The Nameless City

Starred review from January 11, 2016
Hicks (Friends with Boys) sets this trilogy opener in an imaginary city whose architecture and dress have a Tibetan air. The city has been conquered by successive nations who grind its native inhabitants underfoot; it’s now ruled by the Dao. Kaidu, a Dao boy, arrives for military training and befriends a street girl named Rat. Despite her resentment (“I don’t want to know the name of any Dao,” she snarls when he introduces himself), she agrees to teach Kaidu how to traverse the city’s rooftops in exchange for food. Their secret forays expose Kaidu to the city’s darker truths, while Rat struggles with a sense that their friendship betrays the memory of her parents, who were killed by the Dao. When the two learn of an assassination plot, loyalties shift and the pace vaults from brisk to blazing. Hicks’s sequential artwork is polished, and though males hold nearly all the political power, the female characters are mighty warriors the men respect (and sometimes fear). An emphasis on the way geography can determine political fate gives Hicks’s saga significant depth. Ages 9–up. Agent: Bernadette Baker-Baughman, Victoria Sanders & Associates.

Starred review from February 15, 2016
Eisner winner Hicks (The Adventures of Superhero Girl, 2013) launches a new graphic fantasy series about two friends from opposite sides of a generations-long conflict. Over the years, many nations have invaded the City in order to control the only passage through the mountains to the ocean. Conquerors always give the City a new name, but like their victories, those names never last. Thirteen-year-old Kaidu is a son of the City's current rulers, the Dao, and has just arrived in the City to begin his military training. However, Kaidu doesn't get along with his Dao peers, perhaps because he's more interested in books than fighting, and he instead befriends a girl named Rat, who is an orphan and city native. Their strong characterization and the vibrant Asian-influenced setting make this a satisfying series opener. Kaidu's curiosity and Rat's street-wise sass are immediately appealing, and the titular city is almost a protagonist in its own right, especially when Rat and Kaidu are freerunning across its rooftops. The warm palette, courtesy of colorist Bellaire, complements Hicks' illustrations and highlights the diversity of the cast. Offer this winning graphic novel to fans of Fullmetal Alchemist and Avatar: The Last Airbender, who will appreciate its mix of fun and adventure and its exploration of questions of identity, belonging, and history. A superb beginning. (Graphic fantasy. 12 & up)

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