Jedi Academy

July 15, 2013
Even the most critical Star Wars fans will give Lucasfilm points for licensing this subversive graphic novel. On the 2012 census, 176,632 people in England and Wales listed their religion as Jedi. At this point, Star Wars books may qualify as religious texts. Some of the comics and novels would be considered apocrypha, as they depart wildly from the plot of the films. Brown has cornered the market on Jedi Sunday school stories, as it were, with two previous picture books about little Luke and Leia and their dad, Darth Vader. This graphic novel stars Roan, a reluctant young Jedi-in-training. He'd rather be a fighter pilot like all his friends. This chronicle of his year at Jedi Academy takes familiar Star Wars tropes and runs with them and is at its best when it subverts the traditional doctrine. The scenes with Yoda are hilarious; Roan can't understand a word he says. YODA: "Ohhhh! Good to meet me, it is, hm? Heh Heh!" ROAN: "Um, what?" The plot rambles from time to time, and not every joke works, but even the Bible has its share of dubious puns. If this book is apocryphal, it's more fun than some of the actual movies and a lot funnier. One of the droids breaks down like an old VCR, right when it's supposed to deliver an urgent message. Sacrilege of the most satisfying kind. (Graphic fantasy. 8-12)

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January 1, 2014

Gr 3-8-Roan Novachez has been personally invited by Yoda to attend Jedi Academy, but he's afraid that he'll flunk out and have to attend the Agriculture Academy on Tatooine next year. This Diary of a Wimpy Kid-like graphic novel follows Roan's adventures from the summer after elementary school through his first year at the academy as he makes friends (and enemies) and struggles to learn how to use the Force. Interspersed throughout the panels depicting events referred to in the diary are other items of interest, such as the boy's schedule and report card. The book's style matched with the popular subject will guarantee circulation in any collection. With the exception of Yoda, Brown has created an entirely new cast of characters set in the Star Wars universe around the events of The Phantom Menace. While it might be disappointing for those familiar with this world to see scant representation of beloved characters, it makes the book an easy starting point for new fans. There are plenty of references to other elements (the T-16 Skyhopper and Jedi training remotes, for example) for diehards to get excited about. Brown combines Star Wars excitement with real-life kid problems to make a fresh, inspiring, and humorous take on the franchise.-J. M. Poole, Webster Public Library, NY

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 15, 2013
Grades 3-7 *Starred Review* A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, Roan Novachez thought he was destined to attend Pilot Academy Middle School, just as his older brother and father did. His dreams are crushed when he is rejected by Pilot Academy and accepted into a sketchy new school called Coruscant Jedi Academy. Roan has no idea what to expect at the academy and feels pressured after learning he is the oldest student ever to enroll there. Confused and struggling to keep up, Roan tries to fly under the radar and passes the time drawing comics of his daily life at his strange boarding school. This fantastic chapter book by Brown will satisfy those who loved his previous Star Wars works, Darth Vader and Son (2012) and Vader's Little Princess (2013). With its mix of comics and text, it will also appeal to fans of Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dav Pilkey's Captain Underpants hybrid books. On a deeper level, this book tackles serious issues like failure, bullying, friendship, determination, and starting a new school in a fun and funny way. Perhaps best of all, it encourages readers to practice creativity and to start their own journals.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

September 15, 2013
Grades 1-3 A young bird finds he is all alone and goes on a quest to find his kind. No, this isn't P. D. Eastman's Are You My Mother? (1960) but, rather, an ecologically sophisticated variation. The bird is a Wilson's warbler that must make his first migration south; the refrain of this journey is, of course, Is this Panama? This is an unusually appealing book about nature's cycles, not just because of its near-guaranteed happy ending but because of the lively, informative text, as young Sammy meets a succession of other creatures, from a caribou to the monarch butterflies to humpback whales, most of whom do make some sort of migration (and their paths are described at the end of the book). Kim's illustrations, a mix of line drawings, painting, and cut paper, are full of movement, color, and texture, offering up wonderfully varied landscapes and scenes that suggest three dimensions. Together, the text and images help make sense of a few of nature's curiosities. A truly educational journey.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2014
Roan's experiences as a new student at the Jedi Academy turn out to be much the same as those anyone might face when starting middle school, albeit learning to use the Force and building a light saber sound snazzier. Told via cartoon strips, journal entries, letters, emails, and more, this is a slight, conventional school story of finding friends and building self-confidence.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)