Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Review: Bone (the complete series)


Bone is a graphic novel series (9 books in all) by Jeff Smith.  It is epic in scope, but I don't think you get a sense of just how epic until about halfway through the series.  Therefore, I'm glad I grabbed the one-volume epic when I saw it, because to be honest, if I had these books separately, I don't think I would have had much motivation to continue past the second book.  Luckily for me, though, I had all nine stories handily in one volume, so finishing the series was not difficult for me! 

The story centers on three cousins- Fone Bone, Phoney Bone and Smiley- who were kicked out of their hometown, Boneville.  They come to a valley that is both beautiful and fraught with danger.  Strange rat-creatures try to capture them, seeming particularly interested in Phoney.  Fone befriends a young lady named Thorn who lives on a farm with her Grandma Ben.  But there is unease in the valley- rumors of sleeping dragons, a large tiger and locusts abound, in addition to the rat-creatures. 

And, of course, there is Moby Dick.

I really enjoyed this series!  I can tell already that this is going to be a shorter review than most of mine.   (I am sure you are all breathing a sigh of relief!)  First of all, multiple times while reading this series, I would see Fone Bone and just giggle because he is so cute.  I know that many cartoon characters are cute, but something about that big nose and those eyes just screams adorable to me.  I mean, really.  Look at him.

But there is more to Fone Bone than his Pillsbury Doughboy nature.  He is also loyal, kind and literary.  The perfect man, really!  And his cousins and friends are pretty great, too.

And I think that's why I enjoyed this series so much.  Yes, it becomes epic, yes, there is a girl who comes into her own, and yes there are plot twists and depths that you would never imagine at the beginning.  But somehow, Jeff Smith keeps it fun.  Even when the characters are in grave danger, or feeling really sad and miserable, their senses of humor are never far away.  Smith has an enviable ability to make his story full of epic fantasy tropes without getting bogged down in fantasy's tendency to be gloom-and-doom.  He never loses sight of the fact that he wants to entertain his audience.  So whether it's through jokes about the readability of Moby Dick, recipes for Bone-quiche or really miserably-written love poems, he'll have you smiling all the way to the last page.

11 comments:

  1. These are incredibly popular in the elementary school library where I volunteer. I haven't picked them up yet but maybe I will this summer. They sound fun!

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  2. So glad you liked this one!! I remember reading your review of the first book in the series, and remember you saying that you wanted to read through the conclusion, and I am glad you got the chance to do it! I bet these books would be a really big hit with all the members of my family, especially my kids. It's also nice to have the whole story in one book, and if I do invest in this one, this is the version I will get. Great review!!

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  3. My boys all absolutely adore this series. We now own every single book (separately). They adore it. I, on the other hand, liked the first book but have never felt that compunction to read beyond that. I might one day, but probably not any time soon.

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  4. ::sigh:: This is the review that's broken through my reader's intentions to avoid this series; I'll have to check it out now. Like I need another series to delve into! Thanks, anyway. ::grin::

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  5. I think this series is definitely one my girls and I could share together. I think they all look cute!

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  6. I've read the first volume so far and loved it; I immediately got the second one and I keep telling myself to read it, it won't take long! Did you get the larger books? Since I started with a single volume I'll keep getting them, I think. They're very well done and such fun stories!

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  7. Great review. I think I need to read something fun, so I just might check this one out.

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  8. My daughter likes these books, and you've convinced me that I must give them a try.

    --Anna
    Diary of an Eccentric

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  9. Yes, it *is* an immensely fun series. And it made me forever giggle at the mere mention of a quiché :P

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  10. I ADORE this series immensely! I have so much LOVE for it! <3 I borrowed the series from the library and they're separate volumes, so I read them in the span of more than a year. But really, if you love it you'll just keep going I think, no matter it's one compilation volume or not :)

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  11. This is one of my favorite graphic novel series! Your review is making me want to reread the Bone series all over again. I love the scenes with Fone Bone and the Dragon and Fone Bone with Rose. The grandma is just a great character.

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