Name: This Was Our Pact
ISBN: 9781250267528

Ryan Andrews

A 2019 Booklist Editor's Choice A 2019 Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year A 2019 Parents Magazine Best Children's Books of the Year Ryan Andrews's This Was Our Pact is an astonishing, magical-realist adventure story for middle-grade readers. It's the night of the annual Autumn Equinox Festival, when the town gathers to float paper lanterns down the river. Legend has it that after drifting out of sight, they'll soar off to the Milky Way and turn into brilliant stars, but could that actually be true? This year, Ben and his classmates are determined to find out where those lanterns really go, and to ensure success in their mission, they've made a pact with two simple rules: No one turns for home. No one looks back. The plan is to follow the river on their bikes for as long as it takes to learn the truth, but it isn't long before the pact is broken by all except for Ben and (much to Ben's disappointment) Nathaniel, the one kid who just doesn't seem to fit in. Together, Nathaniel and Ben will travel farther than anyone has ever gone, down a winding road full of magic, wonder, and unexpected friendship*. *And a talking bear.

This Was Our Pact

Kim Tyo-Dickerson

This atmospheric, edgy graphic novel reminded me so much of a Studio Ghibli film, starting in blue-grey real world setting of an Autumn Equinox Festival where a town lights paper lanterns and sets them free in a river and where the local boys on bicycles ala Stranger Things, chase after the lanterns down the river and past the boundary of their community where no one ever goes. From there, the story moves quickly into a quest populated by promises of mermaids, meeting a talking bear and getting derailed by a huge-eyed hag selling maps for silver. The pact at the heart of this journey is fraught with danger, none the less from the boys themselves who are capricious, often unkind, and one by one unreliable, turning back after promising to follow the lanterns wherever they go. The boys that remain become even more resolute to see the pact through, even if it means circumnavigating the world. The promise to not look back impels the boys to make decisions that seem absolutely fantastical and bring them to a realization about their plans and path that they could not predict nor did they likely intend. Not your average fantasy for G5-G8. I will be thinking about this for a long time, particularly the ending.

Taylor 

This is one of the best graphic novels I have ever read. There is a lot of depth to the story and you really feel connected to characters. The art style is just STUNNINGGG

Samantha Seeman

4.5*
This magic realism graphic novel was quite the fun and interesting adventure story. It is packed with scientific and astronomy facts, but done so in a cohesive way. It didn’t feel info dump-y at all, actually I felt it helped the story line. A group of boys make a pact to follow the lanterns down the river after the annual festival. One boy shows up uninvited but tags along regardless of the teasing done by the others. Slowly, members of the group drop off for one reason or another until only two are left, one of them being the kid left behind. These two (not) friends encounter all kinds of magic and mayhem together; from a talking bear with a giant basket, to a mad witch-y scientist and more, it seems these boys are tied together despite how the night started out. The color palette and artwork are stunning, which adds a whimsical feel to the story.

It's the night of the annual Autumn Equinox Festival, when the town gathers to float paper lanterns down the river. Legend has it that after drifting out of sight, they'll soar off to the Milky Way and turn into brilliant stars. This year, Ben and his classmates are determined to find out where those lanterns really go, and they made a pact with two simple rules: No one turns for home. No one looks back. The plan is to follow the river on their bikes for as long as it takes to learn the truth, but it isn't long before the pact is broken by all except for Ben, and (much to Ben's disappointment) Nathaniel, the one kid who just doesn't seem to fit in.Together, Nathaniel and Ben will travel down a winding road full of magic, wonder, and unexpected friendship*. *And a talking bear.

This Was Our Pact

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