Wrong Friend

The creators of Bad Sister team up to deliver a tender graphic novel memoir about rebuilding after a friendship breakup. Eleven-year-old Charise and 13-year-old Casey have been best friends for four years. When Casey enters high school and starts giving Charise the cold shoulder, though, the tween struggles to understand what went wrong. Determined to move on, Charise creates a Garbage Can of Friendship—which she fills with objects that remind her of Casey—and sets out to find a new bestie. As Charise dedicates more time to hobbies such as reading, playing clarinet, and learning French, she befriends classmates who share her interests, but none of them is like Casey. Chapter openers formatted like yearbook spreads feature snapshots of Charise’s peers as well as messages from new friends, hinting at the protagonist’s social progression. How-to–style pages explaining BFF hallmarks (“If someone is your best friend, you know all about them”) intersect slice-of-life depictions of Charise and Casey’s relationship formerly and as it is in the present. Quippy dialogue and Charise’s stream-of-consciousness internal monologue highlight the fear she feels in opening up to others again; comic strip cartooning emphasizes character expressions and body language in vibrant, high-contrast hues. Figures are rendered with varying skin tones. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Linda Pratt, Wernick & Pratt. Illustrator’s agent: Charlie Olsen, Inkwell Management. (Jan.)