Yay for another book in the Berrybrook Middle School series! This is a great series and I'm glad to see another book added to it. I got a little confused by the backstory and felt the ending was a little rushed, but still overall a very good book. I have already purchased it for my library.

Another installment in the world of Berrybrook Middle school, Enemies follows Felicity’s story. A character you may recognize from previous books set here. Felicity is going to do something amazing, once she figures out what exactly she it will be. While her sister, Letty, may tease her about never finishing anything, it is only because Letty is so perfect. Felicity’s life is good with lots of friends, in art club and playing games. When she decides to enter a contest to show that she can get things done, Felicity begins to realize that friends becoming enemies is easier than she thought. But are they really enemies? And who does she really need on her side?
I was so excited for this book! We all read the previous books set in Berrybrook and I was excited to return. I love the variety of art styles that graphic novels have. This one leans toward cartoon/anime style, which is really fun and I think fits the story well. I am always so impressed by artists who produce such distinct and memorable stories and characters.
Felicity is an engaging and relatable character. When comparing herself to her sister, she feels like she doesn’t quite measure up. Her talents lean towards art and games. However, her desire to do something great began to negatively affect her friendships. She felt the pressure to do something great, to do something innovative and to do it well. I liked Felicity and really felt for her. Friendships are hard and adding the figuring out yourself that tends to start in middle school makes it even harder. I liked watching her grow and appreciated how she asked for help. I was glad that her parents were supportive and encouraging and that she was able to find resolution.
The story moved along at a pretty quick pace, but it fit the style and format. I think the ending was very fitting for the lessons that Felicity learned. Overall, I really enjoyed this story, thought the art was lovely, and appreciated the lessons Felicity learned.

Middle grade graphic novel:
No language
Very light mention of romance
Good relationship with parents
Sister relationship growth

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher through Netgalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion, a positive review was not required.

Another fantastic addition to the Berrybrook Middle School series. Svetlana Chmakova has a way of making her characters come to life. Watching the expansions of each story and it's characters it's a wonderful experience.

This one has amazing representation for creative but not always great at committing characters. We meet Felicity trying to find her way in the world of art and anime. Competing against herself, others expectations, and her seemingly perfect younger sister Letty.
Mix in a contest with cash money on the table and some awkward undefined friendships that might have gone south, and you've got wonderfully realistic awkward pre-teen situations to enjoy. And you will.

**Thank you to Yen Press, JY, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.**

These books are sooooo good.
The story follows Felicity, a young black girl who loves art and gaming and constantly feels like the underachiever next to her little sister Letty. Desperate to prove she can finish something, ANYTHING, she enters an entrepreneur competition with her friend Tess and Drama Ensues.
I loved the family aspect to this book, we haven’t seen that from the other stories in the series as much (though I haven’t gotten ahold of Crush yet to compare). Her parents were really heartwarming. The relatable and awkward confusion between friends over miscommunications and offenses provides the main plot and I loved how the different characters wove together and met a resolution eventually.
I’m such a huge fan of these books 😍
Thank you SO much NetGalley for the advanced digital review copy. I’ll be adding the real thing to our collection once I see it in store here in NZ.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Probably one of the best graphic novels I’ve read. I was so impressed with the depth of characters and the multilayered plots that were exceptionally middle schooler relevant. I have not read the others in the series, but it definitely stands up well on it’s own.

This book is a graphic novel, that I will have my middle grade students work on. Some of them have issues with organization and team building. This book covers both. It is about kids and a project they have to do. The main character is one that doesn't get projects done on time because she wants them done her way. The partner has lots of suggestions, but the main character doesn't like any of them. In the end the main character learns that everyone is different and has different likes, so both of their ideas work.
The main character is also having friend issues because she told others something personal about her best friend and that can hurt feelings. The main character also learned a lesson in friendship with this problem.
So the book is a good book that touches also on problem solving. A great one to read if in the middle grades.

Another great installment of the Berrybrook Middle School saga from Chmakova! This one, aptly named Enemies, explores how we can just as easily make enemies of others around us but also how easy it is to be your own enemy. At times, Felicity is her own worst enemy. She is always comparing herself to her younger sister Letty who is perfect at everything it seems and Felicity can't help but compare herself to her little sister and feel just how inferior she is in comparison. To this effect, she is constantly putting herself down (though her sister's constant criticism does not help at all). This creates quite the confidence hit whenever she is confronted by this. Not to mention the "enemies" she makes at school including Joseph whom she used to be best friends with but had a falling out, Tess who she comes into conflict with because of not communicating, and to a lesser extent a partner in a group project that swears vengeance upon her after she humiliates him for not holding up his part of the group project in Spanish class. Chmakova once again aptly portrays the dynamics of the roller coaster that is middle school.

This one in this whole series is not as fun as the previous one.
Felicity's struggle feelings and conflicts in this book bothers me too much.

ARC provided by NetGalley

I discovered Svetlana’s books two years ago when I was writing my masters paper about disability representation in graphic novels. And I’ve been HOOKED since. These are some of the most genuinely funny, heartfelt, entertaining stories of middle school that I’ve ever read. I have fallen in love with every kids story over these four volumes and I always love the connections within the school. So of COURSE!!!! Enemies is AMAZING! I get such a warm feeling and I’m constantly cackling with laughter - these books are golden and I’m obsessed. I am in a high school and we haven’t purchased her books but if we ever do - I will certainly add this to our collection. A MUST HAVE for students and library collections.

This was such a great book! I really love this series and this latest addition was fantastic. In this book we follow Felicity as she goes to school and deals with all the drama there. But for the most part she has a pretty great life. She plays video games with her friends and draws in the art club. Then she decides to join a contest to try and show her little sister Letty that she can actually finish things on time AND be good at them. But things start to go awry with the contest. One of Felicity's ex-friends also joins the contest with one of her gaming buddies as his partner. To make things even more awkward, Felicity's partner Tessa likes felicity's gaming friend. There's a whole bunch of drama and things take a turn for the worse. Will they be able to figure everything out? You'll have to read and find out!

This is just as delightful as the previous books in this series. Kids are going to be very excited to see this one on library shelves.

For Libraries: If you have Berrybrook readers, you are going to want this latest book set in Berrybrook Middle School.

Enemies is Chmakova's recent book in her Berrybrook Middle School series. I have enjoyed all of the books in this series and so have my students. In this book, Felicity excels in art and video games. Her sister says that Felicity has a hard time seeing things through. That was the push Felicity needed to enter a contest and prove her wrong.
Along the way, she encounters a former friend turned enemy. Felicity has to navigate friendships and seeing things through in this novel. The graphics and ability to relate to this age group is what draws me into these books. I think readers will enjoy this!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Once again I want to go to Berrybrooke Middle School. Svetlana Chmakova has created a wonderful world filled with amazing people. The students at Berrybrooke could teach my students a few things. Absolutely loved it.

*This review is based on a free ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

This is a fantastic middle grade graphic novel about the changing and confusing evolutions of friendship. As with the rest of Svetlana Chmakova's middle grade stories, this 4th addition had a powerful and relatable lesson any age can appreciate and grow from with diversity in looks, language, and culture. As a middle school teacher, I am pretty experienced in young adult drama; I was impressed with how realistic this story was both with the characterization of the kids and the reasoning for their conflicts from jealousy over crushes, sibling rivalry, and personal insecurities. Fun graphics, a lovable protagonist with current day references teens will relate to, a fast-paced plot, and memorable lesson all provide an enjoyable read that middle graders will love!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

This holds up with Svetlana's previous books. I read it along side my 10 year old who proclaimed it 'so good'. We will definitely be purchasing a physical copy to add to our graphic novel collection.

I have absolutely fallen in love with Chmakova's work. Even though the Berrybrook stories take place in middle school, they magically relate to people of all ages. This fourth installment is one of her best yet! Highly recommend if people like a feel-good graphic novel to binge in one setting :)

Did I mention they are highly inclusive? Very impressed.

A huge thanks to yen Press for my complimentary copy and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

The book is a middle grade book that follows Felicity who is this lovable character that enjoys playing video games but doesn't really concentrate much in school and thus is struggling. One day she decides to join the
Entrepreneurs Club at school because there is a competition and she wants to win the money and also show her parents . It's a book about believing in yourself ,team work, faith and friendship. Totally relatable and every middle grader would enjoy it.

This was another great visit with the kids from Berrybrook Middle School!

These kids have so much going on in their lives - tricky home lives, schoolwork, projects, clubs, and activities, PLUS the hardest thing of all - learning to get along with one another.

This terrific graphic series should be in EVERY school library.

Thank you NetGalley for early access to this title in exchange for an honest review.
Enemies is a great addiction to Svetlana Chmakova's stories in this universe. Felicity always new that she would do something amazing, but the problem is that she doesn't know what. While working on this conundrum, she is also struggling with the rather large shadow cast by her younger sister. Felicity finds herself in a situation with another student that leads her on a journey of discovers about what it means to create an enemy.
Svetlana Chmakova masterfully describes pre-teen worries and fear once again. I wish that these books had come out when I was in middle school as it would have helped me out. The story was filled with enough drama to keep me highly invested while the drawing style was easy on my eye. Another home run for this collection.

Another fantastic addition to the Berrybrook Middle School series! Enemies really shows middle grade and teen readers that they don't need to put so much pressure on themselves to be perfect at everything and to always be the best. I highly recommend this for parents as well. The story shows how the expectations of parents can impact a young person and how they think they need to be.