Mary's Thoughts:
When I was a little girl, I would imagine that the tooth fairy left a little baby fairy for me to care for. As a child, I would have been drawn to Sybil, the Backpack Fairy # 1: Nina by Michael Rodrigue, and I know some of my second and third graders whose interested would be peaked, too. The illustrations, done by Manuela Razzi and Antonella Dalena, remind me of manga-style art. Although it might grab the attention of young children, in my opinion, this book does not meet the standards that I've seen in some of the other graphic novels I've read as part of this project. When dealing with the issue of divorce and single parenthood, Sybil the Backpack Fairy does not have as much depth as The Whole World's Crazy: Amelia Rules. The storyline of Sybil is not as interesting or as easy to follow as The Knights of the Lunch Table. For these reasons and others, this book would not be among the first books I would select for my classroom library. Keeping this in mind, it is still cute and fanciful, and it might be entertaining to some young readers.
In this story, a young girl named Nina faces trouble with her teachers, her mom, and her classmates. Sybil the Backpack fairy comes to her rescue, but also complicates things for Nina.. She introduces Nina to another dimension, where there are villains out to thwart Nina and Sybil. Meanwhile, Sybil entertains Nina and the readers with all kinds of magical powers. This first book hints that Nina has been called for a mission, but it does not reveal what that mission will be. Readers will have to read book two to find out more about Nina's mission, but personally, I have no desire to read more.
Pixie's Thoughts:
Woof....all I can say is after the first time that Sybil the Backpack Fairy caused Nina and her baby brother to float in the air, this book didn't hold my attention. Yawn....I don't think I want to finish reading this book. It seems much longer than 47 pages.
Classroom Applications:
I wouldn't waste too much time on promoting this book to my students, but if I knew of a student who loved to read about fairies and fanciful creatures, I might direct him or her to this book. I think a better option would be graphic novel versions of some of the classic fairy tales, such as Beauty and the Beast, Rumplestiltskin and Cinderella.
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