In this Emmie & Friends installment, fans of the graphic novel middle grade series will learn more about Tyler, Emmie's crush. Told from his perspective (with snippets of Emmie's inserted), Tyler and Emmie work together on an art project, while Tyler has difficulty maintaining his friendships and his spot on the school basketball team.

Fun, funny, and sweet. Libenson does a great job of writing realistic middle grade dramadies that students can relate to. Fans of the Emmie series will love <u>Truly Tyler</u>.

Really enjoyed how this book continued on where the others left off. Having a male POV was a new thing for this series and I think the author carried it off well. I sure hope the author finds another character to feature as I don’t know that I’m done with this group of kids yet!

A fun continuation of the graphic novel series. If you like this series, then you'll probably enjoy this installment.

This is a great series that can be read in any order. This is the first time the author is telling a story from the male perspective and I think she nails it. Tyler has shown up in the other books. He is the school's cute boy on the basketball team. But Tyler is more than the jock. He loves art. And he loves comics. He starts a project with Emmie (from the first book), but the kids around him tease him for their friendship and think they are more than just friends. This book looks at Tyler just trying to live his middle school life and be more than the jock. I love that it is part graphic novel, part illustrated novel. It just all works. I also like that there is a male leading character to help attract more boys to the series.

All of Terri Libenson's books are just wonderful! Truly Tyler is no exception. This book is perfect for a middle grade audience and would make for a great read aloud in school.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for the eARC.

Truly Tyler is the 5th installment in the Emmie & Friends series. It follows characters Tyler and Emmie and they navigate the 7th grade. Emmie and Tyler partner together during art class to create a comic book for the school's art competition. Both characters have to learn how to deal with their friends and "popularity" - or lack thereof.

The story includes a strong, positive message for middle grades students. Even though it's the fifth book in the series, it could easily be read as a stand-alone book. I will be purchasing this for my middle school library.

I love this series, I was happy to see that the main character was a boy. I have recommended the series to boys, but this will make it easier to get them to check it out.

Truly Tyler was a fun, relatable graphic novel that connects to Positively Izzy, Becoming Brianna, Invisible Emmy. I know that students love these books and reading about their storylines coming together. Tyler tries to navigate middle school while trying to not fit into one social group. It was a quick read that I know will not stay on my library shelf.

Truly Tyler is the first in the Emmie and Friends series to feature a male character. I really like this series a lot. Libenson just totally nails that 5th-6th grade age where everything seems to be changing and things you thought you had figured out don't make sense anymore. The story flips between Tyler and Emmie with Tyler's POV a mix of cartoons and text and Emmie's POV in a more traditional graphic novel format. The story touches on peer pressure, changing interests, crushes, being the child of divorce, and living up to older siblings among other things. Sweet, funny, and good-hearted.

Tyler has always loved basketball, but lately he is more interested in making art. His friends and coach are pressuring him to focus on an important upcoming game, but his commitment to a project he's working on with new-friend Emmie has him wondering if he even cares about playing. Told from both Tyler's and Emmie's perspectives, this is a strong addition to a fun realistic fiction graphic novel series.

I requested this book so I could see if it would be a great suggestion for kids who love diary of a wimpy kid and the like. I did really enjoy the mix of comics and story and the different art styles for each character. There are some great messages in here but it doesn't hit you over the head with them, they're naturally reinforced and set a good example. There were a few times that I felt the story dragged a touch but I'm also an adult reading this book, so I imagine kids won't have that same issue and will just enjoy reading about these characters' lives.
I really like the representation in this book with a diverse cast of characters. Overall really good messages about friendship and following your passion.

'Truly Tyler' by Terri Libenson is a graphic novel in the Emmie and Friends series. This is the fifth novel in the series, but the first one I've read, but I was able to pick up on the characters quite easily.

Tyler is a popular basketball player. Emmie is less popular, but one thing they have in common is they both like art. When they get teamed up for a school project, they decide to collaborate on a graphic novel. As they work together, Tyler is pulled from basketball practice and his friends tease him about his new friend. His father also has his own expectations about what Tyler should be doing.

This is a really great story about finding your own way and liking what you like without the pressure of friends or family. There are three different art styles in this book as the chapters alternate between Tyler, Emmie and the comic book they are creating. I really liked this story and thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from HarperCollins Children's Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

This is the first book in this series I have read and I really liked it. It had all the components that hits the age bracket it is marketed to. Sports for boys I enjoyed the switching perspective for the boy to the girl. A crush, a problem with pleasing parents or pleasing yourself. Relationship issues with friends. All in all it was a great read that I have no doubt will be a hit in the library. I really enjoyed the book and will be looking to add other books from this series. I don't know how I missed this one.

In TRULY TYLER we learn Tyler loves playing basketball. Tyler also loves art class.
An art class assignment finds Tyler partnered with Emmie. Emmie has a secret crush on Tyler and is delighted to have an opportunity to work with him.
The art assignment begins to interfere with basketball practice. Tyler’s friend start to tease him about the amount of time he is spending with Emmie.
Tyler begins to feel conflicted. As much as he loves basketball, Tyler is beginning to feel a stronger pull towards his art.
I loved TRULY TYLER. The emotions and characters felt real.
This is the first book by Terri Libenson that I have read. After reading TRULY TYLER
I plan on reading them all beginning with INVISIBLE EMMIE.

Thank you to Harper Collins and Netgalley for allowing access to an advanced e-edition of TRULY TYLER.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book I have read from the Emmie and Friends series, and I enjoyed it. I liked the dual perspectives from Tyler and Emmie, and I also thought it was very clever how the comic they were working on mirrored their real-life relationship. Though some references might have been easier understood had I read some of the previous books, I didn’t feel as if not having read them prevented me from enjoying this one. I also think the graphic format will interest and engage reluctant readers, which is always a plus. I also thought the author did a really nice job of creating realistic dialogue and situations for middle school kids. However, I did feel as if the conflict was wrapped up a little too quickly and tidily.

3.5 stars = Good+

I think I would have enjoyed this one more if it was strictly from Tyler's POV. The back and forth with Emmie was a distraction for me, and I felt Tyler's story was richer and more interesting (art vs basketball, parent/step-parental stuff, older brother stuff, dating/non-dating stuff). Emmie's friendship issue felt forced - it felt like it was there to give her more depth than just the crush on Tyler. As always, the art was excellent.

*I received an e-ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Terri Libenson is pitch perfect yet again! She captures the tone of middle school perfectly.

Truly Tyler is a coming-of-age story that centers around the topic of standing up for yourself and others regardless of what your friends may think. This book is told in dual perspective switching between Tyler and Emmie. To be completely honest, I have loved all of the books in the Emmie and Friends series and this book was no different.

“Cliques. Crushes. Comics. Middle school.
Ever since Tyler started getting into art and hanging out with Emmie, his friends and teammates have been giving him a hard time. He wonders why can’t he nerd out on drawing and play ball?
Emmie is psyched that she gets to work on a comics project with her crush, Tyler. But she gets the feeling that his friends don’t think she’s cool enough. Maybe it’s time for a total reinvention. . . .”

#trulytyler #netgalley

I have loved all of the Emmie & Friends books and Truly Tyler was no exception! I appreciated that this one was from the perspective of a middle school boy, there are not many graphic novels with this point of view. The author did a wonderful job of capturing the middle school dynamic of the cool kids, the jocks, the art kids, the geeks etc., and the drama of trying to be a part of multiple cliques or of adding a new friend to the group. In this case Tyler is working on an art project with Emmie and now has to divide his time between basketball practice, the art project, spending time with his jock friends, and spending time with Emmie on their assignment. As expected much friendship drama and middle school angst occurs that has Tyler questioning why he has to belong to one group.

I have read all the books in this series and have loved them. Truly Tyler is no different, the story is told from the perspective of both Emmie and Tyler. It’s mostly based on Tyler. Tyler is one of the cool kids in middle school. So when he pairs up with Emmie to do an art project people are shocked. This was an overall fun read!

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. Truly Tyler is another great graphic novel for middle school-aged kids by author Terri Libenson. This book has lots of different things that kids go through like having a crush, working on school work, being popular, and so on. I think kids will really like it.