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136 reviews for:
Cici's Journal: The Adventures of a Writer-In-Training
Aurélie Neyret, Joris Chamblain
3.94 AVERAGE
136 reviews for:
Cici's Journal: The Adventures of a Writer-In-Training
Aurélie Neyret, Joris Chamblain
3.94 AVERAGE
Cici wants to be a writer, and is a good model for that; patient, observant, curious. She doesn’t seem like a natural storyteller, though. And half the time, she leaves her friends to make up lies to cover for her instead of spinning them all on her own.
Characters of all ages are well-drawn, interesting, & unique in appearance. Equal care is given to drawing secondary characters, but they seem to lack depth. It is most jarring with regards to Cici’s friend Erica, the only Black character, who is quick to anger, and whose temper seems visually out of scale to the emotions she voices or the actions & reactions of the characters she’s interacting with.
The story feels sedate, but probably fascinating to kids who are like Cici; curious, intent, patient enough to sit for long surveillance episodes, and dogged.
The level of detail on each page, the combination of different elements (notebook pages, comic panels, occasional found items), and small font make this best for fluid readers - maybe grades 4-6?
Characters of all ages are well-drawn, interesting, & unique in appearance. Equal care is given to drawing secondary characters, but they seem to lack depth. It is most jarring with regards to Cici’s friend Erica, the only Black character, who is quick to anger, and whose temper seems visually out of scale to the emotions she voices or the actions & reactions of the characters she’s interacting with.
The story feels sedate, but probably fascinating to kids who are like Cici; curious, intent, patient enough to sit for long surveillance episodes, and dogged.
The level of detail on each page, the combination of different elements (notebook pages, comic panels, occasional found items), and small font make this best for fluid readers - maybe grades 4-6?
Cute graphic novel about Cici, a very curious, want-to-be writer (reminded me a bit of Harriet the Spy). She lives with mom (not sure where dad is). Her 2 besties, Erika and Lena, plus resident writer Mrs. Flores are her go-to people. Two different stories told in journal and graphic novel format. First is why old guy carrying paint then bird in cage through the woods. He was painting a zoo where one used to be. Second story was why old Ms. Ronsin took the bus every Tuesday. Then found out she was taking the same book out week after week for years. Cici pisses off her friends and mom because lying and using them. Helps Ms. Ronsin figure out love letters hidden for her in old part of library from her deceased hubby. Cici apologizes to everyone. Mom thanks Mrs. Flores. Some tension there.
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital copy of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.
A fantastically fun graphic novel about a young, aspiring novelist Cici and her adventures solving mysteries around the small town where she and her friends live. There are two mysteries in this volume, the first being about an older gentleman who is always covered in paint and leaves the forest at the same time each day and the second about an older lady whose mystery lies in the library. Both parts of the book were engaging and fun to read. I also loved the characters and thought the mysteries were realistic and fun to figure out. I look forward to reading the next volume!
A fantastically fun graphic novel about a young, aspiring novelist Cici and her adventures solving mysteries around the small town where she and her friends live. There are two mysteries in this volume, the first being about an older gentleman who is always covered in paint and leaves the forest at the same time each day and the second about an older lady whose mystery lies in the library. Both parts of the book were engaging and fun to read. I also loved the characters and thought the mysteries were realistic and fun to figure out. I look forward to reading the next volume!
This graphic novel contains two books. While the first one was fine, we all loved the second one.
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Graphic novel translated from French of an aspiring author. However her obsession with getting to the bottom of a story interferes with her real life relationships with her mother and friends. The book is actually two separate stories of two 'mysteries ' she uncovers. Probably best suited for upper elementary level.
I really loved this. It reminded me of when I was a little girl, and all the mistakes I made with the people around me so I could focus on whatever I was writing at the time.
I loved CiCi. She means well, she’s energetic and earnest, and she has a nose for a story. Sometimes she has too much of a nose for a story. She’s willing to do whatever it takes to get the mystery solved. I love her spunky attitude and her desire to find out the whole story.
I like Lena and Erica as well. Her mother’s behavior wasn’t entirely believable (or at least that’s not how my mom would have handled it!) but I did like her mother’s character. I also loved Mrs. Flores.
The stories themselves were great. They were heartfelt and very touching. I even teared up a few times. I recommend this to anyone with kids, and to all the big kids (read: adults) who had dreams of writing and investigating when they were younger. I REALLY hope they translate the rest of the stories!!!!
I loved CiCi. She means well, she’s energetic and earnest, and she has a nose for a story. Sometimes she has too much of a nose for a story. She’s willing to do whatever it takes to get the mystery solved. I love her spunky attitude and her desire to find out the whole story.
I like Lena and Erica as well. Her mother’s behavior wasn’t entirely believable (or at least that’s not how my mom would have handled it!) but I did like her mother’s character. I also loved Mrs. Flores.
The stories themselves were great. They were heartfelt and very touching. I even teared up a few times. I recommend this to anyone with kids, and to all the big kids (read: adults) who had dreams of writing and investigating when they were younger. I REALLY hope they translate the rest of the stories!!!!
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Lovely illustrations in this middle grade graphic novel but the storyline was overly sentimental for me.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Cici’s Journal by Joris Chamblain is a cute detective story for children. Cici has decided she wants to be a writer when she gets older, ever since meeting Mrs. Flores, the writer who came to her school to show them some techniques for writing. This leads Cici to some interesting cases. The first case she comes across is Mr. Mysterious. She sees him come from the woods one day covered in paint and is curious to know where he has been and what he has been up to. Here start the investigation, Cici and her friends, Erica and Lena.
The style was interesting, with a graphic novel setup for most of the book while also including letters, journaling, and newspaper clippings. I think it was nice to change it from time to time. It helped to keep me interested by giving some verity.
I like that there are teaching moments in this book, like when Cici isn’t always careful to show those closest to her how much she cares about them. While she is on a case, she gets obsessed and nothing else seems to be of importance. Cici makes some bad decisions along the way and has to find her way through some tough situations with a little help along the way.
I also loved how she shows a caring side when she sees her subjects struggling with something and is eager to help them in any way she can.
I'm not fond of how she sneaked around and lied. However, without them, there wouldn’t be the lessons within.
Overall, I enjoyed this story and believe Chamblain did an excellent job at storytelling and the illustrations by Aurelio Neyret were very well done. I enjoyed the artwork at the zoo. This book style could potentially help children who get bored easily and struggle to focus with its occasional changes. I would suggest this book to anyone who enjoys children’s stories, simple mysteries, and graphic novels.
Last but not least, I want to thank NetGalley and First Second Books for the free copy of this book.
The style was interesting, with a graphic novel setup for most of the book while also including letters, journaling, and newspaper clippings. I think it was nice to change it from time to time. It helped to keep me interested by giving some verity.
I like that there are teaching moments in this book, like when Cici isn’t always careful to show those closest to her how much she cares about them. While she is on a case, she gets obsessed and nothing else seems to be of importance. Cici makes some bad decisions along the way and has to find her way through some tough situations with a little help along the way.
I also loved how she shows a caring side when she sees her subjects struggling with something and is eager to help them in any way she can.
I'm not fond of how she sneaked around and lied. However, without them, there wouldn’t be the lessons within.
Overall, I enjoyed this story and believe Chamblain did an excellent job at storytelling and the illustrations by Aurelio Neyret were very well done. I enjoyed the artwork at the zoo. This book style could potentially help children who get bored easily and struggle to focus with its occasional changes. I would suggest this book to anyone who enjoys children’s stories, simple mysteries, and graphic novels.
Last but not least, I want to thank NetGalley and First Second Books for the free copy of this book.