Besties, Work It Out

In this graphic novel, Beth, 11, wants to give her mom a day at the spa as a birthday gift while Chanda, her best friend and classmate, hopes to prove to her parents that she’s responsible and mature enough to adopt a pet. After the girls’ lemonade stand fails, Beth’s generous older sister, Lisa, gets them a week-long dog-sitting job for Ms. Langford. On their first day of taking care of Baxter, Beth and Lisa discover Ms. Langford’s closet full of vintage clothes. The girls end up trying on all the clothes, with Chanda taking photos of Beth in various poses. After Chanda posts her photos online, the “cool kids” at school want to visit Ms. Langford’s house. When they’re there, an expensive lamp is broken. Beth and Chanda now have to work especially hard, cleaning up garbage, gardening, painting, car-washing, and so on to replace the lamp before Ms. Langford returns. When they finally buy the replacement lamp, they realize its shade is missing a fringe. Beth refuses to ask Lisa for money to buy the fringe despite Chanda’s pleading. The girls have a falling out. Beth, sure that Lisa will compromise her own interests to help them, feels she is doing the right thing and tells Chanda she’s behaving like a selfish little kid. Although Chanda avoids speaking to Beth for a whole day, the girls manage to resolve their differences at Ms. Langford’s place just before she’s due to return. Chanda tells Ms. Langford the whole true story around the lamp. Then Beth begs Ms. Langford not to tell their parents because Chanda won’t be allowed to adopt a needy cat if they find out. Ms. Langford is totally understanding and says the girls may care for Baxter in the future as long as they don’t invite anyone else over again. Beth and Chanda use the money they made to buy spa visits for both Beth’s mom and sister. And Chanda’s parents finally allow her to adopt a pet.

The dialogue between Chanda and Beth regularly feels too sophisticated (or polished) for 11-year-olds, but it is also fun and fast-moving. And the illustrations in this graphic novel are full of vibrant colour and motion. While Besties Work It Out too often feels agenda-driven, there are a number of good lessons for pre-teen readers. However, character development seems to suffer as a result of the authors’ need to fit these lessons into a prescribed page number. For instance, Nat, the ‘coolest’ kid at school, is portrayed as sullen and rich. Yet, when Nat’s invited over to Ms. Langford’s house (as per the excerpt), she arrives with three agreeable, considerate friends. When Nat reacts poorly to Baxter, the guests leave after only a brief visit. Readers curious about Nat (who accidentally breaks the lamp) never see her again in Besties Work It Out. Similarly, Chanda’s sudden and deliberate confession to Ms. Langford about what occurred during her absence isn’t credible given the lack of character development.