ELLE(S)

A teen’s rapid switches in personality lead to greater mystery in this graphic novel translated from French.

New at school, Elle appears cool, stylish, and put together. Standing up to mean girls Justine and Safia, she quickly makes friends with spacey Linotte, steadfast Maëlys, girl-crazy Otis, and wisecracking Farid. But Elle’s stress levels build when her class presentation deadline is moved up two weeks and Otis kisses her, changing their friend dynamic. After a vicious volleyball game, Elle suddenly changes personality, with each facet possessing its own hair color: the mysterious aquamarine narrator, outgoing blond, highly emotional brown, silent green, and goofy purple. While aesthetically pleasing and matching the color scheme, the varied hair colors lessen the impact of Elle’s personality reveal by making inner changes immediately obvious. With help from Maëlys, Elle investigates her childhood and history of strange mood swings. The artistic style fits the tone perfectly, with large expressive faces and soft outlines that match the detailed backgrounds. The atmospheric changes in color palette are subtle but highly effective in depicting Elle’s stress levels, adding to the tension. While Elle’s friends are mostly one-dimensional, their ongoing banter, support, and a fun Polaroid montage successfully sell their strong connection. The mysterious subplot and dramatic cliffhanger are gripping, setting up for the next entry. Elle, Linotte, and Otis present White; queer Farid is cued as Middle Eastern, and Maëlys is Asian.

Strong visuals bolster an intriguing mystery.