Making Friends

When Daniella’s grandmother dies and leaves behind a notebook, Danny finds herself in a magical adventure where everything she draws comes to life. It may seem great at first, but what she draws has a life of its own, and things may not turn out how she expects.

I read a black and white proof of the book, but the pictures in this graphic novel will be really great in color. I did find some of the crying pictures a bit over the top with great rivers rushing from Danny’s eyes (which happens super often), but most comic books are pretty exaggerated, and it’s hard to draw a believable talking disembodied head.

Unfortunately, the text didn’t make the story any more believable, and I had a hard time time understanding characters’ reactions in many strange situations and relating to the characters in general. I think we are supposed to sympathize with Danny, as she’s a “dork,” is bullied, and has trouble fitting in but learns the power of real friendship and believing in herself, but I feel like that storyline has been done much better in other books.

There seems to be at lot of things the author didn’t need to put into the book (like an uncle who is clearly having a hard time and throws cake at his son’s birthday party), which seemed like distractions rather than adding to the story. If you are interested in a graphic novel dealing with fitting in and making friends, try Shannon Hale’s Real Friends instead.