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A producer of animated short films, Morr Meroz has created a new series called Snowlands with art by Collin Fogel. Book One: A Blood Moon is not only a story about survival but about finding your pack. Set in the Himalayas, this graphic novel for middle grade readers features three animal characters: Usha, an independent and ferocious leopard; Feba, a rare white wolf cub; and Batu, an awkward and somewhat clumsy wildcat. Wandering the Snowlands, the three cross paths and form an unlikely partnership as they search for answers on their individual quests. Along with Feba, readers learn that every job matters, regardless of itsRead More →

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Caldecott Medalist National Book Award winner, Dan Santat adds Thick as Thieves to his Sidekicks series. In this installment, Harry James Blake, aka Captain Amazing whose kryptonite is a peanut allergy, is trying to retire from the Society of Superheroes (SOS). In order to assist Harry in the transition, his sister Kelly decides to take him on a five-day vacation to the Crochet-Con: the Biggest Ball of Yarn. While the siblings are gone, Harry’s sidekicks Fluffy, Shifty (or is his name Gus?), Roscoe, and Manny will hold down the fort. After a data breach at SOS headquarters, Whipley arrives by Next Day Delivery. The sidekicksRead More →

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Written by Kate Marchant and illustrated by CJ Joaquin, Float is a humorous graphic novel about teen drama. Float’s protagonist is Waverly Lyons, who lives in Fairbanks, Alaska, but is visiting her Aunt Rachel in Florida. According to Waverly, Aunt Rachel is a “weird, colorful, not super put together . . . but charming” artist (15). Waverly, who considers herself “bad at most things,” describes herself as “the anxious offspring of two brilliant scientists who could never agree on anything” (13). Eventually, her parents divorce, and for the past ten years, Waverly has felt like deadweight being tossed between the two. Florida might just provideRead More →

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With her graphic novel Free Piano (Not Haunted), Whitney Gardner uses her protagonist Margot to remind middle grade readers that self-worth cannot be measured by the number of followers a person achieves on social media platforms.  Furthermore, having followers doesn’t let you know if you’re good at something or not. Feeling abandoned since her mother works so much and her father is focused on his music career, Margot thinks if she’s famous, she’ll never have to be alone. When she finds a Prophet-5 synthesizer on the sidewalk, Margot decides to ask her dad to teach her how to play. However, he has determined that aRead More →

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Kane Lynch’s debut graphic novel, Reel Life examines the complex emotions held by young people, especially when their parents are experiencing relationship difficulty. In April, three tweens: Kyle, Galen, and Luna are engaged with their movie production plan when Kyle has an emotional outburst, causing him to walk away from the project and his friend group. By May, Galen’s dad is moving out. As Galen navigates visits between his dad’s new place and his mom’s home base, he begins to understand what Kyle has been going through. This is a relevant book for young people who might need the guidance when parents are divorcing. AnRead More →

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When Adele enters “womanhood,” she discovers that in addition to her monthly cycle, she has the family gift, or burden, depending on one’s perspective. She sees ghosts! Others in the family also share the ability to be a medium. Gram, who despises the gift, has painted her house an electric blue to ward off the ghosts and to avoid their invasive requests to tap into her power. She insists that ghosts are not welcome in her home and advises Adele to adopt her viewpoint. About the family gift, Gram tells Adele, “We have the power to stand in the middle, you see. Halfway between theRead More →

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Jules Bakes and Niki Smith collaborate on a graphic novel for middle grade readers, Sea Legs. Set in Florida and in various other water accessible communities, it tells the story of two twelve-year-old girls with different family dynamics who both live on boats. As readers follow the events in the lives of the pair, we discover not only the perils and the benefits of breaking out of one’s comfort zones but also that there are different ways to be friends. Our friends can make us feel better about ourselves as well as stretch us to be braver and smarter, inspiring us to try harder. PerhapsRead More →

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With their graphic novel Pearl, Sherri L. Smith and Christine Norrie bring readers a historical fiction account of the attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent response from the United States. In this version, Amy Hakata lives in Hawaii in 1941. However, when a family member in Japan grows ill and her parents are unable to travel, Amy flies to a country she has never visited. Once in Hiroshima, she sits with her sick Sōsobo. Here, only the food tastes familiar, but as Amy gets to know her grandmother, she learns of Grandma’s legacy as a pearl diver. However, everything changes in an instant, andRead More →

Cover image for the book Please Be My Star

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Please Be My Star by Victoria Grace Elliot captures the uncertainty of first love and the awkwardness of being a teenager in a beautifully illustrated graphic novel.  Erika’s status as a new student at school is awkward enough without her awareness that she is a ‘creep.’ Erika is aware that her tendency to draw cute boys she doesn’t know and to fantasize about boys that she does makes her more than a little weird. Something that is constantly being told to her by her imaginary inner self who looks like a vampiric alter ego. This alter ego is Erika’s most opinionated critic, verbalizing all ofRead More →