The Girl Who Owned a City: The Graphic Novel

By O. T. Nelson and Joëlle Jones

A deadly virus killed every adult on Earth, leaving only the kids behind. With her parents gone, Lisa is responsible for her little brother, Todd. She has to make sure they stay alive. Many kids are sick or starving, and fierce gangs are stealing and destroying everything they find. Lots of people have given up, but on Grand Avenue, some kids are surviving. Because of Lisa.

Lisa figured out how to give the kids on Grand Avenue food, homes, and protection against the gangs. But Tom Logan and his army are determined to take that away and rule the streets themselves. How long can Lisa's group keep fighting them off? They need to find a place to live safely. A strong place. A secret place.

In a world like this, someone has to take charge. But does Lisa have the strength to take charge of a whole city?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lerner Publishing
• Release date: Nov 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9781467734998

O. T. Nelson

O. T. Nelson has said that he wrote The Girl Who Owned a City because he wanted "children to realize that they are important and that they have the ability to think and make a difference." Mr. Nelson is an artist and writer who lives in Minnesota with his wife. He has two adult children.

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Reviews for The Girl Who Owned a City

[atreic · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I like post apocalyptic fiction. And I like books that come from a viewpoint different to my own. So I enjoyed this tale of Lisa, who becomes a leader after all adults are destroyed by plague. But it is a piece of propaganda with an agenda, and the agenda is that if you are clever and smart and work hard, you own what you are in charge of, and those left wing commies with their strange ideas about voting and sharing can just go and live somewhere else. If nothing else, it was a good book for challenging me to articulate why I don't agree with that. I think the conclusion I came to is that Lisa works hard for a lot, but a lot is a 'gift' - she is cleverer than average by good luck, she finds food in the warehouses that others have grown and stockpiled there - and so she is not solely responsible for her success. Also, it is easy in a story to say 'look, Lisa is clever and works hard, if you do not get downhearted you can learn from your mistakes and win your whole city back even when all looks doomed'. Which is a good cheerful rallying cry, but it is much more likely in the real world that even the most dedicated and brilliant person could be laid low by circumstances out of their control and need a safety net and a helping hand to get back on their feet again...

[midnightbookworm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Loved this book. I had to read it in middle school for my English class, and now (like 5 years later) I plan to buy it and read it again because it was so good.

[naje723 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

DIDNT READ THE BOOK YET BUT IM SURE ITS GONNA BE GOOD. WHAT DID YOU GUYS THINK ABOUT IT?

[jaelikesbooks · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was one of my favorite books as a kid because the protagonist is a ten year old girl surviving in a post-plague world without adults when every one else is starving because she thinks through her problems. It doesn't quite hold up to rereading as an adult like some classics do--I felt talked down to quite a bit as the main themes are repeated clearly and often. As it turns out, this book was meant to be Ayn Rand for children.

[cheryl_in_cc_nv · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

After a virus wipes out everyone over age 12, one girl finds she has enough determination to not only survive against the gangs, but also to make plans to rebuild a community for hundreds of other children. It's a little implausible, of course, but the author makes it seem possible. And it's a little didactic, but then lots of children's books are. And, as it's told in omniscient third, there is more telling than showing. Still and all it's interesting, exciting, and would be well-suited to many classroom libraries.

[cahallmxj · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Lisa and Toby are like the rest of the folks on their street, they own a house, a car, and must go out and work to make end meats and put food on the table. The only thing that is different with this picture is that Lisa is twelve and Toby is ten. The world as they knew it ended when a plague swept the globe and killed anyone over the age of fourteen. The survivors are those that were thirteen and younger. Now that the oldest people in the world are barely teenagers they must try and find a way to survive while trying to put their world back in some kind of order. That something has to change becomes apparent as food supplies begin to dwindle and gangs begin to form to take supplies away from those that are unable to defend themselves. After being robbed of her hard earned supplies after a foraging trip Lisa sees that she won’t be able to fight the gangs off herself and protect her younger brother. Instead of hiding and waiting for the inevitable, Lisa decides that she needs to approach the rest of her scattered neighbors and band together to resist the roving gangs. It takes some convincing and a few adventures but Lisa succeeds in getting her neighbors to come around to the idea that they have to work together to survive. Now all they need is their castle…..-------I liked this book because it was a different take on what would happen if a plague swept the world and reduced civilization back to the basics. I know there have been one or two televisions programs over the years that have touched on the subject, but they usually deal with actual teenagers who lived through the crisis and are all grown up and trying to make their way in the world. This book actually stays with the kids as they go through their various trials to try and find a place where they can live in peace. While this book can be considered a children’s / teenagers book it should also be entertaining for older readers as it does have plenty of action in it. It also pretty well points out that these children have to turn their brains on in order to survive. There is no more fun and games for a while. In one part of the book the Lisa is talking to one of her neighbor’s that is starving and sick. She asks her what they had been surviving on for the last few weeks as the world wound down. The neighbor sheepishly pulls out a collection of soda, candy and various other junk food and tries to make the excuse that her mother always made sure that she had something to eat. After saying it out loud the girl realizes that she has been waiting for a world that is not going to come back. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes stories that have a little bit of a different take on a old idea. I would also recommend this to anyone, younger or older, who likes a good adventure that does not rely on violence to carry the story. M.a.c

[kayla3marie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read this book in the 7th grade and LOVED it! I think it only took me a couple days to finish. It's definitely due for a reread. The plot blew me away, and I really admired the main character. She is such a strong female lead. Her ideas did seem a bit too mature and wise for a 12-year-old, but it wasn't that far-fetched. Some 12-year-olds really are that smart and resourceful, and you really never know all your strengths until you're put into a tough, life-or-death situation like all those kids were.

[jobamba · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book very much. I could say this book is my favorite.The thing is its a litte on the creepy side.

[satyridae · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

This is hands-down one of the worst books I have ever read. Pedantic in the extreme, nonsensically plotted and full of so many holes it looks like lace. And the writing is abysmal. Wait, what's worse than abysmal? Right, this book.

A plague has wiped out all the adults, so they are freshly dead. Except there aren't any bodies. Not one. They seem to have vanished, poof. Electricity doesn't work and there's no water to any of the houses, but there aren't any sanitation discussions. Apparently the plague made the children immune to cholera. Whatever, suspended my disbelief and moved on.

Lisa, our heroine, is ten but has been raised Libertarian. So the first thing she thinks of during a crisis is that she needs to stockpile food and raise a militia and be the leader who makes all the decisions. And if people don't like to do things her way they are free to leave. There will be no sharing. No charity. Only people earning their way, and fair trade at every turn. Pedantic. Heavy-handed. Preachy enough that one reads along and wonders "Why do my teeth hurt?" and realizes that one's jaw is clenched from annoyance.

I kept thinking of poor Dylan Thomas and the Christmas books he always got: "And pictureless books in which small boys, though warned with quotations not to, would skate on Farmer Giles' pond and did and drowned..."

The book exists to push hardcore Libertarian philosophy. I'm a Libertarian, but not so hardcore as this screed would like kids to grow up to be. Actually, after reading this book I think I understand why people back away when I say I'm a Libertarian. I think I'll just say from now on that I'm "socially liberal and fiscally conservative" so that no one who has read this book will think I am in favor of making small children work at night sentry duty to earn toys.

[librarybrandy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Graphic novel adaptation of the 1975 novel that somehow didn't cross my radar last year. A little slow-moving but still engrossing; lots of war planning and strategy.

Really great artwork that adds a great tone to the story; the color work is fantastic.

[akmargie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I liked the twist on post-apocalyptic story. I also found the art very strong.

[thehidingspot · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm relatively new to the world of graphic novels, having only read one other prior to The Girl Who Owned a City, but I was intrigued by the title and cover of this novel when I stumbled across it in a Chicago bookstore. Like many readers, I've had a recent love affair with all things post-apocalyptic and this graphic adaptation of O.T. Nelson's novel by the same title appeared to fit into that category nicely.First, it seems appropriate to note that I have not read the original version of The Girl Who Owned a City, so I can't say how closely it follows the original text. The graphic adaption, however, doesn't waste time and immediately plunges the reader into the situation at hand. A virus has killed everyone over the age of 12, leaving Lisa, her little brother Todd, and the rest of kids in her neighborhood (and presumably the rest of the world) to fend for themselves. Luckily, it appears the virus has run it's course and the children now nearing the age of 12 are safe. This novel has an interesting vibe and was reminiscent of Michael Grant's Gone series. I was interested to see how certain issues would be resolved, but many of them ended up being glossed over or ignored completely. At one point, a boy ends up with a badly burned face, but, all things considered, he recovers quite easily. Seeing as none of the characters are over the age of 12, I was a bit distracted by this. At the same time, I could see reading this novel at a younger age and not seeing this as a huge issue. I think I would probably be more interested in the big events (and shocked of the burn) to pay much attention to details like that, but I can't necessarily say this would be true of all younger readers.Even though the premise of The Girl Who Owned a City is pretty far-fetched, it definitely sends a message of empowerment to younger readers. Each of the main characters has a specific focus (agriculture, military, medicine, etc) and important function as the children try to build themselves a community. I didn't necessarily everything in this novel to be all that realistic, but the voices of the characters rung true. Lisa is a savvy and strong heroine, but she's often childish. She's being forced to grow up and take care of her brother (and many of the kids in community), but she routinely falls back into selfish behavior, claiming things, like the city, as "her's." The kids are being faced with a difficult reality, but they're still kids... they play, they joke, they fight. This aspect of the novel felt very realistic to me.The characters looked a tad bit old, but other than that, I loved the illustrations. I'm unsure how the characters were described in the original novel, but I loved the diversity of the kids involved. A wide range personalities, ages, and cultures are represented. The placement of the panels and the color choices accurately reflected the novel's tone as it progressed, giving the reader an overall impression of the events, even before reading the text. The facial expressions - particularly the eyes - of the characters were all fantastically depicted and conveyed a wealth of emotion.Overall, I really enjoyed this novel. Sure, the plot was slightly lacking in detail at times, but I'm fairly certain this was the fault of the original text, rather than a result of adaption into graphic narrative. In my opinion, the story conveyed through the images themselves more than makes up for the sometimes weak plot.

[rosa.mill · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Lisa is taking care of her brother Tod in a world where everyone over the age of 12 was killed by a virus. Lisa is smart and tough and works hard to make sure that her and Todd have enough. Unfortunately she keeps having run ins with Logan and the Chidester gang. Lisa brings all the kids in the neighborhood together and after a minor set back brings decides they need to create a fortified city.

Lisa is a very interesting character. She feels ownership of the group she creates and wrestles with whether that behavior is correct on her part. She also has to deal with her setbacks.

This book is very violent and there are parts of it that are tough. Kids stealing from other kids, kids hurting others to defend themselves and kids using guns on each other. The visual of this is tough but I think it's realistic and that teens will appreciate the honesty of it. There are no dead kid bodies but there is the idea of them and I appreciate that the illustrator didn't go for the gore factor but still dealt with it. A great graphic novel with a strong, young female protagonist.

[krau0098 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I got an eGalley of this graphic novel though NetGalley(dot)com. I have never read the original work by O.T. Nelson so I can't compare to that. This was a very entertaining read though; the art was well done and I really enjoyed it. Something horrible happened and everyone over the age of twelve died and turned into dust. Now the kids are left to survive on their own. Lisa decides to claim a building as her own and build a city for kids to come and shelter at. She organizes the city and gets it running to provide food, protection, and shelter for all of the kids that dwell there. When a opposing faction from the city comes and tries to take over Lisa's city, Lisa and her kids find themselves in a lot of trouble.The art throughout this story is very well done. The art is easy to follow, done in beautiful full color and matches the tone of the story well. I thought the story itself was a bit un-realistic and unbelievable. Especially the way Lisa resolves the competition between her city and the opposing army; I thought this was anti-climatic and unrealistic. The idea of a world where only kids survive is an interesting one though and being that it is kids trying to deal with all of this some of the immature decisions the characters make ends up making more sense than you would think. Lisa is a complicated character; she does some good and some bad. She is trying hard to help the kids survive but the fact that she wants her city to be a sort of dictatorship really makes you stop and think. The side characters are all fairly interesting as well; I was surprised at the depth of the story and at how many different societal and survival issues it tackles.Overall this was a very entertaining reading. The illustration and art throughout the story is detailed, colorlful, and beautiful...I really enjoyed it. The story itself has more depth than you would expect and tackles some interesting societal and survival issues. I had some trouble swallowing parts of the plot though; certain parts were just too unbelievable and too unrealistic. The part of the book where Lisa and the enemy army finally resolve their conflict delivered an interesting message but felt completely contrived to me. This book is appropriate for young adult and older. I recommend it for readers who enjoy post-apocalyptic fiction with a touch of a dystopian feel to it.

[michellel_15_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Characters:Lisa was a good main character. Sometimes her decisions were really stupid, but I excused them because she's around 10 years old. She's very mature and responsible for her age. I can't remember much about the rest of the characters, but it doesn't really matter since this is Lisa's story anyways.Plot:The story moves quickly and efficiently which I appreciated. The story itself wasn't that interesting, but I liked seeing how Lisa would solve the problems thrown her way. Setting:The book is set in a post-apocalyptic world where everyone over the age of 12 died from a plague. There are a lot of settings like this in stories these days where nothing is really explained except that almost everyone died. It was a bit unrealistic that a bunch of kids could survive that long on their own.Overall:The story was nothing special. I think the novel of this book would be more interesting to read because it was hard to get to know the characters like this. I would have liked to read more details and explanations about this. I think this book is like The Road for kids with more action and a much faster pace.

[pussreboots · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not sure how it compares to the original novel.

[sullywriter_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Adults die from a virus and kids are left to fend for themselves. Good story and art.

[girlsonfire · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I remember reading the book this graphic novel was based on back in 1977 when the paperback came out. I was fascinated with the story- it made me wonder what it would be like to survive with no adults. I think this graphic novel is well done, although it doesn't have room for as many details as the original book. The art work is really good! Fans of post-apocalyptic literature should like this book.It's like a younger version of the Gone series by Michael Grant. I wish there was a sequel!

[lulu0917-526025 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of the best standalone books I have ever read! Definitely a must-read for all ages!

[sdpogue · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The original The Girl Who Owned a City was written in 1975. This year it has been adapted into graphic novel form. This is an amazing and powerful story of survival.Lisa and her brother Todd live in a suburb of Chicago. All the adults have died due to a bizarre virus. Children are now forced to fend for themselves. They are weak and hungry. Lisa is different. She spends her time coming up with plans to find food and supplies. It doesn’t take long before the rest of the children start to notice.There are gangs in her area and one robs her brother when Lisa is out scavenging. She decides it’s time to bring together her neighbors so they can protect each other. Eventually, the group moves to the high school and together they build a “city”. This is Lisa’s city and she has to defend it. Things get bad and she has to step up as the leader she was meant to be.O.T. Nelson’s story is a testament to the power children can have. It’s a tale of survival against the most awful odds. I recommend this for children of any age (except those who are sensitive to blood and violence). The violence is minimal but one character does get shot.