Drama by Raina Telgemeier

Callie's passion is the theater.  She and her friends are the devoted stage crew of Eucalyptus Middle School.  Callie will do whatever she has to to make sure the sets are beyond perfect.  Sometimes it's hard

Loved.  Totally adorable.  So sweet I want to snuggle it.  Especially if you were ever a theater kid, whether on stage or off, it will be such fun to read this.  But even if you're not, you'll still enjoy it because it's about boy issues and friend issues and growing up.

Callie and her friends are a delightful rainbow of multiculturalism.  It isn't mention in anyway, it just is.  They're just a bunch of kids, of a variety of different ethic and cultural backgrounds and sexual preferences and they all hang out and accept each other, because why wouldn't they?  Awesome.

I must say, these are some seriously talented middle school kids.  My middle school theater productions were nowhere near as professional.  And the students are pretty much doing it all themselves, from sewing the costumes to designing the sets.  Sometimes it was hard to believe they were 6th, 7th, and 8th graders, but then, I also wasn't kissing boys in middle school. 

Callie is awesome.  She knows her passion and nothing will get in her way.  She loves theater and wants to be a set designer.  She's already pretty good at it, and will go to no end to make her vision come true.  She also has bad luck with boys.  Her first crush, her friend Matt's older brother Greg, kisses her then ignores her and gets back together with his old girlfriend.  The Callie falls for someone who may not be into girls.  Callie goes through a lot of frustration, and even a few tears, but she shows her true awesomeness by the end.  She not only rejects Greg when he asks her to be his girlfriend (after his girlfriend breaks up with him) but she ends the story without a boyfriend and  totally cool with it.  I love you Callie!

Since this was an ARC, it isn't in full color yet, but it's done in Raina's signature sweet style.  I loved Callie's little brother.  Raina perfectly captured the exuberance of an annoying little brother with a million questions.  Raina can give her characters so much personality, with just a few freckles or a signature hairstyle.

So it was fabulous.  MAKE SURE  to get this for your library when it comes out, which will be September 1, 2012.