Dear Jackie
by Jessixa Bagley; illus. by Aaron Bagley
Intermediate, Middle School    Simon    288 pp.
9/25    9781534496583    $24.99

This graphic novel opens with a dramatic flash-forward scene making clear something is going to go very wrong in Jackie’s sixth-grade year. We then go back to the start of the school year: Jackie is hanging out with sensitive boy-next-door friend Milo and dreading the return of sometimes-judgy classmate Adelle, who is “just so, I don’t know. Pink!” As pressure increases from parents and peers to dress more like other girls, Jackie begins expressing her feelings in letters to herself on older sibling Jabari’s typewriter—and soon those give way to faked letters from an imaginary secret admirer. Meanwhile, scenes focusing on Milo highlight the newfound awkwardness of their friendship, as others now expect that it must be romantic. The story captures the out-of-place feelings many middle schoolers experience, along with strong emotions that can lead to impulsiveness; Jackie doesn’t exactly plan ahead in her epistolary deceptions, but her motivation—she thought peers “might finally accept me if someone liked me”—is believable. Characters’ gender expectations become more nuanced as the story progresses; Jabari’s identity arc adds another dimension, and their advice helps Jackie see Adelle in a new light. Dynamically varied panel layouts keep pages turning; the digital illustrations’ palette is largely pastel, with shocks of pink contrasting with Jackie’s beloved gray hoodie. An author’s note touches on Bagley’s own middle-school experiences.

From the January/February 2026 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.