PORTLAND, Ore. — Editor's note: The video below is a snippet of the review. Watch the full review for this comic below or on the KGW Comic Pick of the Week YouTube.
Jen Wang's graphic novels are said to be for middle readers but the two I have read, "The Prince and the Dressmaker" and "Stargazing," are such poignant stories that are approachable to anyone.
"Stargazing" was so charming. I breezed through it because I simply couldn't put it down.
It tells the story of Moon and Christine, two unlikely friends whose friendship is all the more precious for their differences.
Moon is free-spirited. She dances when she hears music, paints her nails, says what the thinks. Everything about her is charismatic -- sometimes she is so full of emotion she can't deal with it.
Christine is her opposite. She comes from what might be depicted as a traditional Asian family. She isn't allowed to paint her nails, she plays classical music and attends Chinese lessons.
Together they help each other find with is special about one another. A medical emergency helps bring those differences, and how they make each other better, into focus.
I think there are a lot of things about this book that make it so lovely to read but I am going to keep some of them close to the vest in hopes you pick it up and read it for yourself!
Destiny Johnson is a digital reporter at KGW who also reviews comics. You can tweet her about nerd stuff (or anything else really) @hello_destiny. Her reviews and lukewarm nerd news takes can be found on her YouTube channel.