Cover Image: Elma: A Bear's Life

Elma: A Bear's Life

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Member Reviews

Thank you to Europe Comics for making available a digital edition of ‘Elma: a Bear’s Life: 1. The Great Journey’ in exchange for an honest review. It was written by Ingrid Chabbert with art by Léa Mazé. It was translated from the French by Jessie Aufiery.

This graphic novel for children is reminiscent of stories such as ‘The Jungle Book’. It is a charming story beautifully illustrated.

Elma is a free-spirited child who was abandoned as a baby in the forest and is being raised by a bear that she considers her father. Yet Papa Bear is keeping a secret. In this first volume Elma and Papa Bear begin a long and perilous journey to an undisclosed destination. Along the way it appears that a mysterious force linked to water is seeking to stop them. It ends on a cliffhanger.

The art work and especially the colour palette for this short graphic novel was excellent. I loved that Papa Bear’s fur was blue as was Elma’s hair; though in some panels when they are startled or in danger both change to an orange-brown hue. The art does have some elements of manga in its style.

The second and final part of ‘Elma: a Bear’s Life’ is subtitled ‘Behind the Mountain’ is listed as ‘Coming Soon’ on the Europe Comics website. I look forward to seeing how their story plays out.

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I received this arc from NetGalley for an honest review. Elma is being raised by Papa bear and in this first part of the story they are on a great journey that Papa will not tell her about. I honestly was so bummed when the story ended and realized I would have to wait for the next story. It went all to fast and I'm looking forward to the next. Great illustrations and a funny story will have readers looking forward to what happens next.

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I have such a soft spot for caring Fathers and Papa Bear does more than fit the bill. The relationship between Elma and Papa is so sweet, and though this volume is very short your heart still aches for the next one at the end. I really adore this art style, and the whole vibe is akin to something I'd want to read with my kids. The author definitely takes care in making you love these characters in the limited space she's given. Definitely be on the lookout for the next installment! Such a goofy, sweet story so far.

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Elma, a Bear's Life is charming, beautiful and oddly sad. It's about a little rascal girl named Elma, who lives in the forest with Papa Bear. The bear found her when she was just a baby and they have to make a secret journey that seems dangerous and the bear's sadness is carved on it's face. The comic reminds me of Luke Person's Hildafolk and Cyril Pedrosa's Three Shadows. The atmosphere is hollow and perfect, just waiting for the upcoming storm. The rhythm is wonderful in it's slow and simplistic pace. The story is small in a sense, but fits the comic so well. There's hardly any text, just facial expressions, colors and whatnot. A very artistic comic and works for kids too, which is great.

The art line is sketchy and light, but with humor and warmth. The comic feels distant and odd at times, which is wonderful, since it makes you wait for something. There's something looming all around, which makes the comic electric almost. I love the bear and how his character is so multifaceted. Elma is a complete opposite and they still work so well together. I so want to keep reading to know more and what happens, since Elma, a Bear's Life is exciting and heartwarming.

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This is the story of a small girl and her papa bear. Elma was found and raised by a bear in the forest. But their 7 years are up and it is time. So, Elma and papa bear set off on a long journey.

The story is sweet. It has a similar feel to jungle book. We aren't told where they are going, but the journey is dangerous and long. This gives us lots of sweet bonding moments between the two.

The art is beautiful. I love the oranges and blue combination. The love the two characters feel for each other is clear in their expressions.

Adorable, I can't wait to see where they are going next.

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Elma: A Bear's Life by Ingrid Chabbert and Lea Maze is like a female version of the Jungle Book. It has beautiful illustrations and I like the adventurous feel of it. After reading the description, I did expect for this book to cover the entire story and felt that the cliffhanger was a little early in the story. I felt it would be better if there was something more exciting right at the end that left us wanting more.

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4.5 stars!
Um, OKAY. How dare this graphic novel end on such a cliffhanger!? Nooo... I want to know what happens to Elma and Papa Bear! Do they make it?! Where are they going? Is he bringing her back home? Why is the forest and nature seemingly conspiring to take Elma away from Papa Bear? SO many questions! I kind of feel a little bit like Elma right now because the curiosity is strong!

I loved this graphic novel. First of all, that cover is a wonderful representation of the stunning art work that you'll find inside the pages. The colours are autumnal, so they're warm and very comforting. I could seriously just look at the pages all day because the work is beautiful, and I enjoyed that there was limited dialogue so it didn't detract from the art. This is targeted at children, however, at one point Elma does lose all her clothes and her full body (including genitalia) can be seen. It's one scene and then she's covered up again in the next. I don't think it was done distastefully, but I just thought I'd leave a warning anyway.

I found the start of the storyline just as enjoyable as the art. It obviously has "Jungle Book" vibes (of course, abandoned child in forest raised by an animal that's meant to be a predator) and although I admittedly am not the biggest fan of that story, I'm enjoying this one! I'm a little sad this was only the first volume/chapter, as reading the blurb led me to think it might be the full story. Still, I'm glad I stumbled across it and read it because so far it's a sweet story, although it does raise many questions I hope will be answered in the next volume! The relationship between Elma and Papa Bear was very sweet, and you can feel through their dialogue, interactions and the art that they really care for and love each other like father/daughter. I love a story where animals can talk and this was definitely no exception!

I'm looking forward to getting my hands on more of this graphic novel! I would 100% add this to my physical shelf because I love the art work so much! Thanks to NetGalley and Europe Comics for providing the e-ARC for an honest review.

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A beautifully drawn and illustrated young graphic novel that I wish was the entire idea because I hated the cliffhanger it ended on. Please give me the next one, ASAP!

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Elma's father is a big bear. She likes him to tell her the story of how he found her years ago, every evening if she can persuade him to. Quite often she can.
And now they're going on a journey.

This was <i>so</i> cute and gave me all the fuzzy feelings. She even calls him papa bear, and he teachers her to climb and growl and now I want to re-watch the Jungle Book again.

The colour palette you see in the cover is used throughout the book, the forest and all things belonging to it are autumnly red, brown and yellow while papa bear and his charge are blue. The colours are more muted than vibrant, which gives a melancholic feel to the scenery.
All panels are so beautiful! Some of the bigger pictures I'd hang on my walls.

Then there is the cliffhanger. I went from not knowing anything about this to liking the artwork to be baffled I know have to wait to find out where they are travelling to, and for which reason.

I'd recommend this book to either people who have a soft spot for papa bears with human charges, or young readers that are old enough to make the leap from picture books to picture books with more plot. If you have enough attention to last through 40 beautiful pages, you should be fine.

I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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This kind of graphic "novel" really irks me. It's not a self-contained story, despite what the synopsis might lead you to believe. As far as I can tell, the synopsis describes the whole series, not just this one book. Because what you get in The Great Journey is simply one chapter that ends on a cliffhanger. There are hints about what's going on (I'm guessing Papa Bear is taking Elma home to her people), but aside from a couple of perilous situations, there's really no plot. At least, there's no plot that's satisfactorily explored in this volume. It's simply a setup for the rest of the story.

NetGalley stuck this in the children's category, so I feel I need to mention the illustrations. This book really puts the "graphic" in "graphic novel". At one point, Elma loses her clothes. At first, everything is strategically covered, but then she's drawn... well, completely. I'm not even sure if depicting children's genitalia in drawings is even legal in every country, so that's something to be aware of.

I'm not generally a fan of anthropomorphized animals interacting with humans, but in this case, Papa Bear is so human-like that he's barely a bear. He's protective and growly and snores, but he also carries his belongings around in a shoulder bag and can make fire by striking two rocks together. At the very least, he's smarter than the average bear.

I just can't get excited about what is, essentially, a chapter. Maybe if there had been a little more story here, I would've been sucked in and wanted to keep reading. As it is, though, I wasn't... so I don't.

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Devoured this adorable graphic novel and was crushed when I got to the end and did not have the next part of the story. I need more!!! Ended on a cliffhanger and my daughter read over my shoulder and was bummed to not have more right away. Beautiful artwork! I need to own this!

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Elma was a wonderful read and I can't wait to read more. The first volume introduces us to Papa Bear and his human child, Elma. You have to admit, this already sounds a lot like The Jungle Book. However, the setting is quite different and I can't say it's really repetitive of the classic tale. The artwork is beautiful and the characters are very well developed. In just a short first volume, I already feel incredibly connected to these characters and their story and I'm dying to find out what happens next. I do hope I'll be able to read the next volume soon, giving that this one ended in a cliffhanger and it's so unsatisfying to not know how a story ends. Overall, I'd say this is a great start to a loveable and rich world and I can only hope that the sequel(s) live up to the charm of the first instalment.

I had the privilege of reading this book thanks to NetGalley, who offered me a free digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

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Absolutely beautiful. The art is captivating, the story mysterious and leaves you wanting more. I wouldn't recommend this to young children since there are some delicate moments, but I think teens and everyone older who can appreciate a lovely piece of art will enjoy this little book.
*contains child nudity

I thank Netgalley and Europe Comics for an ARC to read and review.

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5 Stars.
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this Arc!

It's unbelievable how a short comic can make me feel so many emotions! I love the premise and the relationship between Papa Bear and Elma. The cliffhanger really has me curious and anxious on what's going to happen next. I'm eager to see the next part of the story and what Papa Bear will unveil. I cared about the characters so quickly and admired to see how they help each other throughout this journey.

The art is beautiful and it incorporates colors that vividly remind me of being in the forest and hiking in nature. I always enjoy stories of children befriending animals so I already knew this was going to be a favorite of mine. Wonderfully done! Can't wait for Part 2.

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This graphic novel tells the story of Elma, a young girl raised in the wild by bears until she is seven years old. She is then supposed to journey to a location that Papa Bear will not tell her. They set out and face different obstacles in the wild. However, this volume ends before there is any resolution or even an explanation of where/why they are going. I'd say this needs a bit of plot work.

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A sort of Jungle Book redux, with a foundling human girl brought up by a bear, until something happens and they set off on a journey. Unfortunately they never get to the end, for this is the first half of the story, needlessly split into two as is the French way/these publishers insist on doing. It looks alright, but never really grabbed. And only having half a story is worse than having none at times, especially when judging for review purposes.

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This was a sweet little comic about a girl raised by a bear. I liked the unique take on a blue bear and a girl with blue hair, that was cute. Elma is a wild little girl and Papa Bear makes a tough decision. Very cute story but you are left with such a cliffhanger.

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The art is absolutely beautiful! I love the bluish tones. I love the relationship between Elma & papa bear. It’s just so sweet! It ended so quickly but I really want to know what happens next. I’m interested to see where the next volume goes.

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Chabbert's story is super exciting, and the art is captivating. I hadn't realized it was only part one or book one, but I would definitely be interested in the follow-up. It was well written, and I think the graphic novel format suites the storyline. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book to fellow parents for their children.

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ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the art style. Plot is good so far although it is difficult to review as really it's not that long and ends rather abruptly, especially for a children's comic. A solid beginning and I would like to know what happens next, so i believe it accomplishes what it probably sets out to do if your an adult. I think a child would lose interest as they would not have enough time to become attached. If you like the synopsis then that is what you get.

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