Such a sweet and cozy read!! It’s great to see a printing of this and I know everyone is gonna eat it up! The overall messaged is emotionally adorable and the little characters are the absolute cutest. Radish!! Ugh, so cute. Definitely give this a try!

(Full disclosure: I received a free e-ARC for review through NetGalley.)

For seventeen-year-old Callie Benson, the high school experience has been especially ... challenging. She can see the echos of plants and animals who have died but not yet moved on - and her furtive conversations with invisible spirits have earned her the reputation of the "crazy" girl on campus. Her father is a demon who's always gone, traveling between the human world and other realms in search of magical objects for his antiques store. Her mother - well, Callie doesn't know much about her; it's just been Callie and her father for as long as she can remember. Callie knows that she's not human - at least not entirely - but beyond that, she's not sure what she is. Just that she's nothing special.

Callie's world opens up when she discovers that a fellow classmate named Declan can see the spirits, too. Callie helps him gently dispel an especially giant spirit who has camped out in front of his house (and, more alarmingly, watches him sleep at night), and the two become fast friends. When Callie's dad goes missing on her birthday, she and Declan enter the other world in search of him. With the help of a demon named Lasser and the spirit of one very possessive radish, can Callie rescue her father - while also coming to terms with what she is?

NOTHING SPECIAL is one very special strip. (Sorry, I had to.) The storytelling is magical, and I especially love the spirits that follow Callie around. (A sassy radish? Sign me up!) The mystery of Callie's lineage is a juicy one and I enjoyed the big reveal with her mom at the end. Cook's artwork is charming with just the right amount of cutesy mixed in. Bonus points for bonding over pop culture references.

You can also find it on Webtoons, where Katie Cook is already well into Season Three. (This book comprises Season One, chapters 1-29.)

The world that Katie Cook has managed to create here is so vibrant, fascinating, and full of heart. It was such a joy to follow Callie on her journey, watch her connection with Declan blossom, and meet so many downright hilarious characters along the way. I enjoyed every laugh and smile from the frequent hilarity, but I was also pleasantly surprised by the truly heartfelt messages about family, friendship, self-discovery, and the pure magic of life - no matter how imperfect it may be. This story will definitely stick with me for a long time!

Thank you Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed Press, Ten Speed Graphic, and NetGalley for the advanced electronic review copy of this fun book! This was such an adorable story! Gorgeous illustrations, great, fast-moving plot and great characters made for a fast, fun read. Nothing Special turned out to be very special indeed. Can’t wait for the sequel!

EEEEEP!! I’m SO excited!!

I once reviewed Katie Cook's <i>Nothing Special</i>, a comic series that I’d read on the Webtoon platform, and very explicitly stated that the only complaint I had about the series was the fact that I could not purchase a physical copy of it as a graphic novel. This egregious oversight has now been corrected!

<i>Nothing Special</i> is a story about a teenage girl who has always felt like somewhat of an outcast in the human world and prefers to talk to the spirits of plants all non-humans can see than the humans around her. Callie Benson's life changes when one of her fellow students begins seeing the plant spirits as well and realizes that she knows what they are. And when her father suddenly goes is kidnapped, Callie and her new best friend, Declan Hickey, set off on a dangerous adventure to find and rescue him.

Despite the somewhat dark nature of Callie's father's disappearance—there was a mild amount of blood on the walls!—<i>Nothing Special</i> is actually an incredibly cute comic and story. The macabre of the tale is handled in such a way that it’s kind of more cute than anything else. The flow of the tale and the adorable cartoonish quality of the artwork allows for the dark aspects and characters to come off as rather light-hearted in the most fascinating of ways. And best of all, you fall in love with the characters super quickly.

From Callie, to Declan, to Raddish, and even to Lasser—whom you do initially sort of hate; but don't worry, he really grows on you!—everyone in this wonderful series is so easy to adore. Honestly, I'd be really surprised if anyone could legitimately say that they don't love the amazing personalities that lead the adventures held within the pages of this book.

The story is episodic in nature, a rather quick and brilliant read, complete with light-hearted darkness and a wonderful cutesy feel to it. You leave this book eager for the sequel, but also feeling as though the main plot is wrapped up quite nicely in a very sparkly and swirly bow.

I happened to love this story <i>so much</i> when I first found it online that in the span of two months, I’d already read it more than five times. So, naturally, I was more than thrilled to see it on NetGalley and even more excited to submit multiple preorders (gifts, anyone?—and I’ve already recommended this to a student who loves fairies, magic, and the macabre!).

I would highly encourage, especially if the artwork looks like it could be your style, to pick this one up and give it a read. I’m of the mind that it’s a choice impossible to regret!

<i>I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review—and it was as brilliant as I remember it being!</i>

A familiar structure and plot, made super-cute with the vegetable ghosts, particularly the possessive Radish. The humor (love the side note comments!) makes this enjoyable even for those not necessarily fantasy fans.

Callie has spent her life waiting to finally become her dad’s apprentice. She’s never been allowed to exit the safe area of the magical realm where her dad’s shop resides, but she has been allowed to roam the human world freely. Everything changes when Callie’s dad goes missing. Now she’s armed with granola bars, her new friend Declan, and the ghost of a radish named Radish as she searches the magical realm for her dad.

This is such a cute cozy adventure. We follow Callie as she realizes she knows the radish spirits that follow her way better than she knows anyone she’s gone to school with. We get to watch her make friends, search for her dad in a magical world she’s always been banned from exploring, and fall in love along the way. There is such a great cast of characters, but my favorite is Radish! They’re such funny and cute characters that I loved for the entire book.

I love how fun and simple the storytelling is. It’s one of those stories that serves as a mood lifter because it’s cute, light, and funny. Plus, the artwork is absolutely stunning! I love how much it brings the story to life. It’s incredibly detailed, and it was so much fun to see how the Radish spirits appeared at any given time. I’m looking forward to checking out the next volume and seeing where the story goes next!

That was super adorable and I need to go buy myself a copy of the book to support the author even though I got to read the ARC. I see she did Gronk too. That was also super adorable. I need there to be a second volume of this one.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Four stars.
This was a sweet and creative little story. It takes us through a door into a magical world in which a daughter then searches for her abducted father. Her best friend goes with her (and he turns out to be part fairy!). Along the way they pick up two others that join their party - a ghost radish (I know, it does sound odd!) and a demon who is the youngest of 89 or something like that.

This was an interesting and humorous story and the art was unique and beautiful. I really enjoyed it. I did then find myself thinking how I will now get my hands on the rest of the volumes. It finished at a good place, but I could tell that there were still a bunch of adventures waiting to happen. And I want to go right along with them to continue to experience this lovely story.

Thank you Netgalley, Ten Speed Graphic Publishing and Katie Cook for an advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I started reading this as a welcoming a few years ago and waited eagerly for a physical edition to come out. I am so excited to be given an early access copy and be able to read this all in one go again. Callie has lived her whole life half in and half out the real-world. Her dad is an adventurer/salesman of strange goods and so she has known about this other strange world her whole life. She runs into another boy from school, Declan, who also sees these strange orbs of light, and they realize they have a lot in common. Until one day Callie discovers her father is in trouble, and so her and Declan decide to risk leaving the boundaries of the magical village and head out to find him. Along the way they encounter Radish, a former radish who died as a garnish but has now pledge his loyalty to Callie, and Lassiter, who knows what Callie really is and wants to use that for his own gain. In a delightfully silly fantastical world filled with humor and some of the most amazing artwork, I am so excited Cook is finally publishing this as a book. One of my favorite graphic novels. Can't wait for more!

I requested this ARC solely because the illustration looked completely adorable, and I was NOT disappointed!
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Nothing Special is the story of Callie, who is trying to find her place in the world. She knows she isn’t human because she can see and communicate with plant spirits, most notably a radish ghost named, Radish. But, what is she? And is she alone? Enter Declan, a geeky, young man who can also see the same spirits. While Callie is not longer alone, she still has no answers. And, after a mysterious kidnapping, she, Declan, and Radish are thrust into a magical world filled with fantastical creatures and potential enemies. Will they discover who they are? Will they be able to save what was stolen? Will they survive?
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RADISH IS MY FAVORITE CHARACTER!! Sorry for yelling, but I had to get that out. Radish is firstly, ADORABLE. Secondly, valiant (maybe possessive is a better word). Thirdly, has fantastic facial expressions. And lastly, has the best banter and one-liners in the novel.
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This story started a bit slow but that’s to be expected from the start to any story with fantasy elements or worlds. As the characters were introduced and added to the party, it picked up the pace and became really fun and enjoyable to read. The illustrations are superb! The characters facial expressions and the cuteness factor of the spirits was amazing.
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I enjoyed this little adventure very much and I’m glad that I got the chance to read an ARC of it. I anxiously await the next installment! Thank you, Katie for sharing this wonderful story. And thanks to NetGalley and Ten Speed Press for gifting me this ARC.
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Nothing Special Volume 1: Through the Elder Woods releases on March 5th, 2024!

A graphic novel such as Nothing Special Volume 1 is an amazing work of art. There is something for everyone in this graphic novel, including adventure, comedy, romance, magic, and fantasy, as we follow Callie on her quest (with her friends) to save her dad in the magic world. Because of the beautiful artwork, you can enjoy both the storyline and the characters due to the overwhelming amount of cuteness.

Very cute book that would appeal to many middle school-aged readers about a girl with magical lineage and her adventure to save her father.

I received this DRC from NetGalley.

Loved it. The artwork is so cute and the story kept me engaged. And I loved the little side artwork of the spirits doing their own thing.

**Thank you to NetGalley for sending me this book in return for an honest review.**

Oh. My. Gosh! This was the cuuuutest thing ever! The art work was adorable, Callie and Declan's relationship was the sweetest and add in an adventure I am dying 😍 this is such a fun whimsical read with the most adorable and sassy characters ❤ definitely will be recommending this to all my graphic Nobel loving fans!

A very sweet story for kids with beautiful art. I really enjoyed the art style as it was what intrigued me about the book. The story is pretty simple and straight forward. A fast read. Would recommend for anyone that enjoys children books.

Okay but his little fairy wings were SO CUTE.
I really enjoyed this story and want to see where Callie and Declan go next, especially if the demon guy keeps hanging out. He was my favorite.

It's a very sweet book. I quite like the art style and the general 'vibe' of the story telling, it was very enjoyable and reasonably unique. It wasn't an EXCITING story, but I mean that in the nicest way. There were a few points of danger, but I never really felt like anyone wasn't going to make it. Cozy, without being all in one location.

This was SO CUTE! Anything that was previously published on webtoon is almost always a 5 star read for me. The concept of this book is so unique with the different plant spirits. I’ve never read a book like it and I LOVED it. The book was laugh out loud funny. I had to stop and show my husband different panels because they were so good. I love how the story handles the concept of life and death with the spirits, which by the way are adorable. Radish has my whole heart. The artwork is so detailed. There were so many little things I noticed and loved in the background of each panel. You can tell so much thought went into this story. I love our main characters. The female main character is strong and the male main character is supportive and just simply adores her. I love how the characters break stereotypical gender norms. I will be recommending this to so many people. Can’t wait for the next volume!

Fun and quick read. Loved the relationship between Callie and Declan. I do wish her father would have just been honest about her mother. And I can’t wait to read more about lasser.