Aurora and The Orc
Writer/Artist: Lewis Trondheim
Translator: Montana Kane
Publisher: First Second
There’s a new kid in Aurora’s class. He’s eats household pets, comes to classes covered in blood, and he can barely spell. Yep, the new kid is an orc and only Aurora realizes it. This is the cleaver set up for Aurora and The Orc, the latest joke filled graphic novel by prolific French cartoonist Lewis Trondheim.
As one of the team behind the sprawling Dungeon graphic novel series, Trondheim is no stranger to comedic fantasy. Aurora and the Orc though sees the creator orient that mode for a younger audience. He takes the idea of an orc attending a school and runs with it. While this book still occasionally gets bloody, most of the time it happens off screen in service of a gag.
What makes this book shine is how Trondheim never softens his characters. The Orc changes in how he relates to Aurora but never quite looses what makes him an orc. Aurora never quite gets used to how violent her new friend is but she warms up to him anyways. As the moral in a book for kids, it’s a great lesson that we’re better when we accept others as they are than force them to conform to our expectations.
Yet that’s only one example of how Trondheim builds out a fantasy world that allows other complex ideas to emerge especially when Aurora goes into the Orc’s world. She learns that the orcs fight a forever war with the elves. The magicians in this world exploit both sides for their own personal gain. Several third act twists only reinforce the many themes from throughout the book. This is a book geared towards kids but Trondheim doesn’t pull his punches in delivering those themes.
His clear line visual style and the use of a consistent grid helps make this easy to digest for his intended audience. It’s also never boring for the adults who might read this to their kids or for themselves. Having complex ideas in a book presented in such an engaging way feels refreshing for a book aimed at younger readers.
If anything is a little overwhelming even for younger readers, it’s how gag oriented this book is. Every page gets punctuated with one and when the story isn’t going anywhere it can drag the pacing. It really suffers in the first act of the book when it’s mostly the two characters just doing day to day school things. Even kids who love jokes might find this structure a little tiresome.
Still when this book is funny, it’s really funny. There’s plenty of running gags throughout like the Orc going through random doors and then coming back out having fought a massive battle. There are a lot of jokes about what the Orc eats (his diet ranges from small dogs to the elderly) or where he sleeps when he’s not at school (it’s the park). Even the fact the Orc doesn’t have a name and his horror at being named becomes a running joke. Aurora’s mom makes an art piece out of the arrows the Orc returns with stuck in his body. One of Aurora’s classmates thinks she’s playing a Dungeons and Dragons campaign with the new kid. Trondheim might throw jokes at readers with every page but the best ones always land.
Ultimately, Aurora and the Orc is a book for kids that won’t entirely bore adults. Because it’s Lewis Trondheim, this is a charmingly drawn book that knows its audience. It also sneaks in some pretty complex ideas such as forever wars, and acceptance of those different from us. The jokes might be overwhelming but the best ones certainly earn a laugh. While Aurora and The Orc might not be peak Lewis Trondheim, this book can be a fun and engaging read when it works.
Aurora and the Orc is out this month from FirstSecond
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