Tom and Dan are friends who want to start a band to play in the battle of the bands at their high school. They consider themselves outcasts in school. When Tom starts tutoring his former friend, Mark, they ask him to join the band too. But then they need a drummer. Jacoby is the foreign exchange student from Canada, who is also an awesome drummer. They invite him to join, but he is distant at practices and doesn't seem to have much time to devote to the band. They name their band the Stereotypical Freaks, because they all fit stereotypes (nerd, goofball, star athlete, quiet foreign exchange student) but they don't fit in with the rest of the kids at school. However, when one of their band members reveals that he is dying of cancer, they have to decide if they still compete.

This graphic novel has a diverse set of characters. Mark is African American. Jacoby is an Inuit from Nunavut. This story shows one of the struggles that Inuit peoples face. Since Jacoby comes from such a small town, he has to move to Pittsburgh to get medical treatment for his cancer. I like that it brings some awareness to Inuit peoples of Canada.

I liked the style of art in this graphic novel. They are black and white sketches, rather than full colour pictures. This style fits with the indie band that the boys form.

I really liked this story and I'm excited to read the next graphic novel in the trilogy!

This review will be posted on my blog on May 5, 2017.

Not really my style but I can see why people are entranced by the story.

This turned out to be so good! I was hooked, and could barely put it down. I really enjoyed the realism and character development of how they all came together to face their biggest challenge - and I feel that any high schooler (or anyone who's been through high school!) can totally relate to at least one of the four main characters (the jock, the smart one, the geek, the shy outsider). And I especially loved the "recommended listening" songs listed at the beginning of each chapter, even though I wasn't familiar with all of them and didn't track them down to listen along - I think played those songs would really add to the experience of reading this graphic novel!

This is a relatively short book, though it's long for a single comic/graphic novel. It's pretty different to the other comics I've read - there is no epic fight scene, no caped vigilante. But there is a hero, and there is one epic battle.

The general plot involves four teenagers coming together to compete in a "Battle of the Bands" competition. Danny and Tom are good friends already, often jamming out together in Tom's garage. But they can't win a competition as just a duo - it's time to recruit new musicians.

The kids they find end up being Tom's childhood friend, Mark, and the strange new kid, Jacoby. They start forming a strong bond, until Danny voices his concerns about Mark and his different crew of friends.

Jacoby eventually opens up to the band about his personal problems, too. They never would have guessed what incredible war he's been fighting in secret. But he's their friend, and they're more motivated than ever to practice hard and win the competition.

The art is pretty simplistic, without any colour. Each chapter features "Recommended Listening" which is a great touch for music fans. And I really like both the conflict between Mark's new 'popular' friends and the band, and the huge weight that Jacoby is carrying. The ending is bittersweet, realistic. But I did notice that the issue with Mark and his mates is not resolved, which is kind of annoying.

This is a really refreshing story, confronting an issue that is all too real for many young people. It doesn't sugarcoat it, but it doesn't make it sound like hell, either. It's just honest, and I think that's really good.

It does provoke some emotion which is fantastic, but I didn't feel much connection with the individual characters on the whole. And the plot is... meh. I like that it's about Jacoby's illness and him wanting to carry on despite it, but I also feel like it dominates the story a bit too much. Like, the illness has become his identity, taken over the whole story. It's good to focus on it, of course, but I'm not sure it should've been the only plot.

I think about 3.5 stars is appropriate for this. It's different, honest, and great for any music fans.

I received this in exchange for an honest review, which has not altered my opinion of the story itself.

This amazing story just got me right in the feels!! I didn't expect from the title that there would be so many life lessons learned from the short graphic novel. Basically this is the story of four unlikely friends coming together to participate in a battle of the bands while overcoming personal issues at the same time.

The issues of terminal illness, dealing with high school drama, settling old grievances, overcoming fears in general, as well as family pressures are all addressed in this short story about friendship. Five out of five!! Go read now!!

Having recently (4 months ago) went through the experience of my daughter dying unexpectedly and abruptly, this was a surprising read and not at all what I was looking for when I downloaded it. Regardless, I did enjoy the read. I was not expecting the story line to turn the way it did. It seems normal enough, the cliques in high school that divided long ago friends, the group of "misfits" that forms from choices and situations. This was about 4 teen boys that learned a pretty heavy lesson their senior year of high school. When they started the year, they were on separate paths, each thinking about what the year would hold. Opportunity and chance threw them together. Over the course of their senior year journey, they each learned something about themselves that only a death can teach you. I would recommend this as a must read for pre-teens/teens when they start to try and figure out who they are. The characters are easy to identify with since each of their personal situations reflects common things kids experience, for the most part. I probably have a different view and emotional effect than others since I am going through my own unexpected tragedy but, I am happy to see that someone isn't afraid to approach the tough topics. The ones that leave unpleasant feelings and so we shield our children from them. Excellent read. We should use this as an example of how to show our children that not everything is rainbows and roses. It isn't so overwhelming that it would traumatize a person but it gets to the point in a gentle way. On another note, I do love the playlist suggestions at the beginning of each chapter. It helps to get the right feeling, in my opinion.

I loved it. The story was beautifully presented and the plot unique for a graphic novel. I would recommend it to everyone. The book was a bit short but you emerge better for reading it.