This is perfect for fans of Freestyle by Gale Galligan.
I was thrilled to see non-binary representation that didn’t need acknowledging or explanation to any of the peers or adults in the book. Everyone seamlessly used they/them pronouns for Jay.
The scene where Jay talks to Beah about feeling like they don’t belong into one gendered category was a highlight. Beah’s affirming reaction was affirming of Jay’s identity in a very joyful and enthusiastic way.
The intersection of sports in queer graphic novels is an excellent bonus as there aren’t many!
Beah’s character was challenging and created difficult friendship dynamics but it speaks true to how friendships play out at this tween/middle school age. I think more apology and acknowledgement of Beah’s actions from herself would have given the story a little extra step up.
The art style is a bit more pastel and smudge-y in comparison to some of the popular art right now (like Raina style bold art) but it’s still extremely appealing.

This was a pretty cute book though the pictures were a bit lackluster compared to the storytelling. Even the story wasn’t told in the clearest way but it got the main point across and I felt like that was what matters most. Overall, worth reading if you’re interested in the topics it addresses already (friendship hardships and jump rope basically) but I’d probably skip it otherwise.

I’d like to thank the author, publisher, and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoy reading love the art style it looked great and unique
I really enjoyed reading the story
Rating: 4 stars
Would recommend 😊

Thank you to the author and the publisher for granting me the opportunity to read an ARC of "Skip!".

This graphic novel has an interesting premise that caught my attention. However, I made the decision to DNF the book at approximately 19%.

The storyline was not compelling enough for me to pick this graphic novel over other books in my TBR to continue to read. The graphic novel is catered to a younger audience that I'm sure will love it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I found this book in the Read Now section on NetGalley and while I did enjoy it I do not think it will be one of my favorites unfortunately.

I really did enjoy the art style but I think the layout could have used a little bit more work. Sometimes it could be really hard to follow the words because they could sometimes be all over the place!

I also think that it was a little rushed at the end and I would have liked to see a little bit more development.

Skip! is a beautiful and wonderful graphic novel from Sarah Burgess, celebrating creativity and youth. The images and storyline work well, and I would gladly share this book with readers inside and outside of classrooms.

Finished this book in an hour cause the story was intriguing, it was a perfect story for middle schoolers to learn about friendships and how you can’t control peoples feelings towards specific things. Furthermore, the drawing was great and very easy to read. Definitely will let my little sister read it.

SKIP is a quick middle grade ode to friendship, identity, and the power of sport in impacting both. (Another sporty book for me - a trend?) Again, another sport I've never really heard about but enjoyed being immersed in: double dutch/street skipping! The main character, Jay, is a nonbinary preteen whose best friend is her notebook, where she records her rhymes. Then they meet Beah, and is captured by her personality and skip skills. Beah brings Jay into her team and they develop a very intense best-friendship pretty much immediately. Conflict arises when Beah's intensity for her sport starts pushing Jay in ways that test the limit of friendship. Of course, there's a big competition, an ultimatum, and a secret that all come together to up the drama.

Overall, as much as Beah irked me at times, I totally saw her as realistic, and I loved how Burgess explored the idea of unhealthy friendship in an age-appropriate way. I think many tweens will connect with Jay, in that they often feel out-of-place and unsure of how to navigate their passions in balance with their friendships. The illustrations were dramatic and easily drew the reader in. I think readers who enjoy SMILE, THE TRYOUT, or SPEAK UP will love this sweet graphic novel.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Publishes Nov 7/23!

What a cute story! Jay was just the best. I loved them! I loved the art, it was just amazing. This was a good story of friendship and learning about yourself. Jay felt like they did not fit in anywhere until they found some friends who love double dutch. There they all were able to find a beautiful friendship. Thank you to NetGalley and Andrew McMeel Publishing for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

** 1 star⭐️**
I really wanted to like this book, but the more I read it, the more it felt like trying to remember some weird dream after waking up. meaning, I did not understand what was going on. the art style was very cute, albeit messy in some parts. it did not help that the layout of the panels and speech bubbles were unfocused and all over the place. the story did not flow and did not make sense. to add insult to injury, it was very hard for me to even follow the storyline and the characters due to the pacing.

apparently the chatacters are highschoolers but act like middle schoolers? that's what I thought at least. they are all quite annoying, including beah, who is just overbearing and controlling. jay is just led by her and doesn't say anything about it. their obsession/crush or whatever on beah seemed very weird at points and confusing. the characters seemed not to be fully fleshed out..why does beah hate her brother and why do they attend different schools??

im not sure if this book was about friendship or double Dutch or what, but it was just very confusing and I was glad to finally finish it.

Skip! is a heartwarming story of Jay, a quiet kid trying to find their place in the world through writing. Then Jay meets the outspoken, fiery Beah, who is giving it her all at Double Dutch. The two become fast friends, but the pressures of kept secrets threaten to tear them apart.

Skip! is filled with joys and childhood heartbreaks, but ultimately shows the power of good friendship and positive communication in overcoming obstacles. I love the quirky art and creative use of space on the pages to really show how Jay is feeling. Would recommend!

I rlly adored the art style of this graphic novel; it was so fluid, fun and expressive and gave a great overall energy. The story itself wasnt my favourite, but I still enjoyed it and I loved the queer rep too!!

What I loved:
- The story is an experience everyone has had - a fight with a friend when it feels like that friend is your whole world - but told through the sport of double dutch, which was new and fresh for me
- This is a story about a sweet non-binary kid - but the book is not about them being non-binary! They just are! Their pronouns are just used properly and them being enby is only mentioned once!
- Skip! is perfectly written for the intended age audience (8-12 years). It normalizes difficulty within great friendships and honors platonic love

What I didn’t love:
- I felt the story ended without the core of the conflict being addressed. That is totally realistic for the age group Burgess wrote about! But the characters might have modeled better conflict resolution if they’d gotten to the heart of the conflict (Beah prioritizing her interest over Jay’s) instead of talking around it (Beah saying it’s ok if Jay doesn’t like double dutch.) I know - spoken like a true educator. But still!

I lovedddd this graphic novel!! The expressions and fluidity of the artwork and characters was SO fun and lively, that is something that is really hard to capture! I really like that the sport of choice was double dutch.

This was okay. It was a bit redundant and tedious though. Also, the font choice is hard to read at times.

3.5 stars
Jay our resident soft enby and Beah our ball of energy who always speaks her mind where fun to watch. The emotions are very strong here whether happy or sad. I liked seeing a mom be interested in what their kid is involved in without smothering them. Their mom is awesome. I like that Jay found ways to express all of themselves through different forms of art.

Don’t read this while on a public transport of any kind as this will make you tear up! Mostly because of how cute and necessary this is. As a queer person, this honestly warmed my heart and made me cheer wildly for the main character Jay. Definitely will be needed a physical copy when it comes out! 10/10 new favourite for sure!

very quick graphic novel about a shy, loner kid meeting a very active and social girl and becoming friends. sadly i do have to say that i did not like or enjoy this as much as i thought i would. the art style personally didnt really appeal to me, i hated how beah treated her friends, and i got mad that jay still stuck around with her even after everything, though with it being so quick and kinda messy im actually confused on what that "everything" was too, i felt like the plot was overall very messy, and the same goes for everyones relationships with each other as well. to be quiet honest, i wouldve liked it way more if we got to see jay and aswin (beahs brother) hanging out and talking about poetry and music together *way* more than this, though the double dutch aspect was fun to see! i also do have to say that i quite liked the casual representation! i dont know if this was an issue with the arc file or my reading device itself but i often found the text too hard to read at times, with it being either too small or not clear enough. there was a lot going on on each page as well, which just added to the messiness in my opinion.
thank you to the publisher andrews mcmeel publishing and netgalley for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Jay is a kid who feels lonely and left out. They rather stay home and write in their poetry journal than go out and try to connect to people. But that changes when they meets Beah - a super outgoing, athletic girl who is really into double dutch. Jay is transfixed by the game, and Beah is impressed with Jay's rhymes. The two become fast friends, and Jay's world starts to open up. But can two very different people really become besties?

The story explores the highs and lows of high school friendships. Jay is nonbinary and really shy, and spends most of their time with their head in their notebook, writing rhymes, until they meet Beah and get drawn into playing Double Dutch with her and her friends.

This is a really charming comic. It has an art style that's really loose and free that works really well with the fast movement of the jump rope, and I'm sure fans of Heartstopper would enjoy this art.

While the story focuses on friendship and not romance, it focuses around how a new relationship can really take over your whole life and how difficult it can sometimes be to focus on yourself and your hobbies outside of that relationship.

I don't know if this comic is a standalone or if it's going to have more volumes, but there were a few things that felt a little unfinished (I thought the bully character was going to have more of an impact to the story), and the ending was a tiny bit rushed.