War Brothers

Starred review from April 29, 2013
McKay's 2008 novel about Ugandan children abducted to fight in the Lord's Resistance Army returns in a graphic novel adaptation, which makes an already harrowing story all the more visceral. (Readers may have become familiar with the LRA through the short film Kony 2012, which generated significant attention in 2012.) McKay's fictional story, based on real events and people, focuses on 14-year-old Jacob, who is abducted from a seminary in Uganda along with 37 other boys in 2002. This is Lafrance's first graphic novel, and it's a striking debut. In much the same way that the story forces readers to see these child soldiers as both victims and killers (albeit unwilling ones, often), Lafrance contrasts Uganda's beauty with the brutality endured by Jacob and the other children. Images of lush jungle alternate with horrifying scenes, such as one in which three boys are forced to beat one of their own to death. As upsetting as this story is—all the more for its basis in the ongoing reality for children still conscripted into the LRA—McKay doesn't leave readers without a sense of hope. Ages 14 – up.

August 1, 2014

Gr 7 Up-In this terrifying and shocking account based on actual events, Jacob is abducted and forcibly inducted into The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda. Jacob's life before going away to school was fairly typical. He idolized his father. He goofed off with his best friend Tony. He often became frustrated with his overbearing, unwed aunt. All of that changed after he went away to school. Reuniting with his old friend Paul and asked to look over the scrawny new boy Norman, the boys are unprepared when the LRA comes to their school in the middle of the night. Jacob is beaten. He awakens the next morning in time to see Tony, along with several other children, forced to kill another in order to prove their worth to their new "family." As Jacob, Paul, and Norman fight off starvation and plot their ultimate escape, they find unlikely allies in a cook within the army as well as a deformed girl who is often ignored by the generals. As with the graphic novel of the same name, McKay does an effective job of bringing this story to life. While the novel lacks the visual, visceral shock of the comic, this case study of what is surprisingly an everyday occurrence in Uganda will leave readers with an expanded global perspective on religious conflict and child slavery. The protagonist's struggles are heartbreaking, but his fierce determination and unflinching will to survive will surely prove to be an inspiration to readers.-Ryan P. Donovan, Southborough Public Library, MA

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