Another Kind

Another Kind
Trevor Bream, Author

Cait May, Author/Illustrator

HarperAlley, Oct. 2021

288 pages

Grades 4-Up

Graphic Novel/Fantasy

Meet the Irregularities. They are a gang of kids with "other-worldly" DNA who live in a government facility called "The Playroom", where agents monitor their abilities and keep them hidden from the general public. They include various cryptids such as a yeti, selkie, will-o-the-wisp, sea creature, shape shifting bear, and a lizard/alien. An agent-turned-bad takes the irregularities and plans to turn them over to an eccentric rich collector. The gang realizes what is happening and escapes. What follows is a harrowing cross-country journey as the team seeks to find sanctuary. On the way they meet all kinds of interesting folks, some friendly, and some not to be trusted. The group grows closer and becomes more of a family than a friendship group and work together to fight the bad guys and obtain their freedom.

This is a different kind of graphic novel that will quickly find an audience in today's market. Horror books are trending and although this is not strictly horror, it features what society traditionally thinks of as monsters. That said, the young "monsters'" are lovable and misunderstood. Readers will easily identify with them and root for their safety. The book is extremely adventurous and will keep readers turning pages. Plot twists abound as loyalties shift and secrets are revealed. The story ends with a big climatic battle--and then a cliff hanger as the reader realizes that the Irregularities are safe from the present danger, but still on a quest for a home-base. Sequels are sure to follow, which will please new fans. The panels are easy to scan and the comic illustrations are well done. My only quibble was that there are weird circles on the character's noses (both human and cyprid), which I found distracting. Overall, an original and thrilling series that will please a variety of readers looking for comics that are a bit less silly than Dogman, yet not as intense as the biographical memoirs coming out in droves.