Life as an outsider, can be rough for teenagers.  As being new to a place, you get everybody’s eyes on you, wondering who you are and if you fit in. Never mind you have your own anxieties, about how the school is going to be. The reality is most teenagers just want to be left alone, and be invisible.

I remember high school, being somewhat fun for myself as I had friends in just about all my classes and outside of them. I always wondered about those quiet kids that kept their heads down and tried to stay out of everybody’s way. As high school can be unforgiving and can also be memorable, it just all depends where you are in the class system. In Mariko and Jillian Tamaki’s Skim, one of those quiet teenagers endures a series of trials where she suddenly the ire in everyone’s eyesight.

In the opening pages we meet Skim, or as her government name is Kimberly, but some call her Goth, because she is a practicing Wicca. Her life is ordinary, until the boyfriend of the most popular girl, kills himself, and everyone looks at Skim, assuming she is the source of his demise. Her anxieties increase, as her depression becomes even worse, as her crush is a quirky teacher. By book’s end, she finds out she is the most normal person in her school, as the people around her, were the ones who struggled with fitting in.

Overall, an excellent book, that proves the Tamakis are masters of storytelling in sequential art. The story by Mariko Tamaki is relatable, funny and emotionally gratifying. The art by Jillian Tamaki is absorbing and beautiful. Altogether, a great book that’s a testimonial to being yourself is the only way to be.

Story: Mariko Tamaki Art: Jillian Tamaki
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy