"Bad Sister" is a book that I think many readers need to read. Anyone with a sibling, whether a younger or older sibling will be able to relate to this book. The thing about this book is that the main character does a lot of self-reflecting. I think this is a skill that all children need to recognize and make a habit of doing. I would recommend this book to anyone that has read "Smile" or "Sisters".

Hmm "Bad Sister" was just okay. It definitely was written with a guilty adult perspective. It focused on so many negative feelings but not how the author/main character learned to be a better person and forgive herself. That missing (or perhaps under-emphasized) piece made me wonder what children would think of it.

I received an electronic ARC from First Second Books through NetGalley.
Charise tells the story of her interactions with her younger brother, other family members and her friends and community. The primary focus is her tangled feelings about her younger brother. The author offers brief hints that Charise may have some cognitive struggles (can't recognize faces, does not pick up on social cues) but never develops this information far enough for readers to empathise with Charise. Also, while acknowledging this is told from a child's perspective, the parents are not portrayed as loving or supportive. They don't seem to listen or offer encouragement but instead zero in on everything that goes wrong. And, yes, things certainly go wrong throughout this book. The title sets the tone and the story doesn't veer from this one dimensional aspect.
Middle grade readers will connect with the complicated family relationships and may identify with the older or younger sibling.

Any kid with a sibling will relate to this graphic novel! I thought this was funny, but I didn't gravitate to the artwork.

A middle grade graphic novel memoir recounts incidents of the author's past involving her little brother.

The short, disjointed narration style peppered with dialogue boxes leads to potential confusion for some younger readers. Most graphic novel fans will still be drawn to it for its illustrations and its subject matter-learning lessons/how to be more compassionate. I had a difficult time relating to or feeling any sympathy for Charise (who honestly probably deserved the title of "bad sister"), but definitely admired Daniel (and Charise's eventual attempt to change).

Award-winning author/artist Charise Mericle Harper writes a middle-grade memoir about her relationship with her younger brother in Bad Sister, and it will resonate with so many siblings who may feel conflicted about their own siblings. Charise is older, and therefore, better... right? Her younger brother, Daniel, is just such an attention-suck. He gets attention from her parents from the very beginning, he wants to play with her toys, he even monopolizes the family cat's affection. Daniel gets hurt time and again, causing Charise to wonder: is she a bad sister? Try as she might, it's hard being the eldest, and sometimes, she gets exasperated. But slowly, surely, as the two get a little older and a little more mature, they find themselves able to enjoy one another's company more. Charise's frustration is palpable, and the changing color palette alerts readers, with changes in her facial expressions and body language, plus cooler colors, particularly blues, calling the reader's attention. Readers will see both sides of the equation - Daniel isn't always guilt-free - and empathize with the injustices on either side. A good book for navigating sibling relationships, even close friend and classmate relationships, Charise Mericle Harper gets to the heart of family dynamics and doesn't hide the highs and lows of these complicated relationships, going from antagonism, to guilt, to love and understanding with honesty and respect to the reader. Charise's frustration is palpable, and the changing color palette alerts readers, with changes in her facial expressions and body language, plus cooler colors, particularly blues, calling the reader's attention. Colors warm up as the two become closer.

Bad Sister has starred reviews from Kirkus and Publisher's Weekly, and is a Junior Library Guild selection. Visit Charise Mericle Harper's website for printables, crafts, and comics!

This is such a cute graphic novel that anyone with a younger sibling will be able to relate to. This is definitely one I’ll be adding to my classroom shelves!

This graphic memoir is the story of two siblings, an older sister, Charise, and her younger brother, Daniel. The story of their interactions leads Charise into seeing herself as a bad sister. Is she really? What makes a good sister anyway?

A lot of what the two of them get up to are pretty standard fare. As an oldest child, with four younger siblings, I feel like I have an intimate understanding of the power dynamics in their family. It isn't easy to always be the responsible one. Are we eldest predisposed to be somewhat bossy and self absorbed? (When I was four I wondered if I could throw the newest baby - a boy - out the window and say it jumped.) Is it inevitable that we think we are bad sisters?

Their story begins with pretty ordinary sibling jealousy when Daniel is brought home from the hospital. Charise has some complicated feelings that aren't addressed. There is no time frame mentioned but it feels a lot like the 1970's and 80s. That's the way it was in those days. Growing up the two children have a lot more freedom than children today. They ran wild and were generally unfettered by parent scrutiny unless disaster struck.

Is Charise really a bad sister? She struggles with prosopagnosia (face blindness) and doesn't seem to get social cues. Does this make her bad? In a series of sections that all start with "The Power of..." we see Charise as someone using different strategies to manipulate and control Daniel. At the same time, she acknowledges that he has his own kind of superpower. He 'gets' people and they in turn adore him. The vignettes in these sections reveal more about the family and sibling dynamics. At times it seems like adults take Daniel's side and don't listen to Charise. Does this make her a bad sister?

Charise leads Daniel into some creative and dramatic adventures in their search for excitement. It appears that both of them have wild fun together. She often tries to do the right thing, but fails. Their games and activities are complicated by Charise's desire for power, control, and her profound desire to be the winner. Sometimes she ends up being just plain mean. Inevitably Charise is wracked with guilt and remorse.

When the two of them are playing hockey, Charise becomes exceptionally aggressive and breaks Daniel's teeth. This turns out to be an important turning point for her. She decides to become a 'good sister.' Change, however, isn't easy. It's a good thing that Daniel holds the ultimate super power. His honesty and forgiveness end up helping her become the kind of sister Charise really wants to be.

I especially like that this graphic memoir portrays an authentic, complicated look at sibling relationships. I appreciated the honesty in it. I like that in the end, it's because of their relationship that both of them can become better people. I'm wondering what Daniel's memoir of their time growing up together would be like. I suspect he saw a lot more good in Charise than she gives herself credit for.

I predict this is going to be a popular book. Elementary school librarians need to purchase at least two copies. Personally, I would purchase enough for a literature circle set. I would love to listen in one conversations between students discussing the sibling dynamics here.

Wow, what an emotional roller coaster. This book takes you through Cherise's childhood as her brother, Daniel is born. Cherise loves being the big sister, bossing her brother around and controlling the situation. As Daniel grows up, her feelings become more complicated, as she notices her jealousy increasing and can't control it. Readers will empathize with Cherise as she tries so hard to be a better sister to Daniel, even as it is challenging. Cherise is honest, and touches on the emotions that kids feel but are afraid to articulate.

An absolutely fantastic portrait of siblinghood. I loved that this was a true story, and everything was based on the childhood of the author and her brother. Very moving!

Thanks to NetGalley and First Second Books for an egalley in exchange for an honest review.

This middle-grade graphic novel/memoir will no doubt delight today's youthful readers while also triggering many memories of sibling relationships. Like the author, I was the eldest and I wasn't always nice to my younger brother either. This reminded me very much of the sister-brother dynamic of Judy Blume's The Pain and the Great One.

However, I did have some difficulties with parts of it, I felt that sometimes the parents were guilty of shaming Charise for some of her behaviour. Particularly, the episode with the visitor who took them out for a treat. That one was definitely a head-scratcher for me as an adult reader. Secondly, as other reviewers have already pointed out Charise's face blindness is mentioned in one vignette and then never mentioned again.

All in all, I would recommend it to young readers.




Goodreads review published 07/06/21
Expected Publication Date 13/07/21

What a great middle grade graphic novel! Harper provides an excellent story that many people with siblings can relate to, focusing on relationships more than story itself. The illustration is also fleshed out well.

E ARC provided by Netgalley

This graphic memoir, which seems to be set in the 1970s, given the fashions, level of supervision for children, and other clues, deals with Charise, who spends a lot of time with her younger brother, Daniel. While the two generally play well together, neither child is great about thinking through their activities, and Daniel often ends up injured. There is also some tension between the siblings caused by the parents, who often take the side of the younger child in instances such as Charise not letting her brother use her art supplies. While the activities the children engage in would shock and horrify parents today, they were pretty standard back in the day-- playing with a giant truck inner tube and rolling it down the hill or throwing it with a child inside, climbing trees, riding bikes, dumpster diving, and running and jumping in the house with couch cushions as "safety features"-- were all quite common. On top of this, however, is a lot of deep seated anger on Charise's part that makes her feel that she is "bad" and that she means Daniel harm. Sometimes she does. One of the causes of this anger might be her undiagnosed prosopagnosia; she thinks that Daniel's ability to recognize people is a superpower, but this is not really fully investigated. When her actions (as well as Daniel's willingness to go along with them) result in graver injury, her guilt intensifies and she tries to be a better older sister.
Strengths: As someone who would put on a plastic space helmet and try to jump a culvert at the bottom of a hill on a big wheel with my brother hanging on behind me, I can attest to the fact that this is an accurate portrayal of childhood activities in the 1970s! My brother and I also had a game in the care that involved balancing on our foreheads on the back of the seat and see who could stay up the longest. What sets this apart is Charise's guilt about how she treats her brother, and her exploration of their relationship and how she can improve it.
Weaknesses: I would have liked to see more about the prosopagnosia, but I'm sure that parents in the 70s would have assumed a child who claimed this was lying. Just the way it was!
What I really think: This will be popular with readers who like a bit of family tension with their graphic novels, like Telgemeier's Sisters, Knisely's Stepping Stones, or Jamieson's All's Faire.

A great graphic novel for anyone who has siblings. The protagonist is big sister who can be a bully to her younger brother. It brings insight to the struggle between an older sibling that doesn't want to be bad or hurt their younger sibling but keeps finding themselves making bad choices. It is also great to see how their bond stays strong and because of it she grows as a person and becomes a better sister.

As the oldest, Cherise has a need to dominate her younger brother. Whatever the situation, she changes the rules and he plays along. When two bad accidents happen, test her brother’s limits to forgive and Cherise becomes wracked with guilt. Is she a bad sister? The art is well done. The characters are a little underdeveloped and it would’ve been nice to know more about not being able to recognize faces. However, the memoir is fairly well-done and teaches some important lessons about family and forgiveness. Readers who like graphic novels, memoirs, and stories about families will enjoy reading this book. 3 stars, Grades 5 to 8

Graphic memoir where the older sister realizes she can learn a lot from her younger brother. Kind of depressing to read but the ending was uplifting.

<i>Materials used: “The book was penciled digitally in Procreate on a iPad, the fine lines were drawn with a Staedtler Mars Lumograph 6B pencil on Blick Hot Press watercolor paper and colored digitally in Photoshop.” </i>

<i>Thanks to NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.</i>

A tender, bighearted, bittersweet telling of the author’s childhood, growing up with her younger brother. Dumpster diving, invented games, lies, injuries, and bonding, Bad Sister tells it all—as well as the author’s inner struggle to recognize within herself what others seem so easily to see. Expect this book to fly off the shelves and take home awards—Bad Sister is a force for good!

This is great graphic memoir that will appeal to Raina Telgemeier fans and also, I think, adults who remember a time when kids were left to roam free and get into all sorts of mischief. Charise and her brother make up games of questionable safety and her brother is often the one who ends up hurt. Charise is left to deal with the guilt of not being the best big sister. The book is a little gory, but it speaks to the conflict and love between siblings.

A sweet graphic novel about sibling relationships and what it means to be the older sister. True to life, witty, and full of heart, this is a wonderful book that will have kids hugging their younger siblings all around.

What a great graphic memoir. We all have regrets about the way we've treated siblings as we grew up, I'm sure of it. I'm sure kids today do and say things to their siblings they wish they hadn't. This book isn't about regret but about trying to be a better sibling and person. The dynamic Between Charise and Daniel may change but at the heart of it is Charise liking being around her brother and trying to be nicer. Daniel is a forgiving and loving person, just wanting that relationship with his older sister. I really liked the art as well. Great book for 9 and up looking for character-driven books. Great for fans of Raina Telgemeier.