October’s New YA Comics and Nonfiction Releases

“Simply Pear” is the latest product-and-app combination that promises to help cure what ails you. Gale, struggling through school and art with deep anxiety, decides to give it a try. But it doesn’t seem to be working, no matter how much he follows the demanding plan.

But help might come in an unexpected way. Aiden needs a friend to help him get a part-time job, and so, he turns to Gale. No way that this can help Gale’s anxiety, right? Wrong. It just might.

This one looks fun and the color palate and art style suggest just that.

It’s the 1980s in South Korea. The story opens as Daeboreum is about to arrive. It’s a big celebration to honor the first full moon of the year. Taehee isn’t interested in celebrating though. She wants to spend as much time as she can with her boyfriend while avoiding her father. She’s eager to play music with her mask dance club, too.

But Taehee’s grandma and her grandma’s friends aren’t going to let that slide. They drags Taehee, her boyfriend, and the members of the dance club to a rural farm to celebrate Daeboreum. The plan is to enjoy the ghosts and possible spirits roaming the place.

Taehee isn’t thrilled to be there. She’s also not thrilled that her boyfriend hasn’t said “I love you” back to her. And she’s certainly not thrilled her friends are acting weird right now, either. As the moon approaches, will she–and the rest of the crew on this unexpected adventure–be forever changed?

This one is compared to Huda F Are You and Pumpkinheads.

This Korean manhwa is the perfect read for book nerds, as it follows Dani. She’s an avid reader and familiar with all of the tropes imaginable.

What Dani didn’t imagine is being sucked into a fictional world. But unlike the tropes she knows, she’s not been turned into the main character. She is instead a side character, and she knows the best course of action is to stay out of the way of the story. But in doing that, she discovers something that makes it hard: Dani’s making her first true friends who have her back throughout all of the plot twists in her new (fictional?) life.

In this work of graphic nonfiction, readers will get to know the life of Raymond Santana, one of the wrongfully accused Central Park Five.

When he was just 14, Raymond and four of his friends were accused of raping a jogger in Central Park. It would upend every single one of their lives. This memoir is Raymond telling his story of growing up, the moments that led to his arrest and sentencing, and the incredible fight for justice he sought. In 2002, he was released from prison, and he’s spent the rest of his life fighting for the rights of those wrongfully accused and incarcerated.

Hana is 15, and she’s bored of her life in Japan. It’s so…ordinary.

But when she rescues a crow by her house, that same day she’s visited by someone who offers her something extraordinary. She’s been invited to join The Benten School of Esoterics, the most prestigious magic school in the country. She jumps at the chance.

At first, everything is perfect. Hana has found her place, and she’s quickly made friends. Except there is something haunting Benten’s halls, and people are being attacked. It’s as if the school is cursed. Now Hana and her new bestie have to figure out what’s going on to save their school–and save themselves.

Looking for the kind of comic that has This One Summer vibes? You’re going to dig this one.

Rhiannon lives with her aunt in a trailer park that’s mostly populated by senior citizens. Rhiannon doesn’t see kids around much, though every summer, she gets to spend time with her best friend Kit.

This year, though, their friendship seems to be rocky from the start of the visit. It doesn’t help that there is also a new girl in the park named Elizabeth. She’s cool and confident–everything Rhia isn’t–and Elizabeth is also a bit of a troublemaker.

Elizabeth’s also got a secret that threatens to demolish the once-strong friendship between Rhia and Kit.

This book is a joyful exploration of Black history, and it was written by a young TikTok creator who has built a loyal following with her series highlighting all things Black history.

Cassidy highlights 12 people from Black history across a wide array of disciplines to highlight the role that Black people have played in shaping America’s past, present, and future.

Talk about a book that’s relevant today, despite ostensibly being written about history. Faivish’s book explores where and how posters were used throughout World War II by Hitler and the Nazis to convince people that Jewish people were subhuman. It explains where and how visuals can present persuasive–and damaging–messages effectively and helps young readers understand the potency of propaganda.

This looks like a great book to pair with What The Fact?: Finding Truth in All The Noise by Dr. Seema Yasmin.