I have covered an odd amount of books for preteens and below on this blog. Some may think I’m emotionally stunted and forever stuck in my childhood after I tried to read classic and felt stupid when I did not understand Ivanhoe at all. Some may think I’m too dumb to read books that are appropriate for my age level. They’d be right about it all. I did my time in pretentious books when I was 8. I’ve earned the right to read kids’ books at age 17.
But these assumptions are not actually the main reason I read so many children’s books. It’s mostly because I like to either see what I was reading when I was younger or (more interestingly) see what children of recent years are going to grow up with. I can only hope that children’s books continue to be filled with imagination for a new generation of readers.
I know I would waste entire classes in first grade thinking about how much I wished I could fall into some random pit like Geronimo Stilton and end up on a magical quest. It’s why I jumped into so many pits as a child. I’d pray every night before I went to sleep that I’d get to go on an adventure like the characters in the Amulet series, the Gregor and the Overlander series, and the Droon series. I cannot emphasize the magic that reading brought me as a child, and it’s important to me that I find books that I know will inspire children to imagine. I have found another bringer of hope in Amy Kibuishi’s new graphic novel, The Rema Chronicles.
The beautifully-illustrated novel features the wanderings of teenage Tabby and her journey into the mysterious world of Rema. Thank God she’s not alone– she’s got manic pixie tortured dream boy Phillip to show her the way.
I sincerely enjoyed every second of this book. Kibuishi’s art style is inviting for readers and does a fabulous job of portraying the wonder emanating from the magical world she has created. As I turned each page, I wished more and more that I could have read this book when I was younger and hiding books in my desks so I could ignore my math lessons and get lost in a fantasy.
The lore that Kibuishi has created is truly drop-dead gorgeous. I have read most likely thousands of books in my lifetime so far, and yet I can confidently say that I have not read mythology like this novel’s. The inclusion of elemental gods (with super cool names, if I do say so myself) and their expressions of emotion as the genesis of people on this planet are to die for, and the little ways that people divide themselves into elements would have undoubtedly caused arguments among my friends and I and who would be who.
The way that Kibuishi incorporates a more ancient art-style into the rounded edges of her portrayal of people shows so much care and attention to detail within even the smallest corners of her panels, and it makes me so happy knowing that people are still putting so much soul into story-telling that is available to a younger audience. Her use of color makes me want to stare at each panel for hours the way I used to when I was younger with the cool tones of Rema making me feel like I’ve entered a new world and the warmth of Earth making me feel nostalgic for the planet I actually live on. Her character designs and their own featuring colors are distinctive and thoughtful, and if you stare long enough at any character, you’ll notice something new about them every time.
I love Tabby as a character and she feels like such a personal homage that I have to think that she’s mirrored from the author; even so, I see so much 15-year-oldness in her and it makes me smile so much when she blushes whenever she’s embarrassed or draws her crush in her super-secret, never-to-be-opened journal. I can’t wait to experience more adventures through her and her personality, and I love cool-guy Phillip who’s emo and enigmatic. It’s always the boys with blue hair.
This may seem like a weird thing to praise, but the quality of the book is also phenomenal. The page flattening and binding would have made this book a bible to me as a child, to the point where I wouldn’t even take it out of my backpack unless I was in the car or my room. I was (and am) a weird kid who cared about binding, but all the same, it’s a gorgeous edition.
This series shows so much promise and I cannot wait to see where Kibuishi takes this series in the future. I am truly and indescribably grateful to authors like Amy Kibuishi that work so hard to create worlds that people can daydream about at any age. I’ve even found myself thinking about getting lost in Rema during my stats class, and I’m practically senile!
Amy Kibuishi, you have done a fantastic and beautiful job of creating a source of imagination for an emerging generation of readers, and I hope to see you continue your gifts to all little daydreamers out there. You can find her book here, and I seriously recommend nabbing a copy if you love a good journey into a fantastical world of magic like Rema.