Owly is the charming star of these nearly wordless graphic novels for all ages. Being an owl, he finds it’s hard to make friends. All the other birds, animals, and insects in the forest where he lives run away in fear when he approaches. They don’t wait around long enough to find out that all Owly wants to do is find a friend. Owly makes his first and best friend, Wormy, when he rescues the squiggly little worm from a thunderstorm and nurses him back to health. Even Wormy is afraid of Owly at first. This makes Owly’s big round eyes droop with sadness. But slowly, Wormy comes around, and then the two of them try to befriend some hummingbirds, which turns out to be a little trickier…
Andy Runton’s drawings are deceptively simple, just black and white, but they express a multitude of emotions. You can easily “read” Owly’s sadness, Wormy’s fear, and then Owly’s glee when he finally makes a friend.
And, because one volume of Owly will be nowhere near enough of this cute critter, Runton has kindly followed up with three more volumes that are just as enchanting as the first: Owly, Volume 2: Just a Little Blue; Owly, Volume 3: Flying Lessons; and Owly, Volume 4: A Time to Be Brave. These are the graphic novels to hand to someone who claims not to like graphic novels; the not-yet-persuaded will be won over. I may be exaggerating slightly, but it’s worked with everyone I’ve handed them to so far. (So consider this a handing to…and don’t let me down!)
