I’m a huge fan of Joe Todd-Stanton. To quote the brilliant Hunt for the Wilderpeople his illustrations are ‘majestical.’ I love his Brownstone’s Mythical Collection books, a series of comics that focus on myths and legends from around the world. I was excited to find a chunky new graphic novel on the public library shelves last week, that’s illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton and written by Ben Queen. I picked it up because Joe illustrated it but I completely fell in love with this wonderful story.

This large format graphic novel follows Bear the guide dog and his human Patrick. Bear is disappointed to not follow in the footsteps of his parents and siblings to become a K-9 police dog, but he has an equally important job as a guide dog to Patrick who is completely blind. Bear becomes unwell one day and soon finds himself far from home and lost. While Bear tries to make his way home with help from new friends, Patrick looks everywhere for him.

Bear is a gorgeous graphic novel that kids and adults alike will love. If you’re a dog lover this is an absolute must-read. Ben’s story is sweet and heart-warming and it’s perfect for a graphic novel format. It’s a story about friendship and loyalty, but also about overcoming the obstacles that life throws at you. It certainly fills a gap in the children’s graphic novel market. Joe’s illustrations are absolutely stunning. He perfectly captures the different ways that Bear and Patrick view the world, especially as they have to use different senses to adapt to life. Ben and Joe show us that even when you don’t have sight your brain can still create images of the things around you.

Kids of all ages will enjoy Bear. I’ll be buying this one for my primary school library.