Belle of the Ball by Mari Costa: A Graphic Novel Review

Belle Hawkins actually likes hiding in the background–or behind the mascot costume she wears for her school’s teams. But Hawkins knows it’s going to take more than a goofy mascot dance to ask out her crush head cheerleader Regina Moreno.

Unfortunately, it goes even worse than Hawkins could have imagined. Not only is her overture rejected by Regina, she’s also caught in the act by Regina’s jock girlfriend Chloe Kitagawa who is understandably not pleased. Instead of the beat down Hawkins fears, she finds herself recruited by Regina (which, let’s be real, doesn’t take a lot of persuasion) to tutor Chloe in English so that her academic record can get closer to matching her impressive athletic achievements.

At first it seems like a harmless scenario where everyone is getting something they want–especially Regina. But the longer Hawkins and Chloe spend together, the more both girls start to remember their shared history before Hawkins started hiding behind her mascot mask. Can the school’s star athlete and the girl who used to wear princess dresses to school every day still have anything in common? Can either of them let go of the idea of dream girl Regina for long enough to figure it out? in Belle of the Ball (2023) by Mari Costa.

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Belle of the Ball is a standalone graphic novel filled with campy humor, high school hijinks, and plenty of classic romantic comedy tropes. Costa avoids familiar ruts by providing backstories for all three points of the love triangle. Hawkins works to come out of her self-imposed shell while Chloe tries to figure out who she is when she isn’t half of the school’s power couple or dominating on the sports field. Regina, meanwhile, feels pressure to be the most popular and the smartest to live up to the expectations of her immigrant parents.

Smooth lines and a caricature-like style lends a unique feel to every page while the restricted color palette’s focus on shades of pink underscores the romantic tensions of the story. Perfect pacing and comedic beats elevate this rom-com focused on three very different girls trying to figure out who they want to be (and who they want to be with!).

Possible Pairings: Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler, Pillow Talk by Stephanie Cooke and Mel Valentine Vargas, Pardalita by Joana Estrela, If You’ll Have Me by Eunnie, Cheer Up: Love and Pompoms by Crystal Frasier, Oscar O. Jupiter and Val Wise, Hockey Girl Loves Drama Boy by Faith Erin Hicks, Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar, The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Deya Muniz, Heartstopper by Alice Oseman, The Wrong Kind of Weird by James Ramos, Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang and LeUyn Pham

Crumbs by Danie Stirling: A Graphic Novel Review

There are few things Ray loves more than going to Marigold’s Bakery and sitting down with a cup of tea and one of the bakery’s signature romance-filled treats. Ray has stopped trying to pursue romance in her own life knowing that her unique abilities as a seer can make that level of intimacy uncomfortable.

Laurie works as a barista at Marigold’s while waiting for his music career to take off. He knows he has what it takes, but he isn’t sure how much longer he can wait for something to finally happen.

When Ray and Laurie meet (at Marigold’s, of course) their connection is immediate. Laurie is quick to support Ray’s dreams working on the mysterious council that governs their world while Ray helps him finally earn his broom flying license.

As Ray and Laurie come closer to achieving their lifelong dreams, the couple will have to decide if their relationship is strong enough to survive when their paths diverge in Crumbs (2022) by Danie Stirling.

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Crumbs is a full color graphic novel based on their Webtoon comic by the same name. Soft linework and pastel colors lend a nostalgic quality to Stirling’s illustrations filled with details that hint at the magic infusing Ray and Laurie’s world. Characters are drawn with a variety of skintones and body types.

Fantasy elements inform much of the story including Ray and Laurie’s magical “phone assistants” but the plot remains grounded in contemporary concerns as the protagonists try to pursue their dreams while embarking on a new relationship. Instead of adding external tensions, the plot moves forward with Ray and Laurie learning how to be vulnerable with each other and how to support one another–relatable problems for anyone who has ever made a new friend or found a new romantic partner.

Meditative pacing takes time to develop back stories while also exploring the protagonist’s present concerns–Ray with her new council position and Laurie with his music career. The colorscape and style of the artwork serves to underscore the overwhelmingly gentle tone of this story that offers romance alongside an unspoken promise that things will work out for these characters so long as you read to the last page.

Possible Pairings: Moonstruck by Grace Ellis, Shae Beagle, Kate Leth, Unfamiliar by Haley Newsome, If You’ll Have Me by Eunnie, Jonesy by Sam Humphries and Caitlin Rose Boyle, The Girl From the Sea by Molly Ostertag, Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Lisa Sterling, Mooncakes by Suzanne Walker and Wendy Xu, Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang and LeUyen Pham, Instructions for Dancing by Nicola Yoon

Mall Goth by Kate Leth, Diana Sousa (colorist), and Robin Crank (lettering): A Graphic Novel Review

Like most fifteen-year-olds, Liv isn’t thrilled to be moving to a new town with her mother in the middle of high school. Dealing with one school as a bisexual goth was bad enough. Now she has to start over at a new school? Gross.

Making friends is hard but at least her classes are managable–especially thanks to attention from her English teacher. Except the more Liv talks to him the more it starts to feel like it’s too much attention. And not the right kind for a teacher to be giving to one of his students.

Thank goodness for the mall. With its open spaces, greasy food court, and bright stores, Liv doesn’t have to think about anything except how much of her money she wants to spend on the hottest new PC game.

Over the course of a turbulent year Liv will face her parents’ deteriorating marriage, the indignities of working retail for minimum wage, a romantic break up, a friendship make up, and understanding what it means to put herself first in Mall Goth (2023) by Kate Leth, Diana Sousa (colorist), and Robin Crank (lettering).

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Set in 2003, Leth brings the fading glory of mall culture to life in this full-color graphic novel. Liv and most characters are cued as white. Flat, bold colors bring to mind classic cartoon styling and complement the early 2000s time period where Liv struggle with being proudly bisexual in a world that doesn’t quite understand what that means just yet. One arc in the story includes Liv wearing a lesbian pride pin (featured on the endpapers of the hardcover) at the start of the novel until her mother gifts her a bi-specific pin at the end of the story.

Leth balances heavier topics including inappropriate overtures from a teacher and complicated relationships–both romantic and platonic–with moments of humor and bright joy. Liv’s ignomious time as a store mascot works especially well to add levity to the story.

Mall Goth is an introspective story about finding community and learning about yourself along the way.

Possible Pairings: Forest Hills Bootleg Society by Dave Baker and Nicole Goux, Verona Comics by Jennifer Dugan, Jay’s Gay Agenda by Jason June, Ophelia After All by Raquel Marie, Ramona Blue by Julie Murphy, The Greatest Thing by Sarah Winifred Searle, Odd One Out by Nic Stone, Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me by Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O’Connell, Phoebe’s Diary by Phoebe Wahl

Squire by Nadia Shammas and Sara Alfageeh: A Graphic Novel Review

“History is the story you tell about yourself.”

Becoming a knight is Aiza’s only path to full citizenship as an Ornu living in the Bayt-Sajji Empire. With the country in the depths of a famine and war on the horizon, Aiza knows this could be her only opportunity to enlist in the Squire training program. She also knows that the best way to make it through training is to hide her Ornu background despite her pride in her family and their traditions.

With rigorous training and rivalries, Squire training isn’t what Aiza expects. But it also offers her the stability she’s craved and a chance to build new friendships.

As her training continues, Aiza begins to realize that serving in the Bayt-Sajji military might not be the same as serving the people of Bayt-Sajii when it comes to the military’s efforts to work for the so-called greater good. With danger on all sides, Aiza will have to decide if she’s willing to stay true to herself and everything she believes as an Ornu while risking her place in the empire in Squire (2022) by Nadia Shammas and Sara Alfageeh.

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Squire is a sweeping story of what it means to be part of the machinery of an empire–and what it means to refuse to let that same empire use you up. In an author’s note at the end of the book Shammas describes the story as about “someone stuck between conflicting existences realizing that empire never holds place for the conquered” and that “learning to interrogate history contextualizes the present.” As the authors suggest despite the quasi-medieval setting, Aiza’s journey is still all too timely and relevant.

While the story remains focused on Aiza, the story also expands upon her new friends and fellow squires Husni and Sahar offering a variety of lived experiences that brought them all to squire training and highlighting the stakes for all of them. Aiza’s relationships with her reluctant trainer, the battle-scarred groom Doruk further explores the dangers of buying fully into the myth of military might and empire. The story also plays out with rich world building and intricately detailed panels that bring Bayt-Sajji richly to life in a soft color palette.

While it is tackling colonialism specifically, Squire is a graphic novel to add to your antiracist reading list too as all of the characters are forced to interrogate privilege and complicity while unlearning damaging behaviors and biases. Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: The Eternity Gate by Katherine Briggs, The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna, Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman, Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce, Travelers Along the Way by Amina Mae Safi

Shirley and Jamila’s Big Fall by Gillian Goerz: A Graphic Novel Review

After a whirlwind summer and the formation of a life-changing friendship, Jamila Waheed and Shirley Bones are heading back to school while balancing basketball practice and new friends (for Jamila, anyway). It doesn’t take long before Shirley enlists Jamila’s help with another case.

Shirley’s nemesis Chuck is up to his old tricks. The obnoxious eighth grader is blackmailing kids left and right. And Shirley is determined to stop him once and for all.

Retrieving Chuck’s hidden blackmail materials should be easy. Except another intruder interrupts Shirley and Jamila while they’re breaking in. Is the intruder another kid out to cause trouble? Or are they exactly who Shirley and Jamila need to stop Chuck in his tracks? Searching for answers is never easy but working together Jamila and Shirley will find the truth in Shirley and Jamila’s Big Fall (2021) by Gillian Goerz.

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Shirley and Jamila’s Big Fall is the second book in Goerz’s graphic novel series that remixes the stories of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson for a middle grade audience. The series starts with Shirley and Jamila Save Their Summer (read my review) but readers excited to dive in can start with this installment if they choose. This series is set in Canada and features an inclusive supporting cast as seen in Goerz’s full color artwork. Shirley is white, Jamila is brown skinned and her family is Muslim.

Shirley and Jamila’s Big Fall takes everything Goerz developed in the first book and makes it even better. The nods to the source material are more overt (Chuck is a stand in for Charles Augustus Milverton originally seen in “The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton”) and the themes of friendship and feminism are even stronger. The plot explores the ways in which girls–especially teenaged ones–are often dismissed or underestimated and, of course, the best ways to exploit that in the pursuit of the truth and justice.

While Shirley is singularly focused on stopping Chuck, Jamila is trying to figure out how to balance her friendship with Shirley alongside a new friend on her basketball team. She’s pretty sure that the other girls won’t get along and doesn’t know how to manage that until she talks it out and her friends help her realize that being friends with Jamila isn’t enough–every mutual friend doesn’t have to get along perfectly with every other friend. With a variety of panel sizes and focus areas, Goerz’s artwork in this story can serve as a masterclass on graphic storytelling where dialog, facial expression, and background details work in tandem to create a nearly perfect reading experience.

Shirley and Jamila’s Big Fall is filled with action, friendship, and the sharp wit and clever observations fans of Sherlock Holmes would expect. A highly recommended series and installment.

Possible Pairings: Lois Lane and the Friendship Challenge by Grace Ellis and Brittney L. Williams, Real Friends by Shannon Hale, LeUyen Pham, Jane Poole, The Great Greene Heist by Varian Johnson, Invisible Emmie by Terri Libenson, Chester Keene Cracks the Code by Kekla Magoon, Greenglass House by Kate Milford, Click by Kayla Miller, Framed! by James Ponti, The Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer

You can also read my exclusive interview with Gillian Goerz about this series.

Shirley and Jamila Save Their Summer by Gillian Goerz: A Graphic Novel Review

Jamila Waheed is not excited about summer. What good is time out of school when you just moved and don’t have any friends? Especially when Jamila isn’t even allowed to go play basketball by herself.

Shirley Bones might be the answer. Their moms hit it off immediately even if Jamila is slower to warm up to Shirley. But both girls need a friend–even if it’s a pretend one–if they want to walk to the park in their neighborhood which they very much do.

Jamila is happy so long as she can play basketball. But then this kid comes to Shirley asking for help finding his stolen pet gecko. It turns out Shirley is the neighborhood’s most famous kid detective–one who’s ready to help with cases that grownups are all too quick to dismiss. Shirley is also a detective who’s been looking for a partner.

With Shirley’s detective know-how and Jamila’s people skills, they might be the best crime-solving duo to land in Canada. Even more importantly, it might be the start of a beautiful friendship in Shirley and Jamila Save Their Summer (2020) by Gillian Goerz.

Find it on Bookshop.

Shirley and Jamila Save Their Summer is the first book in Goerz’s graphic novel series that remixes the stories of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson for a middle grade audience. Goerz writes and illustrates the series which is set in Canada and features an inclusive supporting cast as seen in the full color graphic novel. Shirley is white, Jamila is brown skinned and her family is Muslim.

Written from Jamila’s point of view, this story gives readers space to follow along with Shirley’s detective prowess while also leaving moments for jaw-dropping surprise as twists are revealed and crimes solved. Dynamic artwork filled with details do justice to the complex world and the clues Shirley and Jamila find along the way.

This gender-flipped, aged down version of Sherlock and Watson is sure to appeal to mystery fans as well as readers looking for a new graphic novel series featuring an ensemble cast with plenty of humor and action.

Possible Pairings: Lois Lane and the Friendship Challenge by Grace Ellis and Brittney L. Williams, Real Friends by Shannon Hale, LeUyen Pham, Jane Poole, The Great Greene Heist by Varian Johnson, Invisible Emmie by Terri Libenson, Chester Keene Cracks the Code by Kekla Magoon, Greenglass House by Kate Milford, Click by Kayla Miller, Framed! by James Ponti, The Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer

You can also read my exclusive interview with Gillian Goerz about this series.

Huda F Cares? by Huda Fahmy: A Graphic Novel Review

Egyptian American Huda Fahmy finally has school figured out after the family’s recent move to Dearborn, Michigan. But her sisters are still largely a mystery despite her mother’s constant efforts to initiate forced family bonding.

Which is why a family road trip isn’t a big surprise. The shock is that Huda and her Muslim family are heading to Disney World. Even though magic is haram, Huda and her sisters are hype to visit the most magical place on earth–especially when their parents announce the trip is the perfect time for the sisters to … you guessed it … bond!

Driving from Michigan to Florida is a lot and, for Huda, so is the self-consciousness when she notices other tourists gawking at them during prayers. Plus the obligatory jokes about their hijabs and Huda’s abaya. Huda wants to make the most of the trip, try to make some new friends, and maybe even (possibly) bond with her sisters. But is that all too much to take on during one family trip?

Huda may not have gotten to choose her family but when things go sideways on their final day in the park, Huda’s sisters are ready to help turn things around in Huda F Cares? (2023) by Huda Fahmy.

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Fahmy is back with another fictionalized memoir partially inspired by her own family. Although this story picks up shortly after Huda F Are You? (read my review), the story here works on its own and can be read alone. Huda F Cares? is also on the longlist for the 2023 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature (see the full list).

Huda F Cares? focuses more on Huda and her family during the long road trip and the ups and downs of their family vacation. Fahmy blends her own role as the writer with Huda the character to offer thoughtful commentary on both her family’s internal dynamics and what it means for all of them to move through the world as a visibly Muslim family–especially in a visibly not-Muslim tourist destination like Disney World.

Throughout this graphic novel Huda learns how to balance her own pride in her religion and her family with her hopes to fit in which means navigating micro-aggressions while waiting for rides and figuring out what to do when a potential friend doesn’t stand up for her as much as Huda would like. Huda F Cares? also gives readers a lot more background on Huda’s sisters, especially eldest Dena, who readers learn has had her own struggles with confronting racist comments and unacceptable behavior like someone trying to remove her hijab.

Astute humor, large full-color panels, and Fahmy’s signature art style once again make Huda F Cares? a funny, immersive book that reminds readers that staying true to yourself and having fun don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: Perfectly Parvin by Olivia Abtahi, Awkward by Svetlana Chmakova, Does My Body Offend You? by Mayra Cuevas and Marie Marquardt, All-American Muslim Girl by Nadine Jolie Courtney, Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin, Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations by Mira Jacob, Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina

*An advance copy of this title was provided by the publisher for review consideration*

In Limbo by Deb JJ Lee: A Graphic Novel Review

Jung-Jin Lee started going by Deborah after her family emigrated from South Korea to the United States. It’s just easier than watching every teacher struggle to pronounce her Korean name–especially now that her English has improved and she can work harder to blend in.

Except high school makes that harder too when Deb gives up violin to focus on her art. Losing the structure and predictability of her orchestra schedule and her orchestra friends makes it clear how many other things are off kilter for Deb. Her mom is becoming more volatile as she swings between intensely supportive of Deb’s art and hyper-critical of her eating habits.

Caught in between, waiting for something–anything–to change it’s only when Deb is able to visit South Korea that she begins to understand that there might be a way through in In Limbo (2023) by Deb JJ Lee.

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In Limbo is Lee’s debut graphic memoir. Informed by their own experiences, this story doesn’t shy away from difficult topics including the abuse and fatphobia Deb faces from her mother, the stigma around mental health, and multiple suicide attempts. Be aware while reading.

Written and illustrated by Lee, In Limbo is a beautiful book with illustrations that are lush and carefully rendered with a soft focus and a light palette reminiscent of the cover. Some text is small and lower contrast which may be difficult for some readers.

In Limbo is an introspective and thoughtful story about what it means to grow up while feeling apart; a testament to the power of finding both your people and medium.

Possible Pairings: The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui, The Color of the Sky is the Shape of My Heart by Chesil, Yolk by Mary HK Choi, Flamer by Mike Curato, Messy Roots by Laura Gao, Almost American Girl by Robin Ha, Hey, Kiddo by Jarrett J. Krosoczka, Americanized by Sara Saedi, Hungry Ghost by Victoria Ying

Other Ever Afters: New Queer Fairy Tales by Melanie Gillman: A Graphic Novel Review

“Why insist on a transaction when you’re offered a gift?”

In the king’s forest, a ranger becomes to question the king’s proclamation to protect scarce magical flowers after a thief revels that two new flowers will grow for everyone one that is picked.

In another kingdom a princess woos a goose girl with more and more wealth and promises. But how can the goose girl be happy when others in the kingdom still suffer?

A child’s attempt to burn away their own name  goes awry when their grandfather dies giving the old name an opportunity to haunt them.

We all know that girls must make journeys. We know they have to leave their families and travel through the dark, dangerous woods. They must stay on the path, avoiding both beats and temptation to make it out of the forest; to find the clearing with the castles and the princes that will become their happy endings. We are told these stories for a reason.

But what if the reason isn’t always the one you think?

We all know fairy tales end with happily ever after and these stories are no exception. But what if we took a different path to get there in Other Ever Afters: New Queer Fairy Tales (2022) by Melanie Gillman.

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Other Ever Afters is an inventive graphic novel of new fairy tales. Soft line work and pale pastels lend a classic feel to Gillman’s artwork throughout this collection of stories that can be read separately or all at once. Characters within the stories are diverse in body type, skintones, and gender identity.

Readers well-versed in fairy tales will recognize familiar tropes and appreciate the ways Gillman subverts them asking readers to dig deeper for what happily ever after can look like in Other Ever Afters. A very feminist must-read for fans of fairy tales and graphic novels alike.

Possible Pairings: Galaxy by Jadzia Axelrod, Across a Field of Starlight by Blue Delliquanti, Love Me For Who I Am by Kata Konayama, The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang

My Aunt is a Monster by Reimena Yee: A Graphic Novel Review

Safia loves reading about adventures in her audiobooks but she never reads about adventurers who are blind like her.

When she is sent to live with her reclusive and mysterious aunt, Lord Whimsy, Safia soon realizes she might be ready to have some adventures of her own.

Aunt Whimsy used to be a renowned traveler and adventure–things she set aside after her accident. That is until Whimsy’s old rival Professor Doctor Cecilia Choi resurface with news of their greatest discovery yet–a discovery that Whimsy found years before. Whisked along while her aunt tries to best her rival one last time, Safia embarks on the start of her own life as an adventure.

But adventuring is about more than traveling. When a group of chaotic agents threaten Whimsy, Professor Doctor Choi, and the entire world Safia will have to think fast to save the day in My Aunt is a Monster (2022) by Reimena Yee.

Find it on Bookshop.

My Aunt is a Monster is a standalone graphic novel with full color illustrations. Safia is brown skinned with relatives in Egypt and India–there is also diversity and LGBTQ+ representation in the supporting cast.

My Aunt is a Monster is a fast-paced adventured filled with humor and richly detailed world building as Safia learns more about her aunt’s exploits and life as an explorer. Safia’s journey as she realizes that she can be an adventurer just as she is makes for an empowering character arc and much needed representation. Unfortunately, Safia’s blindess is also used against her multiple times first with Aunt Whimsy lying to Safia and telling Safia that she is disfigured rather than cursed to take on the form of a monster while another character distracts Safia and takes advantage of her blindness to steal an artifact that Safia cannot see. Whimsy does eventually apologize and it could be seen as a teachable moment but it’s still a problematic one to be aware of.

Yee’s illustrations are intricately detailed and filled with fun elements from Whimsy’s adventures and the new backdrops of this current story. Quirky humor and take-charge heroine Safia make My Aunt is a Monster a great choice for anyone seeking a new graphic novel adventure.

Possible Pairings: Claire and the Dragons by Wander Antunes, Oddly Normal by Otis Frampton, The Rema Chronicles by Amy Kim Kibuishi, Target Practice by Mike Maihack, The Sand Warrior by Mike Siegel, Space Dumplins by Craig Thompson