Drama

Author: Raina Telgemeier

This week I’m reviewing the first graphic novel I’ve ever reviewed on this blog.  When this graphic novel, Drama, was released in 2012, it received positive reviews and was a bestseller immediately.  However, this book was banned in some libraries/schools in the U.S. due to the fact that there were a couple of gay characters in the book.  While I can count on one hand the number of graphic novels I’ve read, I really enjoyed this one, most especially since it has to do with theater; it also reminds me of some of the shows I’ve been watching recently (like the High School Musical TV show on Disney+).

Drama is about a middle school girl, Callie, who adores musicals and who’s the set designer for the stage crew of her school’s drama department, along with several of her friends.  Callie’s school is doing a production of Moon over Mississippi, and she’s “over the moon” to get started.  However, while Callie wants to help put on a really good show, she’s distracted by issues with the set production, by typical middle school crushes and by just overall theater “drama.”  Despite all of this, Callie is determined to make sure that the show will go on.  Though there is a lot drama in this read (hence the title), this graphic novel is very sweet and funny.  The illustrations are very well done, and the friendships between Callie and her friends are very admirable, though I do think that the middle schoolers were way too young to be dating each other.  I think that reading this book showed me that there is a need for graphic novels to be more recognized as good literature.  Even though I haven’t read a lot of them, I have enjoyed the ones I’ve read and, despite some people giving them a bad reputation, they are just as good as any other book.  If anything, reading one is like your holding animation in your hands, so to speak.  So, I hope if you decide to read this book that you will appreciate the graphic novel genre more!