Adorable Empire: A Graphic Novel by Laura Terry is a nice solid 3. The story is not new (magical animals, being yourself, divorce, complicated family and friends relationships), but it is nice (I will repeat this word) and has a few points that keep it new for someone who has read a lot of this theme, but also does not deter a newbie to the flock of coming of age books. There are nice illustrations that are not WOW, but not blah either. Overall, it is cozy. It is a read that after I was done I said, “That was nice.” And now I think, “Nothing wrong with a little bag of M&Ms.” I prefer peanut butter or peanut M&MS, but I do enjoy original M&Ms. And that was Terry’s book, regular M&Ms for me.
Now for the aged 8 and up, especially a reader who might be dealing with some of the issues (above things and LGBTQ understandings of yourself), they will enjoy it. It has the fantasy, the realism and ties it together so it is funny (I know it is not really supposed to be funny, but the pickle jar scene was very amusing to me), clever and relatable. Now we might not get a bunch of furry, magical animals from a funky looking crystal to help us adjust to our life changes, but we know how those feelings of needing friendships, things being as they were, and that understanding of self feel.
There could be a sequel, but I actually don’t want one as I like the basically “Happy Ending” as it is. Terry is a good author to keep an eye on and if you want something a little more fantasy, but still with realism, Graveyard Shakes: A Graphic Novel is also by them and a nice read.