Saving Sorya: Chang and the Sun Bear

Trang Nguyen, Jeet Zdung (illustrator)

The innovative art in this graphic novel is by an award-winning Vietnamese artist who mixes pencil, watercolour, ink and digital media with a manga style. The immersive story is based on the author’s own life: a childhood meeting with a sun bear inspired her to become a wildlife conservationist and found the conservation organisation WildAct. The theme of human-animal friendship, the determination of the main character, and the engaging illustrations are a very appealing combination for readers in the 7-10 age range.

A new book has been published this year by the same author-illustrator team: Saving H’non – Chang and the Elephant. Just as beautiful, it is a perfect companion volume.