Sunday, January 8, 2023

Heart Takes the Stage by Steenz - OPTIONAL

Heart Takes the Stage: A Heart of the City Collection
by Steenz,
204 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2022. $12. 

Language: G (2 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

11yo Heart Lamarr wants to be the star of the musical. She has already decided that she will someday win a Tony Award. She befriends one of the techies, Charlotte. Heart's friend Dean discovers that he has a lot in common with Charlotte, but neither knows quite what to do to progress the relationship. Also, Heart needs money to go to a concert - and might have to actually earn it! 

Fans who know of Steenz online comic strip will appreciate this compilation. As a graphic novel, it was choppy and a bit disconnected, as the story is told in mostly one page panels. I expected a lot more theater content ("Takes the Stage") and I really didn't connect at all with Heart, she's kind of awful. Not going to purchase for my library. Heart is White, Charlotte is black -the characters culture and race are only identified by the illustrations. 

Lisa Librarian 

1 comment:

Test said...

Sort of like Lumberjanes, which I didn't purchase either. I think we have similar tastes!