Greater Secrets

Disgruntled 17-year-old barista Maya’s family is cursed. According to her father, the affliction appears as a light that inspires those who can see it to follow it, often to their detriment. She and her older sister Amara were encouraged to “ignore it and live a normal life.” But when Amara, an emerging musician, disappears, Maya is certain that it’s because she went in search of the light. Amara’s music continues to amass a following, even as Maya and her family struggle to return to normalcy while being bombarded with images and memories of their missing member, depicted in striking illustrations that render past happenings through concert posters, video recordings, and visualized audio streams. Maya is soon confronted by an overzealous fan named Cardea, a college-bound teen claiming to know where Amara has gone, who invites Maya to join her and her friend Dyno on a road trip to find her. Themes surrounding climate change feel surface-level; nevertheless, previous collaborators Hirsh and Stone (Buzz!) excel in their portrayal of friendship and growing through adversity in this hopeful graphic novel. Ages 12–up. (Nov.)