Book Review: Brindille by Frederic Brremaud, Federico Bertolucci

Brindille is a graphic novel written by Frederic Brremaud and illustrated by Federico Bertolucci. A frail young girl flees a roaring forest fire in the middle of the night desperately taking refuge in a cave where she quickly loses consciousness. She wakes up in a strange, tiny village populated by fairy-like creatures. Her hosts seem intrigued by the sparkles of light that seem to surround her. The village chieftain explains that one of their hunters found her passed out in the forest and brought her back here for treatment. He asks who she is, but she remembers nothing except for a wall and flames. The chief is baffled by her tale as there has not been any fire in the forest lately, and yet the young woman does indeed show signs of burns. Somewhat recovered and dressed in woodland clothes made by the villagers, the young lady asks to meet the hunter who found her in the forest. She asks her savior to take her to where he found her, hoping that seeing the place will restore her memory. But Meliss refuses -- the rules of the village say that only hunters can enter the forest, and all of the sparkles surrounding the girl would catch the eyes of predators living in these woods. What follows is a tale of discovery, magic, tragedy, and adventure, as the girl discovers powers that may or may not be borne of an ancient evil. She befriends a cunning, talking wolf along the way, and together the two set out on a journey.

Brindille is a graphic novel that is suitable for middle grade and older readers, including adults of course. I liked the detail, movement, and expression in the art work. I thought it showed great skill and talent. I thought some of the color choices could have been different, to help clarify some of the differences of characters and meanings in the story- but it is very possible that I messed some significance there. There were some really good moments where I thought I had it all figured out and a grasp of what exactly was happening, but more often than not I was a little lost. I liked the book, and saw great skill in both the story and the art, but wonder if there is a bit of folklore I do not know or something of the story that I either missed or was lost in translation, because even when the story was over I was still confused about some of what happened.