The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Comics & Graphic Novels

We Are Big Time by Hena Khan

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We Are Big Time by Hena Khan
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I love this new middle-grade graphic novel about a girls’ basketball team. The story could easily be that it is a team from an all-Muslim school, but there’s more to it than that. I love how the author has based this on a true story and helped guide the reader through the prejudice and media hype that would surround this story still. It’s nuanced and delicately handled, and I think will resonate with every reader.

We Are Big Time by Hena Khan, (List Price: $13.99, Knopf Books for Young Readers, 9780593430477, August 2024)

Reviewed by Jamie Southern, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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Youth Group by Jordan Morris

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Youth Group by Jordan Morris
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I really enjoyed this slightly bonkers graphic novel, and it made me laugh out loud! I loved the concept of an evangelical church youth group that secretly fights demons — seriously a perfect concept for a book. The author and artist captured the 1990s youth group scene so accurately!

Youth Group by Jordan Morris, (List Price: $17.99, First Second, 9781250789235, July 2024)

Reviewed by Kate Storhoff, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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Snowball Earth, Vol. 2 by Yuhiro Tsujitsugu

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Snowball Earth, Vol. 2 by Yuhiro Tsujitsugu
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The first volume in this series was such a fun spin on the mecha vs. kaiju genre, and this next installment did not disappoint. All of the new worldbuilding adds to the mystery of what happened to the earth while Tetsuo was asleep, I can’t wait to see what happens next!!

Snowball Earth, Vol. 2 by Yuhiro Tsujitsugu, (List Price: $14.99, VIZ Media LLC, 9781974746156, July 2024)

Reviewed by Sam Conners, E. Shaver Bookseller in Savannah, Georgia

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The Hunger and the Dusk, Vol. 1 by G. Willow Wilson

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The Hunger and the Dusk, Vol. 1 by G. Willow Wilson
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I am truly obsessed! This story takes place in a world where humans and orcs are enemies, but when a long-forgotten entity known as the Vangol returns from across the seas, humankind and orc-kind must form alliances if they hope to survive what’s ahead. Can humans and orcs see past their painful histories and prejudices? I CANNOT WAIT TO FIND OUT!

The Hunger and the Dusk, Vol. 1 by G. Willow Wilson, (List Price: $21.99, IDW Publishing, 9798887240824, June 2024)

Reviewed by Morgan DePerno, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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First Test Graphic Novel by Tamora Pierce

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First Test Graphic Novel by Tamora Pierce
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Pierce’s series is beloved for a reason, and I am SO happy it’s becoming a graphic novel series. A strong female heroine trying to prove herself in a society where women are not welcome in the community of knights. Uplifting, hopeful. Small acts of bravery and bold friendship!

First Test Graphic Novel by Tamora Pierce, (List Price: $17.99, Random House Graphic, 9780307931573, July 2024)

Reviewed by Morgan DePerno, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
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Simultaneously heartbreaking and humorous. A fictionalized tale of the author’s life as a young teen, chronicling his battle with being loyal to his home and breaking away to meet who he was destined to be.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, (List Price: $20.99, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780316504041, September 2017)

Reviewed by Mallory Sutton, Bards Alley in Vienna, Virginia

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Ready or Not by Andi Porretta

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Ready or Not by Andi Porretta
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This is one of those graphic novels that I think everyone can relate to! Ready or Not follows a group of high school graduates as they are trying to spend one last summer together before their next journey’s begin whether it’s together or apart. It also touches on intense anxiety about the future and the pressures that young adults face with deciding what to do after they graduate school.

Ready or Not by Andi Porretta, (List Price: $14.99, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 9781665907026, July 2024)

Reviewed by Juliana Reyes, Bookmarks in Savannah, North Carolina

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Ready or Not by Andi Porretta

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Ready or Not by Andi Porretta
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Absolutely adored this book!I could relate so much to the main character and how friends grow apart but since you don’t know what you want to do with life, they end up growing away from you. Thank god for the happy ending though. I loved the art style and am so excited to see it when it\’s published in full color.I really felt like I was a part of the group while reading the book, and honestly, was quite sad when it ended. To be honest, when I finished it I just had to sit there and adjust to being back in real life, I was glued the entire time. 10/10 must read

Ready or Not by Andi Porretta, (List Price: $14.99, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 9781665907026, July 2024)

Reviewed by Stephanie St. John, E. Shaver Bookseller in Savannah, Georgia

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Woe: A Housecat’s Story of Despair by Lucy Knisley

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Woe: A Housecat's Story of Despair by Lucy Knisley
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I always loved Lucy Knisley’s cat comics — although not a cat owner myself, I did share my life with a very cat-like chihuahua for a decade, and Lucy’s Linney and my Jack had quite a lot in common. Collected for the first time in one volume, these comics are perfect to give a cat lover (or just a lover of any grumpy, particular animals we choose to pamper and adore).

Woe: A Housecat’s Story of Despair by Lucy Knisley, (List Price: $16.99, Random House Graphic, 9780593177631, July 2024)

Reviewed by Kate Storhoff, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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Woman, Life, Freedom by Marjane Satrapi

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Woman, Life, Freedom by Marjane Satrapi
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In September 2022, in Tehran, Mahsa Amini was arrested and beaten to death by the morality police for not wearing her hijab properly. Women, men, and schoolchildren rose up in protest all over the country. This is a powerful and important reminder not to forget the people of Iran who continue to suffer under the brutal regime of Iran’s government.

Woman, Life, Freedom by Marjane Satrapi, (List Price: $35.95, Seven Stories Press, 9781644214053, March 2024)

Reviewed by Tony Peltier, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Mismatched: A Modern Graphic Retelling of Emma by Anne Camlin, Isadora Zeferino (illus.)

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Mismatched: A Modern Graphic Retelling of Emma by Anne Camlin, Isadora Zeferino (illus.)
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Very cute! I struggled a little in the beginning because the MC (Evan) was driving me insane. Luckily he was redeemed and a lot better very quickly. Loved the characters, the artwork, the ENDING!!!, all of it. It was super cute, full of LGBTQIA rep, and a fun take on Emma by Jane Austen.

Mismatched: A Modern Graphic Retelling of Emma by Anne Camlin, Isadora Zeferino (illus.), (List Price: $17.99, Little Brown, Ink, 9780316704106, September 2024)

Reviewed by Stephanie St. John, E. Shaver Bookseller in Savannah, Georgia

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Brownstone by Samuel Teer, Mar Julia (Illus.)

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Brownstone by Samuel Teer, Mar Julia (Illus.)
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This was such a beautiful graphic novel. The ending was so bittersweet. Authors Samuel Tear and Mar Julia ripped my heart out and put it back together with this story of a daughter not knowing who her family is and spending a summer learning, growing, and watching her new life.

Brownstone by Samuel Teer, Mar Julia (Illus.), (List Price: $18.99, Versify, 9780358394747, June 2024)

Reviewed by Sarah Dimaria, Cavalier House Books in Denham Springs, Louisiana

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The New Girl by Cassandra Calin

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The New Girl by Cassandra Calin
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The New Girl is a delightfully funny story about change, perseverance, and embracing those who are different than us. I absolutely fell in love with the adorable pictures and loveable characters. This was so much fun to read, and I highly recommend diving into it!

The New Girl by Cassandra Calin, (List Price: $12.99, Graphix, 9781338762457, June 2024)

Reviewed by Keeshia Jacklitch, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag

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The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag
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This is the best type of graphic novel, where it drives you to tears, but with it comes a kind of catharsis. Mags has a secret, one with sharp teeth and the potential to hurt. Nessa, her childhood best friend, was the only one who learned of it, and now she’s back, armed with questions about that secret and everything that happened all those years ago. Reading this and bearing witness to their solace found in vulnerability was a bit like communion – coming home and finding peace with someone who knows the scariest parts of you.

The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag, (List Price: $16.99, Graphix, 9781338839999, June 2024)

Reviewed by Jordan April, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Parachute Kids by Betty C. Tang

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Parachute Kids by Betty C. Tang
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An honest take on the concept of a modern “parachute kid” phenomenon where children are left to study in the U.S. without their parents. An emotional story of a tight-knit family falling into near-despair as three middle-high school-aged kids are forced to look after themselves as their parents’ visas expire. A commentary on unreasonably slow immigration policies, forcing families apart, and growing up too young.

Parachute Kids by Betty C. Tang, (List Price: $12.99, Graphix, 9781338832686, April 2023)

Reviewed by Mallory Sutton, Bards Alley in Vienna, Virginia

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