Overview

""Warm, funny, and a visual delight, Steenz's take on Heart of the City is next-level.""  –Dana Simpson, Phoebe and Her Unicorn This second collection of Heart of the City comics by award-winning author Steenz includes an entire school year’s worth of friendship, drama, comedy, and middle school life lessons. You’ll want to book a front-row seat! Heart Lamarr wants to follow in her father’s footsteps as an actor, but she hasn’t seen him in years—until he shows up on Christmas Eve with a surprise gift. It’s an especially timely reappearance after Heart’s dreams of stardom hit a major snag. Meanwhile, Charlotte and friends to lead a high-tech investigation into the mystery of the missing Lost and Found items. A visit from Dean’s cousin leads to a riveting boys vs. girls showdown, and Charlotte welcomes a shy new girl to the school after seeing her with her family at the soup kitchen where Charlotte volunteers. The second book collection of Heart of the City comics by Steenz digs deeper into the adventures, friendships, and daily dramas of Heart Lamarr, a girl from Philadelphia with big dreams of heading straight from middle school to Broadway stardom.

Full Product Details

9781524879303

Table of Contents

Reviews

Sixth graders find more occasions for stress and laughter in this second collection of the “Heart of the City” comics. Drama queen Heart Lamarr (who is White) still takes center stage (except in the school play: “UNDERSTUDY?!”), but some of her friends step into the limelight now and again. Kat, who is biracial, discovers that eyeglasses aren’t the social stigma she expects and becomes smitten by brown-skinned hijab-wearing classmate Lee. Dean, who is White, stands up to a cousin who accuses him of being “soft” because of his friendships with girls, and Charlotte, who is Black, does a bit of friendship “matchmaking” at a family barbecue. Meanwhile, Heart endures an uncomfortable Christmas visit from her clueless remarried dad (“So you’re 10 now! Huh?” “I’m 11”), is startled to overhear herself referred to as Charlotte’s “white friend” (“I don’t think about my race!” Charlotte: “Lucky you!”), and, after leading an inquiry into who’s selling items from the school’s lost-and-found, pressures the culprits into cutting it out. A character list would have been helpful for new readers, particularly as a number of peripheral classmates and relatives drift in and out of view, and adults are often hard to distinguish from the kids in the art. Still, each episode flows seamlessly into the next, and the banter is light and clever. More minicrises and breezy doses of growing up. (Graphic fiction. 10-13) Kirkus Reviews * Kirkus Reviews * Each episode flows seamlessly into the next, and the banter is light and clever. More minicrises and breezy doses of growing up. (Graphic fiction. 10-13)  * Kirkus Reviews * “The graphics are well done and carry an original style. Each scene brings across the moment and emotions well, while creating a nice balance with the dialogue and thoughts… This is a spice-of-life, and the humor flows right along in this direction.” * Bookworm for Kids *

Sixth graders find more occasions for stress and laughter in this second collection of the “Heart of the City” comics. Drama queen Heart Lamarr (who is White) still takes center stage (except in the school play: “UNDERSTUDY?!”), but some of her friends step into the limelight now and again. Kat, who is biracial, discovers that eyeglasses aren’t the social stigma she expects and becomes smitten by brown-skinned hijab-wearing classmate Lee. Dean, who is White, stands up to a cousin who accuses him of being “soft” because of his friendships with girls, and Charlotte, who is Black, does a bit of friendship “matchmaking” at a family barbecue. Meanwhile, Heart endures an uncomfortable Christmas visit from her clueless remarried dad (“So you’re 10 now! Huh?” “I’m 11”), is startled to overhear herself referred to as Charlotte’s “white friend” (“I don’t think about my race!” Charlotte: “Lucky you!”), and, after leading an inquiry into who’s selling items from the school’s lost-and-found, pressures the culprits into cutting it out. A character list would have been helpful for new readers, particularly as a number of peripheral classmates and relatives drift in and out of view, and adults are often hard to distinguish from the kids in the art. Still, each episode flows seamlessly into the next, and the banter is light and clever. More minicrises and breezy doses of growing up. (Graphic fiction. 10-13) Kirkus Reviews * Kirkus Reviews *

Author Information

Christina Stewart, known as Steenz, is a St. Louis-based cartoonist, editor, and professor. They are the cartoonist on the Ringo Award-nominated syndicated comic strip Heart Of The City, the co-creator of Dwayne McDuffie Award-winning graphic novel Archival Quality (Oni Press), and are featured in short story anthologies such as Eisner and Ignatz Award-winning ELEMENTS: Fire, Mine!, and Dead Beats. Steenz launched and edited the popular RPG periodical Rolled & Told. They participate in and create community-building comics-related programming, and are a frequent panelist at comic cons. Steenz currently teaches cartooning at Webster University while editing titles from independent publishers. They live with their husband, two cats, and watch a lot of esoteric social documentaries.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available