Lively graphic-novel reboot of magical elf-girl series.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Violence & Scariness
some
Sophie puts her human family -- and the cat -- to sleep with a potion so she can leave them forever for the elf world and they will have no memory of her. In the human world, Sophie is harassed and bullied, has no friends, and never fits in. A mysterious stranger tries to snatch her and is foiled by her kindly neighbor. The elf world seems like paradise in many ways, but there are hints of darker forces in play -- past deaths, torture and imprisonment cast long shadows, strange fires are consuming forests around Sophie's home, and it's clear that a lot of elf adults know more about her, what she is, and why she exists, than she does, and she doesn't have much control over any of it. Telepathy knocks Sophie and Fitz across a room in a practice session.
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Keeper of the Lost Cities is a bestselling book franchise and a huge, lucrative, glittery fandom and way of life. The graphic novel is not just a fun addition to current fans, it's a gateway to an entirely new audience, with fore- and afterwords by author Shannon Messenger promoting past works and books to come (this one, it's noted, is only half the story of the original series debut, a doorstop-sized volume).
Sex, Romance & Nudity
a little
Sophie, 12, goes from being a social outcast in a human high school to having three slightly older boys and assorted male classmates really interested in her, which gets a little overwhelming. A girl her age who has a cute older brother complains she has a lot of fake friends who used her to get next to him.
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Sophie gets called "freak" and the like by her human classmates. In the elf world, "bad match" (your parents didn't have Council approval to marry) is an insult that follows Dex in particular.
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Like the original series, the Keeper of the Lost Cities graphic novel features elf characters of many different skin tones, which is not an issue or source of discrimination in their culture. Both male and female characters appear in powerful roles -- positive and negative. What is a huge issue/source of discrimination (and could draw parallels with real-world forms of discrimination) is DNA, and how those considered a genetic "bad match" face a lifetime of social consequences for themselves and their children if they insist on marrying. Also a huge issue: waiting for your particular talent (like telepathy) to manifest, and fearing that it never will -- also a social disaster.
Faced with constant surprises and nonstop challenges, Sophie works hard and tries to do the right thing, even when everything is overwhelming and scary. Many elf characters who play a big role in the series appear here, including rich boy Fitz, bad boy Keefe, and tech boy Dex. A lot of elf adults seem to be kind -- but also to know a lot more about Sophie than she does and to have a lot of power over her life. Sophie's human parents are kind and loving, even though they struggle to understand her. She has typical sibling issues with her younger sister. Cliques are an issue at the elf academy as well as at Sophie's old school in the human world.
Positive Messages
some
Courage, friendship, honesty, kindness, and trying to do the right thing -- even when it's hard to know what that is.
Educational Value
very little
An appendix offers would-be artists some tips for drawing the characters. Sophie spends much of the story discovering that everything she knows is wrong, at many levels. As a human child prodigy, she displays genius-level intelligence and rattles off lots of scientific detail. As an elf, she laments that she has to unlearn most of what she's learned as a human, but she works hard.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Keeper of the Lost Cities The Graphic Novel is a new series bringing Shannon Messenger's bestselling elf-girl fantasy to old and new audiences with visual storytelling. It's also a new gateway into a glittery, lucrative, and ever-expanding fan world of books, activities, and merch, so be aware. This volume of the graphic novel, adapted by Celina Frenn and illustrated by Gabriella Chianello, covers events in the first half of the original Book 1, while bringing in characters and issues that emerge later in the series. Violence includes an attempted kidnapping, a past tragic death, and vague talk of torture and imprisonment of characters by authority of the elven Council. Some scenes, like Sophie putting her human family and the cat to sleep so they will forget she exists before she leaves them forever, may disturb some readers and seem implausible to others. A few slightly older boys express romantic interest in 12-year-old Sophie. Some of the differences between elf and human societies may provoke some interesting discussions.
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What's the Story?
KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES THE GRAPHIC NOVEL: VOlUME 1, PART 1 finds 12-year-old child prodigy Sophie Foster in her hometown of San Diego, on another miserable field trip with her high school classmates, who hate and insult her (extra special because she can hear their thoughts). So it's a surprise when Fitz, a cute teenage guy shows up and says he's been looking all over for her. Even more surprising when he reveals that she's not actually human -- she's an elf who's been hidden away in the human world since before she was born, so no wonder she never felt like she fit in. Soon Fitz whisks her off to the Lost Cities, magical home of the elves -- and, the adult elves inform her, her home from now on. As she tries to settle in and do the right thing, there are lots more questions than answers -- especially as she seems to have unusual powers, even by elf standards. And not everyone is as welcoming as Fitz.
Shannon Messenger's convoluted, imaginative tale of DNA, superpowers, cosmic conflict, magical academies -- and a lot of unanswered questions -- gets a lively reboot in a new graphic novel series. Over the last decade, the glittery elf-girl saga Keeper of the Lost Cities has evolved from fascinating premise to colossal franchise and passionate fandom. Gabriella Chianello's colorful illustrations do a lot of the heavy lifting in defining the story's worlds and those who live there, and adapter Celina Frenn weaves a lot of back story and plot threads into a narrative that will appeal to first-time Lost Cities readers -- and offer a new perspective to returning fans.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about stories like the Keeper of the Lost Cities series, that find magical forces at work (for good or ill) in the human world. What other stories do you know about superhuman forces getting involved in regular people's lives? What happened?
If a cute guy you'd never seen before announced that he'd been looking all over for you, you weren't actually human, and you needed to come with him to another world right now -- would you believe him and go along, or run fast in the other direction?
In the elf world, characters stop visibly aging when they hit adulthood and pretty much look the same for thousands of years. Do you think this is cool or do you find it weird that everyone's so young-looking?
What are some examples of when Sophie tries to do the right thing? She tries to do what's right even when she's not sure what that is. Why do you think having integrity is so important to her?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
suggesting a diversity update.
Keeper of the Lost Cities The Graphic Novel: Volume 1, Part 1
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Mary Eisenhart
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based on child development research. How do we rate?
