Lola: A Ghost Story [Hardcover]

J. Torres (Author), Elbert Orr (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 13, 2010

Jesse sees dead people, monsters, demons, and lots of other things that go bump in the night that no one else can see. No one except his ailing grandmother - a woman who used her visions to help those living in her small town... the same rural community in all the scary stories Jesse's heard as a child. Man-eating ogres in trees. Farmhouses haunted by wraiths. Even pigs possessed by the devil. Upon his grandmother's passing, Jesse has no choice but to face his demons and whatever else might be awaiting him at grandma's house.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up—Lola ("grandmother" in Tagalog) has just died, and Jesse is reluctant to visit her home in the Philippines. He was afraid of her because she was rumored to have magical abilities, and because he thinks she tried to drown him when he was a baby. Jesse listens to family members tell stories about her as he tries to adjust to their strange mix of superstitions and religion. Lola is one of several dead characters in this book, and they tie into another reason that the boy is worried about this trip. Jesse is an unusually nuanced character, both in relation to his family and to readers. When he sees something extraordinary, it's unclear if he is dreaming, hallucinating, or if he has inherited his grandmother's abilities. Torres's gradual revelation of details will keep readers hanging until they learn the truth. Or's artwork uses sepia tones and smooth lines, and features characters with cute button eyes. But the sweet images can quickly turn horrific when Jesse has his visions. Lola ends with a cliff-hanger that could be resolved in a sequel but that just might have to be resolved by readers' imaginations.—Andrea Lipinski, New York Public Library
(c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Review

Torres and Or's tale is the sort of quiet horror story that moves along simply, lulling you into false security, before twisting quickly in another direction right at the end. The details of Jesse's powers are doled out slowly, not just thrown right at you, and so it's easy to think that his reluctance to travel is due to being uncomfortable in a different country, being annoyed by his relatives, or just being a young teen. It's not until we begin to see his visions during Lola's funeral that we realize just why Jesse is as nervous as he is. Then, as his cousin Maritess begins to try to help him deal with his powers, we think that he might just be alright. Maybe he'll learn to handle the visions, maybe his parents will be okay with his abilities as they were accepting of Lola's, maybe things will work out. It's a comforting thought that makes the final twist work even more effectively.

Or's art is as quiet as Jesse is. The characters' rounded faces seem gentle, so when Jesse's visions of death and decay begin, they are as jarring as a rotting corpse in a flower bed. But even though Or's art can be shocking, this is still horror that is appropriate for most middle school audiences. The blood and guts are kept to a minimum, used sparingly for effect, with only three pages having zombie-style (meaning: guts falling out) illustrations. The horror is built more from the looks on Jesse's face. He is tortured by what he sees, pained by the knowledge that the world isn't the safe, easy place that many people believe it to be. Maritess' respect for Jesse's abilities and her slight jealousy of his inheritance of Lola's powers is evident on her face, but that look soon begins to fade as she realizes what his visions have cost him.

Though readers are left unsure of Jesse's fate at the end of this volume--and though there is no guarantee of a second volume--that ending works perfectly for the type of horror this story is. Jesse's world is not safe, even if his story has a folkloric, almost old-fashioned quality to parts of it. The ending reminds us that he has issues beyond our ken to deal with at a very young age and we can't help but be sympathetic to them, even as we shudder at what he sees. Though the oversized format and the bright cover might not catch the eye of horror readers, with some booktalking this title is sure to find an audience. --Publishers Weekly School Library Journal

Product Details

• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Oni Press; 1 edition (January 13, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1934964336
• ISBN-13: 978-1934964330
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #605,077 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Creepy Ghost Story, January 16, 2011

By 

Nicola Manning (Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lola: A Ghost Story (Hardcover)

Reason for Reading: This was a Cybils '10 nominee and as a panelist for Graphic Novels was required reading for me. The panelists did not receive a review copy from the publisher and like most other panelists, I, unfortunately, was unable to find a copy before our nominations were due. My copy from Interlibrary Loan request had just now come in.

This is a great ghost story told in the classic tradition and very worthy to be read by all ghost story aficionados. Jesse sees dead people, goblins, demons, monsters, etc. but he's learned to stop telling anyone since his parents' and teachers' reactions have been less than accepting. Now he and his family are traveling "home" to the Philippines; Jesse's parents immigrated to Canada when he was four and this is his third visit here. He hates it here. They have come for the funeral of his grandmother, "Lola" in Filipino. The culture of his Filipino family is quite hard for Jesse to accept, they are devout Catholics, carrying Rosaries, with beautiful shrines of worship in the house and yet they are steeped in the superstitions of tradition. Lola had the "gift" and he's heard all the stories of how she's helped the community and even defeated demons. Jesse fears what it will be like here now that Lola is gone.

A fabulous story with lots of creepy moments. The tension mounts slowly through the story. Things start happening right away and the reader becomes unsettled knowing something is not quite right. Gradually we learn what is going on, and Jesse realizes the truth as well. His cousin easily figures out Jesse's gift and berates him for hiding it, telling him it is a gift from God and he must use it. He has something he must do before he leaves. Then like any really good ghost story the book ends with a really fantastic heart-pounding shocker of an ending where one can only imagine what comes next. Loved this one!