To say that I love D&D would be an understatement. I’ve met some of my best friends through the hobby. I run three games a week and join in a few more as a player. So you think I would be tired of hear about it. Not true however, as I love anything that brings across this hobby. And I love seeing it in different types of media.
Dungeons and Dragons: Roll Call by Molly Knox Ostertag and Xante Bouma
The story follows Indigenous middle schooler Jess. Jess thinks that middle school is the worst dungeon of all. But luckily she has her best friend Oliva, who is also her dungeon master. Together they escape into fantastical worlds where Oliva plays as the half demon Sir Corius.
Sir Corius is like Jess in several way, cautious and a bit of a lone wolf with a take no prisoners attitude. This character reflects the way that Jess feels like an outcast in the middle school social hierarchy.
So when Oliva wants to add new players to their shared game, Jess isn’t exactly happy. She doesn’t want to share ‘her’ game with new friend Tyler. Tyler is a even lower on the social hierarchy than Jess is.
Will their epic campaign stand all of this stress? Whats more will their friendship survive? Or will things finally come to a shocking end?
Review
I enjoyed this book for both the art and the story. The art is bright and colorful and drew me in. This art style is especially good at highlighting the fantasy elements when the group is playing D&D. The characters pop out from the page and are vibrant. It is a nice contrast to the ‘real’ world. The ‘real’ world seems a little more muted, compared to the fantasy sequences.
The story itself is very appropriate for a middle grade audience, it is easy to sympathize with Jess. Even when she is making decisions that are bad for her it is easy to see her reasoning. While the conflict isn’t that complex. It shows some of the problems that come up when playing D&D in a realistic way. Group dynamics can often be the end of an otherwise fun game.
Bullying is also portrayed in a a realistic way. With the characters playing D&D having to deal with the social backlash of being seen as ‘nerds’. This is somewhat contrasted with the game master’s position with the more popular kids. The popular kids eventually come in and join the game. They are part of the focus of the next book.
I also liked that the book has representation of different ethnicities playing the game. Also two of the three main characters are girls and people of color. For a hobby that tends to be dominated by white males. It is nice to see this representation for the younger generation coming into the hobby.
I’d give this four stars. I liked it a lot especially for the art, and I plan to read more of the series. I’d recommend this for any D&D fans especially middle graders and young adults. Check out my reviews which come up each week along with different tags I participate in.
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