Sky Island: A Trot & Cap'n Bill Adventure (Family Comic Friday)

Trot and Cap'n Bill and Grandpa are back! 

In their first adventure, the trio traveled the briny depths to end a war between sea sirens and sea serpents. This time around, they stick mostly to dry land by exploring a mysterious abandoned amusement park called Sky Island. One of Trot's Sea Siren friends has gone missing. The only clue is a boat patrolling the area bearing the logo of the old park. With help from old allies and a new friend, the search is on!

I really loved this book. I had forgotten that the sirens had presented Cap'n Bill with a special gem that gives him the ability to talk. Bill is such a hilarious character. And writer Amy Chu (Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death) does such a fantastic job writing him. I can very much see my household of cats doing some of the silly things he does, like get distracted by a small critter when they should be performing a major task.

I've got to make a confession. I skipped to the end of the book to make sure Bill survived. I just hate it when sweet little anthropomorphic animals get hurt or killed in a comic or graphic novel. It just rips my heart in two; probably because it reminds me of my guys. But I didn't spoil the ending!

Trot and Cap'n Bill is a modern remake of a pair of little known L. Frank Baum novels. Only in those books, Bill was an old sailor with a peg leg instead of a cat. Trot is still a brilliant little girl. But in the remake, both Trot and her grandfather are Vietnamese refugees living in coastal California. 

As much as I have loved both books, I fear that I might not be a third book. While Trot and Cap'n Bill appeared in about half a dozen books, most of them are part of the Oz series. I'm not sure if those Baum books are under public domain or the licensed property of MGM or some other company. But if they are, is this the end of Trot and Cap'n Bill adventures? I really, REALLY hope not.

Sky Island was an adventuresome read that made me laugh several times. The artwork is brilliant and lively. Those sea serpents are so cute. Janet K. Lee's (Diary of a Mad Scientist Garden Gnome) art almost makes me a fan of snakes. ALMOST...

Another aspect that is rather enjoyable is how real things are. I'm not talking about the mermaids or sea serpents. I'm talking about how frank and honest Amy Chu is about Grandpa's dementia or the hardships Trot's new friend encountered when she lost her father's property after he passed. Amy Chu is a realist but she's not a fatalist. I think kids need to know that while life is hard and not fair; it's also good and full of hope. And Amy Chu delivers this message perfectly!

A must for fans of cats, the ocean and L. Frank Baum! Here's to a 3rd book in the very near future!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Sea Sirens: A Trot and Cap’n Bill Adventure (Family Comic Friday)

The subject of this week's Family Comic Friday is a graphic novel that I have wanted to review for a while. But with a slew of Halloween themed comics taking priority, this really great book unfortunately got buried in my to-read pile. Fortunately, there's a lull before all of the 2019 holiday books flood my local comics shop. So without further to-do, let me introduce you to Trot and her feline bestie, Cap'n Bill!

Sea Sirens: A Trot and Cap’n Bill Adventure
Written by Amy Chu
Art by Janet K. Lee
Published by Viking Books for Young Readers
Pages: 144
Retail: $20.99

Trot is a young Vietnamese American girl who loves to surf. While she's riding the waves with her one-eyed cat, Cap'n Bill, her grandfather spends his time fishing on a nearby pier. Trot's grandfather is in the early stages of dementia. Sometimes his mind wanders off. Sometimes, he does.

That's exactly what happens on one excursion, to which the police have to get involved. As a result both Trot and Cap'n Bill are forbidden by the girl's mother to continue surfing when she should be watching her grandfather at home instead. But, those waves! They are just crying to be ridden! 

So while her grandfather sleeps, Trot and her cat sneak out for another round of surfing. Only the waves are really choppy this time around and the pair find themselves in trouble having wiped out on a massive wave.

The wipeout whisks Trot and Cap'n Bill to a magical underwater mermaid kingdom. Quickly losing air, the sirens bless the surfers with the ability to breathe underwater (and allow Bill to talk human!) It appears that Trot and her pet have discovered a saltwater Utopia. But anything is anything but perfect as Trot and Cap'n Bill find themselves stuck in the middle of an epic battle between merpeople and sea serpents- with Trot's grandfather a hostage of the kingdom of water snakes!

Sea Sirens was a nearly perfect pearl of a book. Janet K. Lee’s menagerie of underwater kingdoms was so beautiful. I didn’t want Trot and Cap’n Bill’s adventure to end. Lee’s work on previous works, such as Return of the Dapper Men, is so colorful and clean. The illustrator has an amazing knack for making characters and creatures look magical while still appearing realistic.

As for the story itself, I also quite enjoyed it. However, there was one aspect of Amy Chu’s narrative that really annoyed me. The Red Sonja writer peppers in dialogue in Vietnamese throughout this book. That makes sense as the main characters are from that nation. But Sea Sirens suffers from an ailment that is the biggest reason why I hate the movie Stargate! There’s no visual translation  into English! 

Without some sort of subtitles, I feel like I am missing out on some very important aspects of the plot. True, with Stargate, the viewer was supposed to be as lost as the modern day scientists who cannot speak the dialects of the alien races that encounter. But for the most part, the Vietnamese dialogue is between Trot and either her grandfather or mother. So, it really does not make sense to not let the reader in on those conversations. 

Not to be confused with the characters of the same name by L. Frank Baum, Trot and Cap’n Bill (the cat) are a great team. Amy Chu must know how to speak cat, because I can very much imagine some of the banter between girl and her feline going the same way at my house with my kitties. Those scenes were great!

Volume 2 of this wondrous series drops in the spring of next year. I hope that Amy Chu and Janet K. Lee do nothing to change the dynamics of this amazing story. Well, except for adding some subtitles. Other than that, I hope for another volume full of adventure, talking cats, and heart!

Sea Sirens: A Trot and Cap’n Bill Adventure debuted in print and digital platforms on June 11, 2019. Be sure to check it out on Amazon for an amazing price!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.