Book Posts - Belle of the Ball
Cathy G. Johnson
“A charming representation of lesbian identity!”
Cathy G.'s Book Posts
Book recommendations for young readers, educators + caregivers!
Belle of the Ball, by Mari Costa, 320 pages, First Second, 2023
Age Recommendation: Teen. Contains underage alcohol consumption.
Intro: “A young adult graphic novel about high school wallflower Belle Hawkins, who ends up in a love triangle after tutoring the girlfriend of her crush.” (Source: Macmillan)
Story Summary: “High-school senior and notorious wallflower Hawkins finally works up the courage to remove her mascot mask and ask out her longtime crush: Regina Moreno, head cheerleader, academic overachiever, and all-around popular girl. There’s only one teensy little problem: Regina is already dating Chloe Kitagawa, athletic all-star…and middling English student. Regina sees a perfectly self-serving opportunity here, and asks the smitten Hawkins to tutor Chloe free of charge, knowing Hawkins will do anything to get closer to her.
And while Regina’s plan works at first, she doesn’t realize that Hawkins and Chloe knew each other as kids, when Hawkins went by Belle and wore princess dresses to school every single day. Before long, romance does start to blossom…but not between who you might expect. With Belle of the Ball, cartoonist Mariana Costa has reinvigorated satisfying, reliable tropes into your new favorite teen romantic comedy.” (Source: Macmillan)
My Review: Belle of the Ball is a well-written teen rom-com that I greatly recommend! It contains a lot of dialogue and interactions between the main characters, which makes for a more word-dense graphic novel read than others of its kind. The book spends a lot of time building dynamics between the characters, which has a very fun and satisfying pay-off.
Another thing that’s very nice about the book is the different representations of girlhood and lesbian identity. With femme, butch, and anyone in-between represented, identity is presented and respected in a wonderful way.
This book is unexpected, cute and charming, and would be a wonderful addition to anyone’s shelf.