Boo is a magical girl in nowheresville. She flies through the night, bravely casting down monsters with magic, and then slowly sails back to earth. But that's all in dreamland; her real life is full of fears like high school, waitressing at work, and a mom who ll, Boo is not ready to talk about her mom just yet. Enter supercool Mimi, a new girl in her grade who will take her to the moon and encourage her to reach for the stars. While Boo's time in dreamland may be fleeting, her time with Mimi is impactful. Sunny and Gloomy have created a poignant and meaningful story about a magnificent girl trying to both live with and escape from trauma and parentification. A palette of cherry blossom pink and bamboo greens is a great fit for fashionable, striking Boo, whose evanescent daydreams sparkle. Not everyone is ready to share their story yet, and by placing Mimi's confidence beside Boo's reluctance, young readers can gain a better understanding of the wide variety of trauma responses. A strong choice for social-emotional learning.

Gr 7 Up— Seventeen-year-old Boo's active imagination springs to life on the pages of this sweet graphic novel that mixes romance with the realities of addiction. Boo, balancing school, a part-time job, and a complicated home life, escapes her circumstances through her daydreams. Her bicycle transforms into a horse and carriage, her gossiping classmates become comedic monsters, and her work uniform is refashioned into a ball gown. But even her imagination cannot free her from her mother's alcoholism, which forces Boo to assume the role of caretaker and leaves her with flashbacks of traumatic memories. When a new girl, Mimi, arrives at school and takes an interest in Boo, Boo has to decide if she can trust Mimi enough to connect with her in the real world instead of escaping to the fantasy inside her mind. This full-color graphic novel uses pink and teal tones to create a dream world for Boo that is cute and whimsical, while still capturing the darkness of her home life. Boo is drawn with light skin and pink hair; other characters are portrayed with various skin tones and body types. VERDICT An endearing graphic novel that will appeal to readers who enjoyed Moonstruck , Lumberjanes , and Heartstopper .— Emily Yates