The Road To Inconceivable

Abadazad #1

by J.M. DeMatteis, Mike Ploog

Kate's little brother Matt is missing, and Kate thinks she will never see him again.? But then she finds out that Matt is trapped in the world of Abadazad. Will Kate have the courage to look for her brother And if she leaves home--will she ever return?

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

144 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2006

About the author

Also Credited As:
DeMatteis, John Marc
Ellis, Michael
Lombego, Wally

Bio:
J.M. DeMatteis was a professional musician/singer and rock music journalist before entering comics in the late 70's.

Credits include Spider-Man, Moonshadow, Brooklyn Dreams, Justice League, Abadazad, Hero Squared, the Life and Times of Savior 28.

Created I, Vampire , Creature Commandos, Moonshadow, Hero Squared (co-creator), Abadazad, Stardust Kid, Savior 28 and more.

Reviews

[jaz ₍ᐢ. ̫.ᐢ₎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

My childhood favourite, I recently found out there was a second book and I purchased it so I could relive my love for this incredible story and illustrations. So excited to dive deeper

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

My only, yet exigent and looming criticism, is the fact that's its too damn short! Upon finishing this graphic-novel type Wizard of Oz inspired-thingumajig I promptly read at the back that this was made by the Disney corporation. It made sense.

What could've been one entire novel has been chopped up into a handful of stories, into a sort of Disney cash cow. On it's story basis, its a thoroughly enjoyable story and the illustrations are simply, at best, beautiful. Yet, this factor can't change my anger with Disney!

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charming and well drawn, but DeMatteis's prose doesn't measure up to his excellent use of the sequential comic book page.

[alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truthfully, this is probably 4 stars, but I just can’t be objective about something this nostalgic. And if a childhood favourite holds up even somewhat well under the light of 2022 scrutiny (cough, Roald Dahl and JK Rowling, cough cough!!!), that’s enough for me. As a kid, I remember being utterly entranced by this story, with its vivid characters and its total weirdness, and all of that holds up. I got chills ‘reading’ (it’s one of the only double-page spreads in the whole graphic novel that’s almost entirely wordless, and all the more powerful for it) the scene where Matt disappears. CHILLS. And the baffling, hybrid Aussie and USAmerican narration, that has the Jamesons supposedly living in Brooklyn but referring to Kate being in Year 8 (rather than in the eighth grade) and using the metric system. Or maybe that was just this edition, and it was changed for an Australian audience? Who knows! I love it!

ABADAZAD: The Road to Inconceivable is such a gem. And now I get to move on to the second instalment, which I didn’t even know existed, and just so happened to find for four bucks in a bookstore today?! Life is weird. But also cool sometimes.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

estos libros eran la biblia de la paula de 11 años

[Kirsten · Rating 1 out of 5]

Kate's brother Matty disappeared five years ago. Now fourteen-year-old Kate has been given a bauble by her elderly neighbor, who claims that it will take her to the magical land of Abadazad (the subject of Matty's favorite series of books, very similar to Oz) where Matty is being held prisoner.

I just didn't like this at all. The story is meant to echo Oz, which is fine, but it ends up feeling extremely derivative and not particularly original. Kate is an extremely annoying narrator. And the plot seems to move achingly slowly, despite the book being relatively short. It's in a format that's becoming popular with children's fiction -- parts of the story are told in the conventional manner, with sections done in graphic novel format. I think it can work well, but in this case I really didn't like Ploog's drawing style (everyone's lips look really weird), and I felt that the comic book style panels were poorly reproduced -- the text and pictures are vaguely blurry, and the print in the word balloons is very small.

[Kristi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this one after Kelsey S. and I spent a fair amount of time searching for a little gal who could only remember a character that had blue skin, and "it starts with an A." Part graphic novel, the story alludes to fantasy authors and illustrators of the past such as Baum, Barrie, and Ransome, as well as the constant themes of lost children, magical journeys, innocence and evil, etc. The blue-skinned witch in this story however, appears to be based on an Indian goddess which makes for an interesting twist.

Readers who liked Hugo Cabret may want to check this one out.

[Aly P · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite books as a kid- it describes an incredible fantasy world with enchanting artwork. I loved just having these books out in my room where I could see them and be reminded of the magic that this book made me feel immersed in. But reading it again as an adult gave me different feelings. The artwork is still beautiful and the plot is still nice, but the narrator slips sarcasm into every single sentence she writes. The wit that is supposed to make Kate seem like a really smart, funny, interesting, mature (lol) 14 year old just makes me feel exhausted. In 2020, let's teach kids to value being soft!

Also- and this is a big also- the book seems to try and fail at discussing representation in books, becoming kind of racist itself. The book talks about the legend of original (fictional) stories of Abadazad, which tell the many adventures of a little white girl called Little Martha and Queen Ija, a warm-hearted queen who is blonde with blue eyes. But in the *real* Abadazad, where this book's story takes place, Queen Ija looks completely different and "weird," with dark hair, blue skin, and three eyes. Her character seems to be a genuine homage to a Buddhist goddess, but the book doesn't mention any of the culture or stories that that entails, only describing her how the white mc sees her.

The real Martha, too, is not white. When we first meet her, she is an elderly woman living in 21st century New York City, where she gives a clumsy and heavy-handed monologue about how the world wasn't ready for a story about a black girl when the original books were written. In the flashbacks to her story being written, we see her as a child in a fancy dress and cute hair bow. She presumably lived in NYC all her life. But somehow, when Martha dies and returns to Abadazad in child form- she for some reason appears as a caricature of an impoverished black farmer from times past, wearing too-big unbuttoned overalls and a floppy straw hat. This woman, who is 115 years old and has lived through so much, remains in this outfit for the rest of the book and becomes a happy-go-lucky, goofy sidekick for the white main character. What?? Why did the authors decide to talk about how representation of people of color needs to be better, and then write another book for/about white people with racial stereotypes?

This likely doesn't deserve 3 stars, but giving it the extra one for the pretty scenery and nostalgia.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series was an attempt to convert a comics series from a failed publisher into a children's book series under Disney. For whatever reason, sales were apparently not good enough, and the U.S. publication stopped after only two volumes, with a third one coming out in England.
I will say that after reading the first two, I immediately ordered a copy of the third one from a store over there, because the tale is remarkably weird, but quite good. Not great, but quite good.
The basic premise has since been used by other authors: that at least one of the classic children's fantasy series from long ago was based on a real place and real events. In this case, Abadazad is an Oz-like world of strange things happening, and the original tales were of a little girl from out world being carried off to theirs and having adventures for many stories.
Many years have passed, and the stories have become the favorite of a young boy, Matty. His sister Kate reads the stories to him, at his request. Then, the little boy disappears at a street carnival. Neither his sister or his mother take this well, and the father has already abandoned the family, so he's no help. So, the story is of a young teen girl who lost her brother, now getting dragged into another world...that of his favorite stories.
This concept is so weird and twisted that it could have turned very dark, but DeMatteis managed to keep it from being entirely so. The magical world is one in which things tend to turn out right, but that doesn't always feel correct, because Kate's experiences in the fantasy world suggest that the author and his editors changed things, either for marketing purposes or because they simply didn't understand the "real" version of the fantasy world.
Overall, the first volume is the introduction of a lot of concepts and characters, combined with the start of the plot for the series. The packaging appears to have been designed to compete with things like the Spiderwick Chronicles, thin, quick little books with a fairly advanced reading level. These are better in some ways, though, because of Mike Ploog's color art, which is mostly excellent. [I don't care for a few of the faces he drew, but that's just me.]

[Eli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un libro con ilustraciones y forma narrativa muy genial, pasar del formato "diario" a cómic/viñetas y a página de libro hizo que la lectura fuera muy fugaz y dinámica.

La historia parte luego de que Matty el hermano pequeño de la protagonista (Kate) desapareciera y está luego de 5 años por medio de una vecina pudieran darse la oportunidad de encontrarlo.

Todo es contado desde la perspectiva de la protagonista, ya que es su diario.

Entretenido para pasar el rato y muy recomendado para los más pequeños.

[BookWormYami · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! I love the formatting, the story, the characters, just everything! This book is full of magic and it'sa fast read. To me it's a combination of The Wizard Of Oz and Alice In Wonderland but yet, it's still it's own story. I can't wait to read the other books in and continue on this adventure with Kate.

[Mela · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story and illustrations were great which led me to searching for the other Abadazad series just to find out the story never got to finish. This book's one of those perfect "fun while it lasted" reads

[Đenis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Toto má vôbec nebavilo. Kresba je divná, asi preto že je staršia. Príbeh moc podobný Alenke, ale takej divnej Alenke. A na koniec tu čítam, že séria nie je dokončená. Do dalších dielov sa určite nepustím.

[J. Renee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I forgot how much I enjoyed children's books. This one is a little dark and more young teen/middle school than other books in the genre. It is disguised as a kids graphic novel but there are some themes that are dark and maybe not noticed by kids. The art is extraordinary.

[Adrianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ojalá no hubiesen cancelado esta saga. Fue de los primeros libros con los que empezó a gustarme la fantasía.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Abadazad, and I can't stand Kate.

[Emma Auksutat · Rating 5 out of 5]

dør aldrig. legendarisk

[Iz KC · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty interesting when Kate meets Queen Liga. The book is kind of interesting in the whole story. I gave it three stars because the storyline didn’t me

[Georgette]

Five years ago, little Matt Jameson got on a ride in a street fair and disappeared without a trace. His older sister Kate Jameson and mother Frances are frequently at odds with each other ever since.[return][return]Kate is now 14, your average rebellious teenager with a taste for heavy metal and being difficult with her deeply-hurting mother.[return][return]One day, their neighbour Mrs Vaughn cornered Kate and told her she knew where Matt is. He has been taken into Abadazad, a fantasy land known to the "real world" as the setting of a popular children's book series. This series was Matt and Kate's absolute favourite before he vanished.[return][return]How does Mrs Vaughn know all this? Kate originally thought she was a huge fan herself, but it turned out that her old neighbour was the little girl who travelled into Abadazad in the stories. [return][return]How could any of this be possible? The "Little Martha" of the stories was a red-haired, green-eyed girl... not a African-American. And Abadazad is just a story, not a real land you can go to.[return][return]Mrs Vaughn explained that in her time, the general public won't take kindly to a little "Negro girl" being the heroine of a book. Franklin O. Davis, the writer she worked with, changed her into Caucasian girl and applied some artistic liberty to the stories that Mrs Vaughn supplied him.[return][return]Kate decided that Mrs Vaughn was absolutely nuts, and left. But certain events occured after, giving Kate no choice but to believe and take the journey into Abadazad to find Matt.[return][return]"The Road to Inconceivable" serves as an introduction (ours and Kate's) to Abadazad. She is reunited with Mrs Vaughn, in the form of Little Martha, and meets Queen Ija, ruler of Inconceivable. Kate learns the difference between the real Abadazad and Davis's version. [return][return]A great deal of this book also established Kate's background. She is not anybody's idea of a dream child. Kate represents that difficult age where nobody "understands" her and she is frequently in trouble at school. [return][return]It's only in the second book, "The Dream Thief", where get over Kate's astonishment in finding herself in storybook land, and we finally get into the business of her finding Matt. [return][return]The tale starts with an attack on the Queen's castle. Apparently, whoever took Matt realises that Kate will soon be his problem.[return][return]Upset that Queen Ija is hesitant on letting her start her search, Kate runs away with Master Wix, a boy made of candlewax and minor character who happens to be Matt's favourite in the book.[return][return]We see more of The Lanky Man, our six-armed man villian, and discover his objectives for taking Matt prisoner.[return][return]I spotted these books in one of our local book stores and thought they looked interesting. It is a hybrid of journal-style storytelling and a graphic novel. I got one at first because it isn't exactly cheap, then found myself back first thing the next morning for the second book. [return][return]Abadazad originally was a comic. When their publisher closed shop, Disney bought the series over. Abadazad is reborn as a high quality and beautifully-illustrated children's book. [return][return]Kate's narration and the comic parts of the book flow smoothly in and out of each other. It's a good example of how the two medium can complement each other.[return][return]Abadazad is "the Place where sorrow has no home, where time has no meaning, where joy lives forever". The catch phrase has a high level of cheese for those of us above 15, but at least they don't throw that at you before they have you deep in the story.[return][return]With hints of Wizard of Oz and Narnia, Abadazad contain elements that I love in fantasy - the transplanting of an everyday person from "real life", into a whimsical fantasy world.[return][return]Hold on tight. The journey is only beginning.[return][return](2006)

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book and then immediately read the second in the series back to back, so I am doing a sort of joint review.

The books came to my attention when Elder Brother plopped them down in front of me.

"Remember him?" he asked.

I looked down and saw the cover of The Dream Thief, which features a rather snarky, evil looking purple top hatted, goatee-ed, red-eyed, red beak nosed, yellow teethed, six armed, Fagin type nasty male type figure.

"Ummmm....no...." (It was only the truth. I know no one who wears a purple top hat.)

Then I noticed the Author. Oh! I don't know him as J.M., but by another name. I met him eons ago in India. Since then, we've each headed different paths, and his has been really interesting. You can read about him in Wiki or in a recent interview. I remember him as having a most engaging grin, and dark hair. He's still got the grin, and has acquired a 11 or 12 year old daughter, Kate. Elder Brother tells me that this series, which started as comic books, originated because he wanted to do something that young Kate could read. Hence Abadazad was born. I'm told that Disney has just concluded some major deal with Mark, and that he's working on a full series of books, number three due out soon.

Enough about the background. The book is grand. Great format, going between the old "original" books, Kate's enchanted diary and the world of Abadazad. Street wise Kate, with more cynicism than any child should have to have, finds herself off to another world to find her lost little brother. Vibrant colors, great characterizations and the promise of sequels. What could be bad?

The best part is that as I was out doing some errands yesterday, I saw a girl, about 11, clutching a book with a three eyed, blue skinned figure on the cover. The girl looked like she had found a treasure-- she just beamed.

"Good book", I said to her.

She had a moment of skittishness, and I could see that the warnings of "don't talk to strangers" ran through her mind. But I must have looked fairly harmless, and besides, I was talking about the book.

"Oh yes!" she replied with a sigh of pleasure.

"I know the author," I told her, and watched her eyes grow round with wonder. "He's got a daughter about your age-- named Kate."

Another "oh" of sheer wonder escaped her lips.

"Do you think it's real?" she asked, regarding the story.

"Undoubtedly," I replied, and watched her wander away, lost in the thoughts of a world called Abadazad.
Review continues in the next book journal, The Dream Thief .

[Vanessa Ring · Rating 3 out of 5]

No esperaba que fuera una primera parte. Le pongo 4 estrellas porque es algo novedoso, ya no solo la historia, sino la forma de leerlo; tiene páginas de diario (quién cuenta la historia), cómic para escenas de acción o importantes que quieren mostrar claramente, páginas de un libro que ellos leen e ilustraciones. Todo en uno, eso me gustó.

No le puse 5 estrellas porque, teniendo en cuenta que se quedaría abierto, tardaron muchas páginas en empezar la historia, todo comenzó a rodar a partir de la mitad del libro, y para cuando ya comenzaba la acción; FIN.

[Rob McMonigal · Rating 4 out of 5]

DeMatteis is one of my favorite comic book writers, a man able to bring both humour and drama to a comic without either one overshadowing each other. He writes a lot of psychological stories--his Harry Osborn Green Goblin stories were amazing, including Harry's death--and of late he's also added a tinge of his own, well, different take on religion in an underrated run on the Spectre.

Here we have a set of books that's part teen fiction, part comic book, part homage to the writers of children's fiction at the turn of the century. A world akin to Alice in Wonderland but with the main characters being nice instead of mean may hold the key to helping save a missing brother.

Told as part of a magical diary, we follow the adventures of Kate, a young girl whose life has been pretty miserable up to this point. A deadbeat dad, an overworked mom, a small home, and a brother she feels responsible for losing. Can the old Abadazad books really help her find her brother? And will Kate find healing for her own troubles along the way?

This is a really good series that, while written for children, like Akiko, is good for any age of reader. DeMatteis uses his skills well here, even if the level of evil is toned down just a bit. Ploog's art, whether as a static drawing or a comic panel, works well with the ideas here. I really like this series, and look forward to reading more of it. (Library, 08/06?)

Trebby's Take: Highly recommended!

[Kit · Rating 4 out of 5]

This full-color-on-every-page book pulls off the mix of book and graphic novel better than any other I've seen so far. The art in the graphic sections is excellent, and the book pages alternate between the diary of narrator Kate and yellowing pages from the Abadazad storybooks that Kate and her little brother Matt love.

Abadazad is a fictional fictional world - in other words, in the world Kate and Matt live in, the Abadazad books, movies, collectibles, and fan conventions outshine Harry Potter and Star Wars combined, even though the first Abadazad book was written in 1898. And, to hear Kate's very elderly neighbor Mrs. Vaughn tell it, she is Little Martha, the heroine of the Abadazad books, changed into a fictional little white girl because at the turn of the century, no one would read a book about a "Negro."

Matt has been missing for five years, ever since he disappeared at a street fair while Kate was watching him. Is he in Abadazad? And is Mrs. Vaughn right that Kate can rescue him?

The story is standard, but the discontinuity between the Abadazad books and the "real" Abadazad story make for interesting reading. Kate's narration in the diary sections is overdone and a little annoying, but fortunately we see her erasures and strikeouts so we know that she's not as mean and cranky as she sounds (nobody could be as mean and cranky as she sounds). Overall, an intriguing start to a series and probably a good bet for reluctant readers.

[Pat Salvatini · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first of several not quite graphic novels. The story alternates between Kate Jameson’s text filled enchanted dairy and full page illustrated panels, and are interspersed with the yellowed pages of a favored Little Martha storybook. Kate explains that five years earlier, her younger brother Matty is kidnapped. She’s never gotten over the loss or overcome her feelings of guilt. All of these emotions are pushed aside after Kate receives a blue sphere that transports her to the magical realm of Abadazad. The plot is quick moving and engaging and provides natural breaks in the story line regardless of the lack of chapters. The illustrations by Mike Ploog are bright and fanciful providing the story with additional depth.

[Nonakasparov]

Colorful illustrations and handwritten fonts used in this kids' book for about an age of 8 to 10. It blatantly mixes elements of a CS Lewis' world beyond and Oz-like characters but misses the beat of a truly real magical realm. The depressive undertones are a bit much, dealing with a brother who has been missing for five years (ostensibly snatched), a father who has abandoned his family, and a depressed, neurotic mother who drinks regularly and has trouble holding down a regular job. Not escapist reading, by any means.

[Ronda · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, I loved the artwork and the concept. This book definitely pushes some boundaries (real or imagined) in genre. Although the publisher lists the book as ages 9 and up, I suspect that the format might be a little confusing to some of the younger readers--at least--at first (though a little bit of a brief book talk might solve that). The book is a journal-no-diary-no-memoir/graphic novel/book-within-a-book and more. I was intrigued enough to want to read Book 2, just to see where this all goes.

[Shervin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my... I first read this book in 2007 when I was only 8 years old! I had both books and read them back to back in one night.

Me and my brother instantly fell in love with the world of Abadazad! I have so many feelings and memories of this series that I just don't know how to put it in word, doesn't happen to me too often.

I just, I guess I just love this series. I cried when I found out the author wasn't continuing it! :'(

Once again, pretty crappy review. I just can't explain how much this means to me, I don't know how to put my love for this series into words..

[Arwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was Crossgen Comics attempt at entering the graphic novel field, but I think it all got mixed up with Disney when they bought the company during their bankruptcy. As a fan of Crossgen I'm always on the look out of titles I don't own yet and was happy to pick this up at a thrift store. The story is  mix of Peter Pan's Neverland and Alice's Wonderland with a lot of other things thrown into the mix. I enjoyed it a lot and couldn't wait to read the second one. Unfortunately I have not found the third title yet and planned forth title never ended up being published.

[Dax · Rating 5 out of 5]

Abadazad is unique and beautiful in that it experiments with a combination of prose and comic strip to tell its amazing story. The color scheme has an almost magical feeling in itself, with brillant dark undercurrents that provide some severity to the whole story. You find yourself transported to this whole new world, just as Kate finds herself transported to the magical land of Abadazad. I would recommend this not just for young readers, but to everyone who enjoys the fantastical.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was really...really...weird. It's very similar to the Wizard of Oz (and maybe that was why I was drawn to it, because I had just watched it). Parts of it was in the graphic novel style, and other parts were just written like a normal book. Kate, who the book is written from is really annoying. She's so pessimistic about everything. But, with that said I liked everything else. It was a fun thing to read during the boring summer hours. :)