Cassandra’s story begins with her playing with her English Shepherd, Miss Dolly, and a somewhat tense meeting with her mom, mom’s boyfriend Bruno, and his daughter Juliet. We learn that Cassandra is fourteen and Juliet seventeen, and Juliet is not happy about sharing her dad or the suggestion that she hang out with a little girl like Cassandra.
Cassandra takes Miss Dolly for a walk in the park to cheer herself up and there encounters a dog locked in a car. Determined to help the dog, she uses her ability to psychically communicate with animals to get help, but is alarmed when a young “journalist,” a blonde boy named Tristan, shows up and wants to know just how she managed to communicate with the dog! Cassandra has always kept her gift secret and she doesn’t want anyone else to know, other than her purple-haired best friend Sophie, and her mom.
With the encouragement of her mom and her friend, she decides to step out of her comfort zone and try using her ability to help others, starting with a little boy who has lost his pet cat. Along the way, she has to deal with many changes in herself and others, from the challenges of her blended family to Sophie moving away. By the end of the story, she’s more confident in her own abilities and herself in general and ready to meet new changes and challenges. Pages from Cassandra’s “secret notebook” at the back tell the reader more about Miss Dolly, her breed, and her own peculiarities.
The art is cinematic and attractive; Cassandra has brown skin and curly hair, presumably inherited from her father, as her mother is white. Juliet and Bruno are both white and blonde, Juliet with a short pixie cut and a curvy silhouette. Sophie is Asian and Tristan is white. The animals are cute and fluffy and the other people Cassandra interacts with, while mostly white, show a variety of body types. There’s lots of spring green, purples, and pinks in the color scheme and Cassandra’s abilities are shown in a kind of dream fashion, with pictures of animals and events in a large bubble above her head.
This was translated from the original French version, and it definitely has a more European vibe. Cassandra calls Tristan “Tintin,” and although there are skeptics, most people are accepting of Cassandra’s psychic gifts. It may also strike American readers as odd that Cassandra’s mom is so casual about her daughter going to a stranger’s house and telling them she can psychically communicate with their cat! There’s also a kind of ebullient flavor to the characters and their dialogue which I don’t normally see in American graphic novels.
While not a necessary purchase, readers who are fans of Raina Telgemeier and open to something a little different will find this attractive. There are lots of cute animals and a whiff of romance with Tristan, as well as Cassandra coming to terms with major changes in her life and her own psychic abilities.
Cassandra: Animal Psychic: Cassandra Steps Out, vol. 1
By Isabelle Bottier, and Norwyn MacTire
Art by Helene Canac, and Drac
ISBN: 9781541572836
Lerner Graphic Universe, 2019
Publisher Age Rating: 7-10
Series ISBNS and Order
Title Details and Representation
NFNT Age Recommendation: Middle Grade (7-11)
