Night and Dana

July 17, 2023
High school senior Dana Drucker, portrayed with light pink skin, can’t wait to leave Boca Bella, Fla., to attend NYU with her best friend Lily, who reads as Latinx. By pulling pranks using Dana’s special effects make-up prowess and Lily’s cinematography skills, the pair plan to skyrocket themselves to viral fame. Following their most recent prank—which resulted in a fraudulent emergency services call—their school administration enrolls them in a community college film course, hoping to provide an outlet for their creative energy. It feels like the perfect opportunity to hone their craft, until Lily becomes preoccupied with a cute classmate. Growing up, Dana was happy to be Lily’s sidekick, but as it becomes clear that Lily doesn’t need one, Dana wrestles with listlessness and self-doubt, struggling to cultivate an identity for herself. In a retro style reminiscent of Archie comics, Davidson (Lovers in the Garden, for adults) fashions characters who are convincingly relatable; Dana and Lily’s communication mishaps surrounding their diverging paths, coupled with their apparently disparate expectations of each other, depict them as two teens deserving empathy and kindness as they navigate difficult transitions. Ages 13–up.

November 1, 2023

Gr 9 Up-Best friends Dana and Lily are horror aficionados who have been counting the days until they can move to New York, attend NYU together, and leave their hometown of Boca Bella, FL, behind. They have a growing video channel of pranks and fake accidents where they use special effects make-up. They go a bit too far one school day, landing them in trouble, but rather than suspending them, the principal gives them the opportunity to attend a film class at a local community college. Despite the great opportunity, the two find themselves drifting further apart. Lily begins dating classmate Wye, and Dana befriends Daphne Ocean, a woman who loudly protests about environmental concerns in their area. Dana also has a strained relationship with her mother, and is in charge of caring for her younger brother while her mother works-something her friends can't relate to. As the story progresses, Dana realizes that there isn't just one path to attaining her dream. The character designs stand out among other current graphic novels, with a more retro and realistic feel featuring orange, yellow, and green tones. A diverse range of skin tones are seen in both main and background characters. VERDICT A story that will resonate with teen and new adult readers. Recommended for most young adult collections.-Marissa Lieberman

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2023
Grades 9-12 While filming a prank video for social media, high-school seniors Dana and Lily stage a gory hit-and-run in their school parking lot that results in a real 911 call. Their principal gives them a choice: expulsion or taking (and passing) a community college film class, where she hopes they will find a more productive outlet for their ideas. Since they plan to attend NYU film school, this punishment feels more like an opportunity, especially when they team up to make an eco-horror film about the poisonous algal bloom called red tide that besets their Florida beaches. Their friendship is tested when Lily starts dating Wye, a nonbinary classmate in their group, while Dana gets more involved in radical environmental activism. Dana feels increasingly left out of both the film and Lily's life, struggling with insecurity and jealousy as toxic as the red tide. Davidson gives this relatable coming-of-age tale an alt vibe with a retro, high-contrast color palette similar to newspaper comics and a boldly provocative art style.

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July 1, 2023
A teen drifts apart from her best friend and toward activism. Dana Drucker is halfway through her senior year in Boca Bella, Florida, when one of her gory social media pranks with best friend Lily Villase�or nearly gets them expelled. As punishment, the principal sends them to a community college film class to learn to channel their creativity more productively. Now Dana is balancing schoolwork, the college class, her strained relationship with her mom, and the possibility of losing Lily. As Lily finds her space as a natural cinematographer and starts dating Wye, their nonbinary classmate, Dana feels more and more lost. On top of that, the red tide caused by toxic algae that thrives in a warming ocean filled with pollutants is wreaking havoc. Wye suggests they create an eco-horror film about it, but as Dana struggles to find her role in the group, she becomes increasingly connected to Daphne Ocean, a self-entitled elemental witch, and the environmental group Daphne volunteers with. With a color palette reminiscent of old comics and an artistic style that will evoke strong reactions from readers, Dana's friendship drama is one that teens will easily relate to, although the activism aspect of the story is lacking in depth. Dana appears white; Lily has brown skin, Wye reads Asian, and there is additional racial diversity in background characters. A fresh take on a coming-of-age story with uneven execution. (Graphic fiction. 14-18)

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