Review: Invisible Emmie

Invisible Emmie by Terri Libenson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another great "middle school angst" graphic novel from a debut author! This one is a little bit different from the others.

First of all, the main character does not somehow stand out as being different from everyone else, nor is she teased, picked on or bullied. Instead, she is ignored. Emmie is very quiet, shy, and introverted. She does not talk to other people or speak up in class, and is perfectly ordinary in almost every way, other than having artistic talent. So no one really notices her, and she feels invisible. Katie, on the other hand, is pretty, popular, and outgoing. These two seem to have nothing in common, until one day something happens that causes their lives to intersect, ultimately helping Emmie to find her voice and become visible.

Not only are the two characters' personalities different, the author presents them in two different illustration styles. The passages about Emmie are more like an illustrated chapter book, written in regular prose paragraphs accompanied by doodles to illustrate, while the parts about Katie are told in traditional panels, comic book-style. The colors for Emmie's pages are soft and muted, while Katie's story is told with bright, vibrant colors, further reflecting the differences in their personalities. (Not being a graphic novel person, I preferred reading the "Emmie" sections, no surprise.)

I really enjoyed this book, and thought it was interesting how the author used a different format and color palette for each characters' perspective while telling the story. I don't want to say too much in a review, but in the end it will even make more sense that Katie's perspective is shown in a more cartoon-y fashion. This is a great story for all those kids who have a hard time finding their voice and often feel insignificant, and I readily identified with Emmie's character. While I wasn't quite as shy and quiet as she was in school, I too often felt ignored and invisible, and to be completely honest, I often still do even as an adult.

Fans of Raina Telgemeier and Victoria Jamieson will love this book as well, and I would also suggest it to fans of the middle grade Dear Dumb Diary, Dork Diaries and Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Terri Libenson is the cartoonist for the syndicated comic "The Pajama Diaries". Her second middle-grade graphic novel, Positively Izzy is due out in May, 2018.



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