Just Pretend | Top 5 Reasons to Read | Book Tour

I’m so excited to be a part of the book tour for Just Pretend by Tori Sharp that is being hosted by TBR and Beyond Tours.

Synopsis:

Fans of Real Friends and Be Prepared will love this energetic, affecting graphic memoir, in which a young girl uses her active imagination to navigate middle school as well as the fallout from her parents’ divorce. 

Tori has never lived in just one world.

Since her parents’ divorce, she’s lived in both her mom’s house and her dad’s new apartment. And in both places, no matter how hard she tries, her family still treats her like a little kid. Then there’s school, where friendships old and new are starting to feel more and more out of her hands.

Thankfully, she has books-and writing. And now the stories she makes up in her head just might save her when everything else around her—friendships, school, family—is falling apart.

Author Tori Sharp takes us with her on a journey through the many commonplace but complex issues of fractured families, as well as the beautiful fantasy narrative that helps her cope, gorgeously illustrated and full of magic, fairies, witches and lost and found friendships. 

REVIEW

1. Fast read! While this may be 320 pages, this was a very fast read in my opinion. I was hooked from the beginning and was very interested in learning more about Tori.
2. Memoir! This is something I don’t have any experience with in graphic novels, but I really loved the idea of a memoir in a graphic novel format.
3. The art style! Not only was this a very enjoyable art style, but I really enjoyed learning about Tori’s illustration process.
4. Super relatable! While this does deal with divorced parents, it also deals with typical middle school things like a friend going to a different school. I think many middle school aged kids will find this story to be relatable to them.
5. A tiny bit of fantasy! Throughout Just Pretend we get to see glimpses of the story Tori is writing. I really enjoyed these parts!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR