Isle of Elsi: The Dragon's Librarian

Isle of Elsi #1

by Alec Longstreth

This middle grade fantasy graphic novel collects the first three stories from Alec Longstreth's webcomic for kids, Isle of Elsi. These lighthearted adventures feature many different kinds of silly wordplay.

In The Dragon's Librarian, our pun-loving protagonist, Rex Jargon Jr. and his best friend Sally Sanders must save their village from a diabolical dragon.

In A Menagerie of Messengers, Draziw the Wizard experiments with a bunch of new animal messengers, including talking wolves, after his beloved owl Nicomedes passes away.

In The Search for Spinoza, Nogard the Dragon goes on a quest to find a pair of glasses with the right prescription to help him read books.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics

136 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2019

About the author

Alec is a cartoonist who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He has been self-publishing his Ignatz Award winning comic book PHASE 7 since 2002, and his Eisner-nominated webcomic Isle of Elsi since 2016. To pay the bills, Alec works as a freelance illustrator and a comics educator.

Reviews

[Matt Graupman · Rating 5 out of 5]

As each year passes, there are more and more gloomy predictions about the future of comics. And yes, while it’s true that circulation of superhero comics - what most people typically think of as “comics” - has declined steadily since the foil-gilded heyday of the 1990s, comics as a medium has never been stronger or more diverse. Graphic novels are everywhere and you know who’s buying a whole bunch of them? Kids (or, um- their parents, I guess, would be more accurate). Kids LOVE comics! And kids comics are selling by the boatload. In fact, when Raina Telgemeier’s “Guts” debuted earlier this year, it was the best selling book in the country. Not the best selling comic; the best selling BOOK. I’ve read a lot of YA comics and, just like so-called adult comics, there are good ones and bad ones and everything in between. “Isle Of Elsi,” a collection of Alec Longstreth’s all-ages web comic of the same name, is one of the excellent ones. Snappy, playful, and just downright pleasant, which is a high compliment in our dark and cynical times, the book is definitely the kind of comic that kids will spend hours with, laying on their bedroom floors, getting lost in its beautiful pages.

I first fell in love with Longstreth’s comics when I backed his Kickstarter campaign to publish his first graphic novel, “Basewood,” which had previously been serialized in his “King-Cat”-style zine, “Phase 7.” “Isle Of Elsi,” though a little more fantasy-based, feels like a natural extension of the world of “Basewood.” Lush forests hide mythical creatures, bearded wise men provide much-needed assistance, and epic quests are undertaken by brave but nervous protagonists. Longstreth has a wonderfully cartoon-y style that feels transferred from the funny pages, making “Isle Of Elsi” a natural stepping stone from fare like “Peanuts” or “Calvin & Hobbes” into graphic novels proper. “Isle Of Elsi” follows the adventure of J.R. Jr. as he tries to protect his home, the village of Egalliv, from a highly destructive dragon bent on razing the town to the ground. The book is jammed full of this kind of zippy wordplay, from alliterative dialogue to silly puns and challenging vocabulary (the comic is sneakily educational). And the best part is, when your kid finishes the book and is whining that they want to read more, the comic is still being updated weekly on Longstreth’s website.

After the superb experience I had backing “Basewood,” there was no doubt in my mind that I was going to contribute to the “Isle Of Elsi” Kickstarter. There is no creator more dedicated and communicative than Alec Longstreth. His books are consistently gorgeous, in content and production, and his Backers are given a wealth of insights and updates into the process of creating, printing, and distributing his work. I couldn’t be happier with how he conducts his projects. With the holidays right around the corner, I HIGHLY recommend buying a copy (or five) from his store to surprise and delight the kid - or childish adult (like me) - in your life. It’s a completely captivating comic caper.

[Maia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rex Jargon Junior (R.J. Jr. for short) lives in the small village of Egalliv where his love of puns and word play is sadly under appreciated. He clashes with the less academic kids, and struggles to find a job when his single mother can't pay the rent on their little cottage alone. Eventually he finds a place he fits in at the local bookstore, but just as things are starting to look up Egalliv is attacked by a fire-breathing dragon. R.J.'s father went missing after trying to tame the same beast ten years earlier, so naturally R.J. feels pulled to handle the dragon crisis this time around. His journey into the dangerous forest has more strange twists and turns than even his wild imagination could have predicted. I've been reading this webcomic a page a week since the beginning, and I finally got the beautiful, hardback, self-published first volume in the mail! What a gorgeous book this is! It's full color with end paper maps and a notes section explaining the inception and inspirations for the story. It's a perfect comic to gift to a budding reader; if you know a kid just slightly too young to read The Hobbit, hand them this book first.

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Space for physical books these days is at a premium, so I'd thought that (after reading the comics online) that I wouldn't need my own copy and that purchasing one for my nephew when it first came out would be enough. Ever since then, though, I've just realized how much I wanted my own copy. Part of it is because I love the production design, with the two maps as endpapers, the handsome trade dress on the cover and spine, the nice paper stock. Part of it is just because Alec Longstreth's Isle of Elsi comics are just so much fun, that rare comic that really is good for all ages; I'm happy to read this over and over again.

[Halli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fun graphic novel contains lots of puns, wordplay, and adventure! I'm now seriously reconsidering my career as a children's librarian, because being a dragon's librarian is goals. Or maybe there's a possibility of being a unicorn's librarian...? :)

Thank you to author/artist Alec Longstreth for sending our library some copies of this great book (and for providing art for the library card for our community's students-they love the dragon card!)!

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun! I loved the general word play and the big heart and courage of the main character. This really reminded me of the classic TinTin series. I hope to revisit this one in times when I feel like just having a great time with a fun adventure.

[William Cardini · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun comic to read with kids! My six-year-old really enjoyed it and was very invested in the story. The hardback is beautifully produced.

[Kristy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story! Great illustrations! The colors are so well done and I love the glossary.

[Rich Clabaugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun story with colorful characters with lots of engaging word play!