Mendel the Mess-Up by Terry LaBan; Holiday House © 2024; ISBN 9780823-453566; 200 pages plus appendix; $14.99.
SAN DIEGO – This graphic novel intended for Middle Schoolers tells the story of a boy who can’t do anything right, even though his intentions are good. At fault may have been the evil eye that a woman, bitter about the abduction of her own son, put on Mendel’s mother while she was pregnant.
Cossacks invade Mendel’s village, prompting his family and neighbors to head for the mountains surrounding their little Jewish town of Lintvint. Mendel, however, gets caught by the Cossacks, but his life is spared while they happily loot valuables, roast the town’s goats, and drink the town’s store of “kvatch,” a mythical drink brewed from goat sweat.
A Cossack named Pipik (in Yiddish, that means “belly button”) occupies a similar position in the Cossacks’ society as Mendel does in Lintvint’s. As far as the Cossacks are concerned, he can’t do anything right either and, besides, he talks too much. When Pipik catches Mendel escaping, he is determined to prove his worth to the Cossacks by forcing Mendel to lead them to the Lintvintniks’ mountain hideout.
Along the way, Pipik mutters that his fellow Cossacks are more interested in partying and having a good time than excelling in military matters. That gives Mendel an idea about how to save his family and neighbors. His plans bring back into the story the old woman who once gave his mother the evil eye.
An extended comic book, Mendel the Mess-Up is written and drawn for a middle school audience, but adults nostalgic for their school days also can appreciate it. From 2001 to 2015, King Features syndicated LaBan’s daily cartoon strip “Edge City” to newspapers across the country. He also wrote comics for DC Vertigo and for Disney’s Donald Duck franchise.
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Donald H. Harrison is the publisher and editor of San Diego Jewish World.
The books you choose to review are always interesting. P. 🙂