Abstract
Reviewed by: Piper by Jay Asher, Jessica Freeburg Kate Quealy-Gainer Asher, Jay Piper; by Jay Asher and Jessica Freeburg; illus. by Jeff Stokely; ink assistance by Gideon Kendall; colors by Triona Farrell; lettering by Ed Duke-shire. Razorbill, 2017 144p Paper ed. ISBN 978-0-448-49366-4 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-448-49368-8 $10.99 R Gr. 6-9 In this graphic novel, the residents of Hameln haven't been particularly kind to Maggie, finding her deafness strange, but she finds comfort in the fantastical stories she makes up for herself and her elderly guardian, and she dreams of a day when love will come along and whisk her away from her problems. That love shows up in the form of a mysterious piper, who guarantees the town he can rid them of their rampant rat problem for a hefty sum, and who spends days with Maggie. Eventually the piper does get rid of the rats; the townspeople refuse his payment, he steals their children away as vengeance, and Maggie helplessly looks on as his [End Page 192] dark side terrorizes her neighbors. This retelling of "The Pied Piper" captures all the creepiness of the original tale but infuses it with a sense of stark desperation and loneliness. The piper is clearly a creature of isolation, and Maggie sees in him a kindred outcast soul, putting aside her suspicions of his motivations; readers familiar with the tale, though, will think differently, and tension mounts until his act of betrayal and revenge leaves her sadder and wiser. Stokely's deft paneling moves between a lyrical, dreamy pace to an accelerating threat, and shadows deepen around the piper as the story drives towards its inevitable end. Though characters' expressions are occasionally stiff, moments of drama are amped up by close-ups, while full spreads convey the plot's darkest points. Fans who prefer wicked folklore over happy-ending fairy tales will revel in this chilling take on an already haunting story. KQG Copyright © 2017 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
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