#rhgraphic

Grace Needs Space by Benjamin A. Wilgus and Rii Abrego (illustrations). RH Graphic, 2023. 9780593182390. http://www.powells.com/book/-9780593182390?partnerid=34778&p_bt

Grace lives on Genova Station with her mom, Evelyn, an engineer who seems to get how to keep Grace involved and interested in making their house a home. Grace is excited because she's soon going to Titan with her Ba, Kendra, on a two-week trip in her cargo ship Sadie Goat. But her Ba is late. And when the trip is finally underway her Ba doesn't want her touching anything on the ship (she's particular, and it's all delicate). On Titan when Grace wants to see the sights (trees, plants, the largest lake in the solar system that's not on Earth) her Ba has no time because she's dealing with work. Grace meets some local kids and stows away on their field trip to Kraken Mare, where she touches the surface of Titan, but the trip nearly ends in disaster and then she's grounded. (There's more drama between the two and when the Sadie Goat is on its way back to Genova.)

Pizza My Heart (A Norma and Belly Book) by Mika Song. RH Graphic, 2022. 9780593479728. 96pp. http://www.powells.com/book/-9780593479728?partnerid=34778&p_bt

This is the third book in Song's graphic novel series about two hungry squirrels, Norma and Belly. In this one, tired of acorn-based foods, they get very excited about a new pizza restaurant. It's called Pizza Bot, and it's an on-the-street pizza automat of sorts. Trying to push buttons, Norma falls into the dollar bill slot and finds her way into the kitchen. Belly can't get inside to free Normal and so hitches a ride with the delivery driver, Pizza Kid, who ends up in front of an apartment that's home to Tomato, the meanest cat in town. (It's there on a bench that Gramps, the squirrel with huge glasses, makes an alarmed appearance.)

Coming Back by Jessi Zabarsky. RH Graphic, 2021. 9780593120026. 250pp. http://www.powells.com/book/-9780593120026?partnerid=34778&p_bt

Preet is the best Shaper in the village, and is also good at Shifting into other forms, too. Valissa can't do much magic, but she works in the village library so you know she's cool. After a mist fills the library, Valissa volunteers to go in and try to take care of it. (The village can't spare Preet, whose magic is needed every day.) But while Valissa is gone, Preet violates the way the villagers do things by planting a seed alone and starting to raise the resulting child. She pays a heavy price for this, and it's unclear if she will ever see Valissa again.

The Montague Twins Vol. 2: The Devil's Music by Nathan Page & Drew Shannon. Alfred A. Knopf / RH Graphic, 2021. 9780525646808. http://www.powells.com/book/-9780525646808?partnerid=34778&p_bt

Charlie, Pete, and his brother Al are in a band, The Bony Fingers. After their supernatural adventure in the first book, Rowan is continuing to teach them a bit of magic. But a shadowy group of faculty at the university has some concerns about that plus a new member -- an uncle the boys have never heard about. There's also a handsome and mysterious rock star, Gideon Drake, who recently showed up in town and started hanging out. It's a minor spoiler, but the reason he's there has something to do with Millie, a girl who also goes to Central High and who, nearly catatonic, almost falls into the harbor in front of the lighthouse. As romances start to develop and a group of mothers protests against rock and roll, there's some question about what's up with Gideon (and whether or not it's demonic).

Monster Friends by Kaeti Vandorn. RH Graphic, 2021. 9781984896827. 272pp. http://www.powells.com/book/-9781984896827?partnerid=34778&p_bt

Reggie is a nervous, one-eyed monster fresh from his adventures. House-sitting for his cousin Agnes, he's plagued by freaky dreams and a bit anxious, especially about contacting his adventuring pal, Clovis.

One day while he's sweeping the walk, a friendly, long-eared monster introduces herself (kinda) and asks him to play. She won't take no for an answer, despite the not-so-subtle hints Reggie drops that he wants to be left alone. (Of course they become friends.)

The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen. RH Graphic, 2020. 9781984851598. 229 pages of comics plus an author's not, an essay on creating the graphic novel, and some pages of bonus artwork. http://www.powells.com/book/-9781984851598?partnerid=34778&p_bt

At the center of this story are Tién (13) and his mother. Tién speaks mostly English; his mother speaks mostly Vietnamese. As Tién reads a version of Cinderella to his mother, she thinks about saying goodbye to her mother when she and her husband fled Vietnam. Later Tién's mother travels to Vietnam after his grandmother dies, and as she questions her identity and mourns, her auntie tells her a different version of the myth. (Back in the US, Tién's crush on his friend Julian is noticed during a school dance, and he's sent to counseling, to talk to a priest who tells him he's going to break his mother's heart. And once Tién's mother returns home, the school takes the decision to come out to his mom out of Tién's hands. But they share another story, a beautiful retelling of The Little Mermaid, that lets Tién know she loves and accepts him.

Nguyen has a gift for depicting how hard it is for a kid and their mother to communicate when they speak different first languages and were raised in different cultures. I've never seen a book do this before, and it's wonderful. Equally beautiful are the illustrations, particularly the way each tale has its own design and fashion sense. (The pages at the end give Nguyen space to explain his choices.)