Tender, sweetly romantic, and enchanting; an encouraging coming-of-age story.
A teenager struggles to cope in this graphic novel loosely inspired by the Norwegian folktale “East of the Sun and West of the Moon.”
Vietnamese American high school junior Angelica “Jelly” Hoang has had a rough year. Overachieving perfectionist Jelly has burned out and retreated from life. But after she’s awarded an internship at the Log House Theater, Jelly cautiously re-emerges. The theater, a local institution, not only played a seminal role in 7-year-old Jelly’s life when she saw her first performance there, it has also supported her teenage self: Jelly’s been messaging a fan account for Per the Bear Prince, their mascot. What started off as a quick note of appreciation has evolved into open and vulnerable conversations. An internship offers Jelly an opportunity to “feel connected to [her] work again”—and find out who’s behind the bear account, which seems to have exclusive insider information. Nguyen tenderly explores difficult emotional topics like anxiety and long-lasting grief. The characters and their interactions convey the comfort and acceptance that come from healthy communication and relationships. The delicate, expressive illustrations, executed in a soft color palette, captivatingly capture the heartfelt tone, and design details enhance the storytelling. Elegant picture frames surround panels that show flashbacks, such as of Jelly’s childhood experiences at the theater and memories of her late, beloved grandmother, Bà Ngoại. The supporting cast is diverse in gender identity, race, and body size.
Tender, sweetly romantic, and enchanting; an encouraging coming-of-age story. (author’s note, sketches) (Graphic fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9781984892669
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Random House Graphic
Review Posted Online: June 13, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance.
A Connecticut girl and her best friend devise a series of plans in order to achieve their goals: following a dream and winning back an ex.
Eighteen-year-old Audrey Barbour has a Master Plan: attend Blue Ridge Glass School in North Carolina and someday turn her Etsy shop, Golightly Glass, into a thriving business. But her uber-wealthy parents insist that she instead follow in their footsteps and go to business school. So Audrey decides to go find the tuition money she needs with help from her best friend, Henry Chen. Henry needs a favor, too: He hopes that fake dating Audrey will help him win back his ex-girlfriend, and he points out to a reluctant Audrey that this could make her crush, Griffin, notice her. While Audrey’s parents vacation in France for three weeks, the pair rent out the Barbour mansion on the Long Island Sound. Soon romantic chemistry grows alongside their business partnership. Despite the pair’s great preparation and an abundance of secondary characters with connections and talents to help pull off their increasingly ambitious ideas, plans go awry, leaving Audrey and Henry scrambling and second-guessing their choices. The pacing is even, but the characters often take a back seat to the whirlwind of activity that drives the plot, with the emphasis falling on each person’s practical skills and their role in keeping the action moving over their emotional bonds. Audrey is white, and Henry’s surname cues him as Chinese American.
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: March 31, 2026
ISBN: 9780593904794
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Delacorte Romance
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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