I can't praise THE CHILD THIEF highly enough. I read it several Christmases ago at the behest of a graphic-novel loving friend and, in spite of hating comic books and disliking the work necessary to decode them, I took a chance on this book.
1) Not a graphic novel.
2) GORGEOUS.
3) Read the tweaked review at my blog: http://tinyurl.com/n5x9ju6