Stargazing was a super cute story about Christine and Moon, and their friendship. I really enjoyed this graphic novel; the story was very well told, had some great morals and lessons to be learnt, and the illustrations were, as always with Jen Wang, adorable.

Stargazing is a sweet and insightful graphic novel about friendship and identity. Christine is a traditional Chinese American girl. She lives in a suburb with her conservative parents and her focus is solely on her music and grade school work. Christine sees a different way of life when her parents offer the extra unit of of Christine's family house to a struggling Chinese American single mother and her daughter, Moon, from church. Moon is the complete opposite of Christine. Moon is loud, artistic, a vegetarian, a Buddhist, and even rumored to beat kids up. Moon's mother does not have a strict curfew nor requires Moon to attend Chinese school. Moon is certainly “not Asian” according to Christine’s standards. Despite their differences, however, the two become fast friends, stretching each other’s interests with K-pop and art. Moon later shares a deep secret with Christine: She receives visions from celestial beings that tell her she belongs with them. The girls' friendship is tested by jealousy, resentment of following social expectations, and devastating medical news for Moon.

The illustrations are wonderful and show cases body diversity, nostalgia, and diversity without being overt about it. There is a balance of quiet moments and active moments that sharpen emotional impact and highlights the inner turmoil Christine feels as her friendship with Moon shifts. The dialogue rings true and the characters feel authentic.

The book had the best gut punch ending I have read in a really long time. I cherish this book and have been recommending readers to find this.

I really enjoyed this book about friendship, life in a different culture and forgiveness between friends. I really like the artwork and the story-line. It was really sweet and it was partly based on true events. It's a must read. It's quite lovely.

I want to preface this with I was super excited to read this graphic novel and I love Jen Wang. :) A while back I saw a few of my bookish friends with the ARC of this book and I just knew I needed to read it, I was fortunate enough to get an ARC of this book as well from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and even if I hadn't I still would have read this book because I love Jen Wang. I think her stories are cute and funny and the art in her graphic novels is amazing and something to be treasured. So recently after finishing two books back to back, I was all like it's time to read some graphic novels (what I was really wanting was to read more Saga but alas that is still not back yet) and then I remembered that I had this one on my nightstand. I immediately went over and picked it up! I read this book in one sitting and then read it again the next day just cause it was so darn cute.

SPOILERS AHEAD

In this book, we follow two girls who are polar opposites. One girl Moon lives with her single mother and is into Kpop, dancing, and is not afraid to put herself out there. While Christine lives with her mom, dad, and little sibling is much more reserved and spends lots of time studying hard to be her best! One day when Moon moves in behind Christine's house everything changes. The girls become fast friends and Christine starts to explore life a little more, she is painting her nails for the first time, dancing, and listening to Kpop! However, when Christine gets a bad grade on a test she decides its time to buckle back down. She also becomes a little jealous of her friend and does something she deeply wishes she could take back.

There is still a bit more to the story but I do not want to spoil for me what was a huge twist I did not see coming at all. I loved the art and the story in this graphic novel. I thought the story of Christine and Moon was so heartfelt, cute, and relatable. I definitely recommend picking this graphic novel up! I am giving it five stars on Goodreads and plan to read it again very soon.

**I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I went in as a fan of Jen Wang's other work but not knowing what to expect from this comic, and ended up liking it even more than I thought I would. This is a really heartfelt story with memorable characters that has a lot to say without being heavy-handed about it. I think it's an excellent all-ages book and further proves Jen Wang's talent as both a writer and an artist. I'll be looking forward seeing what she does next.

I love books that teach a lesson. This book definitely does that. Any book that addresses a special need or illness is special to me. I appreciate the awareness that it brings (when done well). This brings cultural awareness as well as awareness to medical conditions.

Middle grade graphic novel / comix about friendship - the good and bad. Readalike for Jennifer Holm, Raina Telgemeier, Cece Bell and Victoria Jamieson.

I received this arc from Netgalley for an honest review. I loved this graphic novel about friendship and family. There’s several great messages within and the illustrations are fun and lens to the story.

Actual rating: 3.5

Stargazing is an adorable little middle-grade graphic novel that follows Moon and Christine, two Chinese-American kids that end up being neighbours. This book has so many shout-worthy things about it.

- the art is ADORABLE (we don't expect anything less from Jen Wang)
- biracial and health rep!
-friendship and emotions ❤

Absolutely this is a fantastic book for the age-range, just based on these things alone.

And yet, it did fall a little short for me. I don't know what was missing but I just wanted a little more. The storyline wasn't as engaging as I thought it could be overall, especially when considering the younger readers the book is aimed at.

But, overall, still a recommendation from me!

Oh, childhood. And childhood friendships, such a slippery slope. Loneliness, wanting, jealousy, communication, honesty. There are so many important topics and themes explored here, and it was wonderful to see them handled with such care.

Christine is a chinese-american middle schooler who's family lets Moon and her mother move in to their guest house. Christine is at first apprehensive because Moon appears odd and somewhat aggressive. Christine soon gets to know Moon and they have a lot of fun together and it really helps Christine come out of her shell. But Moon's imagination is soon found to be a part of a larger health issues, at which point Christine gets scared away. The girls learn to overcome obstacles and nurture their friendship. It is a fun and sweet book which is beautifully illustrated. I would recommend to middle-schoolers who are fans of graphic novels.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This little book made me feel all sorts of feels. I loved how I recognized Wang's style of storytelling, since I adore The Prince and the Dressmaker.
Stargazing is a book about friendship, alienation, being yourself and so much more. Loved it.

/ Denise

Jen Wang's given us cyberpunk fantasy with In Real Life (2014) and high fantasy with The Prince and the Dressmaker (2018). With Stargazing, readers get a more contemporary story with, as Kirkus notes, a true portrayal of the diversity within the Asian-American community. 

Christine is a Chinese-American girl from a more traditional Chinese family. She is focused on school and her music, until her family moves YuWen Lin and her daughter, Moon, into the in-law apartment where Christine's grandfather used to live. YuWen and Moon are a struggling family, and the hospitality offered by Christine's family is much appreciated. Christine and Moon are encouraged to spend time together, but the two are polar opposites: Moon is a vegetarian Buddhist who loves K-Pop and is rumored to get into fights. Despite their differences, Christine and Moon grow close, with Moon introducing Christine to a lighter, more fun side of life, letting her relax and let her guard down. Moon confides in Christine, telling her that she belongs in outer space, and that beings from space speak to her. When Moon meets a Caucasian girl that shares many of her interests, Christine's jealousy takes control, and she puts Moon into an embarrassing situation; Moon reacts with her fists, which leads to an episode that lands Moon in the hospital.

Jen Wang weaves an intricate story of family expectations, social groups, and the complexity of navigating friendships in Stargazing, giving us some of her best storytelling yet. Influenced by events in her childhood and growing up in an Asian-American family, the story has depth and incredible emotion. Whether she's giving us cyber farmers (In Real Life) or a friendship between two schoolgirls who love K-Pop, Jen Wang always manages to make her character's humanity the central focus of her stories. Christine and Moon are so real, so strong, that their voices come right off the page and speak to readers; telling them about their stories, their lives, their struggles. When Christine writes that she doesn't consider Moon Asian, we see the conflict between a traditional Chinese household versus a more contemporary, Westernized Chinese-American household. Christine's mother holds Chinese lessons in her home; YuWen runs a plant nursery and watches TV with her daughter at night. While Christine listens to more Westernized music, Moon embraces K-Pop and dance routines. The two families present a glimpse into the diversity of Asian-American families, both connected to the culture in different ways.

Stargazing is a definite must-read and has starred reviews from Kirkus and Publisher's Weekly. Newsarama has an interview with Jen Wang that's worth reading.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance copy of this book.

I was lucky enough to hear Jen Wang speak at ALA this year and after hearing her talk about this graphic novel I knew I just had to read it. Knowing how events from her own life played into the novel made it all the more interesting. This is a great book that deals with friendship and is a must read for all young readers.

Christine's new friend Moon is everything she is not - confident, funny, unconventional. But when Moon starts becoming more popular Christine feels threatened and does something mean. Unfortunately that coincides with the discovery of Moon's serious medical condition. Can Christine find a way to apologize and still be friends with Moon?
This was pretty standard fare. My students will like it but I find it a bit basic.

Yet again, Jen Wang has blown me away with her amazing storytelling abilities. This graphic novel on friendship and diversity is one I will be heavily recommending as soon as it hits my library's shelves.

This was such an amazing book! I honestly don't even know what to say about it other than I loved it. The art work was amazing, the plot was heartfelt and a little heartbreaking as well.

Stargazing focuses on Christine and her new friend Moon. Christine and Moon are total opposites, but somehow the two begin a blooming friendship. Christine has been raised in a more traditional household, while Moon is her opposite, comparable to a wild spirit. With the help of Moon, Christine is able to discover more about who she wants to be rather than the role she is expected to adhere to.

I enjoyed this graphic novel some of the time. I did find this graphic novel to be a bit less surprising than the author’s previous work. I had high expectations, and sadly this did not meet those. The story was okay, but pretty predictable. I know this is middle grade, but I still expected it to be a little more surprising and impactful. I liked the characters, but I did not love them.

Overall, the story was okay and definitely suited for a younger audience. I think my students would probably enjoy this middle grade. The artwork was good, but I still enjoyed the author’s previous graphic novel a lot more.

I did appreciate the character growth at the end of the story. The reader gets to see multiple character experience positive character growth.

I really loved this book!

I am always on the lookout for great new graphic novels to add to our library collection. I like to read as many as I can because it helps me understand what kids are reading and enjoying, helps me recommend books to kids, and they are just fun to read.

This is one of those books that I just can't wait to hand to kids. I know that it will be loved by many. It has wonderful, unique characters who feel like real kids dealing with real problems. It has these great elements of Chinese language and culture woven through it. It has fantastic illustrations and a satisfying story.

I highly recommend this book to kids and adults alike. I can't wait to get copies for our library.