Unhappy Camper (Graphic Novel) Lily LaMotte. Illustrated by Ann Xu. 2024. 208 pages. [Source: Library] [Middle grade graphic novel]
First sentence: Claire and I had many daring adventures with our dolls.
Premise/plot: Michelle (our narrator) and Claire (her older sister) are at odds in Unhappy Camper. Michelle wants to blend in--fit in, be liked, be popular--with her friend group and peers. Claire wants to be true to herself and express her most true self--which in this case means embracing her Taiwanese culture a thousand percent. Claire has gone many years to a Taiwanese-American summer camp. Michelle has never once wanted to go. This year her parents have decided she HAS to go. They hope these two sisters will learn to get along better and become greater friends. Michelle, meanwhile, spends a good deal of time worrying about her friends back home. Her friends seem to pity her for having to go to this "weird" "awful" camp. [That's the impression I got.] What will Michelle learn about herself? her sister? her friends?
My thoughts: Graphic novels are not my go-to choice at the library. But I always try to read a few per year. This graphic novel is a coming of age novel that deals with relationships--the relationship between two sisters, the relationship(s) with friends. Michelle is building towards an "aha" moment where she realizes that her friends may not be true friends that truly care about her.
© 2024 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
2 comments:
Understand about graphic novels. So many of them are whiny memoir type books that they get a bit old after a while. Let me know if you want recommendations for ones I enjoyed!
Always open to suggestions for books you loved and would recommend.
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