I'm always on the lookout for new graphic novels because readers just can't get enough of them! Here are a few new and upcoming ones you'll want to have in your libraries.
Katie the Catsitter
written by Colleen AF Venable
illustrated by Stephanie Yue
This is going to be such a fun series! I wish I had known ahead of time this was a superhero story. I didn't understand that at first and it threw off my understanding just a bit.
Katie and her mom live in New York City in an apartment building. The city has super heroes that help out local law enforcement, and make sure the super-villains don't cause any trouble. Katie's best friends are heading off to summer camp, but Katie's mom just doesn't have enough money to send Katie. But, if Katie works and can pay for a good part of it, then maybe they can make it work. Katie puts up a sign in their apartment building advertising that she'll work small jobs for cash. She ends up getting a nightly catsitting job for an upstairs neighbor, Madeline. Eventually, Katie starts putting some clues together and makes the guess that Madeline is actually a villain, the Mousetress. But she can't quit her job now, she needs this cash to get to camp because as the summer goes on, her BFF is writing her less and less from camp. Is she forgetting all about her?
I like how this superhero story also had a very realistic friendship thread running through the storyline too. Once I had a better understanding of the setting and the superheros, I really enjoyed the story and can't wait to read more adventures.
This graphic novel is going to be well loved by readers.
HiLo: Gina the Girl Who Broke the World
by Judd Winick
Full disclosure: rarely do I read all the graphic novels in a series. GNs are so popular, that I just hand them out to the kids as soon as they come in. I usually read the first book in the series, maybe the second one, and then that's it. But this series... I always read them before I hand the book out. Which also means I have to read the book as soon as I get it because everyone wants to read it!
This is the seventh book in the series and I love it as much as the first one. No, probably more because I'm so invested with the characters now. This one gets emotional because the characters are still grieving over the loss of a friend. I love that Winick adds the grief element to the book. That doesn't seem to happen all the time in books that are typically found to be humorous.
This book starts up right where the last one left off. Gina has some magical powers and she is still coming to terms with them. She doesn't know if she wants the responsibility that comes with being magical. And she fears what could happen if she loses a battle. HiLo is now human and is coming to terms with everything that means (including bodily functions, which will go over very well with readers!).
There are battles and bad guys, there are moments you'll laugh out loud, and moments you may shed a tear. I'm so glad to see there will be a book 8, even if that means we need to wait.
Allergic
written by Megan Wagner Lloyd
illustrated by Michelle Mee Nutter
So many kids are going to relate with this one! Maggie loves animals and she wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up. She's the oldest sibling in her family with younger, twin brothers and a new sibling on the way. Maggie feels if only she could have a dog, she would have something that was special just to her. She's ecstatic when she gets her wish, but while she's at the rescue, she has a severe allergic reaction to the dogs, requiring a trip to the doctor. After visiting with an allergist, Maggie finds out she's allergic to anything with feather or fur. It's devastating to Maggie and made worse by the fact that her school district borders have changed and she has to go to a new school.
Things start to get better for Maggie when she meets the girl who recently moved in next door. Although a school year older than Maggie, she proves to be a true friend and the girls become close. But that "true" friendship is tested when her new friend gets a puppy, after Maggie telling her she is allergic.
Fans of the Raina Telgemeier stories and Shannon Hale's and LeUyen Pham's Best Friends series will absolutely love this one.
This one publishes March 2nd, but it's already through Scholastic Book Club!
Warning - be sure to have multiple copies of all these books. They are going to be very popular with readers.
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