Review: Foiled by Jane Yolen and Mike CavallaroReview: Foiled by Jane Yolen and Mike Cavallaro

I have always appreciated the power of the graphic novel as a story telling medium especially when it rises above the comic forms roots of superheroes, and other male adolescent power fantasies to embrace a richer narrative and deeper characters. With that firmly in mind I was quite happy to engross myself in Foiled from First Second Books. Writer Jane Yolen keeps her hands full with both a heartfelt story and a very relatable female protagonist. Mike Cavallaro’s illustration is crisp, captivating and as emotive as the story.

The story stays sharply focused on its protagonist Aliera Carstairs, her determination, her hopes and fears, and the emotional baggage of adolescence. Aliera is a fencer, and a serious student of the sport at that. Fencing also serves as a metaphor for her own psychological state as well as the progression of the chapters in the book. She is also a high school student who is trying to figure out her place in that complex world while also dealing with her feelings for Avery Castle a boy she finds beautiful but who seems to have a smile for every girl as well as a number of strange quirks about him.

Family also is important to Aliera. Her mother is endless delving into garage sales, estate sales, and the Salvation Army. It is from one of her mother’s forays into other people’s histories that the curious foil with the red gem on the end of its grip makes its way into Aliera’s hands. It is her relationship with cousin Caroline though that seems to ground her. While Aliera spends so much time physically testing and proving herself Caroline’s young body is often confined to a wheelchair. Their Saturdays are spent playing role-playing games where Caroline is the Queen and Aliera her defender.

A good portion of the book is spent this way. Grounding the character, fleshing her out and making her a real person. Beneath this all is an undercurrent of tension and at times weirdness. Illustrator Mike Cavallaro captures this with a clean art style and strong lines that first tell the story with shades of grey and some muted color as Aliera begins to tell her story. As elements of fantasy come into the tale striking slabs of color spill off the page and further stir the excitement. The only downside of this is that it is hard to see it and not wonder how the whole book would have looked brought to life with a bit more color. It easy to see how the use of color is a story telling device and it does work well as such.

Foiled takes its characters and art on a journey through fantasy and reality. The book spends most of its time setting up the reality of Aliera and that it is where it works best. The fantasy element is fun but it distracts from the story that it spent most of its time setting up. Both parts of the story are well done but the lengthy setup doesn’t end up feeling delivered on. It’s a story that needs a second volume to bring it all to a conclusion that the reader and Aliera deserve.