Drama

Rarely do I read books spontaneously, outside of my anal-retentive reading schedule. Even though I wasn't supposed to read Drama according to my schedule, I had placed a hold for it at the library after reading April's review of it on Good Books and Good Wine. I picked it up from the library and proceeded to look guiltily at it for the duration of the checkout period. I have to return it in a couple of days, so I decided to just go ahead and take the hour or so to read it. I am so glad that I did, because it was such a cute, sweet graphic novel and made a nice change from the darker reads I'm working through at the moment.

As the title suggests, this graphic novel centers around a middle school theater production. This year, the school play is Moon Over Mississippi, a Civil War musical full of romance and drama. Of course, there's even more drama off-stage than on, which is super accurate for theater productions everywhere, I think. I love how much detail there was into the production of the costumes, the set, the lighting, etc. The characters really got to show off their passions, and the theatrical stuff was obviously important and not just there to serve as a backdrop to the romantic drama.

When the story opens, the heroine, Callie, is walking home from school with Matt, her friend and also the lighting designer, and Greg, his baseball-playing brother. Greg has just been dumped by his girlfriend Bonnie, and Callie, who has had a crush on him for a while, goes for the opportunity. I freaking love that Callie is the kind of girl who goes for what she wants, who will risk embarrassment or rejection. I'm not like that, but I really admire her for it. She's also the kind of girl who will get up on stage and audition (badly) to make a friend feel better. Callie has serious guts.

Unfortunately, things don't turn out quite the way she hoped. Rather than making her his girlfriend the next day, Greg ignores her and, when she confronts him, tells her that he's getting back together with Bonnie. She doesn't have too much time to mope, however, because she has big dreams for her set design and plenty of work to do to achieve them. Also, she meets cute twin brothers, Jesse and Justin, interested in helping out in the theater.

Drama captures the emotional confusion of high school and the limited time span of middle school crushes. When I was that age, like the characters here, I had SO MANY CRUSHES. Seriously, I had like no type at all. That's one thing that rings false in a lot of the YA books that I read: the characters are always so set on one person and in love forever. Let's be honest, most teens have so not made up their mind, attention drifting from one person to another. Callie feels drawn to several different guys, and some of the other characters are also unsure which romantic interest to pursue. On top of that, the story is totally lgbt-friendly, which I love.

If you like theater and cuteness, I definitely recommend Drama. It's such a quick read and it made me smile many times.

I'm a huge fan of graphic novels. I know they help reluctant readers develop a love of reading. That's how my own son started to want to read. It all started with a graphic novel I received at a conference. I also loved Raina Telgemeier's first graphic novel SMILE that did a fab job of showing a teen girl and her journey with braces.

So I was really excited while at ALA12 in Anaheim, Ca, I was able to grab a galley of Telgemeier's companion novel DRAMA.

Let's just say I totally loved this novel. First off, the characters are diverse and felt like people I knew while in middle school. Callie's struggles to let the one boy know she really likes him and then the heartbreak of his reaction brought back memories. I especially loved how the author captures how volatile middle school is with trying to fit in to the whole first crush. I also was happy to see that a gay character is included. And the one scene where he takes over the show is brilliant.

My own tween was in theater this last school year and I know tweens will enjoy and relate to the whole process of auditioning to all that goes behind the scenes. The jealousies of friends liking the same boy or girl is part of the middle grade process too. Who can't remember how one week you liked one person only to 'fall out of love' the next week?

The illustrations are filled with emotion and add to the story too. Let's just say DRAMA had me smiling! I predict this graphic novel will be a winner just like Telgemeier's first novel SMILE.

A sure bet for reluctant readers and fans of graphic tales that don't preach but rather capture the spirit of middle school with all the trials, struggles, and joys.