Graphic novelist George O’Connor is crazy about mythology,
and by the end of his recent program at my library, the roomful of participants
– many of them kids – were totally caught up in his enthusiasm.
To be fair, most of those present already were fans of
mythology, but they still were riveted by George’s hilarious, energetic
presentation of how he creates his award-winning “Olympians” graphic novel series on Greek gods and goddesses. (George’s presentation was part of our
series of programs co-hosted with Politics & Prose Bookstore, an
independent bookstore in Washington, D.C.
George began his program by showing a self-portrait in which
his head is exploding. “That’s how I feel on the days when I know I have to write,”
George laughed, noting that he feels much more confident as an artist. “In the
fourth grade,” he said, “I was the guy who likes to draw and the guy who likes
to write. I especially liked to draw when the teacher was trying to teach us
math!
Once George discovered mythology, he couldn’t get enough of
it. “I read every book of mythology I could get my hands on,” he said. George
also developed an early love of comics, something he shares with his parents
who, he says, “have always liked comic books.” George published his first
graphic novel, for adults, in 2006. Titled “Journey Into Mohawk Country,” it
was based on the 1634 journal of explorer Harmen Meyndertsz van den Bogaert. "Journey" drew critical
praise, and a feature in The New York Times on how George developed the
artwork. That book was followed in 2009 by “Ball Preen Hammer,” written by
playwright Adam Rapp and featuring George’s artwork.
In 2010, George finally got to combine his two loves –
mythology and comics – with his debut graphic novel for kids with “Zeus,” the
first of his projected 12-book series on the Greek gods, “The Olympians,”
published by the award-winning comics publisher First Second. My colleague Dave
Burbank, our library’s resident graphic novel expert, says that, while George remains faithful to mythology in the books, he “nevertheless finds new angles to tell these stories, often from the perspective of the gods themselves.”
“Aphrodite,” the sixth book in the series was just
published, and once again won kudos from professional library journals, with
School Library Journal calling it “another strong addition to a great series.”
But the main point is my young patrons love these books. Some kids are drawn to
them because of they’re fans of the mythology-fueled “Percy Jackson” books
written by Rick Riordan, while others mainly are mythology lovers, who really
dig into the additional information and references that George includes in each
volume. In addition, the graphic novel format of the books, especially the
action-packed scenes that George draws so well, appeals to our reluctant
readers, the kids who normally aren’t much interested in books.
In person, George is kinetic, jumping around to make a point
about how Poseidon, for example, suddenly transforms from a “super cool dude to
a terrifying guy in 20 seconds. George readily connects with his young fans,
and they were rapt as he talked about his decision to eschew the typical vision
of Zeus as an old man and instead pictures the god as a cross between actor
Liam Neeson and “a 21-year-old cool surfer dude from California.” The kids
laughed when George said that “Aphrodite” was his favorite book to draw so far “because
I drew nothing but pretty ladies all the time.”
George also tested the kids' knowledge of Greek mythology by quizzing them on who was who in a new "family portrait" that he's drawn of the Greek gods and goddesses. The kids passed the test with flying colors, something that impressed but didn't surprise George, who does a lot of school and library visits and sees mythology fans everywhere. The kids (and adults), meanwhile, were fascinated by George's presentation on how he creates the illustrations for the books, beginning with a "scribble scrabble mess" and ending with superbly drawn and colored artwork.
No comments:
Post a Comment