Lucas Blogs About Snapdragon

Oh, deer, it's a g-g-g-g-ghost!

 So, what's this book's dea—Oh, I'll bet those library stickers mean that this was another book you auditioned for a Christmas gift, like Skunk and Badger last week.

That'd be a smart bet. Snapdragon by Kat Leyh is a young adult graphic novel about . . . well it's about a lot of things. Oh, and in case you're wondering, this ended up being a gift for my cousin's daughter. The same one who received The Prince and the Dressmaker last Christmas.

I seem to recall that The Prince and the Dressmaker was a big hit. Was this?

Well, she did start reading it as soon as she opened it in the family Christmas zoom. But I haven't received a gushing thank you note either, so I dunno. Anyway, it's the story of Snapdragon, a tomboy-ish mixed race girl living somewhere in the South. When we first meet her she's riding her bike out to the edge of town to confront the so-called witch who lives there. See, her dog, Good Boy (Geebies for short), has gone missing and the kids at school say that the witch eats pets; and as much as Snap claims to think that there's no such thing as magic or witches, she still wants to make sure. In any case, turns out the witch, who'd prefer to be called Jacks, is an eccentric old lady with an eyepatch who found Good Boy injured on the side of the road and has nursed him back to health (minus a front leg). She ends up going back to Jacks' when she finds a bunch of baby possums—

Do you mean possums or opossums?

Well, it takes place in the South so they're obviously opossums. But as someone who lives in North America, I gotta, say, I've only ever heard someone say the word "opossum" to explain the difference. Otherwise, they are exclusively referred to as "possums." But the possums don't really matter, the point is that in exchange for Jacks teaching her how to take care of the possums until they can survive on their own, Snap agrees to help Jacks with her online business. Specifically, she collects roadkill, buries it until it decomposes and then digs up the bones to mount and sell to schools, museums, private collectors, you get the idea. For a while it seems like maybe it's just going to be a slice of life story about a young girl bonding with an older woman and finding her place in a town where she doesn't quite fit in. But then again, there is the story of the monster, a one-eyed fox that's been haunting her family for three generations, and the fact that Jacks is performing rituals to put the spirits of the roadkill at peace, so maybe magic and witches are more real than Snap first assumes?

You can't just make that run-on sentence into a question by slapping a question mark on the end of it.

I can and I did and I would again! In any case, without getting too much into SPOILER territory, not only is Jacks a witch, she starts teaching Snap how to do magic as well. Only instead of leaving her ordinary life behind, magic just becomes another part of who Snap is. Which is a welcome change of pace from more standard "young person is whisked away into a new magical world narrative."

I think I get you, instead of the revelation of a hidden magical world, it's the revelation of something that makes the protagonist's world magical.

Oof, and you criticize me for being corny. But yes, instead of having to go away to a magic boarding school to self-actualize, Snap stays in her small town. Instead of escaping to a new world where she fits in, she learns to make her way in a world where she doesn't. She has to deal with the bullies who taunt her best friend Lulu for being transgender, she stays home alone while her mom is working two jobs and earning a degree. What she doesn't have to do is save the world or become a hero.

It does sound pretty relatable.

Yeah, the story is more about the emotional stakes of figuring out who you are and who you want to be than it is about adventure or derring-do. You know, growing up stuff. There's even an interlude where Snap and Jacks realize that Snap's grandmother was Jacks' ex-girlfriend, which is a bit of a narrative contrivance but also packs in a good lesson about how even the sad parts of the past are part of what makes us who we are. And, as you know, I do think that the lessons you can take away from a book are a pretty important consideration when selecting a gift for young readers.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. But is it fun?

Yeah. Well, actually, I guess that depends on your tolerance for morbidity. After all, there's plenty of talk about roadkill and skeleton articulation and all that. But at its core, it's a fun story about finding friends who get you (Snap and Lulu first bond over their shared love of the Witch's Hill horror films) and (as previously mentioned) finding your own path in the world. It's got plenty of quirky details, for example, when Jacks takes off her long black dress she's wearing a pink shirt with a cartoon of a cat in cowboy hat saying "Meowdy." The characters have relatable and real relationships. And, of course, there's an adorable puppy.

Yeah, and a clutch of hideous baby possums.

Yep! Anyway, that seems like as good a jumping off point as any to talk about the art. Leyh's style has an appealing blend of cartoon-y and realistic elements. The child characters have more exaggerated features, like Snap's big round eyes and bushy eyebrows, whereas older characters like Jacks are a bit more subdued. She also makes good use of the comic book medium in scene transitions. For example, scenes between Snap and Jacks will seamlessly segue into Snap telling Lulu about what Jacks taught her. It also allows for changes in color scheme to add atmosphere in flashbacks.

Sounds pretty cinematic.

Yeah, like there are drawings that are like match cuts that help maintain visual continuity. Leyh clearly has a firm grasp of visual storytelling.

So, then another recommendation?

Yeah, even if I haven't specifically heard a positive review back, I'll still say that this would be a good book for a young adult-ish reader. Particularly if you want to add to their library of books featuring diverse characters and LGBTQ+ representation.

Snapdragon by Kat Leyh, First Second trade paperback edition, 2020, 224 pages, pairs well with popcorn and scary movies

Links:

Kat Leyh is on twitter, if you're into that kinda thing.

She also has a new comic out for grown-ups called Thirsty Mermaids.