August 2017 - Brave by Svetlana Chmakova
“Those natural disasters I mentioned before? Middle school is in the top ten. Each day is like running the gauntlet. I think of it like a video game. I just have to get through each day … without getting eaten by the game monsters … to win the prize at the end of the level.” Jensen Graham pg. 14 – 15 Brave by Svetlana Chmakova
From the author and illustrator of Awkward, comes another graphic novel tale from Berrybrook Middle School. Jensen Graham “… may be just a regular kid at regular Berrybrook Middle School…” but he is going to save the world! Unfortunately, for Jensen, there are a few obstacles blocking his way. He’s totally prepared if there’s a Zombie Apocalypse, he even has an emergency plan for earthquakes and tornados, and he’s working on one for sunspots; but he doesn’t have a plan for the dangers lurking in the halls of Berrybrook Middle School. There’s Yanic and Foster to avoid, math isn’t going very well, his partner for the English project is that “sports dude, Jorge”, and the problem of where to sit at lunch always seems to be looming. So, when Jenny, Akilah and Felipe ask Jensen for help with projects for the school newspaper, things start to look up, that is until one of the projects seems more like a social experiment where Jensen is the subject. Jensen starts to question the true intent of those around him. What is the “Lizard Brain” theory Jenny and Akilah keep talking about? Do Yanic and Foster keep getting worse? Is he being bullied?
Things aren’t always as they seem in middle school, and while Jensen’s optimistic attitude has gotten him through so far, it may be time for him to take a good look at those around him, and learn his own way to be brave.
This is just one of several new graphic novels about the trials of middle school. Swing It, Sunny by Jennifer & Matthew Holm, will reunite readers with Sunny, the main character from Sunny Side Up, as she starts middle school back home in Pennsylvania. All’s Faire in Middle School by Victoria Jamieson, author & illustrator of Roller Girl, introduces us to Imogene, who’s not only starting middle school, but school for the first time, after being homeschooled all her life. You can find these and many more in the Tween department at the library. Happy Reading!
From the author and illustrator of Awkward, comes another graphic novel tale from Berrybrook Middle School. Jensen Graham “… may be just a regular kid at regular Berrybrook Middle School…” but he is going to save the world! Unfortunately, for Jensen, there are a few obstacles blocking his way. He’s totally prepared if there’s a Zombie Apocalypse, he even has an emergency plan for earthquakes and tornados, and he’s working on one for sunspots; but he doesn’t have a plan for the dangers lurking in the halls of Berrybrook Middle School. There’s Yanic and Foster to avoid, math isn’t going very well, his partner for the English project is that “sports dude, Jorge”, and the problem of where to sit at lunch always seems to be looming. So, when Jenny, Akilah and Felipe ask Jensen for help with projects for the school newspaper, things start to look up, that is until one of the projects seems more like a social experiment where Jensen is the subject. Jensen starts to question the true intent of those around him. What is the “Lizard Brain” theory Jenny and Akilah keep talking about? Do Yanic and Foster keep getting worse? Is he being bullied?
Things aren’t always as they seem in middle school, and while Jensen’s optimistic attitude has gotten him through so far, it may be time for him to take a good look at those around him, and learn his own way to be brave.
This is just one of several new graphic novels about the trials of middle school. Swing It, Sunny by Jennifer & Matthew Holm, will reunite readers with Sunny, the main character from Sunny Side Up, as she starts middle school back home in Pennsylvania. All’s Faire in Middle School by Victoria Jamieson, author & illustrator of Roller Girl, introduces us to Imogene, who’s not only starting middle school, but school for the first time, after being homeschooled all her life. You can find these and many more in the Tween department at the library. Happy Reading!