Giant Days Vol 1 by John Allison

Illustrated by Lissa Treiman, colored by Whitney Cogar
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College roommates Susan, Ester, and Daisy navigate their budding college lives together.  Ester is the feature of some cyber stalking when a photo of her at a party ends up on a website rating hot first years. After they both took a gap year, Susan’s “nemesis” comes to her university, and she uses the power of her feminist magazine to splatter his reputation. Daisy’s new friend furnishes her with some pills to make sure she really enjoys her 18th birthday party.  Daisy isn't sure if the pills have made her attracted to her new friend, or if this feeling is natural. 

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This series has won several Eisner awards and, at its core, is about friendship and personal exploration.  There is humor and some British cultural references that students may not get. Obviously there is drug and alcohol use.  The art is cartoony but extremely enjoyable.  The storyline of the first volume really didn't impress me, even though I've had it recommended by several trusted friends.  I didn't gravitate towards either of the three ladies as being someone I could root for or see myself in, so I didn't care as much about what they were going through.  However, since I've heard so many good things, and since it's won awards, I'm going to give it another volume before I completely write-off the series.

BOOM! doesn't have an age rating on this volume that I could find.  The subjects are college students, and there are drug and alcohol references and usage throughout.  The language is mild.  Otherwise, the subject matter here is a fairly decent mirror of the self-discovery many high school students go through at the beginning of their high school lives.

Sara's Rating: 6/10
Suitability Level: Grades 9-12

​Tags: Rating: 6/10, Suitability: High School, Comicbooks, Realistic Fiction, School Age