PATRICK THE WOLF BOY, VOL. 1 AND VOL. 2

Written by Franco Aureliani
Art by Art Baltazar
Published by Devil’s Due Publishing
(144 pages, softcover, black & white)
Category: Young Adult Humor
Dewey: 741.5 AUR
Subjects: Comics and comic books, etc.; Action and adventure–fiction.
Cover price: $10.95 (order with codes NOV042578 and FEB052742)

For a number of years, Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani have entertained discriminating readers with their comic book specials featuring Patrick the Wolf Boy. Yep, Patrick is a cute little fanged boy who becomes a wolfman... err... boy. His otherwise normal parents accept Patrick just as he is, squirrel-chasing and all, totally oblivious to the strangeness of their child. And, therefore the reader can accept Patrick just as he is.

In the episodic stories of the first volume, Patrick goes camping with his dad, wreaks havoc in the school play, gives squirrels and rabbits for Valentine’s Day gifts, follows Mom to work, hangs out with Dad, chases squirrels, goes after his pet hamster... Patrick never says anything but variations on “RRARRGH” — the fun is in the responses from those around him. The black and white art is simple and clear, and the panel layouts are very easy for beginning comic book readers to follow. The book is great for all ages; however, Patrick is a wolf boy and likes to eat small animals (and some larger ones, too). He also brings a preserved brain in a jar to his teacher, and a dead mouse... some schools might decide this is not appropriate in their collections. Most public libraries shouldn’t have a problem putting this in their collections.

The second volume should present no problems for elementary schools. The Super-hero, Science Fiction, and Wedding Special stories collected here feature Patrick having fun playing different super-heroes, going to movies, dealing with people in character costumes, attending a science fiction convention, meeting a young, friendly alien, disrupting a cousin’s wedding and handily dealing with a schoolyard bully in a satisfying yet nonviolent fashion.

Because of the episodic nature of the stories, libraries and schools don’t have to feel obligated to buy the first volume if the idea of Patrick chomping on pigs, hamsters, and such bothers them; most older elementary school students probably won’t have a problem with it, though. My ten-year-old son read the books and just said, “Hey, Mom, Patrick just ate a pig.” And he kept on reading. And chuckling. But then again, he loves “The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy” on Cartoon Network.