The Sand Warrior (5 Worlds Series #1)

by Mark Siegel, Alexis Siegel, Xanthe Bouma (Illustrator), Matt Rockefeller (Illustrator), Boya Sun (Illustrator)

Overview

R. J. Palacio, #1 New York Times bestselling author of WONDER, hails this adventure series as “Mind-blowingly beautiful. . . . A must-read.”

Think Star Wars meets Avatar: The Last Airbender!
 
The Five Worlds are on the brink of extinction unless five ancient and mysterious beacons are lit. When war erupts, three unlikely heroes will discover there’s more to themselves—and more to their worlds—than meets the eye. . . .
 
   • Oona Lee, the clumsiest student at the Sand Dancer Academy, is a fighter with a destiny bigger than she could ever imagine.
 
   • An Tzu, a boy from the poorest slums, has a surprising gift and a knack for getting out of sticky situations.
 
   • Jax Amboy is the star athlete who is beloved by an entire galaxy, but what good is that when he has no real friends?
 
When these three kids are forced to team up on an epic quest, it will take not one, not two, but 5 WORLDS to contain all the magic and adventure!
 
"A magical journey, as fun as it is beautiful!” —Kazu Kibuishi, #1 New York Times bestselling creator of AMULET

"Bang-zoom . . . a series that promises to be epic."—The New York Times

“This stellar team has created a gorgeous and entrancing world like no other!” —Noelle Stevenson, New York Times bestselling author of Nimona
 
“Epic action, adventure, and mystery will draw you in, but the heartfelt characters and their seemingly impossible journey will keep you turning the pages.” —Lisa Yee, author of the DC Super Hero Girls™ series

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101935880
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	05/02/2017
Series:	5 Worlds Series , #1
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	56,056
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

MARK SIEGEL has written and illustrated several award-winning picture books and graphic novels, including the New York Times bestseller Sailor Twain, or the Mermaid in the Hudson. He is also the founder and editorial director of First Second Books. He lives with his family in New York. Follow Mark on Tumblr at @marksiegel and the 5 Worlds team on Twitter at @5WorldsTeam.
 
ALEXIS SIEGEL is a writer and translator based in London, England. He has translated a number of bestselling graphic novels, including Joann Sfar’s The Rabbi’s Cat, Pénélope Bagleu’s Exquisite Corpse, and Gene Luen Yang’s American Born Chinese (into French).
 
XANTHE BOUMA is an illustrator based in Southern California. When not working on picture books, fashion illustration, and comics, Xanthe enjoys soaking up the beachside sun. Follow Xanthe on Tumblr at @yumbles and on Twitter at @xoxobouma.
 
MATT ROCKEFELLER is an illustrator and comic book artist from Tucson, Arizona. His work has appeared in a variety of formats, including book covers, picture books, and animation. Matt lives in New York City. Follow him on Tumblr at @mrockefeller and on Twitter at @mcrockefeller.
 
BOYA SUN is an illustrator and co-author of the graphic novel Chasma Knights. Originally from China, Boya has traveled from Canada to the United States and now resides in the charming city of Baltimore. Follow Boya on Tumblr at @boyasun and on Twitter at @boyaboyasun.

Editorial Reviews

…a bang-zoom start to a series that promises to be epic in both the classical and internet senses of the word. And the devastation is depicted with cinematic beauty by the art team of Bouma, Rockefeller and Sun, whose every panel could pass for an animation cel…those who love to fully submerge themselves in the geography, politics and folklore of fantasy worlds will likely be preordering Book 2 before they've even turned the last page.

The New York Times Book Review - Christopher Healy

★ 03/27/2017
In a dazzling interplanetary fantasy from the Siegel Brothers, artists Bouma, Rockefeller, and Sun bring to life the cultures, customs, and creatures of a lively new world that will easily appeal to fans of Naruto or Avatar: The Last Airbender. Oona Lee’s older sister, Jessa, was their planet’s most promising sand dancer before she disappeared; awkward Oona can’t even control the sand figures she summons. Their planet, Mon Domani, is beset by cascading environmental crises, and Oona and her classmates are meant to help light an ancient beacon that may bring the galaxy back into balance. But Toki, a rival moon, chooses this moment to attack. In the chaos, Oona finds two allies—An Tzu, a fiercely loyal thief from the planet’s slums, and Jax Amboy, a sports superstar—who recognize gifts in Oona that she doesn’t see. Explosions, attacks, and evildoing are relieved by neatly timed interludes in tranquil settings. The main characters share an unglamorous, pre- adolescent look, and the authors seize the opportunity to explore issues of race, class, and scarcity. Readers will be all too ready for the planned subsequent books. Ages 8–12. (May)

Publishers Weekly

2017-03-15
A sudden attack on the world of Mon Domani and its inhabited moons drives a young dancer, a street urchin, and an illegal android together.Many pages are crowded with sequential panels that are too small to fit the dialogue balloons or convey the hot action discernibly, but the overall plotline is easy enough to follow. Though generally mocked as a poor student of sand dancing—a psychokinetic art that uses hand and body movements to conjure solid "aniforms" from mystic vapors—next to her vanished big sister, Jessa, Oona Lee finds her powers growing as mysterious forces work to prevent the relighting of giant, long-dark Beacons that may stave off the growing environmental instability that is threatening all five worlds. With but little time to address the crisis by learning how to dance up a mighty Sand Warrior aniform and rediscover the lost technique of Beacon lighting, Oona is plunged into a running battle with minions of the Mimic, an ancient shape-changing nemesis. The three illustrators work seamlessly together to place Oona, a thick-bodied but graceful, pale-skinned strawberry blonde, in exotic, elaborately envisioned settings and surround her with a notably variegated cast of green-, blue-, brown-, black-, and pink-skinned allies and adversaries. The climax features a shocking revelation but leaves one Beacon lit with four to go: stay tuned. A headlong, if visually busy, opener for what promises to be a rare adventure. (Graphic science fiction. 10-13)

Kirkus Reviews

A Publishers Weekly Best Summer Book
A Junior Library Guild Selection
A New York Public Library’s Top Ten Best Books for Kids 2017
Included in NPR’s Guide to 2017’s Great Reads
2017 Nerdy Book Club Award Winners for Best Graphic Novel
A Texas Library Association Maverick Graphic Novel Selection
A Black-Eyed Susan Book Award Nominee

"With sensitive writing, gorgeous artwork, and riveting plot, this is a series to keep an eye on."
—Booklist starred review

"In a dazzling interplanetary fantasy from the Siegel Brothers, artists Bouma, Rockefeller, and Sun bring to life the cultures, customs, and creatures of a lively new world that will easily appeal to fans of Naruto or Avatar: The Last Airbender."
—Publishers Weekly starred review

"This sweeping graphic-novel saga features inventive world-building, with history, mythology, and traditions naturally integrated into the narrative. The installment ends triumphantly and tantalizingly; readers will eagerly await book two."
—The Horn Book Magazine

From the Publisher

06/01/2017
Gr 3–5—Oona Lee is a less than successful sand dancer. She can't always control the creatures, called aniforms, that she creates from sand, and others make fun of her. As the plot unfolds, readers discover that Oona Lee lives in the Five Worlds, a galaxy of five planets populated by various species and races, and unless the five ancient beacons are lit, the worlds may be in danger. When Oona meets up with a poor boy named An Tzu and a famous athlete named Jax Amboy, the three of them realize that they might be able to light the beacons and change the destiny of the Five Worlds. Adorable, cartoonish illustrations bring color and life to this action-packed story that's reminiscent of the animated TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender. With lots of characters, backstories, and settings, this is a sweeping narrative, and readers may need time to absorb it all. VERDICT For thoughtful fans of fantasy, friendship, and mystical stories.—Andrea Lipinski, New York Public Library

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