• Fresh Start

Fresh Start

Author
Publication Date
January 07, 2025
Genre / Grade Band
Fiction /  4th − 5th
Fresh Start

Description

From New York Times bestselling author Gale Galligan comes a funny and vibrant semi-autobiographical middle-grade graphic novel about friendship and belonging.

Ollie Herisson's dad is a diplomat, which means her family moves around a lot. She has already lived in Singapore, Korea, France, and the United States. When Ollie starts at a new school, she doesn't worry about making a good impression because she knows that when her family inevitably moves again, she'll get a fresh start somewhere else. A complete reset. It doesn't matter if her classmates think she's weird for pretending that she lives in the world of an imagined anime, or if she makes an enemy out of the most popular girl in her class, or if she does something hugely embarrassing! And it definitely doesn't matter that all her mom wants is for Ollie to be more of a proper Thai daughter.

But after moving from Germany to Virginia and having a mortifying first day at her new school, Ollie is shocked to learn that her parents are going to buy a house so that Ollie and her sister, Cat, can finish grade school in one place. Can Ollie figure out how to both be herself and make real friends when she can't run away from her life?

Publication date
January 07, 2025
Classification
Fiction
Page Count
288
ISBN-13
9781338045840
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Graphix
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV039060 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Friendship
JUV008000 - Juvenile Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | General
JUV039020 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Adolescence
Library of Congress categories
-

Kirkus

Starred Review

A hilarious and undeniably endearing tale of tweenhood.

School Library Journal

Starred Review

Beautifully -tackles -complex -friendships, sibling -dynamics, racial identity, and gender expression. This graphic novel about friendship and identity is a must-have for libraries -serving elementary and middle school readers.

ALA/Booklist

Led by a tween who has no qualms being herself, this joyful graphic novel marks the evolution of her vulnerability and humility, with friendship as a reward.

Gale Galligan
Gale Galligan is the creator of the New York Times bestselling Baby-sitters Club graphic novel adaptations of Dawn and the Impossible Three, Kristy's Big Day, Boy-Crazy Stacey, and Logan Likes Mary Anne! by Ann M. Martin. They are also the creator of Freestyle, an original graphic novel that they both wrote and illustrated. When they aren't making comics, Gale enjoys knitting, drumming, and spending time with their family and adorable pet rabbits in Pearl River, New York. Gale is a founding member of the Comics Advocacy Group, a 501(c)3 nonprofit that is dedicated to making careers in comics more accessible and sustainable. Visit them online at galesaur.com.