Customer Reviews

Doodlebug: A Novel in Doodles

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If I were a doodlebug, I would draw a picture of me hugging this book. I heart it. I felt entirely inside Doodlebug while I read and enjoyed the drawings, as if I could feel her breathe or hiccup or pet the cat. The story wound up exactly perfectly, but I won't give it away. I want more Doodlebug books!

Doreen's family, (parents and Momo, younger sister) are moving from Los Angeles to San Francisco. On the drive there Doreen discovers that she loves to doodle, it also calm her down so she can focus. At her old school Doreen was diagnosed with ADD and put on Ritalin. Doreen got in trouble at her old school, she didn't like being on Ritalin. With her journal and pens Doreen doesn't need it any more.

Before the move Doreen went by Dodo. When they make it to their home she's Doodle. The author did a wonderful job with Doreen's voice. I loved it. Doreen is a smart girl, that worries a mistake she made will follow her to another city. The younger sister, Momo has a storyline of her own. The parents are actively involved, encouraging and supporting their daughters. I loved Doodlebug. Its entertaining, creative, serious and funny.

Really well-written books allow you to disappear into the character's life. But Doodlebug is a really well-drawn book. I found that I felt as if I was looking over the shoulder of a fascinating kid and reading her private thoughts. The concept is fun, a novel in doodles, and the story is more than just fun. It has great things to say in a lighthearted way about being yourself and discovering who that person really is. It's as if Doreen the "Doodlebug" is sketching drafts of her personality and developing them throughout the book. The evolution of character would seem to be tricky with such a visual medium, but Karen Romano Young's skill at crafting literary fiction shows through the pen-and-ink lines. Her characters grow, her plot twists with tension, and all the while, there is a playful overtone that comes with the whole doodle-thing.

Dodo (short for Doreen) renames herself Doodlebug when she starts drawing to pass the time during the family's move from Los Angeles to San Francisco. She likes it so much, and she's so good at it, that she keeps on doodling through her classes at her new school. It helps her make friends, but some of her teachers are not amused. Can she convince them that doodling helps her learn?

Doodlebug, a Novel in Doodles by Karen Romano Young explores how some children have different learning styles and ways of coping to help them through emotionally trying times. Doreen and her sister Maureen (or Momo), both have to figure out how to adjust to their new environment, and they have different styles of coping. Their parents are also adjusting to new jobs, and maybe not paying as much attention to their children as they need to while they do.

The illustrations, made to look like doodles, are a perfect companion to the story. They're sophisticated enough so you know the author is also a talented illustrator, but they're also simple enough for readers to feel that maybe they could take up doodling as well. Doodlebug ends up being her own best advocate and learns a lot about addressing problems instead of ignoring them and hoping they will go away.

I recommend Doodlebug for mother-daughter book clubs with girls aged nine to 12.

I read this book pretty quickly. I liked the format. It was something different and new to me. It is not a simple book that read from top to bottom. There are doodles all over and they help to tell the story. I liked the storyline and how she stood up for who she was. I showed the pages to my wife who is a math teacher, very straight forward and linear and she did not like the format. I showed my son who is 6 and is starting to read and his comment was that it looked like it was hard to read. My daughter who is 4 and has a wonderful imagination loved looking at all the pages(no, she cannot read). I share these perspectives to showcase that the format is not for everyone. The storyline is great. It was just a good old fashion feel good story about moving and trying to find your place in life.

I am glad I came across this title. It was a nice break in the action. Many times I felt like stopping to doodle myself. Anyone who is interested in drawing and doodling check this book out because it is cool to see how she incorporated her art into storytelling.