5/5 stars.

In this compelling middle grade novel, we follow Marlene, a young Dominican-American girl struggling with frizzy, curly hair. Her mother forces her to go to the hair salon every Sunday to get her hair straightened, with the hopes of getting her to fit in and be "presentable" at school and family functions. Marlene hates this monotonous routine and wants people to view her natural hair as beautiful, without having to conform to anti-black beauty standards. We follow as Marlene explores her individuality and builds a closer relationship with her mother and aunt, and comes to terms with her hair texture and learns how to correctly style her curls.

I absolutely adored this book, it was emotional and heartwarming and just right. Accepting your individuality while also trying to achieve and reach a specific “standard” is a daunting challenge, but this book demonstrates that anybody is capable of independence and originality. Many kids compare themselves to what society or their parents suggest they should look like, which is why I think "Frizzy" is such an important read. I was glad to see Marlene getting all the help she needs to figure out who she is, and how she wants to look.

The art was beautiful and vibrant. It was done in such a delicate mix between graphics and words that it was extremely gripping. The fonts are simple, and the phrases aren't too crowded, which I appreciated. I think Marlene’s emotions were portrayed very realistically and the art was able to effectively deliver all the heavy and light themes of this story.

I would recommend this book to everyone, and I can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy! Thank you to Netgalley and First Second Books for providing me with an arc of this book. My review on Goodreads will be uploaded later, closer to the release date of the book.

Such a cute graphic novel. This is a story I would recommend to any young kid dealing with body issues any any young curly haired kid

This book tore me to pieces and I loved it! Marlene is struggling with her identity. She does not fit in because she does not have "good hair."
Sadly, ever week she goes to the hair salon to straighten her hair. This weekly ritual is taking a toll on her.

This book is exactly what so many kids need to read. My hair is definitely not curly like Marlene, but I grew up believing that I needed to straighten my hair in order to be pretty. I straighten it everyday, and i’ve done since i was about 12 years old. my mother had gorgeous curls but will often disregard them and will not either straighten them or put it up. I adore how this book inteoduces generational trauma, because these issues are common for many POCs who feel the need to “look white” because that is what is “beautiful”. It allows a conversation to grow within communities and accept that we are who we are and we should not be afraid to show our roots and culture.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review that is completely my own.*

'Frizzy' is a graphic novel written by Claribel A. Ortega and illustrated by Rose Bousamra. The story follows Marlene in her hair journey. She's a young girl whose natural hair is very curly, kinky, and to her mother "out of control" and must be tamed by going to the salon to get it straightened and styled.

The story follows Marlene in not only her hair journey, but her journey of loving herself just the way she is. Her mom has been taking her to the salon every Sunday since she was little, especially after the death of her father. But Marlene hates it; she hates going to the salon and having to sit there and have someone pull at her hair when she doesn't care what her hair looks like. To her, the only one that seems to care is her mom. She continues to do it for her mom until one day, she's had enough.

She and a friend of hers watch video tutorials of how to style and take care of curls that look similar to Marlene's, but in an attempt to manage this style herself, Marlene "wrecks" her hair by her mothers standards. Her mother puts her hair up in braids for the day at school and they'll get it fixed as soon as possible. Marlene is furious and just wants to be herself, she's proud of her curls and she doesn't understand why everyone else, especially her mother, makes a big deal about it. Marlene takes her braids out on the bus to school, but by the end of the day at school, bullies have stuck tape into her curls which results in a huge fight of Marlene pushing someone down that sends Marlene to the principal's office.

Marlene's mother is furious and she tries talking to her mother about how she wants to like her hair the way it is, but all her mother is focused on is how she pushed someone down at school for bullying her. I can understand Marlene's frustration, people are bullying her just for the way her hair looks and she's the one getting in trouble. Marlene's mother suggests she goes to her aunts house for the weekend to try to get a breath of fresh air and relax.

Her aunt Ruby has hair just like Marlene, and they get to talking and Ruby suggests that she teach Marlene how to style and take care of her hair so it can be natural but cleaned up and not 'frizzy' the way her mother sees it. The whole weekend is filled with tips and tricks of how to style it to her liking and her aunt validates her feelings that her mom is being too hard on her, and there are things Marlene figures out in these conversations with Ruby why her mom is so against her natural hair.

When Marlene returns home after school on Monday she's terrified to see her mother's reaction to her curls that Ruby helped with. She walks in the door and her mother's immediate reaction is "What did Ruby do?!" and threatens to call her sister and have a talk with her about this. But Marlene steps in and stops her, and talks to her, finally, about how going to the salon and having her hair straightened all the time doesn't make her feel like herself, her natural curls feel more like her and she wants to be free to have her hair how she wants it and not live up to other people's standards of what hair should be deemed "professional" or "lady-like."

The ending of this graphic novel was very cute, and I really appreciated this story. I give it 5/5 stars because I think it sends out a positive and necessary message to anyone with natural curls, and those that feel the need to comment on someone's hair being "unprofessional." I think, while this book may be aimed at a younger audience, it's necessary for everyone, curls or not. We live in a world, especially in the United States at least, where black people and PoC's hair is always a topic of controversy for some reason. There has been a precedent set that natural hair is bad, that black women should have their hair styled all the time to appear more "professional" and "clean." This idea is stemmed from racism, obviously, and it needs to stop. It's even talked about in the book itself, why Marlene's mom stopped wearing her hair naturally and began going to the salon, because she was sent home from school because at the time, her natural hair was unacceptable.

Even in this day and age, in 2022, black people and PoC are constantly criticized for their natural hairstyles. And sometimes, even when their hair is styled, in ways such as dreadlocks, braids, or other popular styles, they are still critiqued for their hair not being "clean" or "professional." I've never really understood the idea of someone's HAIR being unprofessional, it's just hair. Having a different style of hair, different color of hair or whatever is self-expression and I think is very important for every individual. But black people and PoC seem to be the exception to this and it needs to be talked about more, and I think this book does a really good job of representing this idea. That it doesn't matter what your hair looks like, as long as you're happy, that's all that matters.

Again, thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC. I heavily enjoyed this one and I think this will be a great read for absolutely anybody, PoC who want to learn self-acceptance, and those of us without naturally curly hair that no one's hairstyle should define who they are or their worth.

First of all, I love the pastel color scheme of this graphic novel. 😍
Second, the story! 💕 This is a story about self-discovery and self-acceptance. about expectations and disappointments and most importantly about staying true to yourself. ☺️
There were moments of emotion and humor, everything you could want from a story like this.
I will be recommending it as much as Katie O'Neill's graphic novels. 💗
I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

Absolutely loved it!
It is fun, it is smart, it is super charming.
Great story about a girl embracing her looks and heritage and personality.
Artwork is amazing, characters are full of emotions I just enjoyed so much.

Frizzy is a middle-grade graphic novel that embarks on Marlene's journey to embrace and proudly wear her curly hair, with a few mishaps and a dash of embarrassment along the way.

"Adults are such weirdos. They say stuff like 'it's what on the inside that counts' but then the one thing they can't stop talking about is looks!"
"Be yourself, honesty is the best policy, and then don't be yourself, be what other people want"

I don't remember the last time a graphic novel made me teared up but Frizzy surely touched my soul with the message it tries to deliver. As much as I am not in the same shoes as Marlene for having curly hair (what more when I'm wearing a hijab), it's also the kind of struggle I would understand. To accept your individuality while also not on par with what was supposed to be the standard is not an easy task. But this book shows that everyone is capable of independence and individuality — one just needs to be prepared to take whatever consequences their expression brings and it's the journey that I love to see Marlene discover.

I think it's fitting for its target audience to learn self-acceptance, especially at this crucial stage of adolescence as often, teens compare themselves to what society or their parents say they should be like. I love to see Marlene also getting all the support she could get to help her has an idea of who she is in the eyes of other people. It's just so emotional yet heartwarming.

Not to mention, the illustrations are equally stunning! It was done with such intricate dance between pictures and words, making this an exhilarating journey. The fonts are easy to read and the wordings to aren't cramping with one another. I personally think this was an amazing read!

Couldn't recommend it enough.

I absolutely LOVED this book. Why? cause i can relate to this.

This grapic novel tells us a story about Marlene: Girl with Frizzy hair. Her family had a mindset that only girl with smooth long hair looks beautiful thus she has to visit the saloon every week. She even gets Bullied in her school, family functions But she gather her courage & took a stand for helself, she embraced her hair as it was, she opened up to her mum about it. And it was happy ending. I loved how supportive her bestie was.

I could relate to Marlene as Growing up with my curly hairs was always point of people's talk. They used to criticise me, Calling my hairs Noodles, crows nest and what not. At first it used to hurt me, i used to kept my hairs in braids but not anymore. Just like Marlene. It's my hair and i decided to love them as it is.


Thank you Netgalley & First second books for providing me an advance copy of this book💗

I laughed! I cried! This was awesome and would be a great addition to any classroom shelf. My younger sister has super curly hair and was very insecure about it growing up. This is the sort of representation I wish she had back then.

“We learn things from our parents, who learn things from their parents, who learned that from their parents. It doesn't make those things okay to believe...”

Marlene's story is one that many curly-haired children, especially WOC, will relate to. Before I lost most of my hair (I wear wigs now), I also spent most of my youth trying to look "presentable" because no one was throwing around the word "beautiful" whenever my natural hair was out. Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, I grew up with a hair stylist for a mother, so she spent many years helping me maintain my curls--and then later--masking my extreme hair loss. It took me a long time to love my hair, little and brittle as it may be, but I can't help but wish I had a book like FRIZZY to read back then. I am so, so pleased that this book will exist for future generations to find.

Oh, and I absolutely loved the illustration style, colour choices, and digestible formatting of the words. This was brilliantly done by Rose Bousamra and Claribel A. Ortega.

Note: I received an eARC of this graphic novel from the publisher on NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Well, I just LOVED this. A sweet graphic novel about Marlene, a young latina girl, who has very curly hair, coming from the Black side of her family. And this isn't seen as 'good hair' by her mother and so Marlene has to go to the hair salon every Sunday, to get her hair straightened through a thoroughly torturous process. It's not suprise that Marlene hates to got to the salon, but she feels she can't say this to her mother.

Throughout the book Marlene grapples with this problem - why has her hair have to be straight? Why isn't her natural hair seen as 'good hair'? And what about her aunt, who does wear her hair naturally?

Marlene learns that the idea of 'good hair' (read: caucasian-style straight hair), is a form of anti-Blackness, of internalised racism by part of her community. And so she decides she has to confront her mother.

The writing is light and beautiful, the art is exactly right for the story it's telling. This'll be a great book for boys and girls who don't have a nice aunt who can help them.

Excellent.

Oh my gosh, my heart! I’ve been looking forward to this graphic novel since Claribel A Ortega first announced they were writing this story, and I’m so glad I was able to receive an early copy.

Marlene hates going to the salon and straightening her hair every Sunday, but has been taught it’s necessary for her to be presentable and accepted, both by her peers and her family. Seeing her Tía Ruby with her natural curls at her cousin’s quiñce and seeing her favorite character in Super Amigas with natural curls, Marlene wants to try wearing her hair natural as well. The journey she takes to learn how to care for her hair and listen to the voices that believe she’s beautiful rather than saying she needs to change is such a powerful and important story.

I truly adored this story and my heart is so full with the way Marlene is able to love her hair and deepen her bonds with her best friend Camila, her tía, and her mom. This is so full of love and care, and the art is so perfect for this story. It has several important messages about the anti-Blackness that is such a fraught aspect of conversations around hair, as well as discussions of how generational messages impact the latest generation. Marlene having her aunt to show her how to take care of her hair and hearing stories of how her dad helped her mom love her hair while he was alive after the messages she’d received from Marlene’s grandparents was such an important part of showing different journeys and paths to loving your natural hair. I highly recommend this graphic novel be picked up by everyone because it is so sweet and also has such an important message about what constitutes “good” hair.

[review will go up on blog Oct 16]

This was way too cute! I just loved the art and the story so much. A very important read on loving your hair. I personally have very straight hair to the point which they can't even curl a little (if somehow I can manage some waves they disappear quickly, braids don't stay either, but my hair does get tangled anyways which is annoying but now I have short hair... spoiler, they still tangle, lol) and I always wanted to have some curls, so it was such an interesting read on loving your hair however they are, and if you do want to straighten or curl it to do because YOU want to, not because you feel like you HAVE to. This lesson works in so many areas in life, it's cool.
Marlene has very curly hair but everyone around her tells her that she has bad hair and she should be more like her cousin and should straighten them. Marlene hates the saloon but she doesn't tell her mom, because it makes her happy and she's afraid. Marlene is Dominican so her hair is just natural, but everyone acts like they're bad. At her cousin's quince, she gets humiliated after her hair gets all frizzy. She doesn't really know how to take care of her awesome curly hair but her bestie wants to help, which ends up in a disaster and people bully her at school, while she gets in trouble for it, typical schools... She's very angry at people for being mean to her and when she stands up and talks they say that she is being mean... Her mom sends her to her Tia who rocks curly hair and she loves to love and take care of her beautiful hair.
A pretty sweet and short read, I was so happy when I saw I got accepted today after having requested it for months! I am obsessed with the art style and I love drawing curly hair, people look gorgeous with them so it's a shame that people like to bring others down for such stupid things... Ugh. I also liked that Marlene's aunt told her how this thing is based on racism and anti-blackness and how even in communities where the majority are the same color they praise 'white features' like light eyes and light and straight hair.
Id says it was AWESOME, and I recommend it to younger and older readers alike, though I'm sure people with curly/coily hair would appreciate it the most as they relate to some degree. Still, everyone deals with some prejudice and unnecessary hate on something... It's annoying.

Due to my committee work I am unable to review titles. Please see www.yalsa.alacom/thehub for the blog post on this title.

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

Wonderful book showcasing the struggles for people of color with non straight hair. Thisay trigger some people, it's worth the read. You have to find your voice and realize that you are beautiful. Amazing story and artwork.

Such a cute and informative read. I get up with intense frizzy and curly hair that was just untamable. Reading this was perfect. The culture that was shown was beautiful and the reality that hair really does play a big part in self confidence is shown significantly throughout. The graphics were gorgeous as well!

When I first saw the cover and title of this graphic novel, I immediately knew as a fellow curly head that I had to read it. The description further helped to sell it. I'm sure there'll be many other curly heads out there that will feel the same! Thank you to Netgalley and First Second Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

This story is a middle-grade graphic novel following Marlene and her abundance of curls on a path to self-love and acceptance both within and outside of her Dominican culture and heritage. Hailing from the Caribbean myself, it really isn't easy. Making peace with your curls or any other part of yourself and physical appearance is such an important message for kids and I think the themes within the story are universally applicable. This book is entertaining but it's also educational and inspirational. I would definitely recommend it for young readers, and even adults coming to terms with loving their natural hair as well!

The artwork by Rose Bousamra is fun, colourful, and cute. I love the way the curls and the diversity of the Dominican community are illustrated.

I had a great time reading this and reminiscing about my own struggles and eventual acceptance of my curly hair!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved it and it made me cry, really I'm too emotional when it comes to some topics and when it touches kids. It is such a beautiful book, I liked everything about it either the illustrations which are amazing and vibrant or the story which treated about some serious and real topics like self-love, the impact of parents' opinion on their kids' self-esteem and image like the idea of good hair, bad. The author really speaks in a soft way, I might say, about a serious topic such as anti-blackness.

Even if it is a middle grade graphic novel book yet it had some important messages for its readers. I'm sure it will help a lot of kids to learn to accept and love themselves and their differences either when it comes to their hair or the color of their skin. For the adults, it might make them realize their mistakes.

Truly it hurts when you hear a little girl crying and asking her mom that she is not beautiful and wants to have a white skin because, in front of her, a stupid teacher told this little girl's classmate that she is "white" and beautiful. Yeah, this book might help a lot of little girls and maybe mothers to make things easier for their kids at home because they get enough trauma from the others outside.

I adored this book! I loved the art style and the beautiful visuals that accompanied a story full of love, acceptance and going against the grain. These characters made me smile and the messages in this book packed a punch. Highly recommend!