Book Review: Hocus Focus by James Sturm, Alexis Frederick-Frost, Andrew Arnold

Hocus Focus is another children's graphic novel by James Sturm, Alexis Frederick-Frost, and Andrew Arnold. Staring the same knight and her horse Edward from Adventures in Cartooning, Sleepless Knight, Gryphons Aren't so Great, and Ogres Awake. You do not need to read these graphic novels in any order, but the deceptively simple artwork and stories make them a joy to explore. 
All day long, the Knight peels turnips. This isn’t what she had in mind for her first magic lesson. She wants to make a magic potion, not soup! Things get a lot more exciting when she steals the wizard’s magic wand and spell book. Her potion transforms Edward into a giant worm, and he’s hungry!
Hocus Focus has the same goofy storytelling that I have come to expect from this team. Knight is impatient, and rushes her studies, as we have come to expect. The artwork is fairly simple when it comes to the characters, but the details and charm of the art really bring the story to life and bring the reader into the adventure. I love that these stories have a lesson, in this book its all about patience, and wrap it up in a fun, wacky adventure. Even more than that, I honestly love that with each book they also include a simple how-to-draw tutorials at the end of the book. So, after anyone reads the book they are encouraged and instructed a bit in continuing the story and setting of on their own. Another win for this series.

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