Andre the Giant

Brown, B. (2014). Andre the giant: Life and legend. New York: FirstSecond.

This graphic novel is about the life of Andre Roussimoff, the famous wrestler.  Andre, the Giant as he was called suffered from a disease called acromegaly which caused him to age prematurely and grow larger than normal.  Andre discovered the world of professional wrestling in Paris and conquered all of his opponents with ease.  He then moves to the United States and becomes a huge star and even starred in the movie, The Princess Bride.  At his peak, Andree weighed 500 pounds and stood a seven and half feet tall.  Andre drank and made some poor decisions in his life.  When in Paris in 1993, Andre passed away in his sleep.  His ashes were scattered at his ranch in North Carolina.   

This biography is designed as a graphic novel is popular choice among young adults especially teen boys who might not want to read biographies.   The author gives good informational text in a limited glossary of professional wrestling terms and source notes for readers who may be unfamiliar with wrestling.  This graphic novel follows many of the criteria listed in the Young Adult Literature in Action – A Librarian’s Guide by Rosemary Chance. 

1.      Integration of images and words

2.      Clarity of visual flow on the page

3.      Ability of images to convey necessary meaning

4.      Outstanding quality of the artwork’s reproduction

5.      Narrative enhanced by the artwork

6.      Narrative dominated by sequential art component

Chance, R. (2014). Young adult literature in action: A librarian’s guide. 2^nd ed. Santa Barbara, CA: Libraries Unlimited.