What a charming little story with the most beautiful art! I don't usually pick up short graphic novels / picture books, but I've already read one or two absolute treasures from Oni Press ("The Tea Dragon Society" is hands down one of the best things on this planet), so I was curious. "The Lost Sunday" turned out to be a mix of two fairy tales – the German "Frau Holle", with which I'm very familiar, and the Romanian "The Old Man's Wise Daughter", which was all new to me. It's a story of hard work and good rest and the importance of balancing these two aspects in life. It's clearly intended for younger readers for there is very little text and it's fairly short altogether, but I thought it quite enchanting as well. The illustrations are creative and lovely to look at, and I think it's a message that everyone might need to hear once in a while.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Oni Press for providing a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Lost Sunday by Ileana Surducan published by the Oni Press draws inspiration from the popular Grimms Fairy tale titled Frau Holle and another one chosen from the Romanian Fairy Tales collection titled The Old Man's Wise Daughter.

Opening with a dedication to all those brave enough to take a break and cherish their free time, The Lost Sunday is set in a dusty, crowded town where there is no Sunday. Here, a young girl named Nina works hard every single day from Monday to Saturday (you see there is no Sunday here, so the weekly cycle is from Mon-Sat). The chores are never ending; there is always something falling apart despite the toil. And there is no Sunday or free time, but why?

A witch living in a bottomless pit has stolen it and locked it away in a treasure chest. Nina has had enough of work, work and more work. She decides to visit the land of this witch to retrieve Sunday.

Lots of challenges come along the way, Nina even meets her Double who looks just like her and is more of a problem to her than help. Does Nina get back Sunday to her town, does she succeed in her mission? Read this story to know. For the slaves of time buzzing around like busy bees day after day, this story comes as a wake up call, telling us to pause, that it's okay (and even important) to do nothing at times. It also points out the danger of having too much free time.

With gorgeous illustrations, end notes on how these were created plus information on stories that inspired this book, The Lost Sunday is a fun journey bundling important messages - a treat for readers of all ages, young and old.

Note - If you are a fan of The Tea Dragon Society series by Oni Press , you shouldn't miss out on this comic and a few other books too shared /suggested at the book's end.

Thank you NetGalley and Oni Press for gifting me an early copy of The Lost Sunday!
We are following the story of Nina who is on a journey to get Sunday back. Everyone works all the time and they do not have a day off because of a witch who stole Sunday and keep it locked in a well.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Lost Sunday. It was sweet, light-hearted and made me smile. The drawings are stunning and I loved Nina, the main character.
The concept behind the graphic novel was genius and I fould myself wishing there was more pages because of how good it was. It makes a statement on time and how we tend to overwork ourselves when we actually need to take breaks.

It was also interesting to read about the fairy tale that inspired The Lost Sunday, I had never heard of it!