Flip

A Black teen and her white crush swap bodies in this nuanced Freaky Friday riff by Ukazu (Bunt!). When she’s not obsessing over K-pop boy band BGBB, Texas private school scholarship student Chi-Chi yearns to be noticed by her popular—and unattainable—classmate Flip. After being knocked unconscious in a rainy-day fall, Chi-Chi wakes up the next morning to learn that she and Flip have somehow traded bodies. Though the first switch is short-lived, the two seniors keep inexplicably swapping places. And as they attempt to determine how to change back permanently, each subsequent flip lasts longer than the prior one. The duo’s differing gender and racial experiences are playfully incorporated (their hygiene boundary is “keep tidy; don’t explore,” and Flip implores Chi-Chi not to imitate her mother’s Nigerian accent while in his body), providing laugh-out-loud moments alongside incisive examinations of personal identity and perception. In her “most autobiographical work to date,” per an author’s note, Ukazu draws from her own adolescent struggles to present an engrossing standalone graphic novel about self-acceptance rendered using clean line art, dynamic paneling, and eye-catching color palettes. References to The Bluest Eye and myriad IRL K-pop groups add texture and personality. Ages 14–up. Agent: Chelsea Eberly, Greenhouse Literary. (Sept.)