This Lunch Quest exclusive takes kid skaters on a magical adventure

Koyama Press always makes sure to include some kid-friendly releases in its publishing slate, and these books tend to be some of the more imaginative, unusual kid comics that offer plenty for adults to enjoy. Chris Kuzma’s Lunch Quest is one of those titles, a gleefully silly, often surreal series of vignettes about two skateboarders on a fantastic journey, a team of young dancers who can merge their bodies like Voltron, and a rabbit frantically searching for his missing lettuce. Having shorter stories makes Lunch Quest an especially good book for early readers with limited attention spans, and the bright colors and simple geometric shapes of Kuzma’s artwork invites readers to replicate his loose, lively style on their own. That’s not to say his work isn’t sophisticated: Throughout the book he delivers complex layouts that challenge the reader and showcase the depth of his artistic knowledge.

This exclusive preview of Lunch Quest, on sale June 12, follows the aforementioned kid skaters as they make their way to the forest, moving through various obstacles on paths that twist and turn across the page. This excerpt shows how Kuzma shifts between different perspectives to drastically change the storytelling, starting with traditional comic-strip visuals before jumping to the maze-like layouts that span multiple pages. There’s so much vitality in Kuzma’s visuals, and a big reason why Lunch Quest is so charming is because it captures the effervescent playfulness of youth. His work radiates pure fun, and having three stories gives him the opportunity to move in three different directions, each one offering its own delightful surprises.