Lucy & Andy Neanderthal (Lucy and Andy Neanderthal Series #1)

by Jeffrey Brown

Overview

From the author of the New York Times bestselling Jedi Academy books comes a hilarious graphic novel series about two young cave kids living 40,000 years ago.

“Lucy & Andy are Stone Age rock stars!  I loved this book!”  —Lincoln Peirce, author of the Big Nate series 
 
Lucy and Andy are a sister and brother who get into trouble much like any sister and brother. Only difference? Lucy and Andy live in the Stone Age! Discover their laugh-out-loud adventures as the Paleo pair take on a wandering baby sibling, bossy teens, cave paintings, and a mammoth hunt. But what will happen when they encounter a group of humans?

Includes extra information about Neanderthal life that's sure to appeal to future paleontologists and science phobes alike! And don't miss Lucy and Andy's next outing, Lucy & Andy Neanderthal: The Stone Cold Age — coming soon!

A New York City Public Library Best 50 Books for Kids 2016!
A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best 2016!

"Jeffrey Brown returns from a galaxy far, far away to bring us a whole new slew of kid-friendly characters! Just beware of mammoth dung!"
—Keith Knight, author of Jake the Fake and The Knight Life
 
Every kid will love to go back in time with LUCY & ANDY!"
—Judd Winick, author of Hilo: The Boy Who Saved the World

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780525643975
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	04/10/2018
Series:	Lucy and Andy Neanderthal Series , #1
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	485,192
Product dimensions:	6.13(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.65(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jeffrey Brown is the author/illustrator of the bestselling Jedi Academy series and Chronicle’s Darth Vader series. He resides in Chicago with his wife and two sons. You can visit him at jeffreybrowncomics.com.

Editorial Reviews

A New York Public Library Best Book for Kids, 2016

“Jeffrey Brown is brilliant at creating characters you instantly adore. In Lucy & Andy Neanderthal, he tricks you into learning while making you feel like part of a delightful cave-dwelling family.”
—Brian Anderson creator of Dog eat Doug, and author of “Monster Chefs

From the Publisher

05/23/2016
Brown’s (the Jedi Academy series) episodic graphic novel about a clan of Neanderthals starts out low-key enough, as goofy Andy, his much smarter sister Lucy, and other children bicker over tool-making and food-gathering. (After debating mammoth-hunting options, they settle on “the usual,” i.e. “Chase one down and stab it until it stops moving.”) Two archaeologists pop up at the end of each chapter to demonstrate how the objects that Lucy and Andy use and make—their tools, the bones they chew on, even their teeth—reveal information about their lives. The female Neanderthal bones show just as much wear and tear as the males, the scientists point out; they may have done the same kinds of work. Hints sprinkled throughout about a lost spear and missing mammoth meat build to a climax as Andy and Lucy’s group encounters a smoother, more sophisticated, and possibly menacing group of humans. Readers with an interest in fossil discoveries won’t be able to put this down, while those who have never given cave life a thought may find themselves with a new interest. Ages 8–12. Agent: Marc Gerald, Agency Group. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

05/01/2016
Gr 2–5—Popular author Brown brings his fun cartoon style, often seen in his "Star Wars" adventures, to this prehistoric tale. Lucy and Andy are two Neanderthal siblings who take us through a fairly normal week (mammoth hunting, crafting tools, making clothes). At the end of each chapter, modern scientists on an archaeological dig at their cave provide factual commentary. The last chapter and author's note include a time line and more information about the world of the Neanderthals. With his extensive research and these notes, Brown has created a graphic novel that is as much nonfiction as fiction, containing historical context and a lovely fictional story with siblings, crushes, and other adventures. The resulting blend is sure to draw reluctant readers and send some students scurrying for more in-depth material. Kids will learn a great deal about the Neanderthals while laughing their way through the story. Brown demonstrates a depth of knowledge of the subject, with a few winking anachronisms. VERDICT An amusing and enjoyable graphic novel that teaches about daily Neanderthal life, this title will be right at home in most elementary school and public library collections.—Elizabeth Nicolai, Anchorage Public Library, AK

School Library Journal

2016-05-04
Two Neanderthal preteens weave a tale of everyday life to which even modern kids can relate.Over 40,000 years ago, tucked into a cozy cave, siblings Lucy and Andy live with their light-skinned and hirsute tribe, made up of their family (mother Luba, father Charles, and baby brother Danny) and another (Daryl and his children, Margaret and Phil, both older than Lucy and Andy). As related in a series of interrelated (and often wittily titled vignettes), the tribe spends its days in quotidian Neanderthal occupations: hunting mammoths, cooking, caring for one another, and making clothes and tools. Brown ambitiously weaves fact into his fiction and ends each short episode with interesting commentary about Stone Age life from two anthropologist characters, a white woman and a black man. At times these facts seem at odds with the story; despite a page devoted to speculation about Neanderthal gender equity, for instance, Luba seems entirely focused on child care. Although Brown makes reference to reading "almost a hundred!" books as research, he offers his readers neither bibliography nor resources to follow up on ignited interest (other than an impressive list of museums to visit). Despite this quibble, Brown's vivacious plotlines are laugh-out-loud funny, and in spite of the prehistoric setting, this comic charmer should readily appeal to young readers.Read solely as fiction, this is an auspiciously clever and engaging series opener. (Graphic historical fiction. 7-12)

Kirkus Reviews