As I have read a lot of middle and young adult reads, the graphic novel Scout Is Not a Band Kid by Jade Armstrong, was not a new theme. Scout is a kid who is trying to get to meet their favorite author. There is a lot of hyperbole (Scout’s “reasons” are honestly above ridiculous and seem to be untrue: “She’s 100 years old!” “She’s going to die soon!” “I’ll never meet her any other way!”) surrounding her scheme to actually meet this author. Plus, Scout’s scheme is (needless to say, but I will) pretty shady and it can be painful for the adult reader to watch. (Scout joins the school band to take advantage of their trip to the festival the author is signing at). However, it did have a nice message by the end of things when Scout realizes that friendship and commitments are more important than her desire to meet this author.
While the aged 10 and up will enjoy it, there were several plot bumps for me (such as I was not sure how a friend of Scouts and her meet up at a later date when they live far apart. The band situation is not really discussed like why it is a class/course and not a club, and while I liked the characters were not all cisgendered, I wasn’t sure the importance of pointing it out if it isn’t going to be something that is focused on, and a few other things). One thing that was a plus was there are a few footnotes that explain situations and terms that non-Canadian readers might not be aware of. Yet, even the illustrations were less fleshed out than I personally like. However, they do work for the presentation of the story and are lighthearted to give a humorous tone to things.
And while this is not my favorite read, I do look forward to finding more books by Armstrong.