Iranian writer Vahid Imani’s graphic novel, Naji and the Mystery of the Dig, is now on display at the Book Loft in Solvang.
Adapted from Imani’s chapter book of the same name, this version offers readers a uniquely interactive storytelling experience. Rather than having the words already filled in, Imani’s novel comes with blank dialogue bubbles, inviting kids to write their own narratives.
A brief summary at the beginning of the book serves to guide young writers, providing them a base they can use to interpret the plot. Along with English, the novel also comes in Spanish, German, and Farsi. There’s even a black-and-white edition that allows young artists to color the story however they desire.
“My students were super excited to work on the graphic novel format and use their own ideas and words,” Jamie Gilson, a third-grade teacher at Nevada’s Bethlehem Lutheran School, said in press materials. “The graphic edition of Naji is great for kids who enjoy comic books and writing their own dialogue and action sequences. Students can listen to sections of Naji [read by the teacher] and then go back through the corresponding illustrations and fill in their own ideas for what each character is saying.”
Interested readers can find the book at najistories.com/creativewriting.html.
This article appears in Jun 5-15, 2025.