The Lost Warrior

Warriors Manga: Graystripe's Trilogy #1

by Erin Hunter (Creator), Dan Jolley, James L. Barry (Illustrator)

When the Twolegs destroy the warrior Clans' forest home, Graystripe- second in command of ThunderClan- is captured trying to help his comrades escape! Trapped in the pampered life of a kittypet, Graystripe has all the food and shelter he needs from his affectionate Twoleg family, but this is not the way he wants to live. The forest is calling him, and he never stops longing to go home. When he makes friends with a feisty kittypet named Millie, she encourages him to go in search of his lost friends. But will Graystripe ever find his way back to the Clan?

Genres: Manga, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Animals, Middle Grade, Comics, Fiction

96 pages, Paperback

First published April 24, 2007

About the author

Erin Hunter is the pseudonym of five people: Kate Cary, Cherith Baldry, Tui T. Sutherland, Gillian Philip, and Inbali Iserles, as well as editor Victoria Holmes. Together, they write the Warriors series as well as the Seekers and Survivors series. Erin Hunter is working on a new series now called Bravelands.

Erin Hunter is inspired by a love of cats and a fascination with the ferocity of the natural world. As well as having a great respect for nature in all its forms, Erin enjoys creating rich mythical explanations for animal behavior, shaped by her interest in astronomy and standing stones.

Reviews

[Caroline Sarage · Rating 1 out of 5]

WARNING-May seem rant-ish and contain several typos, as I was typing fast.

I'm you're ordinary [rabid] Warriors fan, eager to snap up the latest book, disregarding genre or length. Imagine my excitement when I found out-New graphic novel, coming out April 24! If only then I would stop and come to the conclusion that this "graphic novel" was really a poorly written comic book with awful artwork.

Let's start with the plotline. To put it in a nutshell, ThunderClan warrior Graystripe is taken away from his Clan and must team up with a kittypet named Millie to rejoin them. I can think of a million ways to make this plotline into a gripping, LENGTHY novel. Apparently none of them came to the author. Let's start from the point where Millie says that awful line-"Teach me to hunt! Teach me to fight!" If I were Graystripe, I would have flat-out refused. Millie is the worst, most perfect, mos underdeveloped character in the entire series. She even surpasses the previous record-holder, Brambleclaw. And on the battle training, Millie and Graystripe get attacked by the cats shown on the cover. At first, I thought that those cat were BloodClanners. But, NO. They're kittypets (to semi-quote Arwin from that one kiddie show, Suite Life-BIG, SCARY [unquote] kittypets). Yech.

And the artwork? Go to the page where Graystripe is dreaming/unconcious. Look at all of the cat drawings, including Graystripe. Now, look me in the eye and tell me, honestly, that they are the most beautiful things you have ever seen. Impossible, right? The artist gives the cats-le gasp!-HAIR. I'm serious. HAIR. I nearly cried when I saw Feathertail-not because the scene was beautifully done, but because she seemed nowhere near the radiant she-cat I imagined her to be.

If you're a Warriors fan, spare yourself this disappointing, 15-minute read. If you have near read Warriors, start with Into the Wild and skip over this comic book.

[Tay Tay (taylor´s version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 9 out of 10

This was a fun and interesting manga. Even though Graystripe is one of my least favourite characters in the Warriors universe, it was still enjoyable. I loved the colour, illustrations and sweet, sweet Millie. She was such a cute character! :) Graystripe does not deserve that good a cat.

Overall, a really good manga! Loved it. :)

[! yue , ( niko ) · Rating 5 out of 5]

my frien got me into this ;-;

[Lulcia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Przypomina mi to mocno monotonię Kici Koci 😅🙄🤷‍♀️

[Powolneczytanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moje pierwsze zetknięcie z mangami wojowników i jestem oczarowana! Piękne rysunki, a pierwszoosobowa narracja Szarej Pręgi dodawała całej historii emocjonalności! Przyznam, że na jednym z fragmentów miałam łzy w oczach 🥺🫶🏻

[Em]

The shame I feel for reading these books is immeasurable.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of my sons tried to read the first Warriors book; I think in an attempt to read a thicker, more grown-up feeling book. We worked on it together for a while and he told me that he "was allergic to this book because he's allergic to cats." I asked if that was his way of saying he didn't want to read and it and he replied that yes, he thought it was really boring and wanted to stop. I thought we were done with the series.

Well, at the library last night he found this graphic novel of the first book and he snatched it right up. Today he read it in about 20 minutes. He shyly came up to me afterwards and said, "here mom, you can read it now. I think you'll like it. It's a good story. There's one part I don't really like when one of the cats sticks his claws in another and pulls down really hard, cutting him all up. That part was bad, but the rest is good." He continued for some time telling me about the plot and characters. I thought it was so cute that he was recommending a book to me, and that he was seeking for my opinion on it so we could discuss it.

I'm sure that Charlotte Mason is rolling over in here grave and some of my homeschooling friends might disown me for letting my son read twaddle, but he's reading. I'm no fan of the graphic novel. It seems though, that my son is - it's probably related to his love of comics and super heroes. I'm just going to have to get off my high horse and learn to embrace some twaddle. Off to read the book.....

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know, as hokey as the Warrior's books are, they're actually not too bad. I'm embarrassed to say that I even kind of like them. I'm pretty sure I would have thought they were they most amazing books ever when I was in about fourth grade.

[Karla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Graystripe, captured by Animal Control and living with a loving family of "two legs" longs to reunite with his feral cat clan--Thunderclan. Wonderful to read for anyone who enjoys fantasy novels and cats.

[Angelika Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read the books (they're in my tbr), but based on this little snippet on Graystripe, I think I'd like them!

[Mehsi · Rating 2 out of 5]

1) Dit is NIET manga. Het is niet eens manga stijl. Echt. Kunnen we ophouden met alles manga noemen wat misschien maar een glimmer ervan heeft?
2) Ik had verwacht dat ik deze boekjes gewoon zo kon lezen, maar blijkbaar moet je dus echt wel wat meer/ansich iets hebben gelezen van de serie. Ik was namelijk ZO verward door het hele lezen heen en ik moest af en toe terugbladeren om te kijken of ik iets had gemist. Heel jammer. Ik ben gewend dat met de meeste GN van een serie het gewoon een nieuwe adaptatie is van die serie. Maar dat is dus niet het geval met deze serie. Nu was ik dus vaak enorm verward en ik dacht ook dat Grijsstreep's vrouw nog leefde. Kom je er opeens achter wat de Sterrenclan echt betekend, oh. Oh nee.
3) Ik had zeker meer actie verwacht gegeven de blurb.

Wel leuk vond ik om te zien hoe het allemaal begon/hoe Grijsstreep probeerde zijn clan te redden en vervolgens zelf werd gevangen. En daarna zien dat Grijsstreep het toch niet zo slecht heeft, haha, ook al zal hij het niet bekennen. XD Het was ook leuk dat Grijsstreep zeker niet opgaf om proberen zijn huis weer terug te vinden, ondanks alle tegenslagen. En Millie was een interessante toevoeging, ik vond haar zelfs interessanter op punten dan Grijsstreep, sorry Grijsstreep. Oh, en ik vond de droomstukjes ook leuk. En de art, NIET MANGA DUS, was ook best tof.

Ga ik verder lezen? Nee. Helaas niet. Ik heb nog niet echt de motivatie om de gewone serie te lezen, daarom wilde ik ook deze GN lezen.

[Roberta Decenzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cute quick read. I hadn’t read a manga in a long while but this one had been sitting on my shelf a long time waiting to be read. I needed a light quick read so this worked out well. I believe I had the book finished well within an hour of opening it. It goes pretty fast. This one opens and is read left to right (the way books and comics are read in the states) instead of the more traditional ones that are usually read right to left. I have yet to read Erin Hunter’s full Warrior Series so am unsure where it fits in the actual series but as someone who is new to Warriors, this was a book that could be read on its own and be fully enjoyed and understood. There are, however, two more books in this particular story on Graystripe so off to reading those next.

[Amory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Graystripe's manga design is one of my absolute favorites; a few Warrior cats looked different than how I pictured them in their manga form but Graystripe really does look perfect. I also enjoyed seeing him and Millie meet and grow closer, as well as seeing Silverstream and Feathertail in his dreams. If the Twoleg house scenes had moved just a little bit faster, this would be five stars from me, but as it is I still really enjoyed it!

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

My daughter brought a book home from the school library that contained this along with the 2 that came after it. In an effort to be involved and see what she is reading I picked it up and read the whole thing.

I can see how it would appeal to some people, but it's not really for me. The storyline was engaging enough I did at least finish them.

[Amelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was great because I like how they kept on getting into trouble my favourite character was Silverstream and she kept appearing in the main characters mind.


I recommend this book for anyone who likes funny stories.

I am eight and I think this book was really funny I recommend this book for 8 year olds because it is very aggressive and has a lot of rude words.

[Noelia Frappe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quizás sea porque es mí personaje favorito, pero que por fin se pueda cerrar el arco de su desaparición es un mimo al alma

[MacKenzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why is Graystripe so angsty

[Alexis Damron · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to be honest I never really enjoyed graphic novels, but I really enjoyed reading this one. This book is about a cat named Graystripe. Graystripe used to be part of a cat clan in the forest until one day people, which they call twolegs, captured him. In this book, the twolegs try to make him a housecat but Graystripe is to wild. It takes him several tries to run away. One of the tries he found a housecat named Millie. Millie and Graystripe became good friends and so Graystripe asked her to come with him and become part of the clan. Millie first said she couldn’t leave her twolegs so Graystripe understood and went on his way. Ten days past and Graystripe was lost and lonely. Millie found him in the junkyard in a delusional state. She took care of him and he explained how thrilled he was that she came. He admitted to her that ever since his partner Silverstream died giving birth to his kittens that he has been lost and lonely, until he met her. Millie has mutual feelings for Graystripe, so they took on the adventure to find his clan, now her clan too.
This book is a trilogy and I look forward to reading more. One of the many reasons why I love this book is because it makes me think about my cats that I found on the streets. I wonder if they have the same feelings as Graystripe. I think this book would be a great book for students in 3rd grade and up because many of them probably have cats they got from the shelter or found them in the wild. It is a fun book that makes you think imaginatively.
I loved how this book is an easy read but a fun read. It keeps you on your twos as it does have some action scenes in it. Since it is a graphic novel the writing is in speech bubbles. Erin Hunter, the author, and illustrator created the format in a clear way to understand. There are a series of windows on each page and you look at them left to right. In each window though there are speech bubbles or thoughts, you read also read those left to right and top to bottom. Anything that the characters said is in a speech bubble and anything the characters think is in a box. In addition, the cats lines were in a different font from the twolegs lines. I really like that because it was organized and clear for the reader to understand. Overall, I really liked this graphic novel and I feel many children will to because it is a book that keeps you interested! Definitely a book for the classroom library!

[Lanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I'm thinking this would've been better as a nice long novel. Like one of those super editions. (I love firestar's quest.) There just could have been so much growth. I've never liked greystripe, and this just. Made it that much worse. :( he's a whining self-centered brat. I mean we saw that when he went and chose silverstream over his clan. And then chose riverclan. Yes, I know it was for his babies, and I get that that sort of tings makes for a good story. Forbidden love, divided loyalties and all that jazz.

But it still makes greystripe look selfish and uncaring. And he's just not well written or rounded enough for that to truly work.

And it that sort of behavior is just reinforced here! Most of the story he's just lying around bitching and moaning that he's lost and lonely without his clan.

:[ well, boo fucking hoo, little kitty. I can't feel the least bit sorry for you when you're barely trying to escape! Try harder! And stay outside when you do! Don't fucking go back!

If I were him, I'd have tried a hell of a lot harder to leave. I would have wandered around or just fucking asked someone of they knew the way back to clan territory.

But then again, I'm a woman so I don't have a problem asking for directions. Maybe THAT was the reason he took forever to get on his way?

Lol. I'm kidding. That's sexist.

Then there's more selfishness! Thanks to the most under developed to perfect character of all time! Millie the housecat! God, she's so sweet and understanding, its sickening. I wanted to barf. :( and greystripe wastes even more time teaching her to hunt and fight and telling her all about the warrior code. What the fuck happened to him Distrusting kittypets? And she's a super fat learner. What a surprise! -_- cat Mary Sue.

The artwork is mediocre to. And the writing . . . it just didn't sound like greystripe at all. He's better in print. Its not a manga either. Manga is a Asia style comic book. This is a regular graphic novel. And it's not a very good one at that.

At least it was a quick read. And it explains what happened to him, so I guess that's good. Not recommended.

[Natalie Varnell · Rating 1 out of 5]

Genre: Graphic Novel
Referenced in text page 116
Summary: Greystripe is a warrior cat belonging to the Thunder Clan. In efforts to save members of his clan from captivity, he manages to release the other cats while becoming trapped himself. He finds himself captive in a family’s home that wishes to make him a “kittypet.” Greystripe makes many failed attempts to escape but is always brought back to the two-legged home. Finally with help from another cat named Millie, the two of them are finally able to journey into the forest away from all of the two-legged homes.
a.) This graphic novel lacked a good plot and relies upon the fictional series for characterization. The strongest element would have to be the framing of the illustrations.
b.) The framing seems to be aesthetically pleasing as well as simplistic. The illustrations are just enough to help guide the reader to each frame. They are not cluttered or overwhelming.
c.) The average number of frames on each page is 4. This allows each illustration to be bigger and more clear. The reader is able to flow to each frame with ease and understand the story.
Curriculum Connection:
This graphic novel is a spin off from a fictional series. I would like students to compare the graphic novel to the fictional series. Do the descriptions of the characters match the illustrations? Is there the same level of excitement? Etc.

[noah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is awesome. It talks about when Graystripe was captured by Twolegs and when he met Millie. The drawings are really good. This was the book I first got (I just thought it was a comic book about cats, how wrong I was) that got me interested in the series in the first place. The book is sort of... holy to me. <333

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this short book and the glimpse into Graystripe's life it gives us. It was great getting to actually see one of the characters that I fell in love with from the main series. Graystripe has been one of my favorite characters since we met him in the first book. I have read this book several times before, and I will definitely read it again in the future.

[Charlotte Marshall]

I read this quite a while ago but I really loved this book and it was entertaining throughout the whole book. It's perfect for people who love comics, adventure and fantasy and it's extremely addictive. I recommend reading the whole series of Graystripe's Adventure. I would read this again if I ever get the chance or ever find it :DD

[Elliot · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this story was so sweet. I love that it shows Graystripe coming to like his owners even if he knows he doesn’t belong there, and that it was a bit of a sacrifice for him to leave them. And I love that Silverstream visits him in his dreams and encourages him to have Millie as his travel companion. It’s just very sweet and wholesome and I’m excited to continue it!

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is graystripes side. after he is kidnapped by twolegs, he meets mille. he and mille set off on a quest to find the clans. i love these books a zillion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Shadi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first Warriors manga book ever made. It was also the first Warriors book I ever read. =P The illustrations are great and the storyline is great. Five stars.

[martaxbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

kolejna cześć tych komiksów o kotach 🥲 szału nie ma, spoko rozrywka, polecam:)

[Chiara Lombardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the story + illustrations r awesome 👏

[Charlize · Rating 3 out of 5]

nothing

[Historyprincess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Premise: Graystripe of ThunderClan – Firestar's best friend and deputy – has been missing ever since he was captured by Twolegs. No one knows where he is, not even him. All he knows is that he's being forced to live as a kittypet, and he's having none of it. But escaping the Twolegplace proves much harder than he first thinks. Fortunately, the gray tom soon finds an unexpected friend in a kittypet named Millie. She wholeheartedly encourages him to set off in search of his Clan. But even if he does, will Graystripe have to make the journey alone?

Story/Writing: From what I know, the "Graystripe's Adventure" trilogy was the first graphic novel trilogy published in the "Warriors" series. And I'm willing to bet fans ate it up when it first came out! I certainly ate up this first volume! Also, like many fans, when I read the part in "Dawn" where Graystripe gets captured and taken away in the truck, I HAD to know what happened to him and how he eventually gets back! I know that he does later on, but – as has proven many times to be the case in this series, for me – reading it for myself has so far made me much more invested. I also read the author's note, and I felt so happy for the Erin Hunter team, seeing one of their best-loved characters for them and their fans (And me of course!) brought to life through this art form. Every page was a thrill to read. As always, the scriptwriters did a fantastic job of conveying the feel of the "Warriors" world and the Erin Hunter team's storytelling in this graphic novel. They had me – and many other fans, I'm sure – rooting for Graystripe all the way through. I got the whole trilogy in a pack, and I'm reading all the titles in the series in chronological order, so it's gonna be a bit of a hard task waiting to read the next volume in the trilogy, 'cause I REALLY wanna see how Graystripe gets back to ThunderClan. Hopefully the wait will be rewarded!

Artwork: As with other "Warriors" graphic novels I've already read, I got this whole trilogy in a pack, and in color! I've said in previous reviews of previous graphic novels in this series that the color really helps to bring out how well the artwork is usually done. The art style used here is the most common I've seen used thus far, and while you may have a different opinion than me (which is certainly okay), I suppose it's because this style is used the most often that it's my favorite style for this series! All the characters look and feel memorable, and true to how they're described in the books, both in terms of physical appearance and character. Not only that, but – once again – the color adds a tremendous amount of personality. I know it's often more convenient and time-saving to make graphic novels black-and-white. But to me, color is always the way to go!

Graystripe – Of course, the graphic novel probably wouldn't have been nearly as good if it weren't for our star player! Not to mention, this trilogy really gives Graystripe the opportunity to step out of Firestar's shadow and become his own character. I mean, yes, he's always been a great character. But here, he really gets to prove himself and shine without having to rely on Firestar. I've only read the first volume in this trilogy and I love how he's written! His struggle of wanting to get back to his Clan and be a warrior again yet being trapped in the Twolegplace and losing some of his skill feels believable, in terms of an anthropomorphic cat, anyway. That said, Graystripe has always been determined, and I like that he uses his wit about as much as his skills as a warrior to not only survive but ultimately escape from the Twolegplace.

Millie – From what I know, Millie has always been a bit of a controversial character in the "Warriors" fandom. Yes, I know, Silverstream was Graystripe's first love. Graystripe even says he'll never stop loving Silverstream, nor should he. But why should that mean he can't love another? Furthermore, so what if she's not a warrior at first? In some ways, I honestly like her more than Silverstream. Don't get me wrong, I've always liked Silverstream and I always will. But her relationship with Graystripe, while written well, also felt like the typical forbidden romance. Millie not only encourages Graystripe and finds Clan life intriguing, she's a surprisingly fast learner when it comes to learning how to hunt, track, and fight. More importantly, she goes out of her way to search for Graystripe for days when she could've just stayed in her comfy Twoleg house. I know already that she's gonna play a critical role in helping Graystripe get home. And I'm glad that he seems to think that already as well!

Overall: I was invested in the first chapter in Graystripe's journey back to ThunderClan from the first page! I look forward to the day when he finally does reunite with them at the lake. But sometimes, the trip itself is more fun and satisfying than actually arriving at the destination. This is definitely one of those cases, and I can't wait to read the rest of it!