The Chronicles of Deltovia (The Very Genius Notebooks #1)

Jaimes (Nancy: A Comic Collection) employs three distinct alternating perspectives to craft a slyly funny graphic novel in which best friends Misha, June, and Ollie build a fictional world—and navigate middle school’s ups and downs—via a shared notebook. Misha, a white daydreamer who describes herself as “mysterious,” is absolutely certain that the “DEEP and artistic” fantasy novel she’s writing with her friends is going to make them famous someday (“I’m fully expecting to get a sequel, a movie, a TV show spin-off of the movie”). Alongside “intense” rule-abiding June, who is Black, and sporty, white-cued Ollie, they pass around their notebook, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants–style, to depict both the imaginary happenings of Deltovia, in which they fight evil, and myriad real-life conflicts, which include friendship upsets and field trips gone wrong. Jaimes’s crisp b&w ink illustrations keenly embody the trio’s varying narrative styles, further detailing their differences and providing brief glimpses into their lives beyond the shared tome. The girls’ interpersonal conflicts bleed into their exaggerated cartoons and extravagant Deltovian worldbuilding, adding depth to their good-humored fictitious adventure. Ages 9–13. (Sept.)