Brielle and Bear: Volume 1 written and illustrated by Salomey Doku - ADVISABLE

Brielle and Bear: Volume 1 written and illustrated by Salomey Doku, 176 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL. Random House Children's Books (Penguin Random House), 2025. $25.

Language: G (1 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: G; Violence: G.

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: SEVERAL

Brielle and Bear are two students at Once Upon a Time University, the center of a charmingly picturesque fictional British village of Rosebridge. Brielle is a Portuguese Brit who is studying English as a first-year university student. Atohi “Bear” Yonas is a Mexican/Puerto Rican American rugby star in his last year at university. Volume 1 covers the Fall & Winter of their initial meeting and developing friendship.

A cozy and cute graphic novel is beautifully illustrated, however the story itself is slightly confusing. It’s supposed to be a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, and there are some references to the original story, but it feels a little forced. If you are going to name a school “Once Upon A Time University”, I would expect more fantasy than it had. In general, it was a cute story and has wide appeal for the casual teen reader, but I wouldn’t use it in the classroom.

Reviewer: Kiera Beddes, ELA teacher, #bookswithbeddes