Filipino myths, legends immortalized in new Disney graphic novel

“Amulet meets a Filipino Percy Jackson.”

Such was how no. 1 New York Times best-selling author Melissa de la Cruz described Ilustra: Daybreaker Book 1, a new graphic novel by Filipino author and Information Technology (IT) professional Tori Tadiar.

The 256-page, middle-grade graphic novel, published by Disney Books and Hyperion on 16 September this year, was penned by an award-winning Filipina artist and was inspired by the folklore of the Philippines. 

Intended for readers eight to 12 years old, the book has been recommended for readers of Amulet and Percy Jackson.

Now available at bookstores like Fully Booked, Ilustra: Daybreaker Book 1 tells the story of Mika Mirasol, whose boarding school classmates tease her for clinging to the stories of legendary beings her lola (grandmother) raised her with. Despite the teasing, she cannot help but love them — those myths are all she has left of her guardian.

That is, until a year after lola’s death, when a moth speaks to Mika in the old woman’s voice. Mika experiences a burst of inexplicable power, and in her panic, she accidentally casts a spell and binds herself to two eavesdropping classmates. 

Literally stuck together, Mika, Halle and Teo grudgingly set out to find a counter-curse in ancient Filipino beliefs. But the more they learn, the more it seems that lola’s tales were all true — and that Mika is destined to play a role in them.

Mika always thought the gods and goddesses of the Philippines were no more than legend — until she wakes one and discovers a destiny she never imagined.

The mythology of the Philippine islands comes to life in this graphic novel described as “funny, warm and enchanting” by Penguin Random House. More than folklore, the novel aims to teach young readers the value of making friends, learning to let go and finding one’s place in the world.