Member Reviews
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eArc for review!
I had been eagerly waiting to read Elles ever since Aveline started sharing her progress on her Instagram account. I absolutely adore the art style, it was visually stunning.
I had no idea what this story was about going in and I was so pleasantly surprised. I loved Elle (all of them) and all her friends. This is story was very unique and even though it's probably aimed at a younger audience, I assure you anyone will be able to enjoy this beautiful story.
This first volume has done a great job setting up what I believe is going to be a great story full of twists and turns. I only wish it had been longer, especially with that ending! I will be eagerly waiting for the continuation.
I loved everything about this book. The art work was fantastic. I need the next book in this series yesterday!
I got an advance copy of this in English from NetGalley, and I am obsessed! I have to know what happens! I love the story and the art, and the cliff hanger?? Ugh, I need more!
Looking for a cool comic about a girl with split personalities?
Elle(s), written by Kid Toussain and illustrated by Aveline Stokart is a beautiful YA comic book with a big mystery at its center. Is Elle, that fun new student, really a psychology case, or is she something more supernatural?
We follow the journey of Elle as she arrives to a new school and makes friends, starts a new life, picks up a mounting amount of everyday anxiety until something snaps. Suddenly she is someone else, and someone else again, and it becomes hard for everyone, including her to live in her shadow.
The illustrations of that graphic novel are particularly beautiful. The colours are bright and glow out of the page with amazing lighting. The expressiveness of the characters are very funny at times and so very clear. Even the personality switching is very easy to see as Elle’s hair colour changes for us and lets us see the very transformations she has to go through. There is a lot of details here and the artiste really gave a lot of love and attention to this work. I truly enjoyed the style and will plainly admit it is one of my favourite things about this comic and it is what made me pick it up in the first place.
What I liked less what the fact it really stops after just the introduction to the story. Nothing really happened or is explained, we are just introduced to an idea. And while the idea could be interesting I have no clue as to what direction it’s going to take or what purpose it will serve. It’s interesting, but I feel like I got more in a lot less pages with the Pixar anime Inside Out. This feels like it wants to be impactful and yet I'm not sure there is much substance behind any of it. The visual is amazing and I am sure will gather many fans, but the actual story needs to be more developed for any reader to have more of an opinion. Maybe the next volume will make it worth it? I don’t know, I will probably not read it as it didn't particularly talk to me.
There is something of another Elle character in the heroine of this book, and I guess that fans of the TV ceres Stranger Things will like that. People who also enjoyed the comic Spill Zone should be happy with this one.
Hmm. As this was such a short book, even for a graphic novel, and without an ending it’s hard to give appropriate feedback. I almost hope there’s something else (maybe supernatural or otherworldly?) going on. Mostly because while I’m generally happy to suspend disbelief for the sake of entertainment, the fact that Elle has been to multiple therapists who’ve misdiagnosed her, apparently a kid she’s known for a few months figures it all out within, what, a few weeks of her dissociation? I know this is YA, come on. Not to mention it paints therapists in a poor light which seems a terrible message to be sending to YA readers. However, with nothing resolved, I can’t say the author won’t wrap things up in a more satisfying way down the line. That’s why I’m suspending judgment and leaving it with 3 stars for now. I am definitely interested in seeing how things develop as the series continues. I think the story has potential and the artwork is absolutely beautiful.
Thank you NetGalley, author, and publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.
This was really good! I loved the illustration style and it was an accessible look into dissociative identity disorder, I wish it had been a bit longer, so that it explored this more. It was a fun group of characters and I liked the mystery surrounding Elle's past. The cliffhanger left me wanting so much more!
This was a sweet start to a coming of age story about a girl with what seems to be DID. Although she doesn't know that's what she has and is misdiagnosed with Bi-Polar disorder. After a fight at her old school she has started fresh as the new girl. She makes a good group of friends and everything seems to be going well for her. Until stress causes her personalities to come out and take control. What follows is a girls struggle to maintain her friend group while trying to find out more about herself.
this is the first time ever I'm going to review a graphic novel so stay with me-
this was cute! the art style was gorgeous and the graphic novel itself was very diverse. it had guys who were comfortable with their femininity, lgbt characters, poc characters, which I thought was great! to me, representation really matters, so I appreciated it a lot.
I feel like this plot wasn't bad for this type of book, even though it was very fast-paced. the novel itself has only around 100 pages plus ends on a cliffhanger. I think it should have been longer.
nonetheless, I've never actually read anything about anyone with multiple personalities, and it was really fascinating to see what it looked like or hear their thoughts. here it was presented in an understandable, clear way.
I really don't know what else I could say, since, like I already mentioned, this was really short. but, overall, it was solid and easy to get through which I liked. I think I'll continue with the series!
I want to start by saying I LOVED this. The art style? Stunning. The story? Brilliant. The representation of mental illness? On point.
This graphic novel focuses on Elle who has DID (dissociative identity disorder) which manifests itself in Elles with different hair colours. I thought that was such a nice touch because the colours seem really thought out and are explained in the story. Seeing her struggle hide who she is from her friends and live a normal life was heart wrenching. I also like that there seems to be a sci-fi element to it and its not just her mental illness there may be more to it!
The cliffhanger it ended on has me begging for more and I can't wait for it!
4.5/5
Incredible storyline that is very fitting with the vivid illustrations all throughout.
Wasn't expecting to like it but well, here we are now.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity of reading this book in exchange of an honest review!
This book is about a girl that is many girls. She have multiple personalities and this caused her a lot of problems. Now her new friends are going to help her find out what is happening with her.
The first thing that I have to say about this book is that the art is beautiful and the friendship is solid. Even with just 98 pages, the book (that clearly will have a continuation) bring real people with unique personalities, what is rare.
I also have to say that I loved the way they portrait the different personalities with her hair and inner people, that brought a magical and poetic feeling to the history.
Recommend this book for all people that are wanting to have a time between heavy readings!
This was a very creative and fun storyline. I was immediately intrigued by the plot and found it very fun and easy to read.
The characters were lovable and relatable. It was a very wholesome read with a key theme of friendship.
The art style was wonderful and very pleasing on the eye. The burst of colours and variations in character personalities match seamlessly.
I genuinely could not find fault in this book and I would gladly recommend it to others.
As the plot isn't very complex it would be easy to follow for many ages and gives off a feel good vibe as well as an adventurous element.
I would definitely be happy to read more of this series.
Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Elle(s) in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed Elle(s) as a first volume and love how instead of going heavy on world building or backstory, a lot of that information is intentionally left a mystery to both the reader and Elle all the way through until the end of the volume (speaking of which, the ending was great. It got me absolutely hooked).
It's really tricky to try and describe what this book is about. Elle doesn't quite know why she feels like she's shifting between personalities so while at times it seems like she definitely just has DID, I don't want to explicitly say that's what this book is about since it also kind of implies something far less natural and far more nefarious is actually going on. I love the way the story shows Elle's personalities as they exist in her inner world to make storytelling clearer and I'm really excited to see which route the story goes from here.
We open the book to find four friends talking about the new girl Elle, In the beginning, they become fast friends with Elle but soon they see a different side to her. we watch as Elle shift through her personalities, each one representing forms of her emotions. I really liked the art style in this graphic novel which really drew me in y, the colors are so bright and colorful, but everything went so fast that for in this volume. I was definitely not ready for the cliffhanger.
I received this graphic novel from NetGalley as an eARC in exchange for a review.
OMFG I NEED BOOK 2 NOW! That cliffhanger is going to kill me. I loved the art style of this book. The story was really face paced and fun to read. I love the sci-fi feeling twist of things. YES YES YES!
I loved this and I need the sequel! I wanted to find out what was going on and just keep reading! I loved the art style so much. this graphic novel is about a girl called Elle, she is a nice person who makes friends in her new school. however, it looks like she has different personalities and Elle & her friends try to find out what’s happening.
The New Girl (Elles, #1) is a translated comic that follows the main character Elle as she adjusts to a new school. However, Elle is feeling very stressed due to social interactions at school as well as her coursework and family issues, which is, in turn, triggering her mental health.
In general, this book presents a nice and relatable story for children who are changing schools. It features an agreeable cast of characters, who depict the importance of friendship and bonds and relationships that help you understand yourself better. The emphasis on mental health and the main character's feelings reminded me a lot of Pixar's "Inside Out", particularly its use of color to represent the main character's state of mind. On that note, the artwork is beautiful and colorful, full of close-ups to the characters and reminiscent of more modern computer-animated films like "Frozen" and "Tangled."
I must say, however, I would like to read this book in the original language, which I believe would be French, since there were instances of dialogue that sounded a bit off to me and might be the result of the translation. As a professional translator, I'm always interested in comparing the target text (the English translation) with the source material to see both what was lost and gained in the translation.
This Graphic Novel was absolutely amazing. I try to get my hands on everything that represents Multiple Personality Disorders, and this Graphic Novel did the absolute best job I have ever seen with a Original Story. Not only does it give people a look into life with DID but it also gives people with DID a feeling of recognition.
I HIGHLY recommend for everyone to at least give this graphic novel a chance!
I’m surprised and hurt at the same time. I wasn’t expecting a cliffhanger in a teen graphic novel. That was fantastically executed.
It's a unique storyline that deals with trauma, mental health, loss, friendship, and teen drama. I adore the boldness of each one of these teens, I adore how fierce they are in what they believe. I love their friendship and understanding. It feels very real.
I would recommend everyone to dive into this story and world. The art and script are fantastic, you won't regret picking this graphic novel up.
I'm very grateful for being able to have the opportunity of reading this graphic novel thanks to NetGalley.
I had no idea what to expect when I started reading this comic, but I loved it! The art style is beautiful and the message is great. I would definitely encourage middle grades students and educators to read this book since it does such a great job of introducing a complicated topic (mental health) in a visual and simple way that anyone could understand. The plot was choppy at parts and I was sometimes confused about how much time had passed between each scene, but overall this comic book was both gorgeously drawn and very engaging for readers of all ages.