Summer Vamp

Due to a bus mix-up, eight grader Maya—an aspiring chef with light brown skin and expressive anime-esque eyes—is sent to Camp Dracula instead of culinary Camp Umami in Karim’s economical debut graphic novel. She already feels like an outsider in her own home now that her father has announced that his girlfriend, Charlotte, is moving in. Charlotte endears herself to Maya by suggesting that they send Maya to culinary camp for the summer. Maya’s initial excitement falls flat, however, when a fellow camper informs her that they’re on the way to a “regular summer camp”; worse, “garlic is strictly forbidden!” It isn’t until Maya arrives at Camp Dracula that she realizes that she and her campmates have even less in common than she feared. Typical middle school woes rear their ugly head throughout Maya’s stint living as a stealth human among vampires, especially when well-meaning bunkmate Abby’s attempts to help Maya acclimate only makes things worse. Still, Maya’s stay at Camp Dracula proves fruitful as she learns how to speak up for herself and how to accept one’s differences. Seamlessly blending silliness and sentiment, Karim employs confident comic timing and tonal savvy, and clean-lined cartooning marks an enjoyable new talent for middle grade audiences. Ages 8–12. (May)