Synopsis
Caroline Kim is feeling the weight of sophomore year. When she starts tutoring infamous senior Kimberly Park-Ocampo—a charismatic lesbian, friend to rich kids and punks alike—Caroline is flustered . . . but intrigued
Their friendship kindles and before they know it, the two are sneaking out for late-night drives, bonding beneath the stars over music, dreams, and a shared desire of getting away from it all.
A connection begins to smolder . . . but will feelings of guilt and the mounting pressure of life outside of these adventures extinguish their spark before it catches fire?
From: HarperCollins
Notes on This Title
The main characters of this title are Caroline, a queer Korean American teen and Kim, a lesbian teen who is of Filipino and Korean descent. Both are shown going to church. Caroline indicates that she’s considered using they/them pronouns, but uses she/her pronouns during the story.
The supporting cast includes a number of Asian American characters, including a Chinese American teen and a teen who is Black and Chinese American, both of whom start using they/them pronouns over the course of the story, as well as a trans Asian American teen boy.
There are multiple instances in which body-shaming is depicted.
Awards
None.
Reviews
“Gripping and thoughtful, but the clunky ending disappoints.” (Source: Kirkus Reviews)
“Debut creator Sunmi’s grayscale graphic novel artfully captures the trials and tribulations of one teen’s experience wrestling with who she’s always been and who she wants to be via emotive facial expressions and youthful language, making for a sensitive and meditative character study.” (Source: Publishers Weekly)
Interviews
SOLRAD: “Fantastical Femininity: Sam Nakahira Interviews Sunmi“