Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of Jellaby

Jellaby
Jellaby
Author: Kean Soo
Genre: Teen & Young Adult
Book Type: Paperback
ophelia99 avatar reviewed on + 2527 more book reviews


I got a copy of this book to review through the Amazon Vine program. It was a cute little read and I enjoyed it. I think younger kids will enjoy it as well.

Portia is a lonely and very smart little girl who has just moved to a new town with her mother. Shes having trouble fitting in at school, her mother is somewhat distant, and her father is missing. Then one night she wanders into the woods and happens to run across a sweet and lost purple monster named Jellaby. Portias life gets a lot more exciting with Jellaby hanging around.

This is a very cute and sweet little book, but it is just the beginning of a larger story. The illustration is pretty simple and very cartoony. The pictures are all done in purple tones, I really think it would have been better in full color...but the author does have an explanation for why he used purple tones at the end of the book.

The story is just the beginning of a larger story and very simple. Still it was cute and well done and at times pretty funny. Portia is a sad and lonely girl and it was fun to see her cheer up in Jellabys company and even make another friend at school through the secret of Jellaby.

There is a little mystery here about finding out what happened to Portias dad, but that really wasnt addressed in this story much.

Its a well done and cute little book. Definitely appropriate for younger children to middle grade kids. I think given the simplicity of the story children will enjoy this more than most adults.

Overall an adorable little graphic novel. The drawing is done in purple tones and is very simple and cartoony but does a good job of showing the characters emotions. The story is well done but simple, I think kids will enjoy this. Right now I am on the fence about whether or not I will read future books in the series, I am kind of curious as to what will happen next...but there just wasnt a complicated enough story here for me.