STARGAZING by Jen Wang

STARGAZING is a middle grade graphic novel that captured my heart right away. Like other middle grade memoirs, Jen Wang taps into deeply personal emotions that resonate with the reader despite having different life experiences. And her art fits seamlessly with the dialog, striking just the right notes at just the right moments. Jen Wang is also the author of THE PRINCE AND THE DRESSMAKER, another fantastic graphic novel I recommend for young adult and adult readers.

Book blurb from Bookshop.org:

Moon is everything Christine isn’t. She’s confident, impulsive, artistic . . . and though they both grew up in the same Chinese-American suburb, Moon is somehow unlike anyone Christine has ever known. But after Moon moves in next door, these unlikely friends are soon best friends, sharing their favorite music videos and painting their toenails when Christine’s strict parents aren’t around. Moon even tells Christine her deepest secret: that she has visions, sometimes, of celestial beings who speak to her from the stars. Who reassure her that earth isn’t where she really belongs. Moon’s visions have an all-too-earthly root, however, and soon Christine’s best friend is in the hospital, fighting for her life. Can Christine be the friend Moon needs, now, when the sky is falling?Jen Wang draws on her childhood to paint a deeply personal yet wholly relatable friendship story that’s at turns joyful, heart-wrenching, and full of hope.

I really love middle grade graphic novels. I made a list of my favorites on my bookshop page. Check it out.

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