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I Want to Eat Your Pancreas

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By M. T. Bennett From “A Walk to Remember” to “The Fault in Our Stars”, teen romance stories are awash in the cliché of falling in love with someone who has a terminal illness. Author Yoru Sumino and artist Idumi Kirihara (translation by Beni Axia Conrad) give their perspective on it in the manga novel, I Want to Eat Your Pancreas which also has an anime and live-action adaptation. As is often the case, in these kinds of stories a troubled young boy falls for a slowly dying girl. We will call the main character “MC” for this review because… Read More

The Times I Knew I Was Gay

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by Soph Myers-Kelley   The Times I Knew I Was Gay by Eleanor Crewes is a largely light memoir but also potent coming home story for people of the LGBTQ community. It offers what has historically been a non-traditional story about coming out; a story where the person in question does not know they are in the closet, much less how to get out of it. The art is soft black and white drawings that are warm, friendly, and comforting. The book reminded me of many slice-of-life anime, so if you want a book to read on a cozy night,… Read More

Cycling & Menstrupedia

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Book reviews by Alison Kent   When I was approaching menarche in the early 1970s, I was informed about what was about to happen to me by my embarrassed mother, who thrust a wholly inadequate pamphlet into my hands, featuring irrelevant photos of long-haired white girls in flowing white dresses running blissfully through fields of flowers. It left me with more questions than knowledge, gaps I filled by talking to peers (who were often worse-informed than I was). Laura Szumowski’s book, Cycling: A Guide to Menstruation, states in the dedication, “For me when I was in the 4th grade, because… Read More

Charisma Check: A Review of Just Roll with It by Veronica Agarwal and Lee Durfey-Lavoie

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Guest Review by A. David Lewis   Like obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) itself, Just Roll with It by Veronica Agarwal and Lee Durfey-Lavoie does not reveal itself immediately. The YA graphic novel betrays nothing on its cover, with its summary blurb, or for the first sixty-plus pages of the story. With no overt initial comment, the narrative follows sixth-grader Maggie as she navigates the new challenges of middle school. Her two older sisters had been exemplary students in their time, so Maggie feels the additional burden to excel in addition to her anxiety with friends, classes, and after-school clubs. She is… Read More

The Golden Hour

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Guest review by Lorraine Chun   All too frequently we hear or read in the news about another shooting at a school, but rarely do we hear about its impact on students. The Golden Hour by Niki Smith addresses how an adolescent copes with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after witnessing his teacher gunned down.  This is a story about healing and resiliency, new friendships, and even young love. Manuel Soto is a latchkey middle schooler whose mother puts in long hours as a nurse at a health facility.  He takes solace in his photography art work and is a loner at school with no friends and is by himself when he gets home. The story begins with… Read More

Go with the Flow

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Book Review by Kevin Wolf   In its own quiet way this graphic novel, Go with the Flow by Lily Williams and Karen Schneemann, provides an excellent teaching tool. Though it’s mainly for middle and high school students, I highly recommend it for all ages, genders and orientations. This graphic novel’s actions are in real time with all dates lining up with the 2019-2020 school year. It’s about friendship, menstruation, bullying, frustration with school administration, fighting back, and taking responsibility. Go with the Flow revolves around four diverse characters Christine, Brit, and Abby, three friends from childhood, and the new… Read More