BRUME,

VOL 1 – THE DRAGON AWAKENS

STORY AND COLOR BY JÉRÔME PÉLISSIER

ILLUSTRATED BY CARINE HINDER

(HIPPO PARK; $12.99, AGES 7-11)

I’m so happy I only have to wait until May for Vol 2 in this original comic fantasy adventure graphic novel series. First published in France and modeled after the author and illustrator’s ancient village in Brittany, Brume introduces middle-grade readers to a sassy, can-do character and wannabe witch whose magical heritage is hinted at early on in the book. And the word, brume, by the way, means fog in French. Backmatter with the history of how the series evolved also provides a peek into the heads of author-illustrator Jérôme Pélissier and illustrator Carine Hinder.

The book’s narrator is an adorable pig called Hubert, who becomes Brume’s sidekick early on in the story. I appreciated the subtle humor conveyed in the irresistible art when Brume, who fancies herself a witch now that her village’s witch has mysteriously vanished, thinks she’s turned a villager into a pig. From the engaging first page where we meet Hubert, to the very last page where we learn that not only is the story to be continued, but that the spell book Brume’s been given by her adoptive father hides a key to Brume’s birth parent, I found myself thoroughly hooked. Hinder’s Disney-esque illustrations are presented in warm brown tones. While they enchantingly convey the centuries-old village setting, they also depict Brume and other characters in modern garb. These two different looks work wonderfully together.

The plot of Vol 1 revolves around a spell gone wrong. When Brume tries to create a potion in her cauldron to clean the fog off her pal Hugo’s glasses, the fog grows wild and covers the entire village. Brume is unaware that the potion has gotten out of control, and villagers warn of the mist’s symbolism. The last time fog like this one rolled in, it signaled that “the dragon of Mount Santo was awake.” Naïa, the town witch who had disappeared, had kept everyone safe, but now the villagers felt they needed to hide in their homes. Not buying into the fear, Brume decided she had to confront the dragon in the scary forest and cast a spell on it to save her community. The antics that she, Hubert, and Hugo get up to while hunting the dragon add more humor, served up in just the right amount to keep those page turns coming. And when Brume doesn’t get credit for being the hero (and it’s actually Hubert who stops the fog), her reaction is funny and true to character. Of course, I wanted more when the story in this volume ended, and I think tweens will too. Brume is a rich character, and, along with her friends, makes me eager to see what she gets up to next.

BRUME: Vol 1