Upcoming YA graphic novel Slip is a magical journey of love, self-acceptance, and the healing power of art, debuting during the first week of Pride Month. Featuring mature yet grounded themes, Slip is a story that provides much-needed representation for young queer girls, and beautifully explores the experience of growing older, and the importance of art in processing the ups and down of life.
Slip is written by Eisner Award-nominated and New York Times bestselling author Marika McCoola (Baba Yaga's Assistant) and drawn by artist Aatmaga Pandya, who has created a world of magic and wonder in the pages of her first graphic novel. McCoola found inspiration for Jade's story through her own experiences at a summer art residency, and Pandya has revealed that over the process of creating Slip, her own experiences matched many of the project's themes, making this graphic novel incredibly resonant for both creators.
Using the backdrop of a summer art camp McCoola and Pandya attempt to capture "the excitement and heartbreak of being a teenager and the fleeting and beautiful feeling that one summer can hold dozens of exhilarating possibilities" with an exciting fantasy twist. Parents and teachers should be aware that Jade's story in Slip starts with her best friend attempting suicide, and while this is an emotional way to start a heartfelt graphic novel, it is a key part of Jade's growth and self-discovery throughout the summer, as her worry for her friend jostles with a host of new experiences. Check out the full synopsis and several preview pages for Slip from Algonquin Young Readers below. The comic is available to pre-order now from Workman.
Jade is excited to go to an exclusive summer art intensive, but right before she is about to leave, her best friend Phoebe attempts suicide. How will Jade be able to focus on her artwork during this dream opportunity?
But at the Art Farm, Jade discovers artistic possibilities she has been longing to experience her whole life. And as she gets to know her classmates, she begins to fall for whimsical, upbeat, comfortable-in-her-own-skin Mary. Jade knows she needs to keep her focus on her art, but her worry about Phoebe and her budding crush on Mary leave her overwhelmed by conflicting emotions. She channels her stress and insecurities into making ceramic monsters, but when she puts her creatures in the kiln, something unreal happens - they come to life. And they’re taking a stand: if Jade won’t confront her problems, her problems are going to confront her. Including the one she is desperately trying to avoid: If Jade grows, prospers, and even falls in love this summer, is she abandoning her best friend? Can she discover who she really is without losing Phoebe in the process?
Slip is touted as ideal reading for fans of Bloom and Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me, and is sure to act as an origin point for fulfilling conversations between readers and parents. Slip's artistic monsters are an amazing metaphor for confronting complex feelings through creation, promising to take a fantastical but relatable approach to the story's issues. McCoola, an art educator, says:
Between my junior and senior year of college, I spent a month living on a farm-turned-arts center doing a student residency. I worked on ceramics in a barn, built and fired a small kiln, cooked in an outdoor kitchen, lived in my dad's old Ford Falcon van, and ate a lot of ice cream. SLIP came out of processing emotions in my childhood bedroom surrounded by the clay creatures I'd made in college. In many ways, I had to create this book to move on to the next chapter of my life. In it you'll find my love of ceramics, the hard reality of changing relationships, and the delightful insanity of being an art student.
Slip seems perfectly poised to deal with the tumult of young life, dealing not solely with happiness, guilt, sadness, or attraction, but with how they combine and intermingle. The story is a deeply personal effort from both creators, with aspects taken from real life experiences both practical and emotional. Pandya says:
When I first started working on SLIP, I was in my mid-twenties and blissfully naive of most of the experiences reflected in the book. Since then, eerily, I've gone through much of what Jade has - in particular, a coming-of-age rooted in loss. Marika needed to tell this story to move into the next chapter of her life, and I feel like I needed to draw it to move forward.
A perfect Pride Month read or summer book club choice, Slip reflects on how art allows us to accept change and grapple with our own inner lives as well as the realities of living in a world which is often outside our control.
Slip debuts on June 7, 2022, from Algonquin Young Readers, available through Workman!