A few months after the wedding, Greda, a woman dressed all in white, appears in town looking for Elber. At the wedding, her uncle, Old Dell, a former gold prospector who went away to California and came back not quite right, accuses the bride of being a witch. Pick it up and grab Compass South while you are at it.Eleven-year-old Vonceil is disgusted that her brother Elber, newly home from war, is going to marry his hometown sweetheart instead of the brave, sophisticated nurse she’d hoped he would meet while serving in the trenches in France. It is an incredible story that I read in one sitting because I had to know what would happen next. Salt Magic joins Larson’s Compass South among the list of graphic novels I will be recommending to anyone who will listen.

Whether it is the water hole where Vonceil swims or the hut of the sugar witch, the images linger with the reader. She is the kind of little girl hero comics need more of because she feels real and not easily reducible to any archetype.Ĭarrying on the bittersweet theme, the art conveys the aching pain, the mundane, and the fantastic with equal talent.

She is of the brand of difficult girls that I love to see. Like the magic system itself, this graphic novel is a bittersweet recipe. Even days later, thinking of the story fills my chest with emotion. Salt Magic brought me to tears multiple times. It is a story full of nostalgia and longing for childhood, that also celebrates life at all stages.

Vonceil’s brother is forced to become an adult by the war, and the magic he brings home with him may affect Vonceil’s journey to adulthood as well. There is the existential ennui of growing up and recognizing that things change. However, equally strong is the emotion throughout. There is plenty of fun about the tale, such as a magic system based on different tastes like salt and sweet. Salt Magic manages a balance of whimsical and emotionally devastating writing that is reminiscent of stories like Howl’s Moving Castle. Fans of Hope Larson’s Compass South will not be disappointed by this new work. Salt Magic weaves together fairytale elements with a grounded historical coming of age story. When those secrets come to the farm in the form of a mysterious woman, Vonceil is launched on a magical journey. As the youngest child in the family, everyone is growing up without her, especially her older brother who returns from the war with more secrets than scars. Salt Magic is the story of a young girl, Vonceil, growing up on a farm in the early 1900s. It is harder still when your imagination makes you feel too big for the world you inhabit. Content warning/Trigger warning: Elder abuse, PTSD

Salt Magic by Hope Larson