Friends With Boys

Friends With Boys by Faith Erin Hicks (2012)

I had high hopes for this graphic novel, and I was both pleased and disappointed by the end. Goodreads describes this book as "a coming-of-age tale with a spooky twist," so I was hoping for something along the lines of Anya's Ghost, because main character Maggie is haunted by a ghost. But we never really find out who the ghost is or why it haunts her (and her brothers). Instead, the book is mostly about Maggie, who has been home schooled up to high school, begins attending public school, navigating the usual angsty issues, making friends, learning about herself and her brothers.

I was pleased by the characters. I really like Maggie, her brothers, her dad (a suddenly single father with new responsibilities at work) and her new friends Lucy and Alistair. Hicks opened up so many potential story lines -- what's up between Alistair and his former friends, the popular dudes? what happened to Maggie's mom? how will Maggie navigate the rest of high school? what will become of her crush on Alistair? who is the ghost haunting the McKays? I loved the artwork, and I really want to get to know the McKay boys, so I hope this is the start of a series, or at least that there will be a sequel.

And, I just found her website, so I'll definitely be perusing the portfolio to get my fix for her art, which is rather quite excellent.