Taproot: A Story about a Gardener and a Ghost is a different kind of story with Keezy Young mixing and matching magic and realism into a story of twists, turns, laughter, sadness and gardening. The results are a love story to die for.
Blue is a ghost; Hamal is human and the chemistry between the two is burning them up! But of course, like said, one is dead and that can put a crimp into things. As we follow these two star crossed lovers, we see how Hamal can speak to not just Blue, but to other “in-betweeners” as well, and how those friendships are as dear as the ones with those who are of flesh and blood. And when a mysterious element affects Hamal and his friends, Blue realizes that sometimes to save those we care about the most, we need to give up (being) the ghost and leave them.
Sly humor, quirky characters, and sometimes a slightly dark story arc (afer all there is a spooky looking forest with an equally spooky looking reaper lounging about in it) unfold on the pages of a graphic novel that is both sweet and sour; happy and sad; firm and loose. Not overly colorful, the illustrations are solid, without being too pushy, but do take the lead with who oversees the story flow. However, they are also whimsical, and you cannot necessarily take them too seriously, while some serious themes come about. The ending has some delightfully artistic images that are bitter sweet.
If I have one issue, I wanted a little more about the backgrounds of the characters (there are a few hints, the little girl is looking for her mother; Blue says how he got his nickname; another ghost is outed as a 15-year-old), but overall, a pleasant read that should not be rushed and probably given a repeat read.