The Love Report

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Author(s)

Beka & Maya

Publisher

Hippo Park, an imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers

Genre(s)

Age Range

11+

Release Date

June 13, 2023

ISBN

978-1662640414

Buy This Book

BFFs Grace and Lola try to unravel the mystery of romance with a plan to observe, study, and analyze the ways of love at their junior high in the first book in this addictive graphic novel series.

BFFs Grace and Lola talk about everything related to romance—and have lots of questions: What about the mysterious allure of the popular girl at school? And the rebellious goth with the reputation? And boys. They don’t quite understand what makes some school romances soar to legendary heights, while other flirtations fizzle. Lola has an idea—they’ll observe, study, and analyze all the couples at their Junior High—and compile their findings as The Love Report. Surprises await them, and force them to learn to see beyond appearances in this fast-paced series opener. They’ll also discover secrets between themselves.

Editor review

1 review

For fans of Tessier's Chloe series

March 03, 2023

Overall rating

4.0

Plot

4.0

Characters

4.0

Writing Style

3.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

5.0

Lola and Grace are best friends who have very different family lives; while Lola lives with just her mother, Grace has siblings and parents whom Lola thinks are close. The girls are obsessed with crushes, and are trying to understand the dynamics of how romance works among their peers, so start a scientific study. Why is Felicity Sunshine the object of all the boys' desires? Why is it so hard for Lola to talk to Noah? Why does gossipy Charlie know what all of the other girls are doing? Watching those around them and talking to new people at school, Lola and Grace try to find out how romance works through anecdotal evidence. While they are doing this, Lola finally talks to Noah, and the two start going out and kissing. Meanwhile, Grace's parents fight more and more, and she fears that they might get divorced. The girls grow apart, and make new friends. Lola finds herself talking more to Felicity, who isn't interested in all of the attention that she gets but would rather study astrophysics. Grace finds herself confiding in Adele, who is so prickly because she had a bad experience with a boy who went too far (he put his hand under her shirt, which is shown discreetly in a panel) and was afterwards labeled a "bimbo" and a "slut". When Noah breaks up with Lola because he is trying to befriend the "cool kids" at school and they tell him to drop her, Lola is heartbroken. She misses Grace and realizes that she hasn't been there for her friend. Will the two be able to start to understand both the nature of friendship and the nature of love as they try to survive their tween years?

Good Points

I vividly remember having a crush on a boy in 7th grade and watching with fascination as he "dated" just about every girl in my class except me! Lola is an appealing Every Girl who is a bit quiet and mousy (she is portrayed with a bit of hair in her face that made me want to brush it back!) and thrilled to have a boyfriend. Noah is sweet until he gives in to peer pressure. Felicity is an interesting popular girl who isn't pleased with the superficial reasons that boys like her. There is some mention of romance beyond the heteronormative binary, but this is mostly boy-girl romance.

The issue of reputation is dealt with, and Lola and Grace discuss talking to Felicity in terms of meeting a "bimbo". Adele's problems include someone writing the word "slut" on her backpack. This does have a particularly French feel to it, similar to Tessier's Chloe series and Simonson and Mason's Junior High Drama, that won't resonate with all US readers.

Romance certainly is a very appealing topic to middle school students, and this book portrays the frenetic pace of breakups and makeups very well. The idea of studying classmates and trying to qualify and quantify emtions is an intriguing one. Graphic novel readers go through a lot of books, so this is one to have on hand for readers who have worked their way through other titles with lots of drama like Miller's Besties: Work it Out, Holms' Real Friends, Jamieson's Roller Girl, and the works of Raina Telgemeier.