Quirk's Quest: Into the Outlands

by Robert Christie, Deborah Lang (Illustrator)

Overview

Setting out to explore the remote Outlands of Crutonia are the brave and multifarious crew of the H.M.S. Gwaniimander, under the command of Captain Quenterindy Quirk—a leader whose confidence exceeds his competence by several lengths of his own bushy tail.

Quirk’s voyage of discovery is quickly plunged into disaster and mystery, as the expedition encounters carnivorous giants, an unstable sorceress, and a valley of indestructible creatures. With the crew decimated, the ship destroyed, and a malign force plotting worse fortune, can Quirk and his compatriots hold together their royal mission?

Vividly illustrated and starring a cunningly designed cast of characters, Robert Christie and Deborah Lang's Into the Outlands is a tale of adventure in a fully-imagined fantasy world ripe for exploration. This first graphic novel of Quirk’s Quest includes an illustrated roster of the important characters, a guide to the intrepid Sxervian Frog Brigade, and mission map of the Outlands.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626729827
Publisher:	First Second
Publication date:	10/18/2016
Series:	Quirk's Quest , #1
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	128
File size:	57 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Growing up on Long Island, Robert Christie spent most of his waking hours obsessively drawing anything and everything, except cars. While taking cover from a lunchroom food fight, he met Deborah Lang, and shortly thereafter they conspired to create Crutonia. Ever since, they have been writing stories set in their quirky, made-up world. After earning his BFA in St. Louis, he moved to Jersey City, where he makes his living as an illustrator, painter, and prop maker for major motion pictures, Broadway, and fashion photo shoots. He has been writing and further developing Crutonia with Deborah for more than three decades, and Into the Outlands is their first published graphic novel.

Deborah Lang is a cartoonist, scientific illustrator, and molecular biologist. She was born in New York City but eventually moved to Long Island purely to meet up with Rob Christie to create Crutonia. Her earliest published drawings include advertisements in Pennysaver and monthly comic strips in her college newspaper. She has published illustrations and papers in international science journals. Deborah spent many years in Philadelphia during college and grad school and presently lives in Chicago.

Growing up on Long Island, Robert Christie spent most of his waking hours obsessively drawing anything and everything except cars. While taking cover from a lunchroom food fight, he met Deborah Lang and shortly thereafter they conspired to create Crutonia. Ever since they have been writing stories set in their quirky made-up world. After earning his BFA in St. Louis, MO he moved to Jersey City where he makes his living as an illustrator, painter and prop maker for major motion pictures, Broadway, and fashion photo shoots. He has been writing and further developing Crutonia with Deborah Lang for over three decades, and Quirk's Quest is their first (published) graphic novel.
Deborah Lang is a cartoonist, scientific illustrator, and molecular biologist. She was born in New York City, but eventually moved to Long Island purely to meet up with Rob Christie to create Crutonia. Her earliest published drawings include advertisements in "Pennysavers" and monthly comic strips in her college newspaper. She has several published illustrations and papers in international science journals. Although Rob and Deb have several volumes of their work, The Quirk's Quest series is her first long form graphic novel to be published. Deborah spent many years in Philadelphia during college and grad school and presently lives in Chicago.

Editorial Reviews

"The pacing is snappy, engaging plot twists abound, and so do intriguing characters, like the cheerful little Yoons....Readers will hope for a sequel, and the cliffhanger ending promises one." —Publisher's Weekly

"Christie and Lang manage to strike a good balance between drama and comic relief, and the colorful art features detailed landscapes." —Booklist

"Illustrations and text effectively intersect... as the pictures highlight key moments and frequently offer clever clues about what might be coming next. Rich colors make this uncharted island appealing and inviting, even while stark dangers lurk everywhere." —Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"The story is full of action, humor, and twists and is illustrated in full color in a cartoon style on glossy pages." —School Library Journal

From the Publisher

2016-07-20
What secrets and perils lie in the outlands of Crutonia?Capt. Quenterindy Quirk, who’s not as qualified as he thinks, is given command of the HMS Gwaniimander by King Hoonkl and charged with exploring and charting the lesser-known northern areas of the kingdom. A few days into the mission, they encounter carnivorous, four-eyed giants that destroy the ship and eat several crew members. The survivors take up residence in a cave, but it’s not uninhabited. The sorceress Hukka will allow them to stay only three days, but the giants, the Hooklm, are still about. Quirk’s cartographer, Nersel Bukubay, stumbles upon another indigenous species, the happy, friendly Yoon (who are poisonous to the Hooklm). Meanwhile, Hukka kidnaps one of Quirk’s injured crew. Can the survivors escape magic users and hungry giants while still working to complete their mission? Christie and Lang met as kids in New York and began writing and illustrating tales set in Crutonia. Now the duo debut a series of graphic novels with an aesthetic that looks as though it was inspired by Jim Henson’s Fraggle Rock. Several furry species—some with as few as two legs and others with as many as six—inhabit their eccentric, medieval-feeling land. The colorful cartoon panels are inviting, and the adventure tale will draw readers further in. The goofy names are a bit much, but a handy character list is provided at the close. Fans will be glad of the ominous ending that portends more adventures to come. (Graphic adventure. 7-12)

Kirkus Reviews