A teenager rewrites her story in this enchanting yarn.
In Willis and Andelfinger’s graphic novel, a high schooler finds herself thrown inside her own fiction.
Brie Page just wants to get through high school being as invisible as possible so she can go home and write her stories, or listen to her podcast about writing, or think about writing. When her mother forces her out of the house to do “normal teen stuff,” Brie finds herself in front of a bookstore she’s never seen before. The very strange store owner’s name is Ambrose. When Brie confesses her teenage woes, Ambrose offers to let her buy a special pen that will supposedly help Brie in crafting her tales and escaping the real world. After fighting with her former friend Viv on the way home, Brie sits down with her new pen and starts to write three different stories, with hours passing in the blink of an eye. The next morning, Brie opens her locker at school to find a portal inside. Entering it takes her to another world with talking horses and a sorceress—and Brie herself is the queen. Knowing this is one of her yarns, Brie follows the plot, but it doesn’t quite go as she wrote it (“This was supposed to be the end of the story…and yet I’m still here!”). Hopping from one of her texts to the next, Brie starts to realize something is going on and changes her writing, pulling her family and friends into the madness. In this cleverly constructed graphic novel, Taylor and Marchbank use mostly black-and-white illustrations, switching to bright colors when Brie hops into her stories. With inspirational themes of standing up for yourself against bullies, taking charge of your own narrative, and finally finding a way to talk to your crush, this engaging story has something for everyone.
A teenager rewrites her story in this enchanting yarn.Pub Date: June 18, 2024
ISBN: 9781952303579
Page Count: 216
Publisher: Maverick
Review Posted Online: April 29, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A clever and timely conversation on reclaiming identity and acknowledging one’s full worth.
Superman confronts racism and learns to accept himself with the help of new friends.
In this graphic-novel adaptation of the 1940s storyline entitled “The Clan of the Fiery Cross” from The Adventures of Superman radio show, readers are reintroduced to the hero who regularly saves the day but is unsure of himself and his origins. The story also focuses on Roberta Lee, a young Chinese girl. She and her family have just moved from Chinatown to Metropolis proper, and mixed feelings abound. Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane’s colleague from the Daily Planet, takes a larger role here, befriending his new neighbors, the Lees. An altercation following racial slurs directed at Roberta’s brother after he joins the local baseball team escalates into an act of terrorism by the Klan of the Fiery Kross. What starts off as a run-of-the-mill superhero story then becomes a nuanced and personal exploration of the immigrant experience and blatant and internalized racism. Other main characters are White, but Black police inspector William Henderson fights his own battles against prejudice. Clean lines, less-saturated coloring, and character designs reminiscent of vintage comics help set the tone of this period piece while the varied panel cuts and action scenes give it a more modern sensibility. Cantonese dialogue is indicated through red speech bubbles; alien speech is in green.
A clever and timely conversation on reclaiming identity and acknowledging one’s full worth. (author’s note, bibliography) (Graphic fiction. 13-adult)Pub Date: May 12, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77950-421-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: DC
Review Posted Online: Feb. 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Utterly charming and swoonworthy.
Two beloved characters from artist Eunnie’s Instagram feed get a full-length graphic novel treatment.
Readers meet college student Momo just as she’s about to encounter PG for the first time. It’s not an ideal meet-cute, however. Momo is doing her friend Kayla a favor by dropping off some class notes at Kayla’s friend Lea’s dorm room. When scantily clad PG answers the door, Momo is immediately flustered by how gorgeous she is—but she learns that PG has a reputation for seducing women and avoiding serious commitments, the exact opposite of Momo, who’s never dated anyone. Still, after witnessing a fraught situation at a nightclub, Momo overcomes her shyness to check on PG. They have an open conversation and a romantic dance. Running into each other around town turns into texting, which turns into mutual big feelings. Readers will fall in love with both young women as they fall in love with each other. Their conflicts give them depth and feel believable for their stage of life, their different but equally relatable backstories are fleshed out, and the satisfying resolution inspires happiness. Well-developed friendships play smaller but still important roles. The appealing artwork features clean, pastel-tinted backgrounds and doe-eyed characters with expressive faces. Momo has dark brown skin and wavy brown hair; PG is Vietnamese American.
Utterly charming and swoonworthy. (Graphic romance. 14-adult)Pub Date: Oct. 17, 2023
ISBN: 9780593403228
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023
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