Le Secret de Garmann

Garmann #3

by Stian Hole

Johanne et Hanne sont jumelles, elles se ressemblent trait pour trait, tout le monde le dit. Mais Garmann, lui, les trouve différentes. Il sait combien Hanne est brutale et cruelle, combien Johanne est douce et rêveuse. D'ailleurs Johanne a un secret à partager avec Garmann : il y a dans les bois quelque chose, une sorte de capsule spatiale abandonnée qu'elle veut lui montrer. L'endroit devient bientôt leur cachette, le vaisseau secret où ils se retrouvent, à l'abri des regards ironiques de Hanne et des autres...

À partir de 5/6 ans

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Stian Hole (born 20 March 1969, in Tønsberg, Norway) is a Norwegian graphic designer, illustrator and writer of children's books. He has made numerous book covers and three picture books which have gained national and international recognition. His book Garmann's Summer earned him an Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award in 2009. In 2009 he won the Nordic Children's Book Prize.

Reviews

[Beverly · Rating 1 out of 5]

FTC Disclosure: I received an advance copy of this book from Librarything’s Early Review Program in exchange for an honest review.

Summary:

"They’re like two peas in a pod," adults whisper about the girls. But Garmann knows that they aren't. Then one day Johanna takes Garmann into the woods to show him a surprise, and the two find a secret world full of imagination and discovery."

Based on the summary provided by Librarything, I thought this would be a good addition for my elementary school library. It sounded like an interesting story. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to it's potential.

What I liked about the book: Unfortunately, I didn't like anything about this book.

What I didn't like about the book: The storyline was too disjointed. It really didn't make any sense. What I really didn't like were the illustrations. I found them to be rather creepy and well, downright scary. I also found the suggested romance between the two children to be out of place in this story. I have not read the other books by this author and I most likely won't bother reading them. I do not believe this would be a good selection for our library.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the artwork to be different from anything I have ever seen. I would give the artwork 5 stars because of the creativity. I did enjoy the story. I thought it was different and interesting. The two things I did not like was being able to see Johanna's underwear and Garmann and Johanna kissing at the end. I do not believe this should be a book that a 5 year old or younger would read. So, I would give the story 3 stars.

[Catalina · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far the latest of the series, 'Garmann's Secret' is a wonderful story that can accompany children on their way through their first love. Not only are the illustrations wonderful, just like in the previous 2 books, but this story also makes children more inclined to go out in nature and make friends. It doesn't matter that you are not popular, as long as you have some friend.

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting pictures, but slightly creepy.

[Edward Sojuwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started the Garmann series at this volume, vol. 3, cos sometimes I have the habit of reading a book series from the volume in the middle, instead of volume one. The way I see it, though, rules were made to be broken. Kinda like the kids in this book. Garmann is a waiflike kid who has two girls on his mind, twin sisters Hannah and Johanna, and may be in love with one of them. Two twelve year olds getting kissy with each other? Spicy! Johanna, the nicer girl, heads to the woods with Garmann and find a derelict space capsule, empty and all by it's lonesome in it's cute little crater. They take time to play pretend, hiding in the capsule shell out of the rain, looking at stars, asking questions of the universe all kids ask themselves. It's now their secret, since once Johanna's sis Hannah hears of it, the secret is out. But Hannah does know this and... spoiler alert...she lets them live. So where we go in this prepubescent romantic saga is anyone's guess. The smooch on the final page will likely raise parental eyebrows. But that's what young love is supposed to do! Russian author Stian Hope is a clever, daring writer in kid's fiction, and he's worth a try. Even if you read this third book first, do so. Resistance is futile.
Four stars
Garmann rocks the Galaxy!

[Ester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fin bok med et hav av muligheter for refleksjoner og samtaler med barn:
1. Setninger som "Kom Garmann, så skal jeg vise deg en hemmelighet" åpner for samtaler omkring hva en hemmelighet er og betyr, og forskjellen mellom gode og vonde hemmeligheter. Hemmeligheter er et gjennomgående tema.
2. Når Garmann stopper ved en maurtue og spør: "Lurer på hvordan de ser forskjell på hverandre?"
3. Setningen: "Eller kanskje Gud er på ferie" kan fungere nydelig som utgangspunkt for samtale omkring tro - kan Gud ha ferie? Hva tror dere Gud gjør da?
4. Samtaler om verdensrommet: "Tror du det finnes en planet der ute som er helt lik vår?" spør Johanne.
5. Det som er skummelt og spennende samtidig. Som å svømme med hodet under vann.
6. Hva betyr det å snakke sant? Hvordan vet man om man kan tro på det andre sier?
7. "Gruer du deg til å bli voksen?" Johanne nikker. "Samme her" sier Garmann. Hvorfor tror dere at de gruer seg til å bli voksne? Gruer dere dere til å bli voksne? Hvorfor/hvorfor ikke?

Lekne og annerledes illustrasjoner/grafikk med stort mangfold representert som også kan brukes aktivt som samtaleskaper underveis i lesestunden.

[Dorthe Svendsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tok meg en liten runde med de Holebøjkene jeg ikke har lest, eller ikke husket innholdet i. Liker jo veldig godt bildene til Hole. Og igjen i alle disse så kan du se på ett bilde leeeenge og det gir en helt egen historie. Elsker også innsidepermene hans. Men forstod hvorfor jeg har glemt himmelboka, da den aldri forteller om død men handler om det, og jeg savner en setning som er direkte. Garmans hemmelighet er søt og kan være god til høytlesing for å starte gode samtaler, men de to første i serien rommer mer. Alfabetet er også nydelig, men jeg føler den ikke ender, men gir ett univers, kanskje en kan bruke den til å utvide og videreføre historien som skrivestarter? Lurer litt på om disse bøkene er vel så gode for osw voksne som barn….. men bildene hver for seg kan brukes til masse, i alle disse bøkene, elsker himmelboka særlig der!

[Anna Azarenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Очень и очень красивая книга 👏👏👏

«Я однажды видела, как два муравья тащили каплю воды между собой» - говорит Йоханна.»

«Думаешь, мы можем увидеть отсюда Бога?» - спрашивает Йоханна. «Возможно. Если будем очень терпеливы»

[P Freeman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible, the romance in this book is not good. I don't like seeing little girls underpants.

[Anna Rosenkrands · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fin fortælling og spændende illustrationer.

[Mikaela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Realistiskt och fantasifullt om att vara barn. Passar nog bäst för 5-8-åringar.

[Erin Reilly-Sanders · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m a big fan of Hole’s illustrations- they have a wonderful sense of light and levity while still managing to be awkward and almost scary that seems rather real despite the surrealistic proportions and arrangements of collaged objects. The colors are quite wonderful. Rather than being photorealistic, the realistic elements are bleached out and combined with pastel backgrounds that combine a sense of the pastoral and with the detailed textures and often organic elements included as little flourishes. I suspect that there are those who will have an issue with the depiction of girl’s underwear but I find it sweet and whimsical rather than bawdy. There is certainly nothing sexual of the story and children certainly shouldn’t feel ashamed of their bodies. The text isn’t quite as rhythmic as Garmann’s Summer but the child-like sense of wonder at people and the world still pervades. I was quite disappointed to find that a period had seemingly mistakenly replaced what should have been a comma on the fourth spread, a small but serious detractor.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally published in Norway in 2010.
Reading the book, I could tell it was written from a slightly different cultural viewpoint. Just skimming through the reviews you can see it -- (American) discomfort with the images in which Johanna's underwear is showing, discomfort with Garmann and Johanna's kiss at the book's conclusion, etc. I get it. I feel it too. I probably couldn't get away with having this book in my classroom collection (but I might try to figure out how anyway). I find the illustrations striking and really engaging and the plot makes sense to me. I think a lot of American audiences will be uncomfortable about the relationship between Johanna and Garmann, but I think we're conditioned to feel that way. While some may disagree, I think the children are behaving as children do -- with curiosity. They are kind and caring friends with shared interests and trust for one another. Very sweet. I enjoyed the book, but can appreciate why other's might not. I am grateful it was available for me to borrow from my local library.

[Jasmine Marie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received this book from Early Reviewers on LibraryThing. I really did not like this picture book at all. There was no storyline and the plot made no sense. It just jumped around from one thing to another in a disjointed way. The illustrations weren't my favorite either, but it just wasn't my style. In my opinion, the kids with the extra large heads just look scary because they are photos of real people who look distorted like in a bad dream. I felt uncomfortable with the "illustration" of the girl hanging upside down with her underwear showing under her skirt. She looked too real and it didn't seem appropriate. The ending threw me off too - it just didn't fit. It sounded like a cute story from the description, but it did not live up to expectations. I would definitely not recommend it.

[Elvira · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story about Garmann's friendship with the twin sister of his bully and their shared experiences exploring and playing in a crashed space capsule and their love of space travel. The story is illustrated using photo-collages with exaggerated 2-dimensional heads which at first I found disconcerting, but enjoyed the use to describe the children's imaginings of being in space. The story may not connect readily with an American audience unaware of the Yuri Gagarin, though not completely out of their depths.

[Jyh-haw Teng · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story moves along nicely when Garmann and Johanna take a walk through the forest because she has a secret to share with him. It is at this point of the story that I love the universal hook because, after all, everyone has a secret. The forest scenes are wonderfully filled with warm earth tones and the children come across an old, abandoned space capsule. The plot unveils a fantastic journey of so many wonderful imagining places, along with a sweet foundation of reality and play, kids growing up in wonderment of the creator of planet earth... This is a great book. I recommend it with 5 *s.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to say this is an incredible illustrating book for young children. Some of the pictures are good, but some of them may not fit for kids to read. For example, the little girl’s underwear appears when she is hanging on the tree upside down. Above all, it influences the children’s behavior and it leads children to intimate their conduct. Except for this question, I think the picture of this book looks real and vivid. I like seeing the picture’s book like this except for some pictures for setting up bad examples for young children.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. These Garmann books by Stian Hole get better and better.
In this one, Garmann figures out how to read different people and pick them. Even ones that seem the same but are actually different. It's a good skill to have!
The book also deals with secrets, first love, and first steps of independence from parents.
So so so so so good!

Hole's work is like the very best foreign independent films.

[Shelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the unique style of the illustrations! The story was not a bad one, just to much crammed into a picture book. This tale of Garmann's first real crush should have been told in fewer words or made into a small chapter book. There is enough adventures that the author could easily make that leap for older readers.

[Ladygiodesi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I colori sono molto belli, lo stile è strano, a metà strada tra disegno, collage e fotografia. Nel complesso piacevole ed interessante. Ed anche poetico: racconta il primo bacio di due bambini, e della loro amicizia.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was sweet enough, and I did like the illustrations. It's not a good fit for my collection, seeing as we don't have the other two in the series and I think reading the other two would help.

[McKayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

I rated this two stars because I thought the "romance" between the boy and girl was a little out of place. If the book didn't have that, I thought that it wasn't too bad of a book.

[BiblioBrandie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the illustration in all the Garmann books, but these were my favorite.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story is wonderful, but the illustrations are even better. Stian Hole, I love your books.

[Cara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ganz vorsichtig erzählt Stian Hole von einer beginnenden Freundschaft & Liebe - die collagenhafte Gestaltung ist einmalig, aber vllt. nicht für jeden etwas.

[Allison Marks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing and eccentric illustrations

[Jamil · Rating 2 out of 5]

these Garmann picture books kinda fascinate me in how strange and off-putting they are.