VOYAGE DE GOURMET

Estranged friends paired up in a cooking competition get the chance to repair their relationship in Tobin’s YA graphic novel.

Layne Green and Jang-Mi Pipper discovered their love of cooking together as children. Now teenagers, they’ve each become social media stars with loads of followers. They’re also no longer friends; Layne pulled a thoughtless stunt that severed their relationship. As luck would have it, the two wind up as a team on Voyage de Gourmet, a culinary show in which competitors vie for fame and a cash prize. Layne and Jang-Mi will face off against six other teams in challenges taking place around the world. The tasks are grueling, including scouring a Sumatran jungle for ingredients and cooking while blindfolded; if the former friends want a shot at winning, they’ll have to rely on one another. Maybe Jang-Mi can learn to trust Layne again, if he can only find the right way to say he’s sorry to the girl he betrayed. Tobin’s exuberant story takes readers on a global trek. The contestants, who compete in such beautiful settings as Brussels and Huangshan City, hail from a variety of locales, from Japan to Australia. It’s fun to follow the characters as they bond with others on opposing teams, although the easy-to-hate team that gets along with no one is equally entertaining (“Flip’s dad is the CEO of the Red Range Cigarette Company; Flop’s family made their fortune in plastic packaging”). The highlight of the story is the drama between Layne and Jang-Mi, who, with effort from both, may get back what they’ve lost. Humor is abundant, especially in the form of Frog, Jang-Mi’s adorable, ever-barking dog (who often lends a helping paw), and in the portrayal of the loud, gleefully overdramatic Voyage host, Bombo Arjuna. Milton’s anime-style illustrations match the narrative’s energy with colorful, exaggerated facial cues and bouts of action.

An endearing tale of food and camaraderie, served in an animated fashion.