AVANT GUARDS is incredible!

✨ sapphic relationship
✨ non-binary character
✨ trans character
✨ mostly poc
✨ college sports & magic

Comes out September 3rd @boomstudios 🏳️‍🌈

A fun first volume featuring a cast of female and non-binary characters as they come together to form a college basketball team. I rarely come across or read books featuring women and girls in sports so this was a nice change of pace from the various books I have read with male athletes. The cast is a diverse lot in many different ways but I couldn't help but feel that this was more due to deliberately making them very diverse for the sake of representation than as a result of a natural development process of these characters. This is not necessarily a terrible thing depending on how you look at it; in a lot of ways writers in 2010s are playing catch up with trying to represent multiple ethnicities, sexualities, etc. I just hope future volumes will flesh out the cast a lot more as right now a couple of them feel flat and uninteresting.

This book was super cute, but I felt like the story jumped around a lot. There wasn't enough backstory for the characters to become attached to them and they felt disjointed. I still really enjoyed the book overall and I will likely pick up future additions to the story, but I hope they have a better flow than this one.

While I was excited to read this when I received this book as an eARC from NetGalley, it was quite underwhelming for me. Pitched as a more introspective tale of a college student trying to find a balance between both the artistic and athletic sides of herself, I was very quickly intrigued by this graphic novel. However, while there were definitely aspects of Liv's desires to express both sides of herself, this novel predominantly centers around her relationship with the recent transfer student, Charlie. Falling into the insta-love trope almost immediately, the relationship between these two girls lost its excitement for me within the first few pages. Moreover, with the added layer of complexity with her ex-girlfriend, I found Liv’ s infatuation with Charlie to feel disingenuous as it is clear that she still feels strongly for her past love. This is also compounded by the fact that while Liv is unapologetically herself throughout the novel, neither of these relationships seems to value who she truly is. I also feel like I would’ve enjoyed this book significantly more if the representation within the characters was more thoroughly explored. Especially in the instance of Charlie's panic attack, we see no effort to thoroughly delve into this side of her character, brushing it off as pre-game nerves rather than directly addressing how she's feeling. Therefore, while I did really appreciate such a diverse cast, I would've loved to see more of each of the characters and the ways in which they all have grown through the amalgamation of their basketball team. Overall, I ultimately think this had a lot more potential in its narrative despite it artistically presenting beautifully.

HELLO I'M LEA AND I HAVE FALLEN IN LOVE WITH A NEW GRAPHIC NOVEL SERIES!!!!

This is such a fantastic graphic novel, featuring an amazing cast of diverse character. We have several queer characters, one character uses they/them pronouns: There's also so many characters of colour.

I am usually not one to go for stories about sports but the art just makes even that aspect so much fun for me! And honestly the goofy characters alone are just 100% worth it. Not only are they very diverse when it comes to marginalization, it's also such a diverse group of styles and personalities. It's always so fun to me to see a group of people hanging out together and bonding over a thing that you would normally not really expect.

On top of all the good things, there is a f/f romance that is slooowly developing and I cannot wait to see where this goes in future installments.

I just loved this so very much and I'd highly recommend it for fans of graphic novels like GIANT DAYS and LUMBERJANES. I see even more potential for where this is gonna go!

Content warning: panic attacks (it’s mentioned that one of the characters has had them before!)

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for a honest review!

I really enjoyed this! The characters were well written and it’s such a fun storyline that you can’t help but get sucked in. I know little to nothing about basketball and found this was easy to understand even with the amount of knowledge I have when it comes to the sport.

However, that cliffhanger is something I wasn’t prepared for and now I’m really curious to see how the story will continue on!

This was such a fun read! I've been in the mood for cute, LGBTQ+ graphic novels recently and this totally hit the spot! But now I need the other volumes!
There was so much representation in this graphic novel, my heart is so happy. For a fairly short read they packed plenty in, romantic angst, past relationships, jealousy, friendship, loyalty, all the feelings!
The colours in this novel worked so well, it's like a slightly muted colouring but it's so soothing to look at.
I'm a decent sports fan and I loved that this is the story of gathering together an all girls basketball team. Go girls! I would definitely recommend!

I absolutely love Carly Usdin and have been following The Avant-Guards through Hoopla but they were missing issues 3 and 4. I couldn't wait to continue and I'm glad I didn't. The Avant-Guards are a diverse group of girls, a witch and a theatre geek*to name a few. It tackles a whole lot of issues with the backdrop being college basketball. I love that this is about women's basketball because it doesn't get the attention or recognition it deserves. Usdin has brought charming characters to yet another comic. It also has casual queer characters and relationships on-page and I adore it. Pick this one up if you haven't yet.

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Boom! Box through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.*

VERY excited for Volume 2! I loved the storytelling, the characters and, the artwork was gorgeous! It will be interesting to see where the story goes and how the characters continue to develop. A must add to collections, most definitely!

A group of weirdos forms a basketball team—the first ever NCAA Division IV League—comprised of girls from various arts schools, and tries to recruit Charlie into their midst.

Oh be still my heart!

This was damn adorable. So cute. Much queerness.

Charlie was awesome (although I wished that the army-green jacket and dog tags had meant she was a recently discharged soldier—that would have added some much needed for me nuance because I want to see women vets in everything!). Heartbroken, suffering from anxiety and struggling to get back on her feet after a brutal year at her old school, yet still hopeful for a second chance on the court. Even if she resists. A lot.

Liv was hilarious. A hyper-active Type A driven to excel at everything and I loved her so much. She's that person who goes big or goes home. The grand gestures and everything were awesome and just so bubbly.

Everyone else on the team was bursting with life, particularly as they stalked Charlie and tried to get her onto the team.

I also loved that this is a graphic novel about women in college sports—queer women and women of color and women of varying religions—and how they come together and are truly nice when competing (although that halftime show was an adorably low blow).

Fans of Check Please! are sure to enjoy this series, too!

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review – thanks so much to Netgalley for sending this to me!

This book was just so fun, and a solid set-up for a series I’m super excited for. I feel like this could be another Giant Days for me (Giant Days is my favourite graphic novel series EVER) and I am so ready.
In volume 1 of The Avant-Guards, we follow Charlie, a transfer student who is trying to find her feet at a new university and is almost immediately waylaid by Liv, a hugely motivated type-A student who is trying to recruit students to join her basketball team. Charlie fights it at first, but she can’t resist Liv’s charms, and is quickly pulled into the world of the Avant-Guards with all their silly antics and friendships.

I was drawn to this book by the art style, and I stayed for its heart. The characters are all adorable – Liv is a standout favourite, but I also have a soft spot for Tiffany, a witch who keeps trying to recruit people to her coven. All the characters have their own stand-out moments, and I can’t wait to see how relationships develop and to get to know everyone better. There’s also an adorable romance being set up that I am already here for – did I mention it’s sapphic? Because it’s sapphic, and who doesn’t need more sapphic sports romance in their life?

The plot of this one is very chill, but I enjoyed that. It felt very relaxing to read something with lower stakes and to hang out with these characters for a while. The art was lovely, and I’m definitely going to pick up a physical copy because I read this on my computer and had to zoom in a lot, which made the images a bit grainy. That was a huge shame because I really appreciated the art and I want to see it in its full, crisp glory! This isn’t a criticism of the book, though, I just think the graphics would have been even better if I could have held them in my hand and that[‘s exactly what I’m going to do.

Overall this series just gives me great vibes – it’s funny, friendly and sweet as pie, and I can’t wait for the next volume.

I really enjoyed reading this! The art was so colourful and fun and each of the characters were really charming and easy to root for. The story was simple, almost a little slice of life, but there was enough there to leave me wanting to find out what happens next. A really fun read!

The Avant-Guards is a great story about a bunch of girls who are just playing basketball to have fun. They're all remarkably different people and still manage to be friends, which is a great thing for kids to see. Though the characters are all in college, the series doesn't read too old and is definitely appropriate for any teen collection.

This was a great start! I loved the different personalities and how they complimented each other, even though none were the same. You also got a really nice introduction to the two main characters by following their respective point-of-views in the different chapters, not unlike reading a book with two main characters where the chapters alternate between them.

The story (and underlying themes) are cute and to the point. The art is great and I'd love to see more. It's fun to find another sports related graphic novel that's well done. If you like Fence for example, you'll probably like this as well. I'm definitely picking up volume 2 of the Avant-guards when it comes out!

I got an ARC of this book.

I knew nothing about this book going in. I kept seeing the ad for it in the back of the comics that I read on a regular basis. I figured I would give it a shot since the publisher hasn’t steered me wrong yet. Great motivations, I know.

This book didn’t disappointed. It was goofy and wonderful. The characters are pretty flat at this point, but even by the end of the first volume, some of them were getting depths. There were unresolved emotions, anxieties, and hints of more to come. I loved all of the growth and depth the characters were starting to get. I want to see how much further they will go.

The art is exactly what I needed for this story. It isn’t too cartoony and it isn’t too realistic. The colors pop, but don’t detract from the images or the story. The faces and reactions that the artist is able to create were spot on. There was one face near the end where there was a close up on Charlie. Out of content the shot doesn’t seem all that remarkable, still a great image, but nothing earth shattering. With the story though, that panel comes to life in a way that blew me away.

The story is the goofy part. It is about a basketball team that is being created at an arts school. They somehow are good, or maybe the other team is just really not into like they are. Either way, it was wonderful to see the team win and it be clearly weird about them winning without detracting from the feelings it gave the team.

Diverse, goofy, and pretty. Count me in for a second volume!

I really loved this book. The art and the story were amazing. The representation was great we had bisexual, non-binary, gay and people of charcters. I liked the art style that was to complicated. The love story was also pretty cute.

This story sees our main character Charlie transfer to a new school and join the basketball team.
I liked the inclusivity it promoted. Most characters are on the LGBT+ spectrum and it has more than the usual token black character.
I'm not a big sports fan myself but I found this entertaining. It is written from multiple points of view and executed well. There are parts from every characters I like but they are best when they come together which, as the idea behind the plot, makes it work reading. You are rooting for the team!
It has a good pace and illustrations that pop!

*This review comes from having read the advanced reader copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review*

Charlie, a recent transfer to Georgia O’Keeffe College of Arts and Subtle Dramatics and a former basketball player, fall into an unlikely group of girls who also happen to be forming an NCAA IX team at their school. With must reluctance, Charlie agrees to join the team of chatty characters.

I really enjoyed this book. I will look forward to reading about Charlie's path and how her relationship develops with all these girls. Basketball, like any sport, can become your new family and I'm hoping to great things in the coming volumes.

As a librarian, I would recommend this to my upper HS students, as the girls are in college, but an easy read for those who are mature enough to handle the themes.

I am also interested in reading more of Carly Usdin materials.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42201523-the-avant-guards-vol-1?ac=1&from_search=true

5 Stars, this was incredible!

Would recommend if you like the art style of Goldie Vance or the friendships in Lumberjanes.

We follow Charlie, who has just transferred to a new university. She meets Olivia who wants her to join the basketball team. The story focuses on friendship and dealing with your past. There's diversity when it comes to race, sexuality, mental health and gender.

The characters are truly amazing. Their personalities really came through, even in this first volume. They are all diverse in their own way. So far the characters haven't labeled themselves, so neither will I. There is definitely queer love in this. Two females characters are into females (but haven't said if they identifies as lesbians), one character has shown interest in both females and males (but haven't said if she identifies as bi or pan), and one character uses they/them pronounce. There is also a character who deals with anxiety and has had panic attacks in the past.

What I enjoyed the most about the diversity, was that it was just there. It didn't feel forced or made to be a big thing, which made it very natural.

The biggest selling point for me was that the characters where so different from each other, and their relationships.

If you enjoy colorful contemporary stories with friendships, then this is for you. I highly recommend getting yourself a copy when it is releases. I know that I will.

Absolutely adored this! A fun, diverse, and empowering read. Amazing art and colours too. Can't wait to see where this series goes,