HELLO, BETTY!

New life is breathed into old characters.

Betty and Val have been best friends since Val moved into the neighborhood years ago. They’ve grown up doing everything together, including creating the epic fantasy world of Sparklespacelandia! But the new real world of middle school threatens to be the end of both Sparklespacelandia and their friendship. Betty had expected that she and Val would take the library science elective together, so she’s puzzled when Val says she needs to follow her passion and take music as her elective, leaving them with no classes together. Now Betty is stuck in drama with the rest of her friends who didn’t get their first choices. Miserable, Betty wants nothing more than to keep the spark of Sparklespacelandia alive even if it’s not what she expected. Betty will need to learn how to listen to her friends and come to understand that it’s OK to let people be creative in their own ways. If she does, maybe Betty and Val’s friendship can survive. Realistic illustrations are reminiscent of the older Archie comics but with softer lines and preteen shapes giving them a younger appearance. Backgrounds are sparsely drawn, allowing young readers to focus on the characters’ faces and interactions. This straightforward, fun story lightly teaches readers to navigate changing friendships and the importance of trying new things even if it means doing it alone. Betty presents white, Val is cued as black, and the supporting cast of characters is diverse.

A lighthearted coming-of-age story.