I needed more than the sixty-odd pages in the graphic novel, Little Moons by Jen Storm and Ryan Howe. I needed to see more about the family, the relationships, the other women who have gone missing. I needed to see the community. I need to see what is being done to locate our character. And yet, that is the point. We do not always get that neat bow to tie the story up. There is no happy ever after for Chelsea and so many girls and women like her. Yet, there is a path to healing. The surface story is the loss/death of a beloved daughter and how that brings a family together and tears them apart. The realistic nature of the characters is relatable. Storm, is there a part two?
Storm’s story has a content warning about the indigenous women and girls who are taken. But I think there should be a warning about the boyfriend of the mother. Okay, no, Mom didn’t need me to be her “white knight” and save her, but someone needed to smack that guy upside the head with a two-by-four a few times. Overall, the story is what we have seen before (the death of a child, the effect it has on the parents and living siblings). But what is new is the particular culture of Storm and her characters, and how that is woven into things. It is not just the beading, or the dancing, or even the younger brother being able to see and interact with spirits, but all of it and more. I’m not “wow best story ever” but I am, “This is a neat story and I wouldn’t mind learning more about the people involved.”
Illustrations are what you would expect in a traditional graphic novel. They are smooth, shiny, rich colors and a bit dark to set the mood. There is light as well, especially when there are flashbacks and the sister is dancing. Everything is nice with how it looks. I still wanted more, and maybe a few “hey look over here” clues (the brother has some interesting interactions with the light and how it helps them), but overall it is good. Which is what I come away with: everything is good. Maybe this horrific event happened, but we are here to talk about it, read about it and hopefully do something to help stop it.
I would have liked to have seen more of the spiritual nature of the brother, and the significance of why they show as Little Moons, but also, what we have is lovely and takes a lot to digest. It is deceptively simple looking (less than a 100 pages) but packed really tight with so much to unpack.