Hearing Things

June 3, 2024
Accompanied by orange cat Frankie, young Tim relishes recording the sounds of his new neighborhood—chirping birds, croaking frogs, and an engine’s “PUTTPUTTPUTT.” But older sister Martha is languishing in the unfamiliar surroundings—she feels friendless, lacks energy to make the “creepy” songs that are her creative passion, and takes face-down naps. Tim stumbles into a solution upon following Frankie into a seemingly abandoned mansion. After encountering two spectral residents, the cat communicates Martha’s plight via a dramatic display of feline charades. In sympathy, the skeletal inhabitants conjure up a cacophonous symphony of sounds: a spatula flies through the air with a “FWWSH,” bathroom bubbles go “BLUB,” chess pieces “CLACK,” and in a bravura spread, Sears (the Double+ Adventures series) shows the living room as a swirl of animated objects emitting sounds. When the bounty of eerie recorded sounds shakes Martha out of her funk and into bonding with Tim, she even suggests a visit back to the source. Ghostly shenanigans take center stage in this graphic novel, illustrated in the creator’s signature thin-lined layers, which also offers an intriguing picture of a sibling relationship—low-key in its expression but deep in its connection. Ages 5–7.