Sattin, Samuel. Buzzing: Rise Above the Noise. Rye Hickman, Illus. Little Brown, 07/2023. 224pp. Graphic. Trade $24.99 978-0-316-62843-3. Paper $12.99. 978-0-316-62841-9. GRADES 6 – 8. HIGH ADDITIONAL.
Every day, all day, Isaac battles with intrusive thoughts as he struggles to function in middle school and at home. The realistic illustrations highlight his mental state: all grey except for the yellow cartoon bees buzzing poisonous thoughts. But when a classmate, Micah, reaches out, intrigued by Isaac’s dragon doodle, and invites him to join a role-playing game with a posse of peers, color floods his fantasy world. At home the grey scale persists where a disgruntled older sister and over-protective mom seem as stuck as Isaac. But slowly, small victories and some helping hands change the narrative. Nonbinary orientation is centered and diversity is represented, but the majority of characters are racially indeterminate or read as white. Reviewed from an ARC.
Melissa McAvoy—Retired