To everyone else, the Magical Land of Gumbling is something out of fairy tales. But to Nell Starkeeper, it’s just home. Sure, the town community center might be a castle, her dads run a star farm, and her best friend Myra is a fairy, but Nell is much more interested in finding out if she’ll get the seventh grade apprenticeship of her dreams with world-famous artist Wiz Bravo.
She’s pretty sure her entire life has been RUINED when she’s instead matched with boring old Mrs. Birdneck in the town archives. And of course her perfect rival Leabelle gets to work with Wiz, and mean girl Viola won’t let Nell forget it. Meanwhile, suddenly Myra seems more into hanging out with Leabelle and saving the town from some weird strangers who keep talking about turning Gumbling into a fancy resort than being friends with Nell anymore. Can Nell find a way to save everything that makes her world magical, while figuring out where she belongs in it?
What an amazing, cute but not cutesy, powerful story. This is set in a fairytale world - or, a section of our world that includes fairytale magic - but the issues and problems are very real here.
I love Nell's circle of friends and how each is important in their own way. Everyone contributes in one way or another, even as Nell is learning that the grass isn't always greener. It's a wonderful message that children won't realise they're absorbing, they'll just be enjoying a fun story!
The art is amazing - I'm a bit face blind and often have trouble with graphics, but everyone here was very clear and distinct and I had no difficulty remembering who was who. It's just cartoony enough without being completely silly, too - a perfect balance.
This is a great read with a great message and I think it's going to be really popular once it goes on sale.
Book Links:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75500826
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Nell-Gumbling-Extremely-Normal-Fairy-Tale/dp/0593570693/
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/nell-of-gumbling-emma-steinkellner/1142888526
IndieBound: https://bookshop.org/p/books/nell-of-gumbling-my-extremely-normal-fairy-tale-life-emma-steinkellner/19622679
About the Author:
Emma Steinkellner is an illustrator, cartoonist, and writer based in Los Angeles, CA.
She is the author and illustrator of the middle grade graphic novel The Okay Witch (Aladdin, Fall 2019). The Okay Witch tells the story of 13-year-old Moth Hush, who learns that magic is to be expected when you’re a Hush in an adventure that spans centuries, generations, and even worlds as Moth unravels the complicated legacy of witches at the heart of her town, her family, and herself.
She is a graduate of Stanford University’s department of Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, where she created, wrote, and illustrated her thesis It Gets Weird, a science fiction sex ed graphic novel for adolescent readers and where she proclaimed herself “one of Stanford’s most elite goons”.
Working in print and webcomics, Emma has illustrated projects with her radiant sister, writer Kit Steinkellner, including the teen rom-com webcomic Aces and the Eisner-nominated superhero coming-of-age story Quince with Fanbase Press and is the creator of the comic diary Pow Slam Sparkle.
Author Links:
Website: http://www.emmasteinkellner.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emsteinkellner/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16313412
Tour Schedule:
Book Links:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75500826
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Nell-Gumbling-Extremely-Normal-Fairy-Tale/dp/0593570693/
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/nell-of-gumbling-emma-steinkellner/1142888526
IndieBound: https://bookshop.org/p/books/nell-of-gumbling-my-extremely-normal-fairy-tale-life-emma-steinkellner/19622679
About the Author:
Emma Steinkellner is an illustrator, cartoonist, and writer based in Los Angeles, CA.
She is the author and illustrator of the middle grade graphic novel The Okay Witch (Aladdin, Fall 2019). The Okay Witch tells the story of 13-year-old Moth Hush, who learns that magic is to be expected when you’re a Hush in an adventure that spans centuries, generations, and even worlds as Moth unravels the complicated legacy of witches at the heart of her town, her family, and herself.
She is a graduate of Stanford University’s department of Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, where she created, wrote, and illustrated her thesis It Gets Weird, a science fiction sex ed graphic novel for adolescent readers and where she proclaimed herself “one of Stanford’s most elite goons”.
Working in print and webcomics, Emma has illustrated projects with her radiant sister, writer Kit Steinkellner, including the teen rom-com webcomic Aces and the Eisner-nominated superhero coming-of-age story Quince with Fanbase Press and is the creator of the comic diary Pow Slam Sparkle.
Author Links:
Website: http://www.emmasteinkellner.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emsteinkellner/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16313412
Tour Schedule:
Nell of Gumbling publishes on the 26th of September, 2023 in both the UK and US, using the same cover. I received a free copy as part of this blog tour and am giving an honest review.
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