This story captures the middle school experience well. Our protagonist is realistic. She is a child on the cusp, trying to be older but still enjoying imaginative play. Her sense of identity is still in flux. The journal style makes it accessible and a quick read.

Graphic novel that would be ideal for grades 7 and up. Deals with topics like friendship, growing up and figuring out your identity.

A cute and funny middle-grade graphic novel you won't want to miss

Tuva is excited for the start of school (except for math class of course). She can't wait to spend time in the woods with her best friends Bao and Linnea and write about everything in her new diary! But things at school are different this year. Linnéa got a boyfriend over the summer and now she wants to spend time doing mature teenage things like going shopping, wearing makeup and talking about boys. Bao thinks all of those things are gross and still wants to spend time building forts in the bog. Now Tuva is torn between wanting to be mature like Linnéa and hanging out in the woods with Bao. And to make matters worse, she thinks she has feelings for Mariam, the new girl at her school.

Cute and funny with a diary-like structure that offers a personal look at growing pains and first love, Cross My Heart and Never Lie is a middle-grade graphic novel you won't want to miss!

Tuva is confused about becoming a teenager. It seems all her friends are either camp fall in love and get a boyfriend or camp lets not get a boyfriend. It seems her friend Linnea is "dating" Martin now and her friend Bao resents the intrusion of Martin into their friendship. All of a sudden it's babyish to play in the woods behind the school. It's not easy navigating the need for a bra and whether or not you could have a crush on a girl. This graphic novel portrays all the angst of maturing and discovering things about who you may be and what you value.

A sweet story of a preteen girl struggling with big feelings. My middle schoolers love graphic novels and I could see this one getting checked out A LOT. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced reader’s copy.

This was a pretty enjoyable read. It was very quick to read, and I really liked the art. I also quite liked the subjects it touched on, and I definitely think it's a very relatable as well. However, I just feel like it was lacking some depth for me. I don't know. I just wanted a little more from it.

This was such a unique take on a graphic novel. I liked that Dasnes combined an epistolary format with the graphic novel format, to create a work that truly felt like taking a peek inside a middle school girl's diary. I thought that the issue of growing up vs. staying a child was handled well, combined with the drama of first love and first crush. I liked the ups and downs of the friendship between Tuva and her friends, and how Boa was so adamant on staying away from love, while Leanne was going through her own first relationship. I loved the relationship between Tuva and her father, and how they were both going through these experiences of puberty (and parenting puberty) for the first time.
I thought the crush between Tuva and Mariam was very sweet, and so reminiscent of first love. I also really liked how Leanne broke up with her boyfriend over his homophobia, and her influencer sister declared homophobia to be "uncool".
Overall, I thought this was a sweet graphic novel, very reminiscent of the Alice books by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, and I can see this being popular with readers of the Babysitters Club books and the Just Sunny books.

I read a finished copy of this title.

With gorgeous colorful illustrations (except when the main character's emotions necessitate less color, a nice touch), Cross My Heart and Never Lie was a lovely story of growing up. A crush on a girl is definitely a major part, but there is not any homophobia to overcome, and not even that much questioning. Rather, the main conflict is about growing up as a girl at that awkward age when some are into romance and others aren't, some have more developed bodies than others, and friendships are falling apart. Still relatable in the United States!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

this story is peak middle school drama about crushes, growing up, and cliques. honestly kind of “annoying” to read because the problems are so simple, but to them it’s like their whole world. ALSO such a pretty art style.

character things:
- i feel like tuva’s crush came out of no where?
- bao is literally so rude for no reason, like you’re in middle school get over yourself
- linnea is fine i guess? like it’s strange(?) that she kind of just “left” tuva and bao for new mean girls type friends, but that’s middle school for you.

overall, I enjoyed it and it would be amazing for someone of similar ages to the characters to read it. I personally didn't connect, but I'm also not the target audience.

Thank you, NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc. However, I found the writing style to be bland and it didn't live up to my expectations. I would rate it 3 stars.

"Today, school felt really different from last year. Something felt strange while we waited in the hall, almost like everyone had heard a secret during the summer and now we were all standing there knowing something. Except me. I didn't know what the secret was..."

I adored this!! Cross My Heart and Never Lie is a coming of age story about Tuva, who is just entering the seventh grade and everything is changing. This read like a middle grade Heartstopper with the humor of middle grade classics like Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. Tuva finds herself caught between the girly girls who are "mature" and "want to fall in love" and the more tomboy side of her class that don't care about makeup and still want to play outside in the woods. Meanwhile, there's a new girl in her class that she wants to be friends with in a way she realizes is actually a crush.

I appreciated that the conflict comes not from the fact that it's a girl that she likes but that she likes someone at all, which she is worried will cause a rift between her and her friend who is against falling in love. And Tuva has a great supportive dad who makes her playlists and cooks the best lasagna. I love how the story is told through Tuva's diary entries; it felt so real in a way that made me want to dig up my old childhood diaries - the way Tuva phrases things and sees the world is so true to life. The book also features our characters using cell phones to text and listen to music in a way that realistically worked for the plot without being overbearing. So much of this was so funny, too! There's a great spread where Tuva is trying to pick which boy in her class she should like so she lists out pros and cons like "cool haircut" and "loves math (I hate math)" which had me cracking up.

I loved the color palette of brights and pastels with lots of pink and blue and yellow. And Dåsnes is able to really capture Tuva's different moods, like adding happy cute flower or star doodles, or covering a page in dark blue scribbles when Tuva's really upset. I found the ending to be both satisfying and realistic, and it definitely had me tearing up a bit. I'd love to read more from Nora Dåsnes if more of her works are translated in the future!

This was a really cute middle grade graphic novel dealing with the hardships of 7th grade. Readers will follow main character Tuva as she deals with friendship drama, first loves, and middle school. I really enjoyed Tuva's relationship with her dad. I always appreciate when authors show a good caregiver/child relationship so that kids know that can often trust their caregivers and should seek help when needed. I do wish that the end of the story had a bit more closure. To me, the ending felt quite rushed.

We follow 12-year-old Tuva as she tackles the ups and downs of seventh grade. Tuva's initial goals are simple: keep a diary, stay trendy, and enjoy time with her friends. However, things get complicated when her friends split into two groups: Team Linnea, who are into romance, and Team Bao, who aren't interested in love at all. Tuva finds herself caught in the middle, unsure where she belongs.

Her world takes an unexpected turn when she develops a crush on Miriam, a girl, which confuses her further. This crush feels right to Tuva, yet she struggles with the secrecy of it and the pressure from her friends to pick a side. This story beautifully captures the essence of young adolescence, highlighting the challenges of friendships, self-discovery, and coming to terms with one’s identity in a sensitive and relatable way. Tuva’s journey is a heartfelt reminder of the complexities of growing up and finding oneself. I think this graphic novel really captures the complex social dynamics of going from a child to teen and that frindships changes as well. I would recomend this book to anyone who has ever been in 7th grade.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hippo Park for allowing me to read a digital copy of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review.

Cross My Heart and Never Lie by Nora Dåsnes with Matt Bagguley was a sweet middle grade graphic novel that I feel needed to be a bit longer to truly wrap up the character’s arcs. First off I want to talk about how much Ioved the art style. The journal format was both really fun and not a style I see graphic novels in often. Seeing this novel pull it off so well was really exciting to me. I also enjoyed that despite the friendship and relationship struggles it ended happily which is always nice to see pulled off well in books for younger readers. My only big criticism is that the story ended pretty abruptly. Which is a shame, because I loved the characters and ending that quickly did affect how well their arcs wrapped up. I feel that even just a few more journal entries could have made their friendship make up really work overwhelmingly better. However, even with my criticism of the ending I really enjoyed this graphic novel and was so happy I got to read it.

An authentic and captivating diary-style story of a Norwegian middle school girl. The story incorporates ideas of friendship struggles, growing up and changing, and discovering what it means to have feelings for another girl. The art is stunningly done and helps to convey the tone of the story. I would recommend this graphic novel to anyone who would find comfort in a cozy queer coming of age story.

A graphic novel that helps to ease kids anxiety by answering many of the looming questions surrounding teenagers. This will be a valuable resource in libraries as patrons reach the age of asking many questions and facing many changes.

I have an 11 year old daughter, and this is the perfect read for preteen growing up! middle school can be tough and so is growing up. I love the writing style of this graphic novel, like a diary entry. It talks about the twist and turns young girls take growing up trying to fit in and keep and make friends. great book

The drawing are really the star of this show in such a meaningful way. The story is lovely and full of heart and it is heightened by the lovely illustration. I would highly recommend this to young readers and adults alike. I found the voice of this novel to be so well written and dynamic. If felt honest and heartfelt throughout. And once again I cannot stress enough how much I adore to illustration style and it's ability to convey emotion and tone.

This is a sweet graphic novel. I generally liked it but was not drawn to return to it. I loved the representation and the story of a first crush, especially a totally accepted queer one. It is relatable and will help so many kids in Tuva’s position feel seen. However, I just felt the friendship strife was a bit heavy-handed. I work with kids in many capacities and this did not seem like the most realistic portrayal but maybe others will relate to it more. (This could also be due to my perspective as an American with this text set in Norway, so I want to acknowledge that that could be a factor!) The art is lovely and it is a fun style with the structure of a diary. Try it if you are interested! Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!