RA RA READ: Smile Read-Alikes

In realistic graphic novels for elementary and middle school students, Raina Telgemeier is queen and all others bow before her. However, there are lots of other options out there as the genre has grown and it's especially great to see more diverse titles showing up!

The trickest thing with this genre is younger kids wanting to read books set in middle school, which their caregivers don't think they're ready for, or kids not being willing to try other things but re-reading their favorites constantly. Personally, I don't know that the last is that big of a problem, but it does bother some people. So I've included some titles that will appeal to younger kids and ones that will generally be better for middle school or high school, although it always depends on the reader themselves.

See a wider variety, especially more diverse titles, on my Pinterest page here.

The big names are:

Raina Telgemeier

• Smile, Sisters, Drama, Guts
• Drama is frequently challenged because two boys share a kiss. When I have parents who are concerned about content, I tell them that it is more middle school-appropriate, since it deals with crushes and mild romance. I do not specifically identify the crushes.
• Telgemeier has a stand-alone called Ghosts and an interactive journal, Share Your Smile. She has also contributed to the Comics Squad anthologies.

Victoria Jamieson

• Roller Girl, All's Faire in Middle School
• These are very similar to Telgemeier, but have more unique settings and Jamieson has her own style and twist on the genre. She also has two humorous graphic novels, Pets on the Loose about a band of school pets trying to escape, which can be enjoyed by all ages.

Jennifer Holm

• Babymouse, Sunny, Middle School is worse than meatloaf
• Holm has been around a lot longer than Telgemeier, and her stuff has always been popular, but never with that "I absolutely have to have it NOW" urgency. Babymouse is a more humorous look at school life, featuring a cast of animals. There is a spin-off, Squish, featuring the adventures of Babymouse's science experiment (an amoeba) in his own school. Sunny is definitely in the Telgemeier vein, and some parents are uncomfortable due to the depiction of family issues, albeit they are very sensitively handled. Middle School is worse than meatloaf and sequels are not written in a traditional comic style, instead they include photos, post-its, notes, texts, etc. in a kind of a book-length collage.

More Smile Read-alikes

• Sanity and Tallulah by Molly Brooks
• This is science fiction and more about the adventure than interpersonal relationships.
• Amelia Rules! (series) by Jimmy Gownley
• Making friends (series) by Kristen Gudsnuk
• Wrinkle in time by Madeleine L'Engle (graphic novel)
• Invisible Emmie (series) by Terri Libenson
• Click (series) by Kayla Miller
• Cardboard kingdom by Chad Sell
• To Dance by Siegel
• Stargazing by Jen Wang

Smile Read-alikes for elementary school

• El Deafo by Cece Bell
• Cici, a fairy's story (series) by Cori Doerrfeld
• This is a fantasy - Cici discovers she is a fairy - but is really more about friendship and family issues.
• Real Friends by Shannon Hale
• Note that the sequel, Best Friends, jumps to middle school
• Baby-sitters Club by Ann Martin
• The first few graphic adaptations are done by Raina Telgemeier, then other artists took over but in similar styles. There is also a graphic adaptation of the spin-off, Baby-sitters Little Sister.
• Phoebe and her unicorn by Dana Simpson
• This is a comic strip, rather than a graphic novel, and includes unicorns and other magical beings, but the interactions of the kids in school makes it appealing to these fans.

Smile Read-alikes for middle school

• Hope Larson
• Be Prepared; Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol
• Kat and Mouse (quartet) by Alex de Campi (out of print)
• Pashmina by Nidhi Chanani
• Berrybrook Middle School (series) by Svetlana Chmakova
• New Kid and other titles by Jerry Craft
• Hey Kiddo by Jarrett Krosoczka

Smile Read-alikes for high school

• Faith Erin Hicks (illustrator or author)
• Laura Lee Gulledge
• Peanut by Ayn Halliday