These five graphic novels and highly illustrated books paint pictures of school life for intermediate and/or middle-school readers. See also the Schools--Elementary schools and Schools--Middle schools subject tags in the Guide/Reviews Database, and for a look at school for a younger audience, see our Five Questions interview with Ibi Zoboi and Juanita Londoño about First Day Around the World.

J vs. K
by Kwame Alexander and Jerry Craft; illus. by Jerry Craft
Intermediate, Middle School    Little, Brown    240 pp.
5/25    9780316582681    $16.99
e-book ed.  9780316582698    $9.99

Two fifth graders vie to win their middle school’s annual creative storytelling contest. Both are already experienced storytellers: J illustrates books without words, and K writes stories without illustrations. In real life, Craft and Alexander have a lively friendly rivalry on display in social media posts and joint school visits, and this highly illustrated novel (cartoonlike black-and-white drawings appear throughout; final art unseen) is the perfect playground for their fictional counterparts — and for themselves, as both authors interject regularly with notes. Ever competitive, J and K try undermining each other’s chances for winning the contest by giving bad advice: draw with your nondominant hand, write what you don’t know, write in “sixth person.” Readers will soon suspect that J and K will join forces to write a book together, combining their talents, and indeed they enter the contest with their frog story collaboration, “Croak and Swagger: The Most Ribbiting Story Ever Told.” The culminating award ceremony, related with suspense and humor, isn’t the final word. Not only are readers told “To Be Continued…” but Craft and Alexander also offer “more fun…with this QR code” and write each other’s author bios with more of their trash talk. DEAN SCHNEIDER

Fresh Start
by Gale Galligan; illus. by the author; color by K Czap
Middle School    Graphix/Scholastic    288 pp.
1/25    9781338045864    $24.99
Paper ed.  9781338045840    $14.99
e-book ed.  9781338045871    $14.99

In this engaging graphic novel, Ollie Herisson (whose father is German and mother is Thai) has always made friends easily at the international schools she attends, but those friendships have been short-lived because of her family’s frequent moves. Wanting their daughters to experience a more typical childhood, however, Ollie’s parents move the family from Germany to Virginia, hoping this move will be their last. While her younger sister, Cat, quickly makes friends, seventh grader Ollie has a harder time. Pushed over the edge by the embarrassment of having her first menstrual period at school and deflated by her mother’s disappointment with her refusal to wear dresses and be more obedient (“I should have raised you more Thai”), the imaginative and outgoing Ollie gives up on her social life and finds solace in immersing herself in drawing, manga, and role-playing games. Her interests lead to unexpected friendships, particularly with the popular Nina, as they bond over their shared mixed heritage; and Zoe, who shares Ollie’s love of anime. When friendship drama ensues, Ollie reconnects with Cat and learns to admit her mistakes and confront conflict. Galligan’s exuberant manga-influenced style showcasing exaggerated features humorously reflects the emotional complexities of her characters. Told with sincerity and charm, this story is a relatable exploration of friendship, identity, and personal growth. KRISTINE TECHAVANICH

Very Bad at Math
by Hope Larson; illus. by the author
Middle School    HarperAlley/HarperCollins    240 pp.
1/25    9780063311299    $24.99
Paper ed.  9780063311282    $15.99
e-book ed.  9780063311305    $10.99

Verity “Very” Nelson is very good at many things: she has just won her third term as student council president and is called “the gold standard of middle school politics.” She is also first chair clarinet, has the highest grades in English and social studies, is undefeated in the debate club, and can do the most pushups in gym class. But math? That’s not going so well. And if she doesn’t pass it, the principal will force her to resign from student council. After intensive tutorials and studying, her grade is still low. When she transposes numbers on a custom T-shirt order for a fundraiser and it results in hundreds of unreturnable shirts for dogs (“Shirtgate”), her teacher realizes this wasn’t just a clerical error: Verity has dyscalculia, a math learning disability. This engaging graphic novel sheds light on middle-school dynamics, bullying, and the lesser-known learning disability of dyscalculia in a way that’s respectful and sensitive (though there is a brief, incorrect reference to ADHD as a learning disability). Panels take a variety of shapes and sizes that jigsaw together in visually appealing ways. Readers will be rooting for Very, who shows us that while people who have learning disabilities may be challenged by them, they may also be gifted in other ways. JULIE HAKIM AZZAM

Swing
by Audrey Meeker; illus. by the author; color by Sarah Davidson
Middle School    Feiwel    256 pp.
10/24    9781250864031    $22.99
Paper ed.  9781250864048    $14.99
e-book ed.  9781250406262    $9.99

Marcus McCalister begins eighth grade ambivalent about trying out for soccer despite pressure from those around him in this lively graphic novel. Unlike his varsity-soccer superstar brother, Marcus finds himself yearning for something more. Tough-minded Izzy Briggs, with her purple hair and punk-like fashion sensibility, wants to design costumes for the theater club’s stage plays. The two end up together in gym class, where they must cooperate on an extra-credit assignment: performing a swing dance routine in a talent show. This amusing story of boy-meets-girl-in-unusual-circumstances unfolds through strategically composed panels containing details that build aspects of character and tension in a rapidly paced tale. Comical facial expressions and body language accompanied by natural-sounding dialogue advance the plot, ratcheting up the tension between an unlikely duo with dramatic flair and humor. JERRY DEAR

The Cartoonists Club
by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud; illus. by the authors
Intermediate, Middle School    Graphix/Scholastic    288 pp.
4/25    9781338777222    $24.99
Paper ed.  9781338777215    $14.99
e-book ed.  9781338777239    $14.99

In this clever graphic novel about comics and creative collaboration, story-loving middle-schooler Makayla makes a deal with classmate Howard, who would rather sketch caricatures than pay attention in class: Makayla will make up stories to accompany Howard’s many funny drawings. The pair meets up in the school library, and when they learn that Ms. Fatima, the media specialist, adores comics, too, the Cartoonists Club is born. They are joined by two more classmates: Art, who is excited to bring their versatile creativity to writing and drawing comics, and Lynda, a constant presence in the library who eventually gains the courage to share a notebook full of detailed, realistic drawings. Each of the multilayered characters in this diverse group has a distinct personality and approach to their art. Cartoon-style illustrations in cool, pale hues with occasional splashes of canary yellow effectively portray the characters’ quirks as well as the nuts and bolts of comics-making. Through Ms. Fatima as advisor and Art’s dad, a professional animator, as mentor, the Cartoonists learn the “magic of comics” and pass that knowledge on to readers. Back matter includes an interview with the book’s creators (where readers learn that Telgemeier was inspired by McCloud’s Understanding Comics as a teenager), a glossary, descriptions of comics careers, details about this book’s production, and suggested reading. ALICIA ROGERS

From the July 2025 issue of Notes from the Horn Book.