Light

lost comic #1

by Rob Cham

This wordless comic book follows the exploits of a backpack-toting adventurer in a quest to find a mysterious treasure. Framed in black, the illustrations offer delightful bursts of color and are sure to entertain readers of any age.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Comics, Adventure, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book, Middle Grade

114 pages

First published January 1, 2015

About the author

Rob Cham is a freelance illustrator, designer, and comic artist who's done illustration works for notable publications and magazines like Rouge, Smile, Esquire, the Philippine Star. He has also worked with brands like McDonald's and Adidas. Cham has also worked with various government agencies, namely the Department of Social Welfare and Development as well as the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Reviews

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first silent comic. Didn't even know they exist. More of a picture book, really. Unusual page layout. Some black and white pages, some pages are with vibrant line art in primary colours on black backgrounds.

Our little hero strongly reminded me of the Moomins.



He has a sword and a map and is off on a quest! He makes a friend, gets chased by monsters and meets many strange creatures...



Our two little main characters are quite blood thirsty, they put the sword to good use. Despite that I would read this with children, I think they would like it just as much as I did.

Try not to read the blurb, it gives away too much. This is nicer to look at with a little mystery left. The plot is straight forward and minimalistic, but combined with the beautiful, childlike artwork this is an enchanting little piece. The creatures made me smile, I enjoyed this quite a bit.

I received this free e-copy from the publisher/author via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC: Via Netgalley
This is actually quite a charming little picture graphic novel. There is no text, just pictures, but the action is easy to follow.

The story concerns a creature that reminds one of Bone and his or her quest to find gems. These gems will restore color. The hero (and I am using this as a gender neutral term) eventually gains a partner, a character who reminds one of those ink blot characters that pop up in animation every so often. The quest takes them into the deep and dark caverns.

Cham uses both bright color and darkness to his best advantage. Before anyone objects or tries to say that the story is anti-black, Cham shows that absolutely whiteness is just as blinding. IT is a variety of colors (of all shades) that is needed. In part this is through the use of the jewels, but also though the characters that inhabit the story. Both the hero and buddy are absolutes – white and black. The other creatures come across as frightening at first, but then variations start to appear. And there is a whole host of creepy crawlies in the underground caverns.

In fact, you can almost see the book as a movie playing out before your eyes. It is a joy to read because of the use of color, humor, and style.

[Anusha Narasimhan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is such an adorable book. I didn't know about the existence of silent comics, so it was cool to experience it. Surprisingly, the lack of words does not make it hard to understand the plot. The characters are so cute and the art is beautiful. I enjoyed reading (viewing?) it.

Note: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. The review and rating are not influenced in any way.

[Ronyell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would like to thank NetGalley and Magnetic Press and Buno Publishing for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Introduction:

Now for years, I had read many graphic novels that would have written dialogues from the characters to help us understand the story being told in the comics. However, even though I had read many children’s books that had no text and the story was being told through the artwork, I had never read a graphic novel that did not have any dialogue spoken by the characters and lets the artwork tell the story. Luckily, I was able to come across such a graphic novel called “Light” by Rob Cham that was graciously provided to me by NetGalley and I have to say that I was quite impressed with this wondrous story!

What is this story about?

The story starts off with two explorers (a white big nosed creature and a grey leaf looking creature with large eyes) going on a journey through deep inside the earth to find five magic gems that would bring back color to the surface world. Along the way, the two explorers meet up with various dangerous and strange creatures that get in their way of completing their mission to find the magic gems!

What I loved about this story:

Rob Cham’s story and artwork: Wow! Everything that Rob Cham did in this graphic novel was just fantastic to read through! Not only was this a nice quick read due to the story not containing any text, but I found the story to be extremely creative and exciting! I loved the way that Rob Cham told the story through the artwork as we get to see the two explorers go through various obstacles in order to obtain the five magic gems. I like how the storytelling is similar to a video game mission where you have to find all the items to complete the game (sort of like how with “Sonic the Hedgehog” you have to find all the chaos emeralds to get a complete ending for the game). However, in this case, the video game mission is given a more coherent plot and you get to experience the journey with the two explorers through the artwork! Rob Cham’s artwork is what really sold this graphic novel to me as the characters look so strange yet wondrous at the same time and I really loved the appearance of the two explorers as they look so adorable compared to the other strange and dangerous creatures in this story. I also loved the colorings for the artwork as the surface world is drawn in black and white colors as it represents the lack of color in their world, while the world below the earth has neon colors, but the coloring is against a black background that gives that world a dark and frightening feel.



What made me feel uncomfortable about this story:

For those of you who do not like violence and scary imagery, this graphic novel does have several moments where the explorers have to stab and cut their enemies in order to survive the journey. Also, there are images of some frightening creatures such as the large bat that chases the explorers and night creatures that try to eat the explorers that might creep out some readers.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, “Light” is a truly fantastic and creative story that anyone who loves fantasy adventure stories will definitely get a kick out of!

Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A small explorer ventures into a dark cave system, seeking treasure. With never a word – not spoken, not written, not necessary – he (he?) discovers a friend, a treasure, and still more adventure, all illustrated in dense black and stark white with only strategic splashes of color. It's lovely "silent" story-telling with seemingly simple artwork, conveying all that could be asked of the personalities of the main character and those he encounters. The little hero is almost featureless, but expresses emotion clearly, and managed to win my heart. And the ending is lovely.

The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.

[Magda · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most adorable novel I've read in a very long time.
Well, saying "read" might be an exaggeration, but the whole experience was lovely and heart-warming.

A bit of an update :)

"Light" is a lovely adventure story about a little guy who journeys to find these little crystals his map shows. There will be monsters, friendship, unexpected meetings and a journey. Sort of like Hobbit, but cuter and with fewer dwarves ;). Just kidding here.

Let me just tell you one thing: this book is freaking ADORABLE! I loved every bit of it. From the very first pages that just begged to end up as a coloring book.

Through the first bursts of color until the loveliest ending you could think of.

You might've noticed the lack of text on the pictures and indeed it's another wordless graphic story and yet I was so immersed in this adventure I was so sorry it was over. It's like with one of those series you get so attached to and when it's done you don't know what to do with yourself. I felt the same with this one. Lovely! And cute. And heart-warming. I want to hug this book right now [which is not easy since it's on my PC...]


I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
check my reviews at https://maginibooks.wordpress.com

[Scarlet Cameo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este "cuento" es bastante lindo,no tanto un comic, sino más bien un libro ilustrado de esos que, cuando somos pequeños, vamos formando la historia en base a las imágenes dado que no hay nada escrito. Aun así tenemos una aventura bastante divertida de crear, conalgunos momentos graciosos, tiernos y valientes.

Probablemente haré otra reseña cuando me ponga alcorriente con todas las que tengo pendientes.

A digital copy of this book was provided by NetGalley

[Jahnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first read for silent comics. Creative and I loved the illustrations especially that it's heavy on the dark or black side. I found it refreshing to leave the dialogue to the reader, inviting them to use their imaginations to interact with the illustrations on the page.

[Leanza · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story itself is charming but rather cliche and predictable. However, I see this more as an exploration of the medium that is "silent/wordless comics," and should be reviewed as such. Telling stories purely visually without words or even motion, just still images, is very interesting. The way that Rob Cham framed and sequenced each page was good. Though personally, I thought the flow could have been better. I guess, in terms of the story and structure, I was just a little underwhelmed.

The illustrations, however, were of course nothing short of beautiful. The bright colorful lines really stand out against the black backgrounds, and the simplicity and complexity of the art style is wonderful. I am a fan of Rob Cham and have been following his work for a few years now, so I expected nothing less.

Even though I wasn't exactly captivated by the story, this was still a delight and I am truly happy to own this piece of art. I'm also very glad and excited seeing this silent/wordless comics style, and comics/graphic novels in general, booming more and more here in the Philippines!

[Elevetha · Rating 2 out of 5]

*An ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

2.5 stars.

While it was somewhat cute, mostly entirely due to the characters' expressions, it didn't really satisfy. The story panels did a decent job at telling the story, and I liked that it was wordless, but I really would have liked some more idea of what was taking place through panels that flowed into one another. Some of the panels seemed to jump from one to the next without much idea of what was taking place or what happened in between. The idea was nice, and what we got was okay, but I wanted more.

[Isa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so absolutely BEAUTIFUL!
The artwork was amazing - the way Cham used light and shadow... it was breathtaking!
I'm definitely looking forward to more from Cham!

[Neil Franz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations! I like it!

[Mehsi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

In a world without colour a little guy (or girl, but I see it more as a guy) goes on a journey to find several shiny, colourful crystals. What will happen when he gathers them all?

I was immediately interested in this one when I spotted it at Netgalley. I am all for quests, I love playing RPGs and this one reminded me of just that.

The story is told entirely through the illustrations. Each page is one illustration. There are no voices, the characters are silent. But that doesn’t matter. The illustrations tell it all. An engaging, interesting, fun, exciting adventure through the world where these little guys are living in. Because yes, our MC finds a friend, and they travel together. Beating monsters, running for their lives, searching for those shiny, colourful gems.

The book mostly has black backgrounds, some pages are black and white, but there are a lot of vibrant pages as well, which just looks gorgeous considering the black background. Even in the dark the colours are visible and will leak out of the pages.

The journey was a lot of fun, and I was delighted by the ending.

The art is just beautiful, I love how everything is drawn. From the monsters to the MC, to the backgrounds.

I will be sure to add this book to my collection when it comes out. And I would highly recommend this book to everyone!

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com

[Jedi JC Daquis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light, with its obvious inspirations from Bone (but without words), bit of Adventure Time and dungeon-cave fantasy RPGs coupled with Rob Cham's art in pitch black background gives this little book its own unique charm.

Light's nameless protagonist travels to a cave, among other places for a mission which is not yet revealed until near a halfway read, from which the result of a successful quest is not revealed until the very end of the book. Thus the story itself is a template of most role playing games and fantasy stories, though much condensed in Light, so you have to experience everything until the end where the challenge of the whole mission is reconciled with the worthiness of the reward.

But since Light is well, a light and short read, the otherwise formidable foes don't get too much screen time to convey the true challenge they pose to our protagonist. It just felt like this Bone-y character casually walked through the whole ordeal, killing much of the thrill.

I cannot complain too much though, because Light has downright gorgeous art. It is full of childish whim and fantastic creatures you'll enjoy browsing through it over and over.

Anino Comics seems to be making its comback after its successful wave of Arnold Arre era comics. Hopefully we see more quality graphic works from this publisher.

[Ayah · Rating 4 out of 5]

​I received a review copy from the publisher via NetGalley, in exchange with an honest review.

This is my very first silent comic, and I wasn't disappointed !

I fell in love with the illustration work. This comic shows how a picture is worth a thousand words.The color switching from one contrast to another , was highly appreciated. I highly recommend swapping instantaneously through such pages , to enjoy a short stop motion animation.

I wish I understood why he killed a lot, or what lead to having such creatures guiding the elemental crystals. Definitely a little bit of too much violence for kids; there is a lot of killing that happens one after another.

I give it 4/5 stars.

[Hala Salah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was perfection!
This was my first silent comic "To be honest I didn't know they existed" and the illustration was amazing. Some of the pages were black and white and some with amazing colors.
I ended this in 10 minutes because it was very simple but I felt like I needed more from the story
The ending wasn't satisfying but over all, It was amazing story and the artist did a great job.

[Led · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the cutesy illustrations, and the use and non-use of colors to wordlessly tell the gem-collecting adventure of the sword-wielding, chess pawn-like character and its equally wee tear-shaped sidekick. The surrounding monsters hold the interest in the story it is trying to tell. Some pages though, seem to leap ahead from the previous picture, losing some context.

A breathing space for the sodden reader, a charming gift to starting ones.

[Doyeon Ahn · Rating 3 out of 5]

사일런트 코믹, 그래픽 노블, 혹은 일러스트레이션? 뭐라 딱히 정의내리기 어려운 종류의 책 (혹은 인쇄물). 다섯가지 색의 보석을 찾아 모험을 떠나는 이야기. 주인공 캐릭터가 볼이 빵빵하니 귀여움.

[Ije the Devourer of Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light is an interesting comic about a creature who sets out on a quest. As we follow the creature through the adventures we get to see all that s/he has to endure in order to achieve the aims of the quest.

The book is wordless and so the story is told through the pictures alone. I don't generally read wordless graphic novels but I found the experience very different to stories with text because I really had to pay attention to the drawings in order to figure out what was actually happening.

The pictures are drawn against a mostly black background because the quest largely takes place underground. This sense of darkness actually adds to the story and emphasises the different adventures and the dangers that the creature encounters along the way.

This book reminds me of a shortened version of Bone. It was an enjoyable enough graphic novel, with interesting enough use of darkness, colour and light in the art. This is not the kind of graphic novel that I normally read, but it made for a very different reading experience, and the need to look through several times in order to get a deep appreciation of the whole story.

Copy provided via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Rowan MacBean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received LIGHT as an ARC from NetGalley.com.


LIGHT is a graphic novel in the truest sense; it is entirely pictures. There are actually a speech bubble or two with just "?" or "!" in them, and there are a couple of sounds--a "pop" and a "yoink"--but other than that the story is told completely through pictures.

The art is deceptively simple (it looks easy but *I* certainly couldn't draw it) and very expressive; the story doesn't need any words. I would love to see LIGHT as a short film (as long as Rob Cham did the art) because, as I was reading, I had the same feeling I used to get as a kid when I watched cartoons that didn't have words. They were my favorites and I'm not entirely sure why. I used to think it was because of how the focus turned to the music, but...obviously, LIGHT doesn't have music, so...it must be something else about the wordlessness that appeals to me.

Anyway, LIGHT is a delightful little adventure story that I look forward to adding to my physical shelves. It's something I feel I'll come back to from time to time, to put a smile on my face.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is quite a lovely wordless graphic novel, but beyond being lovely there isn't much there.

Yes, the Bone like character goes in search of the jewels in the underground, and makes friends with a small creature not unlike him or herself. They fight creatures, and are helped by creatures, and eventually they bring the jewels to the surface and bring color to the world. The End.

It feels as though there are missing pictures. It feels like sometimes they attack people they shouldn't, which is shown, but other times they are helped by creatures that come out of nowhere.

It is all nice enough, but it is a simple plot, and perhaps it is meant to be that way.

So, three stars for the beautiful art, but the plot it self was a bit of a non-starter.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Sanaa Hyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

A silent graphic novel with beautiful artwork and a heart-warming story.

This book is pure joy. Our protagonist finds himself in a black and white world and sets off on a quest to find colours so he can bring them back to his world. The story and its interpretation is left open, to be deciphered by the reader/viewer (the gist remains the same, of course). You can make up the dialogues, give the characters funny voices, trivialize or emphasize artwork details to your liking, and turn it into a new story each time. I think this would be a treasure to read out loud to children and a pleasure to behold for adults and children alike!

Would recommend 100%.

[Cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this on a whim from net galley because the cover was absolutely gorgeous. and so is what's inside.

this is my first silent graphic novel and, besides my ok rating, I liked it. but, when words fail, image has to prevail. and at times I felt like there was some images missing between actions, to get the full extent of the moments of the story (which I'm not sure I completely did). but the art is gorgeous: the use of colour and black and white is so perfectly explored. will pick more titles from the author.

[Bregje · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story was sweet and cute and the illustrations were absolutely beautiful. The story is about someone living in a black and white world going on a journey to find gems that will bring colour to their world. This was a quick read and while the storyline was a bit predictable, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The transition between the different illustrations is sometimes rather abrupt, but I was still able to follow the story. The last full colour illustration makes me really curious about seeing more of the illustrator's work.

A received a review copy from NetGalley.

[becca 🍂 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This graphic novel is so wonderful. The illustration is absolutely beautiful; the colours against the black backdrop looks stunning and I love that the more you look, the more you see.
The two little characters are just adorable, they're tiny and fearless taking on giant creatures.
Light was the first silent story I've read and to be honest, it made me want to read a whole lot more. I can't praise this enough, I would recommend it to absolutely everyone!

[Anita Gomgal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genial!!!
Un pequeño libro ilustrado, con una aventura que no necesita diálogos porque sus dibujos lo dicen todo!!! Me ha sorprendido mucho que sin usar ni una sola palabra transmita tanto en tan poco!!!!

[Ronie Padao · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read it like I was just watching an animated movie!!!

[Darliza · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful world-less comic book that should be made into a video game. I am so glad books like these are getting published in the country today.

[Erin Entrada Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful silent comic with unique illustrations. High-quality. I picked this up at Baltimore Comic-Con, and I'm so glad I did!

[Mark Anthony Salvador · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ang basa ko, ang graphic novel na ito ay tungkol sa kapitalismo at class struggle. Madilim sapagkat ilang halimaw lamang nagmamay-ari sa liwanag na dapat ay para sa lahat.