I'm just going to stay in graphic novel swing and take a look at a read surrounding a beta fish and sea slug. I don't believe I've ever read a book with a beta fish as the main character. They are such lovely fish, although I always feel sorry for them when I see them at the pet store. I know they aren't exactly friendly fish, and I have a feeling that's what drives this tale.
Ready to meet Arty because I sure am!
ARTY
by Penny Schneider
Monarch Educational Services
Middle Grade Animal Fiction /
Graphic Novel
100 pages
ages 6 to 10
Arty is not your typical see a fish you fight Betta. What HE wants most of all is a friend. He knows how he is supposed to be, but...he knows nothing about this "friend" stuff. Can he do it? What do friends really do? Then along comes a silly sea slug, and his world flips upside down.
MY TIDBITS
A fish swims against the tide to find that friendship can be difficult to find but golden when it's true.
Arty is a beta fish, which means he should love to fight. But he doesn't. Still, his presence is enough to scare everyone away, and he does find himself using that as a mask against the hurt it causes. Still, he dreams of friendship and decides to search out advice from the wisest entity in the ocean. When he runs into a sea slug, things start to change, and Arty notices that friendship might not pop up in a perfect bubble like his dreams. It might be even better than that.
This is an unique read, which, at times, had me wondering if it'd work or was going astray and yet, pulls in nicely. It draws in and makes it hard to put it down until the very end. Arty is clearly uncomfortable in his own fins. The author spends the first section letting the reader get a good grasp on Arty's problem, which makes the fish sympathetic but, at that same time, slices with his sharp attitude whenever he gets frustrated...and makes him a little hard to like. The sea slug adds spice at just the right time and brings along necessary humor. The odd partnership doesn't slide together immediately, but that's what makes it so fun. It's a strange pairing and so easy to root for as the, sometimes, difficult path to friendship becomes clear.
While there's an obvious message in these pages, it's a fun tale with characters to get behind. The illustrations are in watercolor which fits with the ocean scenes, and they balance with the text to bring across the tale nicely and insert humor. There are a few pages which invite the reader to draw their own scene...which is a nice touch and fits well in the flow.
It's an enjoyable read, and I do hope to see more of these two in the future.
You can learn more about Penny and her works:
https://www.pennyschneider.com/
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