7 Good Reasons Not to Grow Up

Graphic novels have become quite popular with the middle-grade set. Let’s face it, they are more like long comic books, in many cases, than anything else. The artwork in this one is bright and very busy, often not laid out in typical panels, but in a wide variety of shapes, some overlaying other spaces, giving the idea of urgency. Some of the type is extremely small or in light colors on dark backgrounds, making parts very hard to read. The story is not unusual for young people’s books — the kids must resist the evil adults and make things right in this topsy-turvy world of middle school (although a lot of this seems more appropriate for high schoolers than middle schoolers). The kids in the story are clever and smart, able to fool and trick the teachers and administrators, the evil and mean-spirited adults who seem to have no job other than to make the kids’ lives a long, terrible misery. Some young readers will enjoy this kind of story and most will certainly like the fun artwork, so this may be just the ticket for reluctant readers.