Forest Hills Bootleg Society
Forest Hills Bootleg Society
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Publisher's Hardcover ©2022--
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Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Annotation: Four teenage girls start a bootleg anime distribution ring that shakes up their conservative Christian boarding school--and their friendships.
 
Reviews: 2
Catalog Number: #317736
Format: Publisher's Hardcover
Special Formats: Graphic Novel Graphic Novel
Copyright Date: 2022
Edition Date: 2022 Release Date: 09/27/22
Pages: 1 volume (unpaged)
ISBN: 1-534-46949-4
ISBN 13: 978-1-534-46949-5
Dewey: Fic
LCCN: 2022008528
Dimensions: 24 cm.
Language: English
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews

Four social outcasts turn their love of anime into fast cash at the price of their identities and boundaries in this ode to the early 2000s.Brooke Imafidon's, Melissa Cho's, Kelly Nahas', and Maggie Hilcot's lives change when they purchase a bootleg anime DVD. Initial shock over the feature's sexual elements turns to fascination and entrepreneurism as they sell burned copies to classmates at their Christian boarding school. Sales success brings money as well as attention and interpersonal drama, complicated by a love triangle among the four girls. The story takes place in Forest Hills, California, a small town with a repressive, toxic culture. Bullies, cliques, and homophobic teachers represent some of the influences pushing the protagonists and others to alienation and quiet yearning. Skillful, detailed art reminiscent of the girls' beloved genre brings the cast to life through expressive body language as well as paneling that changes in scale and perspective. One-page asides flesh out each protagonist's backstory as well as those of background characters who have their own rich inner lives. Names and physical appearances-while somewhat obscured by the green, black, and white palette-cue ethnic diversity in the main cast, but, contrasting with the treatment of sexuality and faith, this element is not developed in any depth. This is a witty and absorbing examination of a community's painful experiences with loneliness, queer romance, and strangely bewitching anime.An evocative, tender, character-driven coming-of-age story. (Graphic fiction. 14-18)

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Starred Review for Publishers Weekly (Tue Feb 07 00:00:00 CST 2023)
Kirkus Reviews
Reading Level: 5.0
Interest Level: 9-12

Set in 2005, this gorgeously illustrated, funny, and honest graphic novel follows four teens who stumble into an illicit anime DVD-burning business that shakes up their conservative small town…and their friendship.

When Brooke, Kelly, Maggie, and Melissa buy a bootleg anime DVD at a gas station, they get much more than they bargained for with Super Love XL, a risqué move featuring—among other things—a giant mecha who shoots lasers out of her chest. The four girls are horrified (and maybe a little fascinated). It’s so unlike anything they’ve seen, would probably shock everyone else in their town, and definitely would take over their extremely conservative Christian school. That’s when they have the idea to sell copies to local boys…for twenty dollars a pop.

At first, everything goes perfectly, with the friends raking in cash—pretty soon they’ll even have enough money to buy the matching jackets they’ve always dreamed of! But as the market for mildly titillating anime DVDs grows, the girls realize they’ll need new material. On top of figuring out how to replicate their first success, there’s growing tension within the group. Brooke and Kelly’s romance is on its last legs, and hurt feelings are guaranteed when Melissa starts falling for one of them.

Will the four girls’ shared history be strong enough to see them through this upheaval? Or will they learn that some things can only end in heartbreak?


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