When we first meet her, Jane is a survivor of a bomb attack in Metro City. Her parents decide to move the family from the bustling city to the safer, but boring, suburbs. This means saying goodbye to her friends and the hospitalized boy she visits whose sketchbook (titled “Art Saves”) she rescued from the debris. She is resentful and restless. She wants to fit in at her new school but isn’t sure how. Then she befriends three other girls named Jane who create an “art girl gang” and use their energy and passion to transform the environment around them. The Plain Janes, a graphic novel by Cecil Castellucci and Jim Rugg, is about friendship, loss, creativity, and doing what you think is right in the face of authority. The characters have depth and intelligence. The artwork is clean yet expressive. The narrative is inspiring and thought-provoking. It may just make you wanna break out of your routine and change the world! Note: This book is a 2010 Young Readers Choice Award nominee for 7th-9th grades. Sequel: Janes in Love.
The Plain Janes
Posted: July 22, 2009 by rjreader in Graphic Novels, Realistic Lit, Young Readers Choice AwardsTags: art, Graphic Novels, YRCA
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