Parents' Guide to Pumpkinheads

This is an utterly charming and heartwarming graphic novel about two lovable besties and the power of friendship, small adventures, and pumpkin patches. Rowell and Hicks are both fabulous storytellers, and the medium works beautifully to capture the spirit of Deja and Josie's last night as pumpkin patch employees. From the opening-page map to the familiar station names (Succotash Hut, Fudge Shoppe, Pie Palace, Kettle Corn Kettle) to the deliciously detailed snack foods (readers should know they will be hungry upon finishing), this is the sort of sweet-as-pie story that middle schoolers and moms alike will adore.

Although the primary plotline revolves around Deja persuading Josiah to talk to Marcy, the Fudge Shoppe worker he's been smitten with for three years, the story goes far beyond that to explore the main characters' personalities, flaws, strengths, and experiences (he's cautious, she's impetuous; he's never been in a relationship, she's had several). The story also explores how bittersweet senior year is, this season walking a fine line between adolescence and adulthood when every big event is the "last" before everything changes. But along with the underlying substantive themes, there's a whole lot of fun. There's even a rowdy billy goat on the loose that the protagonists tend to ignore as they snack and make their way across the pumpkin patch. Pumpkinheads is sure to win over even the most jaded of readers.