Adventures in Cartooning: How to Turn Your Doodles Into Comics (Paperback)

~ (Author), Andrew Arnold (Author), Alexis Frederick-Frost (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Created by the Center for Cartoon Studies' director and two of his former students, this how-to-make-comics book for young readers takes a couple of unusual tacks. For one thing, it skips the usual rudiments of how to draw in favor of explaining the formal characteristics of comics: panels, balloons, lettering and so on. For another, it doubles as a story—about a knight on a quest for a bubblegum–chewing dragon, and the magic elf who teaches the knight all about the joy of cartooning. It's a cute premise, and the art's simple, bold brushstrokes and flat colors are zippy and fun. Sturm and company even sneak in a few comics in-jokes (when several characters fall into water, the elf exclaims I guess this would be called a SPLASH panel!). Unfortunately, the plot and the tutorial material repeatedly stumble over each other: the goofy twists in the story occasionally have a bit of instruction shoehorned in, but more often don't serve any educational purpose—or simply seem like the result of stream-of-consciousness jam cartooning. And kids looking for cartooning guidance may be frustrated to find that the book takes its readers' ability to draw expressively for granted. (Apr.)
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From Booklist

*Starred Review* Not quite a how-to book, as the cover might suggest, this is rather a stupendous new high for children’s graphic novels, spearheaded by comics maestro Sturm (Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow, 2007). Ostensibly, this is the adventure of an eager knight, a sweet-toothed horse, and a magic elf hunting down a gum-chewing dragon, and those reading for the adventure itself will not be disappointed, filled as it is with humor, action, and a great girl-empowering twist. But along the way, lessons in the language of sequential art are woven seamlessly into the narrative, explaining the basics of how elements such as panels and word balloons work, while concluding bonus features offer specifics on terminology (like gutters and stems) and common symbols (like speed lines). Newcomers Andrew Arnold and Alexis Frederick-Frost, using varying page compositions to keep the sizable volume visually captivating, have constructed a tale that works just as well as a read-aloud for the very young as it does a lesson for everyone from fans of the form to the wholly uninitiated. As an examination of the medium, it’s a supremely worthy spiritual legacy to Scott McCloud’s seminal Understanding Comics (1993). As a straight-up graphic adventure, it may be the best of the year. Preschool-Grade 5. --Jesse Karp

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: First Second (March 31, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596433698
• ISBN-13: 978-1596433694
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #38,472 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read that would inspire anyone to pick up a pencil!, April 7, 2009

By	K. J. DellAntonia "raisingdevils.com" (New Hampshire, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It sounds like a how-to--and in its own way, it is--but it's also a really funny, laugh-out-loud story that, on top of being just plain a good read, teaches the basic tropes of graphic novels/cartoons in the cleverest possible way. It would inspire any kid to pick up a pencil (in fact, it worked for me!) It's going to be my go-to birthday gift for sometime to come, along with a pad, pencils and erasers. I just ordered a spare copy and sent one to a friend.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Yoinks and Away!, April 8, 2009

By	E. R. Bird "Ramseelbird" (Manhattan, NY) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Too often a kid will walk into a library, ask for a book on drawing, and be taken to the requisite "How to Draw a [Blank:]" section on the shelves. These books are the usual standard fare. They all begin by saying you should draw a circle over another circle, etc. etc. Sometimes you'll get something a little more high end like Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain and once in a while an old book on drawing comics will be stuck in between the books on the shelves, dilapidated and well worth replacing with something new and fresh. So it is that I am mighty pleased to announce the following: something new and fresh. When three cartooning experts got together to teach kids about cartoons, the result became Adventures in Cartooning. Fun, funny, and strangely informative, you can just consider this as a kind of Understanding Comics" for the under twelve set.

When a princess is determined to be missing from her tower, there's only one place she could have gone. Clearly an evil dragon has kidnapped her. So it is that a brave knight and the brave knight's not particularly brave horse Edward set forth to find the dragon and rescue the lady fair. Aiding them is a Magic Cartooning Elf who strikes up a deal with the knight. If the elf is allowed to tell the knight about making comics then he will also lead the rescue party to the dragon. The result is that the elf teaches the knight and the readers about elements like panels, the size of text, backgrounds, and the fact that a reader will only believe what a character tells them to believe. By the end the knight (who is revealed to be the princess in disguise) rescues a batch of enchanted knights from the dragon and even Edward helps to save the day in the end.

What's so great about this book is that it is directed towards those kids with limited skills. Don't get me wrong... it's also useful for those kids who are superb artists and need an introduction to the world of cartooning, but what I find so remarkable is that the book makes it clear that anyone can be a cartoonist. Child readers aren't limited by their artistic skills but by their imaginations. So the lesson to be learned from this book is basically that if you're willing to take the time to learn the basics, you too can make your own original cartoons. There's even an example in the back that's childish enough to make kids feel okay about making their own cartoons, but that also makes use of backgrounds, different sized panels, and a coherent little story. This isn't to say that Sturm, Arnold, and Frederick-Frost don't belie the seemingly simple format with some clever touches of their own. Pay close attention and you'll see the panels moving downward to suit the story or zeroing in on specific details to set a scene. It's a subtle mix of looking easy while being sophisticated.

At the back of the book there are easy sections on "cartooning basics". These pages cover panels, word/thought balloons, and the ways in which certain styles are recognized (in America anyway) as emotions or states of being. Edward is a particular good model for these moods since he is essentially expressionless. Without much in the way of a mouth, his emotions are conveyed through scribbles and lines around his body (or through his eyebrows, which appear periodically). Of course, it doesn't spell everything out. For example, when Edward is feeling particularly frightened his legs will become wiggly lines. And that's an unspoken symbol we all can understand, even if it isn't translated at some point.

If this book does well it might be worth hoping that the creators pursue it into other avenues. Adventures in Cartooning could lead to something like Adventures in Manga, for example. Though it may initially confuse kids (to say nothing of easily confused adults) with its mix of fiction and fact, Adventures in Cartooning has the ability to convince anyone reading it that making your own cartoons is not only fun but also achievable. A great addition to any collection, whether in a library or in a home.

5.0 out of 5 stars If you've ever wanted to draw comics, but don't think you have any talent, this book might make you think again!, October 19, 2009

By	D. Fowler "Dragonfly77" (Vermont) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

If you've ever wanted to draw comics, but don't think you have any talent, this book might make you think again. Everyone has been known to doodle on paper now and then, especially during math class. There are many simple shapes that can be utilized to make a more complicated cartoon than you ever thought possible. Take for example, a tower. It consists of a rectangle with a triangle on top. Slap on a simple window toward the top and you have a tower. That is very difficult. Other little items to consider (easy does it here!) are fish, trees, candy, clouds, rocks, a shield a sword, bats, mountains, water and an onion. Doesn't that just sound like a recipe for success? Just a step at a time and you'll be a novice graphic artist in no time.

You'll follow along with "a BRAVE and EAGER knight" and a "MAGICAL ELF!" The elf made a pact with the knight. In exchange for a dragon, he asked the knight to let him tell him "about comics and cartooning." The first things he taught him about were panels, or the "little picture boxes" that comics are made up of. Those little boxes keep down the clutter and enable the reader to "see how things happen over time." You'll learn about the purpose of panels, how they indicate time or scenery changes and how they can change size. You'll learn that "words are as important as pictures," what thought balloons are, the purpose of long panels and more!

This book does not specifically instruct the budding graphic novelist in a step by step manner, but rather incorporates the instruction in the story line. The magical elf and the knight may not inspire the upper age range of its intended audience, age 12, but would grab the eight or nine-year-old immediately. The story was fun and will encourage the comic lover to pick up his or her drawing supplies and attempt to recreate some of the work in this book. If you purchase this book, you might want to pick up a nice art kit and PLENTY of paper. The recipient will be sure to have a ROARING good time with this book!