(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Jeet Zdung. Chang, the plucky wildlife conservationist from Saving Sorya (rev. 1/22), returns with a new animal-rescue mission near Yok Don National Park in Vietnam. In this volume, Chang and her colleagues rescue and rehabilitate H'Non, a sixty-year-old Asian elephant--voi in Vietnamese. H'Non was captured when young and made to work in an "elephant-riding" business where the creatures are exploited for profitable interactions with tourists (graphic illustrations portray the violent mistreatment that H'Non and the other voi experience). Chang works for a nonprofit foundation that offers an alternative "elephant-friendly" experience where nature-loving tourists can observe rescued elephants in more natural settings. The emotional story of H'Non's recovery is conveyed through detail-packed illustrations: dynamic comic panels; delicate, multipage paintings of elephants; and field notebook style doodles and anecdotes. Chang details her encounters with animals and plants throughout the National Park, the people in her organization and the nearby communities, and the voi, building a complex portrait of the sometimes destructive, sometimes harmonious interactions between humans and nature. Appended notes provide further details.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Jeet Zdung. Nguyen's graphic novel "based on a true adventure" tells the story of a girl named Chang, who is an aspiring wildlife conservationist, and her efforts to protect Vietnam's native species and natural environments. Accompanying Chang is Sorya, a sun bear rescued in Laos, who must learn survival skills before she can be safely returned to the forest. Zdung's expressive, expansive comics-style panels depict Sorya's many playful antics moment by moment, as well as the fast-paced tension in more dangerous interactions in the wild. Clever picture-within-picture illustrations from Chang's field-notebook sketches incorporate information on topics ranging from bear species to the many ways humans exploit wild animals for profit. The warmth of the characters' relationship is conveyed with a minimum of anthropomorphism. The conversational narrative is occasionally paused by gorgeous interspersed partial-to-full spreads of Vietnamese rainforest landscapes filled with the heat, moisture, and density of tropical plant and animal life. Sorya eventually returns to the wild, while Chang continues her lifelong efforts to protect the forests and their inhabitants from human exploitation done through development, farming, dams, and the illegal animal trade. Brief author and illustrator notes are appended.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022