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Reviewed by: Emily McFarlane, Elementary School Librarian Title: Basil and Oregano Author: Melissa Capriglione Series: Basil and Oregano #1
Publisher: Dark Horse Books
Year: 2023 Good for Grades: 9-12 Genre/Type of Book: Fantasy/Cooking/Graphic Novel
Content Warnings, or things that other School Librarians should be aware of: LGBTQIA+ content, mild bullying, parental bullying
Recommended for a school library: Yes Reason(s) for choosing the book: Browsing the SORA collection, it looked cute!
If you were tasked by the publisher with writing a short quote for the back cover of this book, what would it be: When cooking and love mix, it can get messy!
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Review:
Basil is ready to start her final year at the Porta Bella Magiculinary Academy, but is worried about a lot of things. Her dads have spent a lot of money trying to help her through school, and she's counting on her scholarship reimbursement to help cover the tuition fees. Then, there's the new girl, Arabella. She's cute and seems to like Basil? In order to get the scholarship reimbursement, Basil has to be top student for at least two quarters, leading to some tough competition. Arabella and long-time bully, Xynthia are also vying for top spot, leading to further stress for Basil. Will she be able to keep her grades up, get the girl, and get through the last year of school?
This graphic novel has such a cute style that is very different from other ones I've read. I enjoyed how all of the characters had different body types and there were a lot of different skin tones represented. There were also a bunch of different LGBTQIA+ identities throughout the cast, including characters who are non-binary, trans, lesbian, and gay. It was nice to see such diverse rep! The story overall was a slice-of-life school story, with a few side adventures into different aspects of the author's world. It wasn't entirely well-fleshed out, but it didn't really detract from the overall reading experience and I didn't find myself missing anything or confused about the plot at any point. This is slated to be book one according to some sources, so it's quite possible that the author intends to expand the world building in later installments. The storyline dealt with a few great issues, as well as being an overall cute coming out/love story. The main character deals with some burnout after pushing herself to be the top student throughout the story, which a professor helps her understand if not address fully. Then, Arabella is distinctly non-magical, and has been pressured into pretending to be someone she's not because of parental bullying. These issues, while they could have been much more fleshed out, did add richness to the story that helped the characters have more depth.
I think this book could be fun in a TV-book pairing display (If you like Great British Bake Off, you'll like...) or in a general rom-com, school life, slice-of-life, etc. display. It doesn't get into any one thing super deeply enough to make me think "wow, this is perfect for..." but overall it was a sweet read and I look forward to seeing these characters again.
I think the cover was quite cute, featuring Basil and Arabella holding hands in a little antique town with their tomato-dog familiar. It gives a cozy cooking vibe right away and lets you know you're in for a sweet snack. I think graphic novel readers will be enticed, as always, and your anime fans may snap it up since the school uniforms they wear are reminiscent of anime's sailor uniforms.
Number of party hats:
For more information about this book, see the Publisher's Website
Find this title in the Monroe 2 Sora Collection: