Calling all Raina Telgemeier fans! The Newbery Honor-winning author of Roller Girl is back with a heartwarming graphic novel about starting middle school, surviving your embarrassing family, and the Renaissance Faire.
Eleven-year-old Imogene (Impy) has grown up with two parents working at the Renaissance Faire, and she's eager to begin her own training as a squire. First, though, she'll need to prove her bravery. Luckily Impy has just the quest in mind—she'll go to public school after a life of being homeschooled! But it's not easy to act like a noble knight-in-training in middle school. Impy falls in with a group of girls who seem really nice (until they don't) and starts to be embarrassed of her thrift shop apparel, her family's unusual lifestyle, and their small, messy apartment. Impy has always thought of herself as a heroic knight, but when she does something really mean in order to fit in, she begins to wonder whether she might be more of a dragon after all.
As she did in Roller Girl, Victoria Jamieson perfectly—and authentically—captures the bittersweetness of middle school life with humor, warmth, and understanding.
A New York Times Editor’s Choice
An Autumn Kids’ Indie Next List top pick
A Boston Globe Best Children's Book
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book
A New York Public Library Notable Children's Book
A Southern Living Best Children’s Book
A Little Maverick Graphic Novel Reading List book
An ALA Notable book
A VOYA Top Shelf pick
A CCBC Choices book
"All’s Faire in Middle School is a delightful, funny, and thoughtful adventure through the challenging worlds of friends and family. Huzzah!"—Jennifer and Matthew Holm, New York Times bestselling authors of Sunny Side Up
"Victoria Jamieson's graphic novels are gateway drugs to all the best nerdy hobbies." —Cory Doctorow
★ "Readers will cheer [Imogene's] victories, wince at her stumbles, and likely demand visits to the nearest faire themselves to sample the wares and fun." — Kirkus, starred review
★ "Jamieson doesn’t disappoint in her first graphic novel since her Newbery Honor–winning Roller Girl." — Publishers Weekly, starred review
★ "As heartfelt as it is gorgeous, this is a worthy addition to any middle grade graphic novel collection." — School Library Journal
"Roller Girl was terrific...All’s Faire in Middle School is even better…The story has shades of Harriet the Spy, Monty Python and Peanuts, and the ending is tremendously satisfying without feeling false or unearned…I dub thee brilliant." — The New York Times Book Review
"Jamieson masterfully taps into the voice and concernsof middle-schoolers.... Kids wholoved Jamieson’s Roller Girl will adore this one, too." — Booklist
"Middle school is about to get a lot more Faire thanks to Victoria Jamieson’s latest graphic novel."—Entertainment Weekly
"Imogene’s story is a Renaissance tale itself—an experience complete with tension, laughter,
anticipation, heartbreak, and delight." —The Horn Book
"The mean girls/oddball family themes feel fresh, and the explicitly stated moral of 'You’re not the center of the damn universe!' goes down easy." —BCCB
"This might be the best graphic novel that I have ever read." — Nerdy Book Club
“This colorful graphic novel is rich with themes of belonging, friendship, family, making tough choices, and finding your own way.”—International Literacy Association
"A spot-on depiction of the complexities of family dynamics, the nuances of friendship, and the longing to fit in vs. the pull of being true to oneself. Gloriously illustrated in full color, every inch a pleasure. Grade A.” —Sunday Plain Dealer
