Some creative pairings are legendary from the moment they put pen to paper, or cursor to word processor. In the case of Marguerite Abouet and Mathieu Sapin, the creative gods were definitely smiling down on us all when they began to collaborate on their brilliantly funny comic strips, bringing "Akissi" to the world and being a huge part of what convinced my daughter that comics were well worth investing her reading time in.

"Akissi" tells the story of a little girl living in Africa, largely based on Marguerite's own childhood before she moved to Paris.

Akissi is a kick-ass ball of energy who doesn't seem to sit still for more than 5 seconds, is usually up to mischief, usually drives her parents and teachers completely crazy, but quite often relies on the help of her friends (and her cute monkey sidekick Boubou) to get her out of mischief.

The first collected volumes of stories were translated by Flying Eye Books back in 2013, and we had a long wait for more - but it was well worth it (a further third volume of Akissi stories is coming from Flying Eye this year, and we just can't wait - in fact we may come kicking and screaming out of retirement just to talk about it if it arrives after we've gone!).

So what makes these strips so good?

They're so BUSY for starters. Full of movement, detail, brilliant (and extremely funny) dialogue, and characters that stick in the memory from Akissi herself to her long-suffering parents, her (teasing) brother Fofana and her school pals.

What we weren't prepared for was how immersive these stories were. You really do feel like you're seeing a piece of African township life in every strip. How people live day to day, what kids do at school, what they do for fun - but brilliantly entertaining and rib-ticklingly funny. We just can't get enough of them and like many of our #Booky100Keepers - particularly on the comic side of the house - these are brilliant if you have a reluctant solo reader who wants the added impetus of fantastic stories to draw them into a real love of reading. Forget the classics, this is where you need to start them off!

Original Review Links: 

Akissi by Marguerite Abouet and Mathieu Sapin (Flying Eye Books)

ReadItDaddy's Comic / Graphic Novel of the Week - Week Ending 28th June 2019: "Akissi Volume 2: More Tales of Mischief" by Marguerite Abouet and Mathieu Sapin (NoBrow / Flying Eye)

Five fantastic comics to get your kids interested in reading!

25 Comics and Graphic Novels that are a perfect jumping-in point for your kids - Part 1: Early Years and Middle Grade

Off the top of your head, can you think of many comics where the main character is black? OK one or two? Now can you think of any comics where the main character is a black girl / woman? Coming up short, perhaps? Alright then, can you think of any comics where the main character is a black girl and the comic is geared at kids just discovering the joy of comics for themselves at the age of 5?

Not easy is it - so thank goodness for Akissi, by Marguerite Abouet and Mathieu Sapin. Not only does it satisfy all those criteria, it's also astonishingly funny, wildly energetic and completely and utterly addictive - as a good comic for kids should be. It's been available for a while elsewhere but we're finally getting the chance to enjoy the translated version, courtesy of the utterly fabulous Flying Eye Books.

Akissi is a little girl living in a township in Africa and this collection of some of her most popular stories (in one deliciously bound hardback volume) tells the everyday story of Akissi's life. She reminds me of Minnie the Minx crossed with Beryl the Peril (no bad thing on both counts) and her frenzied and quite often hectic lifestyle is a joy to read and behold.

In "Feline Invasion" we learn what happens when Akissi's mum sends her out on a fairly simple errand to deliver some fish to her Auntie. Sounds easy right? But the neighbourhood cats are hungry and Akissi soon finds out that they're also extremely sneaky and cunning too.

Other stories slowly introduce us to the rest of Akissi's family, her friends and her world. The draw here is the culture change, and the dialogue which feel fresh and completely far removed from the 'westernised' comics we've enjoyed so far (with one or two Japanese exceptions, it's very VERY difficult for comic novices to find comics from around the world that are accessible for young children).
Akissi is also around Charlotte's age, so for Charlotte she can more readily identify with and bond with a little girl who gets into all sorts of scrapes and adventures just living a fairly normal life without any superpowers or crazed power-mad baddies looming in the wings.

The stories are funny - funny in the same way classic Brit comics like the Beezer and Topper used to be, with that same slightly zany and exaggerated version of the world viewed through the window of youthful innocence. Kids chortle and snort at Akissi's (often quite naughty) behaviour, while adults will quietly chuckle to themselves at some of the things that kids don't pick up on (the Akissi story about the little sister is beautifully written and very funny - it's also our favourite of the collection mainly because we completely fell in love with BouBou the Monkey!)

Flying Eye are rapidly becoming our 'go-to' for interesting, beautiful and wholly original books and comics. If your children (boys OR girls) are looking for a funny and entertaining comic anthology that's accessible, fun and brilliantly illustrated, meet Akissi, she's going to rock your world!

Charlotte's best bit: "The Baby" story (aww such a cute baby) and of course, BouBou the Monkey.

Daddy's favourite bit: Such a fresh and brilliant comic that impresses with every turn of the page. We can't wait to read more about Akissi and really hope that Flying Eye also pick up Abouet and Sapin's other comics too.

(Kindly sent to us for review by Flying Eye / Bounce Marketing)