**Disclaimer: I received a free chapter sampler of Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks from First Second Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to them.
Pumpkinheads is a YA contemporary graphic novel that is hitting shelves on August 27th. As this was a chapter sampler, I do not have a full rating for you, however, I did enjoy it.
Here is the summary from NetGalley:
In Pumpkinheads, beloved writer Rainbow Rowell and Eisner Award–winning artist Faith Erin Hicks have teamed up to create this tender and hilarious story about two irresistible teens discovering what it means to leave behind a place—and a person—with no regrets.
Deja and Josiah are seasonal best friends.
Every autumn, all through high school, they’ve worked together at the best pumpkin patch in the whole wide world. (Not many people know that the best pumpkin patch in the whole wide world is in Omaha, Nebraska, but it definitely is.) They say good-bye every Halloween, and they’re reunited every September 1.
But this Halloween is different—Josiah and Deja are finally seniors, and this is their last season at the pumpkin patch. Their last shift together. Their last good-bye.
Josiah’s ready to spend the whole night feeling melancholy about it. Deja isn’t ready to let him. She’s got a plan: What if—instead of moping and the usual slinging lima beans down at the Succotash Hut—they went out with a bang? They could see all the sights! Taste all the snacks! And Josiah could finally talk to that cute girl he’s been mooning over for three years . . .
What if their last shift was an adventure?
So, admittedly I didn’t read the fine print when I requested this and thought I was getting to read the whole graphic novel. Alas, it was just a chapter sampler. However, it was a really good sampler! Graphic novels aren’t usually my thing because I just don’t ever think to grab them but I’m slowly getting ever so slightly more into them. This one caught my eye because of the name Rainbow Rowell. So far I’ve quite liked everything that I’ve read by her and so I wanted to check out her graphic novel work as well, which is where this NetGalley request came in.
The thing you notice about this sampler first is the art. The art is really lovely. It’s very different than other graphic novels I’ve read, but I still really like the style of it. The characters you meet are very distinct and they came across really well when it came to actions and expressions.
Story wise, I just barely got a taste of it, but I really think the rest of the book will be fantastic. The start was very strong. Even though it was only like 16 pages long, you still got a decent glimpse of who these characters were and their motivations going into the story.
Deja and Josiah are absolutely precious and their interactions felt so genuine and real. I really liked the dialogue, because, again, it felt genuine and real.
This graphic novel totally has potential to be the perfect cute fall read, so if you’re at all intrigued, I would suggest checking it out when the book releases on August 27th.
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