If readers can suspend some disbelief and simply roll with what’s offered, perhaps this will work for them.
A faked allergy spins wildly out of control in this prosaic graphic novel.
Starting at a new school, sophomore Sadie Wildhack is led by first-day jitters to concoct one whopper of a lie: She informs her classmates that she is gravely allergic to peanuts. Her feigned condition serves as the perfect segue into new conversations, and it eventually helps Sadie find friends and even a handsome boyfriend named Zoo. As most lies do, Sadie’s catches up with her, and predictably, she is forced to confess to her prolonged pretense. While the theme of the story is universal (lying is bad!), here it is sadly pedestrian in its execution, verging on didactic. The notion of faking a peanut allergy feels juvenile, something better suited to a middle schooler than a high school student. Despite this, Hoppe's artistic style helps add some interest. Sadie's feelings of unease are visually palpable, evinced through her always-red shirt (and many wardrobe changes) set adrift against a backdrop of blacks, whites and grays. With its odd subject, this at times feels like an after school special, trying to show how relevant and edgy it could be, and is reminiscent of the failed Minx line from DC Comics.
If readers can suspend some disbelief and simply roll with what’s offered, perhaps this will work for them. (Graphic fiction. 12 & up)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-86590-9
Page Count: 216
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A fast-paced dip into the possibility of a world without human emotions.
A teenage girl refuses a medical procedure to remove her heart and her emotions.
June lives in a future in which a reclusive Scientist has pioneered a procedure to remove hearts, thus eliminating all “sadness, anxiety, and anger.” The downside is that it numbs pleasurable feelings, too. Most people around June have had the procedure done; for young people, in part because doing so helps them become more focused and successful. Before long, June is the only one among her peers who still has her heart. When her parents decide it’s time for her to have the procedure so she can become more focused in school, June hatches a plan to pretend to go through with it. She also investigates a way to restore her beloved sister’s heart, joining forces with Max, a classmate who’s also researching the Scientist because he has started to feel again despite having had his heart removed. The pair’s journey is somewhat rushed and improbable, as is the resolution they achieve. However, the story’s message feels relevant and relatable to teens, and the artwork effectively sets the scene, with bursts of color popping throughout an otherwise black-and-white landscape, reflecting the monochromatic, heartless reality of June’s world. There are no ethnic or cultural markers in the text; June has paper-white skin and dark hair, and Max has dark skin and curly black hair.
A fast-paced dip into the possibility of a world without human emotions. (Graphic speculative fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: June 13, 2023
ISBN: 9780063116214
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
A thought-provoking exploration of storytelling dynamics in a social media–driven society.
A Black basketball star starts his senior year by pivoting to find his true voice in the classroom.
Ossie Brown was destined for greatness before an injury in a game ended his high school basketball career. Ossie feels like his future was stolen—and on top of that, his girlfriend dumps him. Grandma Alice comforts him with a reminder that basketball doesn’t define him; still, the game helped Ossie cope with his fractured relationship with his widowed mother. A new opportunity opens up when Ms. Hunt, Ossie’s Black English teacher at mostly white Braxton Academy, where he has a full-ride scholarship, tells him about the Mark Twain Creative Writing Program. A vivid dream in which his father speaks to him inspires Ossie’s application essay. He connects with Luis and Naima, the only other participants who aren’t white, but agitation by conservative students against a “woke agenda” leads to Ms. Hunt’s replacement by a teacher who exclusively uses texts by white authors. Ossie’s online attempt to support Naima’s protest has unintended consequences, and he’s forced to reevaluate his solo activism. The central characters’ relationships will engage readers, and Ossie’s dilemma will resonate with anyone whose good intentions have gone sideways. Committed, pragmatic, and reflective Ossie ultimately learns from Grandma Alice’s wise counsel: “This thing of ours—life, you see—is only as beautiful as the bonds we make as we journey through it.”
A thought-provoking exploration of storytelling dynamics in a social media–driven society. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9781536233469
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
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