Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring

by Matthew Loux

Overview

From Time Museum creator Matt Loux comes a sweet and gently macabre graphic novel for young readers.

There are whispers around the village that monsters are lurking outside the gates. Prunella doesn't pay this talk much mind—until she unearths a strange skull-shaped ring in her garden. When she places it on her finger she's transformed into a skeleton girl, terrifying her monster-fearing town! Exiled, Prunella wanders the wilderness, where she discovers that monsters aren’t as bad as she’s been led to believe.

With her new friends, undead pirate Captain Rip Skeleton and Francis, a floating, fiery skull, at her side, Prunella is sure to find a way to reverse this curse…but does she really want to?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250162618
Publisher:	First Second
Publication date:	10/18/2022
Pages:	160
Sales rank:	128,362
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	6 - 10 Years

About the Author

Matthew Loux is author and artist of the graphic novels The Time Museum Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 (published by First Second), Sidescrollers and the five-volume series Salt Water Taffy (published by Oni Press). Matthew has also illustrated the graphic novels F-Stop and Good Night Gabbaland. Matthew resides in New York.

Editorial Reviews

08/08/2022

After Prunella—portrayed with voluminous red hair, pale skin, and a wide grin—finds a cursed ring while working in her garden, it morphs her into a living skeleton, resulting in exile from her monster-hating town in this creature-filled adventure. When her inattentive mother and fellow villagers don’t recognize her, post-transformation, Prunella is banished. Once she’s beyond the town’s high wall, she learns that the monsters who inhabit the lands outside the village are not as terrifying as she was led to believe. While searching for the wise Cat Sphinx, who might be able to break her curse, Prunella visits a town home to yoˉkai; fields teeming with animated stone heads; and a cove filled with playful skeletons just like her. Though she worries she may not be able to break her curse, Prunella’s pure heart wins her a score of friends along her journey. Rounded, heavily inked line art and bold hues by Loux (the Time Museum series) render the characters comically expressive. This fast-paced adventure, populated by classic fantasy creatures with charming quirks and paired with a buoyant tone, urges acceptance and peaceful coexistence. Human characters are portrayed as white. Ages 6–10. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"This colorful story where the true monsters are the humans will appeal to young graphic novel fans who enjoy cartoony styles and fantasy elements."—School Library Journal, starred review

"This fast-paced adventure, populated by classic fantasy creatures with charming quirks and paired with a buoyant tone, urges acceptance and peaceful coexistence."—Publisher's Weekly

"This fun and spooky adventure has a twist that readers do not want to miss, and it serves as an effective and playful reminder to not judge based on appearances, encouraging young readers to be their most authentic selves."—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

From the Publisher

08/01/2022

Gr 2–5—Prunella lives in a walled village, among neighbors who are terrified of monsters. Prunella doesn't worry about monsters; one day she's digging in her garden and is transformed into a skeleton herself. She is swiftly banished and finds herself living with a cast of different types of monsters, all much kinder than the humans in her town, who help her as she tries to figure out how to turn back into a human. This colorful, lighthearted story explores themes of acceptance and fears of the unknown while remaining upbeat and plot driven. Prunella's quest up Mount Leviathan, and the cast of skeletons, dragons, and giants she encounters along the way, will keep readers eager to see if she can turn back to a human, even as they will wonder why she would want to change from her skeleton form. The bubbly cartoon style lends itself well to the upbeat story and helps provide fuller character development of the spirited Prunella. The vocabulary is approachable, although some words may be challenging to younger readers. The context clues and illustrations will help comprehension, and there are plenty of wordless panels, which makes for a nice balance. VERDICT This colorful story where the true monsters are the humans will appeal to young graphic novel fans who enjoy cartoony styles and fantasy elements. A suggested purchase for collections where graphic novels circulate well.—Ellen Conlin

School Library Journal