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Sisters of the Mist

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Book Synopsis

Frygea Forest. An ancient and mysterious place where trolls lurk in the mossy spaces between tree trunks and changelings scamper about, causing mischief. A place that Kyra and her sisters Margot and Janna return to every year to spend the summer at their grandma’s farm: toasting marshmallows, catching frogs and befriending tiny, grumpy root goblins.

But this summer is different, and as teenage Margot drifts apart from her sisters, slamming doors and keeping secrets, Kyra starts to worry. When Margot is enticed into the woods by the mysterious figures in the mist, Kyra resolves to do everything in her power to save her sister from danger, even if that means facing the spooky forces within Frygea Forest with just her kid sister for help.

Join Kyra and her sisters in this beautiful coming-of-age graphic novel about embracing the changes that come from growing up, but never letting go of the imagination that keeps you young. If you’re careful, and ever so quiet, you might spot a root goblin marching along the ground, or a glittering alf darting amongst the leaves.

Our Review Panel says...

Sisters Kyra, Margot and Janna are off for a wonderful innocent summer at their Grandma’s home in Frygea Forest – a summer of blanket forts, campfires and tree climbing. But after older sister Margot wanders into the forest and looks a Fog Fury in the eye, little do they know, that before the holiday is over, they will all be changed…

This is a story of both light and dark. Literally, in terms of the changing colour schemes as dark forces appear and recede, but also in terms of the challenges the sisters face. Frygea Forest is a mystical place, full of unusual creatures, some friendly and whimsical, such as the Root Goblins, Alfs and Wisps, and some malevolent –Hell Hound, Trolls and, most feared of all, the Fog Furies.

In the other-worldly forest, the dangers are dramatic – baby Janna becomes lost in the dark and Kyra gets sucked deep into the swamp and becomes trapped by Trolls. But back in the farmhouse, the more prosaic changes that face Margot as she enters puberty, as her body changes and as she grows away from her sisters, are more profound.

Sisters of the Mist is a stunning debut from Marlyn Spaaij, reminiscent, in both the graphic style, the themes and the emotional depth leavened with humour, of Raina Telgemeier’s work.

There is some mild language (butt, boobies) and older themes (specifically periods), which means Sisters of the Mist is only appropriate for the older end of Primary, and beyond. Many children in the upper primary age group will benefit from its central message and use of metaphors to explore puberty. As the book itself ends, ”Change can be very scary. And even though you’re afraid, sometimes you have to let your biggest fears come true. You’ll see afterwards, it’s not so scary. Not anymore”.