrations were cute. I particularly liked the tree at the crossroads in the Woods of the Treemen that looked like it was shrugging, not knowing which path to choose either.
Thank you to NetGalley and Quirk Books for granting my wish and giving me the opportunity to read this book. I’d give this 3.5 stars but am rounding up.
March 14, 2019
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*I was sent a copy of this by the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
A choose your own adventure graphic novel that follows brother and sister duo, Hocus and Pocus on their journey to find two missing children, Jack and Jill.
This is a super unique and fun reading experience! You can choose to play as Hocus or Pocus as well as pick your animal companion for the journey. The graphics are very colourful and fun to look at and I think they'll really catch a middle-grader's eye. There are multiple different pathways you can choose from but the ending will always be the same. It's a book you can "play" multiple times before exhausting all the options.
The only complaint I have is that I read this on e-book format, which made the flipping to different panels difficult. That being said, there should be no problem with a physical copy of the book.
*I was sent a copy of this by the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
A choose your own adventure graphic novel that follows brother and sister duo, Hocus and Pocus on their journey to find two missing children, Jack and Jill.
This is a super unique and fun reading experience! You can choose to play as Hocus or Pocus as well as pick your animal companion for the journey. The graphics are very colourful and fun to look at and I think they'll really catch a middle-grader's eye. There are multiple different pathways you can choose from but the ending will always be the same. It's a book you can "play" multiple times before exhausting all the options.
The only complaint I have is that I read this on e-book format, which made the flipping to different panels difficult. That being said, there should be no problem with a physical copy of the book.
June 7, 2019
This is almost a 5. So close. But there were too many panels with mazes.
This is awesome though. It is a Choose Your Own Adventure comic book. You can play as the brother (Hocus) or the sister (Pocus). You also have a magic creature. You get to choose which one. Basically the siblings have to find Hansel and Gretel.
There are also puzzles in here, so it is a bit more than a simply "turn to page x". Additionally, which magic creature you have effects the outcome.
The artworks is cool. The siblings split up but come back together. So you get an quest and teamwork. Really fun.
This is awesome though. It is a Choose Your Own Adventure comic book. You can play as the brother (Hocus) or the sister (Pocus). You also have a magic creature. You get to choose which one. Basically the siblings have to find Hansel and Gretel.
There are also puzzles in here, so it is a bit more than a simply "turn to page x". Additionally, which magic creature you have effects the outcome.
The artworks is cool. The siblings split up but come back together. So you get an quest and teamwork. Really fun.
January 4, 2019
This is a “choose your own adventure” graphic novel. At the beginning you pick which character you want to be. You can be either Hocus the girl, or Pocus the boy. You also get to choose a magical creature. I picked Hocus as my character on the story and my magical creature was Trampoturtle. This was a lot for me to take in, but I think for a middle grade reader, this would be a lot of fun to make choices as you go through the story. The graphics are colorful and I liked the characters.
Thank you to Quirk Books and NetGalley for this e-copy in exchange for my honest review. My opinions are my own.
Thank you to Quirk Books and NetGalley for this e-copy in exchange for my honest review. My opinions are my own.
May 15, 2018
Choose your own adventure combined with a graphic novel. Yes please!!! How awesome is this book, so awesome that I need a print copy stat! What a wonderful idea and the execution is excellent. As the reader you get your clues both in the text and in the illustrations. Plus it is put on like a game where you have to feed your magical creature or else he is asleep and not there to give you needed magical powers. Did I mention you can pick the character you play as, so that increases the number of story lines.I am completely in love with this book. Thank you Quirk Books for bringing back my fav type childhood books!!!!!!
June 8, 2018
I loved the idea that the book was written like a video game, but I was so confused with the numbers. I think young children will have issues with keeping score. The illustrations were awesome. It was a great adventure filled with puzzles and different scenarios depending on character and animal used.
September 5, 2018
I've written this review for Really Into This
Check out all of our reviews at https://reallyintothis.com
Happy Reading, friends!
The Legend of Grimm's Woods (Hocus & Pocus #1) by Gorobei Manuro Book Review
Sarah: I've been waiting for the opportunity to feature some kid lit on Really Into This for a while. Lately, my family is REALLY Into Comics & Graphic Novels. As an avid fan of only plain old fiction, this is a world I am able to discover alongside my family. It's a lot of fun so far. As soon as I saw The Legend of Grimm's Woods Hocus & Pocus #1, I was instantly intrigued. I had a feeling my Channa, who is a 9-year-old reader, would enjoy it.
Channa: I first thought this book may be a little weird & cheesy. As soon as I started reading it, it was the opposite of that. It's entertaining & really cool. I really like that it's a do-your-own adventure book. This is different. Some of the twists are really surprising. Like, I didn't expect Little Red Riding Hood to be evil!
A Book With Rules?
Sarah: Quickly, I reviewed the rules with Channa. Although it took a few minutes & a few repetitions of instructions, she got it.
Channa: Figuring out the rules is a little tough at first. After reading it twice, I understood what I would need to do.
Sarah: One thing that is interesting about this book is the added interactive elements. So, readers need to keep track of stars collected along the way. At the end of the book, the stars basically give you a grade of how well you performed in your journey. Another element is the feeding of your animal. Readers select between 3 animals & you need to take care of them & keep them fed. There are instances where the animals help you along the journey, but other times they need to rest.
Channa: I liked the animals being a part of the story. I wish I had a little more time to do stuff with my pet along the journey. Also, I liked meeting the other animals along the way. I really love wolves. So I liked the meeting the wolf & following the fox any chance I got!
Illustrations
Channa: The illustrations are really good. I like the bright colors & it makes the story more fun.
Sarah: I think the illustrations are beautiful! The colors are bright & vibrant and the lines in the characters have a relaxed feel. Does that even make sense? What I'm trying to say is that looking at the illustrations, you know it's meant to entertain young readers. I find that endearing & enjoyable.
THE VERDICT
We are Really Into This book!
Channa: Although I'm not a huge fan of fantasy, Hocus & Pocus is cool. When I read stuff like Magic Treehouse books, I think it's boring & slow. Reading Hocus & Pocus is fun, entertaining & unique.
Sarah: I think this book is a lot of fun for kids of all ages. As a parent, I like that you get what you put into it. What I mean is you keep track of your stars, you get a grade. You keep your animal fed, it helps you out. Don't be afraid to take on a different persona & take a different path! It's fun no matter what.
Do you have any favorite make your own adventure books we should check out?
Special thanks to Gorobei & Manuro, Quirk Books & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.
Check out all of our reviews at https://reallyintothis.com
Happy Reading, friends!
The Legend of Grimm's Woods (Hocus & Pocus #1) by Gorobei Manuro Book Review
Sarah: I've been waiting for the opportunity to feature some kid lit on Really Into This for a while. Lately, my family is REALLY Into Comics & Graphic Novels. As an avid fan of only plain old fiction, this is a world I am able to discover alongside my family. It's a lot of fun so far. As soon as I saw The Legend of Grimm's Woods Hocus & Pocus #1, I was instantly intrigued. I had a feeling my Channa, who is a 9-year-old reader, would enjoy it.
Channa: I first thought this book may be a little weird & cheesy. As soon as I started reading it, it was the opposite of that. It's entertaining & really cool. I really like that it's a do-your-own adventure book. This is different. Some of the twists are really surprising. Like, I didn't expect Little Red Riding Hood to be evil!
A Book With Rules?
Sarah: Quickly, I reviewed the rules with Channa. Although it took a few minutes & a few repetitions of instructions, she got it.
Channa: Figuring out the rules is a little tough at first. After reading it twice, I understood what I would need to do.
Sarah: One thing that is interesting about this book is the added interactive elements. So, readers need to keep track of stars collected along the way. At the end of the book, the stars basically give you a grade of how well you performed in your journey. Another element is the feeding of your animal. Readers select between 3 animals & you need to take care of them & keep them fed. There are instances where the animals help you along the journey, but other times they need to rest.
Channa: I liked the animals being a part of the story. I wish I had a little more time to do stuff with my pet along the journey. Also, I liked meeting the other animals along the way. I really love wolves. So I liked the meeting the wolf & following the fox any chance I got!
Illustrations
Channa: The illustrations are really good. I like the bright colors & it makes the story more fun.
Sarah: I think the illustrations are beautiful! The colors are bright & vibrant and the lines in the characters have a relaxed feel. Does that even make sense? What I'm trying to say is that looking at the illustrations, you know it's meant to entertain young readers. I find that endearing & enjoyable.
THE VERDICT
We are Really Into This book!
Channa: Although I'm not a huge fan of fantasy, Hocus & Pocus is cool. When I read stuff like Magic Treehouse books, I think it's boring & slow. Reading Hocus & Pocus is fun, entertaining & unique.
Sarah: I think this book is a lot of fun for kids of all ages. As a parent, I like that you get what you put into it. What I mean is you keep track of your stars, you get a grade. You keep your animal fed, it helps you out. Don't be afraid to take on a different persona & take a different path! It's fun no matter what.
Do you have any favorite make your own adventure books we should check out?
Special thanks to Gorobei & Manuro, Quirk Books & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.
February 17, 2020
I got this choose-your-own-interactive-adventure graphic novel for my two kids (on the recommendation of Kids in Panels), and I am SO glad I did. My 11-year-old and my 6-year-old both love it, and they even love "playing" the book as a team, which is a rare family joy. This morning the three of us played it together, taking turns making the choices, and my husband's planning to do it with them soon, too. Because there are so many different choices, this can be played again and again, and it's really cleverly done - plus, there's plenty of extra game-work to be done, as you have to look out for food to feed the magical animals you choose, puzzles to solve, etc.
We will definitely be buying more books in this series! This one has been a real gift during our rainy half-term holidays.
We will definitely be buying more books in this series! This one has been a real gift during our rainy half-term holidays.
September 2, 2018
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
How could I resist this book? The cover looked adorable, and I was very curious about the choose your own adventure part. I can’t think of another graphic novel like this, so I wanted to try it out.
Welcome to a world full of monsters, witches, magic, and more. Meet Hocus and Pocus (or Pocus and Hocus, which was a bit confusing), these two are the top of their class and are going on a quest to find some lost kids. You have to pick one of these characters and follow them on their quest. Help them out, kick some witches butt, find pets (or not), and more. There are mazes to get lost in,
Some parts are one page long, but most of them are just one or two panels.
I have to say that it didn’t work out that well for me. Because this is an ecopy. For instance that chart? I can’t print it out (or even save it anywhere to print it out), so I just tried (and failed) to keep track of things. As for flipping back and forth between pages (and finding the corresponding number) was just not working for me. I think it would work better with a physical copy. Now at times I just lost track of the numbers as they corresponded to panels, and not pages, and yes they were located at the bottom of the pages, but at first I mostly looked at the page numbers on the the program.
I also guess that I just found the most boring route ever to try out as first, as I only found one other pet, which I couldn’t take with me due to apparently not having followed the right lessons (which seemed odd to me given how awesome these kids are with pets and are on their way to become masters), I found only 8 stars. There was also barely any action. I will give it another shot, though I will not keep track of stars, as that is just way too much effort. 😛
So edit, route two. Still following Pocus because she is just the best in my eyes. And my route was slightly longer and more interesting. I gave up on counting the spots on the wolves though, there were too many and some were supertiny and hard to see. So I just disappointed the wolf.
What I would have liked to see was a bad ending, not that everything leads to the same good ending. Every time something happened that wasn’t part of the plan the book just guided you back to the right track. And I think a choose your own adventure books should also have bad endings. Come on, not all quests will go well, I wouldn’t mind getting lost, or being eaten, or enchanted by the witch.
The art is just so much fun, I love and adore the style. The designs on the characters are so cute.
All in all, I still loved reading this even if it didn’t work out and it missed some things. I would recommend it, but not the ecopy, but the normal book.
Review first posted at Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
How could I resist this book? The cover looked adorable, and I was very curious about the choose your own adventure part. I can’t think of another graphic novel like this, so I wanted to try it out.
Welcome to a world full of monsters, witches, magic, and more. Meet Hocus and Pocus (or Pocus and Hocus, which was a bit confusing), these two are the top of their class and are going on a quest to find some lost kids. You have to pick one of these characters and follow them on their quest. Help them out, kick some witches butt, find pets (or not), and more. There are mazes to get lost in,
Some parts are one page long, but most of them are just one or two panels.
I have to say that it didn’t work out that well for me. Because this is an ecopy. For instance that chart? I can’t print it out (or even save it anywhere to print it out), so I just tried (and failed) to keep track of things. As for flipping back and forth between pages (and finding the corresponding number) was just not working for me. I think it would work better with a physical copy. Now at times I just lost track of the numbers as they corresponded to panels, and not pages, and yes they were located at the bottom of the pages, but at first I mostly looked at the page numbers on the the program.
I also guess that I just found the most boring route ever to try out as first, as I only found one other pet, which I couldn’t take with me due to apparently not having followed the right lessons (which seemed odd to me given how awesome these kids are with pets and are on their way to become masters), I found only 8 stars. There was also barely any action. I will give it another shot, though I will not keep track of stars, as that is just way too much effort. 😛
So edit, route two. Still following Pocus because she is just the best in my eyes. And my route was slightly longer and more interesting. I gave up on counting the spots on the wolves though, there were too many and some were supertiny and hard to see. So I just disappointed the wolf.
What I would have liked to see was a bad ending, not that everything leads to the same good ending. Every time something happened that wasn’t part of the plan the book just guided you back to the right track. And I think a choose your own adventure books should also have bad endings. Come on, not all quests will go well, I wouldn’t mind getting lost, or being eaten, or enchanted by the witch.
The art is just so much fun, I love and adore the style. The designs on the characters are so cute.
All in all, I still loved reading this even if it didn’t work out and it missed some things. I would recommend it, but not the ecopy, but the normal book.
Review first posted at Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
July 19, 2018
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I remember when I was little and would read all of the choose your own adventure books, which were so much fun! It was kind of challenging in e-book form BUT I know in physical form this would be amazing. This is definitely something that I am going to get for my daughter, she will love it. It is very interactive, there are even puzzles that you can solve! The graphics were great, and all the characters were super cute. This was a great story filled with adventure and felt like I was playing a video game.
I remember when I was little and would read all of the choose your own adventure books, which were so much fun! It was kind of challenging in e-book form BUT I know in physical form this would be amazing. This is definitely something that I am going to get for my daughter, she will love it. It is very interactive, there are even puzzles that you can solve! The graphics were great, and all the characters were super cute. This was a great story filled with adventure and felt like I was playing a video game.
April 20, 2022
This was a lot of fun. I enjoyed it enough that I bought this and the sequel so the kids and me can play it again and again.
April 12, 2019
A seemingly endless story. I went through the choose your own adventure comic twice but have so much more to go through. Lots of flipping pages around and getting lost. I got sucked in pretty quickly and plan on seeing the different paths I could have taken. A great idea for a graphic novel combining choose your own adventure, fantasy, and a video game feel.
August 12, 2018
I received a free digital copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review.
This is a great idea for a story and it would be better in paperback form. It doesn't really work in eBook format.
This is a great idea for a story and it would be better in paperback form. It doesn't really work in eBook format.
September 5, 2018
Sarah contributed this review to Really Into This
Check out all of our reviews at https://reallyintothis.com
Happy Reading, friends!
The Legend of Grimm's Woods (Hocus & Pocus #1) by Gorobei Manuro Book Review
Sarah: I've been waiting for the opportunity to feature some kid lit on Really Into This for a while. Lately, my family is REALLY Into Comics & Graphic Novels. As an avid fan of only plain old fiction, this is a world I am able to discover alongside my family. It's a lot of fun so far. As soon as I saw The Legend of Grimm's Woods Hocus & Pocus #1, I was instantly intrigued. I had a feeling my Channa, who is a 9-year-old reader, would enjoy it.
Channa: I first thought this book may be a little weird & cheesy. As soon as I started reading it, it was the opposite of that. It's entertaining & really cool. I really like that it's a do-your-own adventure book. This is different. Some of the twists are really surprising. Like, I didn't expect Little Red Riding Hood to be evil!
A Book With Rules?
Sarah: Quickly, I reviewed the rules with Channa. Although it took a few minutes & a few repetitions of instructions, she got it.
Channa: Figuring out the rules is a little tough at first. After reading it twice, I understood what I would need to do.
Sarah: One thing that is interesting about this book is the added interactive elements. So, readers need to keep track of stars collected along the way. At the end of the book, the stars basically give you a grade of how well you performed in your journey. Another element is the feeding of your animal. Readers select between 3 animals & you need to take care of them & keep them fed. There are instances where the animals help you along the journey, but other times they need to rest.
Channa: I liked the animals being a part of the story. I wish I had a little more time to do stuff with my pet along the journey. Also, I liked meeting the other animals along the way. I really love wolves. So I liked the meeting the wolf & following the fox any chance I got!
Illustrations
Channa: The illustrations are really good. I like the bright colors & it makes the story more fun.
Sarah: I think the illustrations are beautiful! The colors are bright & vibrant and the lines in the characters have a relaxed feel. Does that even make sense? What I'm trying to say is that looking at the illustrations, you know it's meant to entertain young readers. I find that endearing & enjoyable.
THE VERDICT
We are Really Into This book!
Channa: Although I'm not a huge fan of fantasy, Hocus & Pocus is cool. When I read stuff like Magic Treehouse books, I think it's boring & slow. Reading Hocus & Pocus is fun, entertaining & unique.
Sarah: I think this book is a lot of fun for kids of all ages. As a parent, I like that you get what you put into it. What I mean is you keep track of your stars, you get a grade. You keep your animal fed, it helps you out. Don't be afraid to take on a different persona & take a different path! It's fun no matter what.
Do you have any favorite make your own adventure books we should check out?
Special thanks to Gorobei & Manuro, Quirk Books & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.
Check out all of our reviews at https://reallyintothis.com
Happy Reading, friends!
The Legend of Grimm's Woods (Hocus & Pocus #1) by Gorobei Manuro Book Review
Sarah: I've been waiting for the opportunity to feature some kid lit on Really Into This for a while. Lately, my family is REALLY Into Comics & Graphic Novels. As an avid fan of only plain old fiction, this is a world I am able to discover alongside my family. It's a lot of fun so far. As soon as I saw The Legend of Grimm's Woods Hocus & Pocus #1, I was instantly intrigued. I had a feeling my Channa, who is a 9-year-old reader, would enjoy it.
Channa: I first thought this book may be a little weird & cheesy. As soon as I started reading it, it was the opposite of that. It's entertaining & really cool. I really like that it's a do-your-own adventure book. This is different. Some of the twists are really surprising. Like, I didn't expect Little Red Riding Hood to be evil!
A Book With Rules?
Sarah: Quickly, I reviewed the rules with Channa. Although it took a few minutes & a few repetitions of instructions, she got it.
Channa: Figuring out the rules is a little tough at first. After reading it twice, I understood what I would need to do.
Sarah: One thing that is interesting about this book is the added interactive elements. So, readers need to keep track of stars collected along the way. At the end of the book, the stars basically give you a grade of how well you performed in your journey. Another element is the feeding of your animal. Readers select between 3 animals & you need to take care of them & keep them fed. There are instances where the animals help you along the journey, but other times they need to rest.
Channa: I liked the animals being a part of the story. I wish I had a little more time to do stuff with my pet along the journey. Also, I liked meeting the other animals along the way. I really love wolves. So I liked the meeting the wolf & following the fox any chance I got!
Illustrations
Channa: The illustrations are really good. I like the bright colors & it makes the story more fun.
Sarah: I think the illustrations are beautiful! The colors are bright & vibrant and the lines in the characters have a relaxed feel. Does that even make sense? What I'm trying to say is that looking at the illustrations, you know it's meant to entertain young readers. I find that endearing & enjoyable.
THE VERDICT
We are Really Into This book!
Channa: Although I'm not a huge fan of fantasy, Hocus & Pocus is cool. When I read stuff like Magic Treehouse books, I think it's boring & slow. Reading Hocus & Pocus is fun, entertaining & unique.
Sarah: I think this book is a lot of fun for kids of all ages. As a parent, I like that you get what you put into it. What I mean is you keep track of your stars, you get a grade. You keep your animal fed, it helps you out. Don't be afraid to take on a different persona & take a different path! It's fun no matter what.
Do you have any favorite make your own adventure books we should check out?
Special thanks to Gorobei & Manuro, Quirk Books & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.
October 27, 2018
The Legend of Grimm’s Woods (Hocus Pocus) by Manuro Gorobei, 295 pages. INTERACTIVE GRAPHIC NOVEL. Quirk Books, 2018. $10. 9781683690573
Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG.
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE.
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Hocus and Pocus are going to a school where they learn how to care for the earth and train magical creatures. As part of a challenge to get their creatures permanently and graduate, they must find two lost kids. At this point in the story, the reader picks a character to follow and jumps around the story based on decisions they make. Hocus and Pocus ultimately find the kids in the house of a witch, but the journey to get there will differ for each reader.
The plot of this book is simple and clear, but the way of reading it makes it difficult. When you make a choice in the book, you go to a different number panel and sometimes you jump to a new panel after reading just one. Sometimes you read for a longer time before you jump, and those are the most enjoyable parts. I think many young readers will be slow at finding the correct panel number and this could be frustrating for them.
Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2018...
Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG.
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE.
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Hocus and Pocus are going to a school where they learn how to care for the earth and train magical creatures. As part of a challenge to get their creatures permanently and graduate, they must find two lost kids. At this point in the story, the reader picks a character to follow and jumps around the story based on decisions they make. Hocus and Pocus ultimately find the kids in the house of a witch, but the journey to get there will differ for each reader.
The plot of this book is simple and clear, but the way of reading it makes it difficult. When you make a choice in the book, you go to a different number panel and sometimes you jump to a new panel after reading just one. Sometimes you read for a longer time before you jump, and those are the most enjoyable parts. I think many young readers will be slow at finding the correct panel number and this could be frustrating for them.
Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2018...
December 26, 2019
This is an AWESOME choose your own adventure comic, for young and old alike. You get to choose between the two characters and 3 animal friends (plus you can pick up others on the way). There are quest tracker sheets at the front of the book that make it easy to log things like food for your pets and any extra items you acquire.
I've played through twice and was much more successful the second time. I made more choices to explore and earn more stars for my good deeds. And there's still plenty of adventure to be had! I love the art style and I will definitely be buying the next book! I like that the website also offers printable quest trackers, so there's no reason not to keep playing. Also I don't think there's a "bad ending" though I could be wrong - but if there isn't, I enjoy that because you don't have to worry about wrong choices - you just might not get to explore as much or earn as many stars.
At the end you can compete against the other chatacter to see if you beat your sibling. And I think you could easily play with a friend instead and each take turns as a different chara and see who gets more stars. This is just super charming and I love it a whole lot.
I've played through twice and was much more successful the second time. I made more choices to explore and earn more stars for my good deeds. And there's still plenty of adventure to be had! I love the art style and I will definitely be buying the next book! I like that the website also offers printable quest trackers, so there's no reason not to keep playing. Also I don't think there's a "bad ending" though I could be wrong - but if there isn't, I enjoy that because you don't have to worry about wrong choices - you just might not get to explore as much or earn as many stars.
At the end you can compete against the other chatacter to see if you beat your sibling. And I think you could easily play with a friend instead and each take turns as a different chara and see who gets more stars. This is just super charming and I love it a whole lot.
August 1, 2023
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A fun adventure that puts you in charge of where to go next. Follow either Hocus or Pocus as they explore Grimm’s Woods in search of missing children. Along the way, you’ll collect stars, answer riddles, play games, and keep your magical creature fed so you can use their powers when you need them most.
Nice illustrations filled with charm and humor. Be sure to look out for hidden numbers in the pictures to explore secret areas.
There are a few clunky transitions, but overall it was nicely constructed.
Can be read multiple times, following a different character and trying out different paths. At the end, you can compare your grade to your sibling’s (the player you chose not to be) to see how you stack up.
For the most part would work well for entertaining young readers while traveling though there are two games that involve physical pieces, which would be a little difficult on the move. A fun read sure to provide hours of entertainment to fantasy, fairy tale, and magic lovers.
A fun adventure that puts you in charge of where to go next. Follow either Hocus or Pocus as they explore Grimm’s Woods in search of missing children. Along the way, you’ll collect stars, answer riddles, play games, and keep your magical creature fed so you can use their powers when you need them most.
Nice illustrations filled with charm and humor. Be sure to look out for hidden numbers in the pictures to explore secret areas.
There are a few clunky transitions, but overall it was nicely constructed.
Can be read multiple times, following a different character and trying out different paths. At the end, you can compare your grade to your sibling’s (the player you chose not to be) to see how you stack up.
For the most part would work well for entertaining young readers while traveling though there are two games that involve physical pieces, which would be a little difficult on the move. A fun read sure to provide hours of entertainment to fantasy, fairy tale, and magic lovers.
January 11, 2020
'Hocus & Pocus: The Legend of Grimm's Woods' by Manuro with illustrations by Gorobei is a graphic novel version of a choose your own adventure type book.
You can choose to either follow Hocus or Pocus as they investigate a cottage. There is a stat sheet to track your adventure, as well as the pet you choose and any treasure you find. The story features elements of famous fairy tales like Hansel & Gretel and Red Riding Hood.
This was a bit difficult to read in review copy form, but I think a physical copy would be a ton of fun for young readers. I followed Hocus as he went around the cottage and got chased by scary trees. There are some good branches to the story and puzzles the reader has to solve to move on to the right page. The illustrations are a lot of fun and there seem to be tons of choices. I especially liked how some choices were drawn right in to the story.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Quirk Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
You can choose to either follow Hocus or Pocus as they investigate a cottage. There is a stat sheet to track your adventure, as well as the pet you choose and any treasure you find. The story features elements of famous fairy tales like Hansel & Gretel and Red Riding Hood.
This was a bit difficult to read in review copy form, but I think a physical copy would be a ton of fun for young readers. I followed Hocus as he went around the cottage and got chased by scary trees. There are some good branches to the story and puzzles the reader has to solve to move on to the right page. The illustrations are a lot of fun and there seem to be tons of choices. I especially liked how some choices were drawn right in to the story.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Quirk Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
January 22, 2021
First of all, this was really cool. Much more interestingly interactive than a Choose Your Own Adventure book. It's got a lot going on with following the panel numbers, playing the mini-games, and keeping track of food for your creature.
I played once as Hocus and once as Pocus and only got about 5 or 6 stars. So I'm not really sure how you could beat your sibling's score of 12 + a roll of the die, but it doesn't even matter! It was super fun regardless.
It's probably not a great buy for a library. We've had it since 2018 and the instruction page has already been ripped out (probably because there's a quest tracker on the back). But it hasn't been marked up yet!
I will probably recommend this to kids in my Choose Your Own adventure book club. And maybe make them a photocopy of the quest trackers.
I played once as Hocus and once as Pocus and only got about 5 or 6 stars. So I'm not really sure how you could beat your sibling's score of 12 + a roll of the die, but it doesn't even matter! It was super fun regardless.
It's probably not a great buy for a library. We've had it since 2018 and the instruction page has already been ripped out (probably because there's a quest tracker on the back). But it hasn't been marked up yet!
I will probably recommend this to kids in my Choose Your Own adventure book club. And maybe make them a photocopy of the quest trackers.
May 11, 2021
This book is so fun. It's a choose your own adventure book, but there are a couple things that make it extra interesting.
1. You can't die or lose. Technically it counts as losing if you get less stars than your sibling, but no matter what you do you will get to the end and save the children.
2. It is a graphic novel. And the art is super detailed.
3. There are puzzles and games. I was too lazy to do the games because who feels like getting up and looking for dice or coins when you are reading?
4. It is ABUNDANT in choices. It's not just "Left or Right" and "Hide or Fight". There are so many different ways the story can go. After laying 2 times I flipped through the book and found a lot of characters and places I had never seen. So I imagine you can play a lot of times before you get bored.
1. You can't die or lose. Technically it counts as losing if you get less stars than your sibling, but no matter what you do you will get to the end and save the children.
2. It is a graphic novel. And the art is super detailed.
3. There are puzzles and games. I was too lazy to do the games because who feels like getting up and looking for dice or coins when you are reading?
4. It is ABUNDANT in choices. It's not just "Left or Right" and "Hide or Fight". There are so many different ways the story can go. After laying 2 times I flipped through the book and found a lot of characters and places I had never seen. So I imagine you can play a lot of times before you get bored.
October 14, 2023
Hocus and Pocus are a brother sister duo intent on passing their classes and becoming magical animal masters. Their first quest is to rescue two children who have gone missing, so they pack up their magical critters and hit the road. But with everything from wolves and witches to ogres and octopi, this choose your own adventure will have them guessing.
I admit I didn't like choose your own adventures when I was a kid, and I've even less patience for them now. Despite that, this is a quirky little book with a really fun game element to it. It has great cartoony graphics perfect for young gaming enthusiasts, and while it has some silly moments, it also has some great brain teasers and even some thoughtful touches. I only did the adventure once, but I think a kid who likes these kinds of books would be able to spend many happy hours exploring this fairytale world.
I admit I didn't like choose your own adventures when I was a kid, and I've even less patience for them now. Despite that, this is a quirky little book with a really fun game element to it. It has great cartoony graphics perfect for young gaming enthusiasts, and while it has some silly moments, it also has some great brain teasers and even some thoughtful touches. I only did the adventure once, but I think a kid who likes these kinds of books would be able to spend many happy hours exploring this fairytale world.
January 14, 2019
I loved this book! It is so unique that it is a "choose your own adventure" type graphic novel, except it takes it to the next level with the gaming sheet to keep track of your animal companions, collected items, star count, etc. I "played" it three times in quick succession - all three times as Pocus, once with the boxobullfrog and twice with the trampoturtle, and got various results (once I somehow managed to miss all the side quests and it even got so bad I lost all my food in a run through the forest so I only scored a 4!) I still have to go through as Hocus and use the whirlybird and I can't wait! I loved the plot, and the plot twists, and the adorable illustrations, and the creativity with all the animals; I just had so much fun reading this. I can't wait for the next one!!
October 15, 2018
I'm not going to sit here and say that the storyline of this book deserves 4 stars, but the concept of the book sure does. Imagine an RPG (Pokemonish) type game, but pasted within pages of a book that allows you to choose your own adventure all contained within a graphic novel!!!! This is the type of book that the video game, no attention span youth of this world are screaming for. It took me about 30 minutes to get from the start to the finish of one adventure and I enjoyed it enough that I took the adventure again with a different character and sure enough a whole new novel unfolded before me. I wish Manuro Gorobei the best of luck in continuing to bring this type of book to life.
April 30, 2023
Let’s start with the positives. The artwork is wonderful and it’s pretty much the main reason I picked this one up.
Now the downside? So. Much. Flipping. Back and forth!
I was really intrigued about this concept of a choose your own adventure style comic book. However in the end I just didn’t care to finish my story because I was so tired of flipping!
“Flip to the front, read a panel, flip to the middle, read a panel, flip back to the front, now flip through to the back. “
It was just too much. Perhaps if there was only a select few outcomes I would have stuck with the whole thing, but in the end, it was just too much for me.
Now the downside? So. Much. Flipping. Back and forth!
I was really intrigued about this concept of a choose your own adventure style comic book. However in the end I just didn’t care to finish my story because I was so tired of flipping!
“Flip to the front, read a panel, flip to the middle, read a panel, flip back to the front, now flip through to the back. “
It was just too much. Perhaps if there was only a select few outcomes I would have stuck with the whole thing, but in the end, it was just too much for me.
August 31, 2018
*Thank you to NetGalley for a digital review copy. All opinions are my own.
Hocus & Pocus is an interesting and modern take on the choose your own adventure concept. Written in graphic novel format, it will entice lovers of that genre. The reader follows either Hocus or Pocus as they try to save 2 children who are lost in the woods. There is a need to make decisions, solve puzzles, and often retrace your steps when some decisions yield nothing. This is one of those books that does not work well in digital format, but should be pretty fun in print form.
Hocus & Pocus is an interesting and modern take on the choose your own adventure concept. Written in graphic novel format, it will entice lovers of that genre. The reader follows either Hocus or Pocus as they try to save 2 children who are lost in the woods. There is a need to make decisions, solve puzzles, and often retrace your steps when some decisions yield nothing. This is one of those books that does not work well in digital format, but should be pretty fun in print form.
July 24, 2019
I really enjoy the concept, but I have some recommendations for improvement. I’d really like to see more story in each section, instead of just one panel before switching to the next. Also I found myself getting lost in the woods a lot with the only choice being “which fork in the path do I follow?” Those were some pretty boring “chapters.” I still think it’s a fun idea and I’m sure there are many kids who love the gamified aspect. In addition to choose your own adventure, you track your supplies and quests which is pretty cool
June 12, 2018
Oh, Yes!! Young fans of comics and video games will love this one! Graphic novel combined with choose your own adventure AND a game!! Three in one win-win! it's coming to late for a summer read and play, but will still make for a fun read for kids, I'm thinking, 4th grade and up. Great idea for a book!
Kudos to Quirk Books and the authors! And a big thank you also, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a fair review!
Kudos to Quirk Books and the authors! And a big thank you also, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a fair review!
September 21, 2018
*This was generously sent to me from NetGalley*
I enjoyed the aspect of this graphic novel. I love the multi-view and choices. I really enjoy choose-your-own adventure books and even though this graphic novel is targeted towards a younger audience, I did even the characters and the different choices. My favourite part of this graphic novel is definitely the art style, it is so cute. I originally chose Pocus so next time I’ll go with Hocus and see what he got up to in the story!
I enjoyed the aspect of this graphic novel. I love the multi-view and choices. I really enjoy choose-your-own adventure books and even though this graphic novel is targeted towards a younger audience, I did even the characters and the different choices. My favourite part of this graphic novel is definitely the art style, it is so cute. I originally chose Pocus so next time I’ll go with Hocus and see what he got up to in the story!
November 15, 2018
I read The Legend of Grimm's Woods with my nephew, over and over, each time with a different scenario. Remember Choose Your Own Adventure books? This is the same idea with choosing the path of Hocus or Pocus. The illustrations were fun, and the characters lovable. We really enjoyed the book, and look forward to the next, and the next, and the next.
Thanks to Goodreads First Reads for a copy of this amazing book.
Thanks to Goodreads First Reads for a copy of this amazing book.
February 9, 2019
I loved this book! I thought it was really cool to have so many elements that can give you a different story! I loved those types of books when I was younger and I am so happy that the young kids will be able to do this as well! The only reason I couldnt give it 5 stars is because sometimes it was hard to keep up with. They have those easy pages in the front but I dont like writing on my book. But the artistry was amazing, the characters were adorable and easy to like!
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