Pathfinder [Paperback]

Laeta Kalogridis (Author), Christopher Shy (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 8, 2006

Five hundred years before Columbus, barbaric Viking invasions ravaged North America. Pathfinder is the story of a young Viking boy left behind as the only survivor of a shipwrecked expedition. A stranger in a strange land, the boy is raised by a tribe of American Indians - the very people the Vikings had sworn to destroy. When Vikings again storm the eastern shores, waging another barbaric campaign, they slaughter the tribe that adopted the young man. Now he wages a violent personal war to stop the Vikings' trail of death and destruction.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

After the Viking ship he is on runs aground on the coast of North America, a stranded young boy is taken in by a tribe of Native Americans. As he grows older, he is keenly aware of his differences, and he can't seem to cast his past aside. Then the Vikings return and slaughter the Indians, setting the boy on the road to his destiny as Pathfinder and the seeker of justice for his chosen people. Hauntingly beautiful, this well-executed graphic novel, recently turned into a movie of the same name, is part folktale and part ghost story. Shy's artwork adds a dreamlike quality to Kalogridis' telling, blurring the symbolism and tempering the violence by veiling the details in a dark, smoky palette. Art and words combine smoothly to give the story both the power and the strength of myth. Tina Coleman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Dark Horse (August 8, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593076711
• ISBN-13: 978-1593076719
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,188,137 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BRILLIANT! THE MOVIE HAS A TOUGH ACT TO FOLLOW!, September 15, 2006

By 

Tim Janson (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Pathfinder (Paperback)

"Pathfinder" is the graphic novel adaptation of the big screen motion picture. The book is written by Laeta Kalogridis with art by Christopher Shy. The book is based on the premise, and recent archaeological information that the Vikings came to North America many centuries before later European explorers and some 800 years before the first colonists. The Vikings came as raiders and were considered monsters and demons by the Native American tribes along the north eastern shore. When a young Viking boy is left behind, the only survivor of a shipwreck, he's adopted by the Indians and "Pathfinder" is his story.

He's found by the wife of the tribe's chief and the tribal elders debate on whether he should be allowed to stay or not. The boy speaks little as he grows up with the Indians, always under a suspicious eye because of the color of his skin. When the other young men go through the rites of manhood, Ghost, as he is named, is not allowed to join them. He's told his destiny lies along a different path. But trouble soon comes to the Indians because the Norsemen have returned to their shores, and they want the boy back! Ghost must some how lead the people who've scorned him to safety, knowing that they are no match for the swords of the vicious Norsemen.

"Pathfinder" deals with many issues...racism, isolation, becoming a man, and it scores on all of these levels. Kalogridis' story is captivating because while it is taking a guess at history, you get the feeling that this could have happened. The art of Christopher Shy is a major advantage of the book. The art is done in various shade and tone palettes that give the book a very primeval look, exactly what you might expect North America to look like in around 800 AD. Shy makes the Norsemen look larger than life...mythical creatures...giants, demons that put great fear into the Indians. Shy's work is the most evocative I've seen in a long time and is worth the price of the book alone.

Now that I've read the graphic novel I really want to see the film but I'd say the film has a pretty tough act to follow!

Reviewed by Tim Janson

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great !!, June 7, 2007

By 

John B. Timar (Hollywood, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Pathfinder (Paperback)

Great graphic novel. Better than the movie, as most books are, though the movie held pretty true throughout.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lacking in character development..., May 9, 2007

By 

Matthew Mclaughlin (locustville) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Pathfinder (Paperback)

Pathfinder is an entertainingly quick read, that offers little depth or characterization, and even limited action setpieces. The wonderful artwork is the sole saving grace here, as Christopher Shy's touch is amazingly realistic and fantastically moody.

As far as the story goes, it is a very interesting idea, made more interesting that recent discoveries have pretty much concluded that the Vikings did indeed stop off on our shores before the Europeans did; perhaps they may have had several confrontations with the Native Americans, and certainly the Norsemen may have been seen like monsters in their eyes, so the exaggerated appearances ofthe Vikings is easier to digest, allowing it to work as a myth. The Native Americans appear to be portrayed rather accurately, making this a story obviously told from their point of view, and making them immediately sympathetic.

The first act is well done, paced in just the right manner, setting up Ghost's finding and admittance to the tribe - but then jumps ahead to view Ghost as a teenager, skipping what could have been a great look into his upbringing. Instead, all we get is a few panels of him killing a mountain lion after being denied his right to a trial for manhood.

Here the story lets go, and the Vikings arrive full of pillage and slaughter, and Ghost sets out to revenge his tribe which was wiped out. What follows is nothing we haven't read over and over in the various Conan publications, except that Ghost hasn't been nearly as well developed; in fact, this is where the novel fails most - there is no characterization whatsoever. Everyone is seen only in snipets, like half-imagined phantoms; Pathfinder is given no great leadership abilities, we feel no sadness when the attacking Indians fall to their death in a trap set up by Ghost - the Vikings are ugly and mean and slaughter with no real motivation - and even Ghost, who should be the centerpiece, offers no depth. He is conflicted...but never really shows it...he's angry...but we never truly know why.

The action is limited to a few scenes, and really doesn't do much for the latter half of the novel, when the stories and characters have really failed, and some great setpieces might have bailed them out. The Vikings go out rather easily, and there's never any doubt that Ghost will exit victoriously.

This could have been a great novel, because the ideas were there - perhaps a longer series would have done the trick. In any case, I enjoyed the first read, and re-read it a couple of times hoping it would get better, but it only becomes more obvious that it's pretty to look at, but nothing to think about.