Julie and the Blue Guitar: American Girl Mysteries Across Time | Review

Julie & and the Blue Guitar: American Girl Mysteries Across Time
By Casey Gilly & Felia Hanakata
IDW, June 2024, $9.99
Grades 3-6

I have two daughters, and having an American Girl Doll is almost like a rite of passage amongst their friends. (Thank goodness for grandparents!) And while playing, dressing, and enjoying the doll is one way to enjoy the franchise, the books are another. The American Girl series took up ample shelf space in my early days as a librarian. Unsurprisingly, the publisher has joined the popular trend of adapting their series into graphic novel format. In this case, though, the stories are original and are not a literal adaptation of the prose series.

Emma is extremely nervous about starting over when she moves to a new city. She’s working on an art project due at the start of the new school year that she hopes will impress her new classmates. But she changes course on her project when she discovers a journal in an old thrift store. The journal is from Julie, a young girl writing in 1976, who chronicles the disappearance of precious artifacts meant to be auctioned off for charity. Emma decides to find out more about Julie and figure out where she is now. The story alternates between Emma in the present and Julie’s diary. The plot moves quickly, as is common in early-middle-grade stories, but the pace is perfect for the age group. Emma is a curious and determined pre-teen, quite similar to Julie, who tries to solve a mystery and right a wrong throughout the story. The adults, past and present, are helpful to the pre-teens, lending a pleasant vibe to the story.

The artwork in this graphic novel feels a bit basic, like something you’d see in a cartoon. While it’s clear and easy to follow, it sometimes misses the depth that more detailed art can bring. On the bright side, the colors are super cheerful and really pop, adding a fun vibe to the story. Plus, the way the panels are laid out keeps things interesting and pulls you through the pages in a really engaging way.

The American Girl franchise has always strived to lend diversity to its characters, and that’s true of this book as well. The story is not super predictable, and I can picture many elementary-aged children picking up this title and enjoying it.

Filed under: Graphic Novels, Reviews