4 Russian teens who are friends go through their experiences during World War II when the Germans invade Russia. This was a case where the art was better than the story. It had your stereotypical Russian elements with lots of the kids' parents being sent to prison, things like that. There's also little to the story to show why any of them are actually friends.

'The Lions of Leningrad: 1. I am Chapayev' by Jean-Claude Van Rijckeghem with art by Thomas Du Caju is a graphic novel about a group of young friends during the siege of Leningrad.

In a framing story that takes place in 1961, a concert hall is attacked by a gunman. It turns out the first chair violin has a history with the gunman and the flashbacks begin. The friends from her childhood come from different backgrounds and experiences, but they play together and even survive together.

The framing story doesn't get resolved in this volume, but does in the second one. I think works better in the complete form, so do yourself that favor. The art is good and I liked the story so far.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

Slightly soapy, but still enjoyable, wartime drama. Four teens are evacuated from Leningrad when the Nazis get too close, but end up back there after some very high drama. The foursome have a very divergent life each ahead of them, if they can survive the encroaching winter and siege – but who will manage to survive in the end, and how? This first part (of however many, I can't discover – and it's a case of it being immediately translated, so no other parts of the saga are extant) is quite well done, for all its jumping about from family to family and from timeline to timeline. It really feels like it's an adaptation of something else, but doesn't appear to be. Leningrad is evoked by all the characters being very different, so many different sides and voices are heard, and also by some very good artwork, which shows signs of being digitally enhanced here and there, but is still in keeping with the story. For lovers of historical fiction, this could well be a series to keep an eye on.

A look at World War II through the eyes of a group of Russian children who grew up as friends even through their families are not all on the right side of "the party." Maxim is the son of a party secretary, while Grigory is the son of a pilot who was executed for speaking out against the red army. Then there's Pyotr, son of a writer who is accused as a spy, and Anka, the patriotic daughter of a violent violinist father who insists she play German music despite of her hatred of the Germans. The story follows the children through innocent days in the countryside, to the violence of air raids over Leningrad as they struggle with mixed loyalties and the challenges of growing up.

This is the first volume in a series about a group of Russian children during the second world war.

The children are evacuated from Leningrad to the countryside but when they are bombed by German soldiers they have to find their way back to the city of Leningrad which is where they live. When they finally make it back to Leningrad all is not well. As well as the war, the children and their families have to cope with life under Stalin. The older children join the war efforts as look outs and the story follows the turbulence of life in Leningrad during the second world war.

Of course the story portrays so much more about the lives of the children and their families and then there are the stirrings of first love for some of them. For others there is life as a potential enemy of the Russian state.

The artwork is great with bright coloring that brings the story to life and the story has a dynamic and engaging pace. This is part one of the story and I wanted to continue reading and I was quite dissapointed when it came to an end. Definitely a series to follow.


Copy provided by Europe Comics via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

The story is incomplete, but based on what I've read so far, it's a different look at Russia's experience of World War II. The art is engaging and sets atmosphere and moves the action along.