Get ready for a thrilling journey in Compass South, a New York Times-bestselling middle-grade graphic novel full of pirates and adventure, from the same team who created the Eisner Award-winner Salt Magic.
It’s 1860 in New York City. When 12-year-old twins Alex and Cleo’s father disappears, they join the Black Hook Gang and are caught by the police pulling off a heist. They agree to reveal the identity of the gang in exchange for tickets to New Orleans.
But once there, Alex is kidnapped and made to work on a ship that is heading for San Francisco via Cape Horn. Cleo stows away on a steamer to New Granada where she hopes to catch a train to San Francisco to find her brother.
Neither Alex nor Cleo realizes the real danger they are in–they are being followed by pirates who think they hold the key to treasure. How they outwit the pirates and find each other makes for a fast-paced adventure.
This full color graphic novel is perfect for readers of all genders, including reluctant readers, comics fans, and anyone who enjoys action packed seafaring adventures. It’s the first book in a duology, followed by a standalone sequel, Knife’s Edge.
Praise for Compass South:
A New York Times bestseller!
Mock’s luminous full-color artwork beautifully showcases the late nineteenth-century locations, swashbuckling pirate battles, and jungle treks, all while effortlessly distinguishing among characters (no small feat, given the expansive, diverse cast and two sets of twins). Meanwhile, Larson, befitting the seafaring adventure, keeps the pace clipping along with frequent scene breaks and propulsive reveals… . A gorgeously executed, lively caper. –Booklist, starred review
Larson, best known for her graphic novel adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time, weaves a wonderful, vivid story, assisted beautifully by Mock’s illustrations, which take the twins from murky back alleys to bright and vibrant ocean scenes…A charming choice for elementary and middle school library graphic novel collections. –School Library Journal, starred review
Larson’s (Who Is AC?) concoction of tried-and-true adventure elements–stowaways, pirate raids, jungle tribes–hangs together convincingly, and scene-stealers such as Tarboro, a free black man who’s a brilliant swordsman and the story’s true hero, provide moral ballast. Illustrator Mock, making her debut, adeptly captures the changing relationships between the twins–especially the gender-bending awkwardness that accompanies Cleo’s stint as a boy. A sequel is promised. –Publishers Weekly
Captures all the rollicking action of a Robert Louis Stevenson-type sea adventure. –The Horn Book
