I absolutely LOVED this graphic novel and I know my patrons will love it too. I think that graphic novels are amazing books for young readers because they touch on hard to talk about topics and make them more relatable to them. I can see this being very popular at my library!

This was super cute I loved it!! Oh, to be twelve years old and start a visual diary 💘💘

Tuva is starting the seventh grade and she is not ready to become a teenager. In this novel, we follow Tuva's personal diary from her first day of school; leaving childhood behind, fighting with her friends, and maybe falling in love? When a new kid comes to school, Tuva wonders if it is also possible to fall in love with a girl.

Tuva is so funny and so kind, and I definitely understand what she is going through. I think this is a very accurate portrayal of the pre-teenage years. Also, the illustrations were adorable and now I kinda want to start my own visual diary.

This follows 12 year old Tuva as she heads into her teen years.

It was so nice to see the queer representation in this book, I didn’t have that growing up & I’m so glad kids today do.

This book is written in diary form & it really nails the voice of a 12 year old.

** A copy of Cross My Heart and Never Lie was provided by the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review **

Such a warm and cosy story about friendship, first loves, and all the awkwardness of growing up!

Darling middle grade graphic novel about the awkward stages of being a kid and maturing at different rates as your friends.

Tuva is in grade 7, she is 12 and she loves playing in the big with her two best friends when one of them gets a boyfriend and the dynamics start to shift.

This was so lovely and so relatable.
This age is hard and this story encapsulates so much of the insecurity and struggles of this growing period.

I also loved the art.

Thanks to NetGalley and Astra Publishing for an eARC.

i really liked this cute little graphic novel! it's in a diary format, following tuva, a 12 year old girl who is confused and torn between two of her friends, who seem to be on different sides. there were so many aspects of this that i absolutely loved!
- the whole artstyle
- the little details, like how she occasionally misspells words or dates, how the colors changed with her mood
- the relationship tuva and her dad have
- feeling lost and not knowing deal with friend-related things
- i do wish we'd gotten more of tuva hanging out with mariam but i also do understand that that wasn't the point.
just thinking about how much i would've loved this and probably read it over and over as a little kid, and of all the kids that *will* be able to makes me so happy. i love queer middle grades.
thank you to the publisher hippo park and netgalley for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

This is an adorable middle-grade graphic novel with such an amazing story! The mix of diary entries and graphic novel elements made this a very visually interesting read and the illustrations are absolutely fantastic. I would definitely recommend this to both older and younger readers looking for a fun graphic novel about that weird period of life as a pre-teen trying to figure out their place in the world!

AD/PR PRODUCT

A beautifully done story of a kid’s experience with transitioning between being seeing as a little kid and a teenager.
Tuva is 12 years old and is starting 7th grade. She finds out that over the summer her best friend found a boyfriend and she is confused and ashamed that she isn’t “grown” enough to have looked for one. Until she meets the new girl Mariam and is confused about what’s a friend and what’s a crush.
I love the hybrid of comic panels, art, and playlists from Tuva’s dad. The art and handwriting are bright and bold and feel like it they really could be Tuva’s.
If your kiddo can’t read cursive that could be a bit of a hiccup in enjoying this book. Otherwise this is a great step up for middle grade kids who love graphic novel diary hybrids but want content that’s a smidge more mature.

I really enjoyed this. I feel like the conversations that it tackles are really important, especially at such a young age. There's this pressure that comes with growing up and things changing around us and how all of this affects relationships and friendships. The discussion of friendships and identity were well handled, I also particularly loved seeing the relationship between Tuva and her dad. The ending was a bit rushed and could have used a bit more development but I still enjoyed it. The art style was also very nice and fit for the story and its format, which I liked.

This is the kind of book I wish I had when I was in middle school. The story follows a young girl who has started seventh grade, along with all of the drama and changes that happen with that. Her friends start to date and she can’t figure out which boy she likes in her class. Cut to the new girl at school sitting next to her at band practice.

I love that the queer relationship was so normal and accepted. The illustrations were beautiful and I’d absolutely read more by this author. Highly recommend! Also would be great in a middle school classroom or library!

Thank you Netgalley and Astra Publishing House for providing me with this arc.

This is one of my first middle grade graphic novels that I ever read and it was such a good one. It totally took me back to my own 12 years old self and I loved it for it.

The relationship between Tuva and her dad was so cute and lovely, however her friendship group I didn’t really enjoy. It makes sense why they behave the way they do because of their age, but Tuva’s best friends weren’t my favorites.

I love that nowadays there are books like this for a younger audience, I’d love to have read this when I was younger!

Cross My Heart and Never Lie is a lovely graphic novel written in the form of diary entries. This unique format added more emotional depth than one can find in most graphic novels. The story takes place in Norway, with Tuva writing about her struggles starting 7th grade. Tuva is in that tricky in-between age of not quite a teenager, not quite a kid, and is also experiencing her first crush (on a girl, no less.) I enjoyed learning aspects of the Norwegian education system and gay rights progress, and Dåsnes illustrations have a quirky style that's easy to fall into. I only wish the ending had more time to breathe.
Thanks to Astra Publishing House and NetGalley for the ARC.

I want to thank NetGalley for the arc of this book, it did not influence my opinion on any way.

I went in with high expectations, since a bookstagrammer I admire told me it was their favourite book. It did not disappoint, it was a very very cute book and I really liked the art style.
The character felt realistic, as an high-school teacher I really could see my students in this. Growing up and being in high-school isn’t easy, but it also showed the beautiful side of teenage friendships and first crushes - and how confusing it can be when it’s a girl and you’re a girl too. I loved the book a lot and I will get my hands on a physical copy when I can.

If you have been 12 years old, you can relate to this book. Tuva is starting seventh grade. A time where kids are moving at different paces through puberty and figuring out how to be cool and dating. Her two best friends have split apart and now Tuva is trying to figure out what team she is on as both friends are trying to make her decide...but does she have to pick? At first, Tuva doesn't understand why can't they all just play in the bog?!? But then she meets the new girl in school and is thinking maybe dating wouldn't be a bad thing.

I loved this book. It is very relatable as a coming of age story. It was nice to see that wherever you are in the world, we all go through the same things as we grow older. It is a time where you see kids split off into becoming "more mature" and the ones who still act like kids. Good to know that no one has a great time in 7th grade. It's such a weird time of noticing changes and trying to be a teenager. The relationship she has with her dad is very sweet. This book is a wonderfully drawn graphic novel. The handwritten sections of Tuva's journal are very cute and so are her drawings in it. This book is translated from Norwegian and it does such a great job at translating! This book made me reflect on my own memories of being 12 and really made me want some lasagna!

Thank you Netgalley and Hippo Park for the ARC!

- I’ve read a lot of MG books that focus on friendship and what it’s like as friends go from childhood to being teenagers, and this one stands out!
- I love how silly this book was in the way that 11 and 12 year olds are! The doodles and way of thinking felt so true to life.
- While the characters are in 7th grade, they’re very comparable to kids who are in 5th grade (The book is set in Norway, and 7th grade is the last grade in primary school). I’d highly recommend this for any kid going through the elementary to middle transition.
- I loved the way this book showed how lgbt identity can be so complicated, even when a lot of people around you are allies.
- the style of the diary entries with the comic strips within worked so well!! I also loved the illustrations!

Thank you to Netgalley for this arc.

This book follows 12-year-old Tuva as she starts seventh grade. This was such a sweet read. Tuva is dealing with growing up and her crush on a new girl, Miriam. This graphic novel is written in a diary format which I really like. If anyone wants a light read of a coming-of-age story, you should pick this up.

Review to come September 15th to blog/goodreads/etc..

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

I just couldn't resist this fun looking book when I saw it on Netgalley. I was so curious because of the blurb and I loved the idea of a hand-lettered diary!

😍 Loved the introduction to Tuva. Who she is, what she likes, who her dad is, how her school looks and that she is not looking forward to maths but is looking forward to music/band. I loved seeing her goals. Which includes writing this whole diary!
😍 It was so relatable. When I was that age I also just wanted to still play, build forts, be outside, and all that. Though I didn't care that much about looking cool, haha, given the photographs I have when I was 12 I just wore what I liked. Everyone around me was indeed like those sides, but more and more girls went for the make-up/dating stuff and there I was. Not caring much about what was hot and happening and make-up was interesting but eh. I loved seeing Tuva find her own way, explore things, and not let herself be totally swayed by what x or y said. I had a laugh when she wore that mascara and when it didn't work she thought it would still be nice for Halloween.
😍 Loved that it was a hand-lettered diary! I have read other diary-like-children's books, but this one actually felt like someone scanned someone's diary and we got to read those inner thoughts and that just made me happy and made it more authentic for me. I also loved that next to her telling us about her day we get illustrations, text messages, and more!
😍 Plus, there were comic pages dotted throughout the book that helped bring the story to life even more. I really loved the illustration style it was so fun and it fitted so well with the story + what it tells.
😍 I loved seeing Tuva learn more about love and also discover that her feelings for Miriam are very true and OK to have. That it is OK for you to fall in love with a girl. Yes, love is complicated, but it is OK. I loved seeing her get closer and closer to Miriam and see them discover things they like together. Like music.
😍 The dad was such an amazing character, I love how supportive he was and how he was there for Tuva when she needed him. He also knew when not to go somewhere, like when she came home from that party, everything ruined, everything bad, and her dad just offered her big hugs when he saw she wasn't ready to talk. I loved that he gave her room and then went to talk with her. He was such a sweet dad, Tuva really has won the best dad lottery (though she is in that stage that she may not always see that, haha).
😍 I was proud that she dared to go to school after things happened. That her dad convinced her. That things weren't that scary in the end. I am also happy that things got resolved, not just with Bao, but also with Linnéa and also with Miriam.
😍 Loved the Dear Reader part at the end in which the author/illustrator tells us more about the story and everything.

😶 Not such a fan of the Tuva's friends. I think maybe I would have liked them more if we could have seen them before everything broke up. Because now I just see two girls I don't really like. Well, Bao at first a bit, but Linnea.. not so much. I didn't like how they formed two parties and how they just left Tuva to pick one. Whereas Tuva just wanted to be friends with both the girls without the other feeling hurt.

All in all, I really loved this book and I had so much fun reading it! It was relatable. It was sweet. And I hope there are many more books in the series, though I may just skip the next one as I am just not that in the mood for climate change/activist books. But the ones after that! I would recommend this book to all.

(I received this book from the editor and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)
This was just the cutest reading. I really enjoyed the diary format and the little scribbles that the main character, Tuva, uses to highlight some special aspects of what she is telling the reader about.
As a middle grade graphic, I thought Cross my Heart and Never Lie was really interesting in its way of telling a story that has been told a thousand times before. Being as it is originally Norwegian, it was also intriguing to see things that might not be as universal and others.
And, as coming-of-age story, I thought it touched in all the important topics with mesmerizing simplicity and naturality. No need for any more drama than the one twelve years old could create. It felt organic.

This graphic novel was hilarious and well-drawn, definitely worth the money and the hype, and I hope will be successful!

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Cross My Heart and Never Lie follows 12-year-old Tuva as she develops her first crush, gets into disagreements with her best friends, and starts to question the right way to grow up. Presented as a diary that Tuva is writing and drawing in, this graphic novel brought me right back to Tuva's age when I too would write countless entries about everything that was going on at school and in my life as a whole (including lists of boys and debating which of them I had a crush on... the repressed lesbianism of it all). The handwriting, little doodles, and spelling mistakes are all wonderful touches. I related deeply to Tuva as a girl attracted to other girls who struggled to figure out which of the two groups my two best friends were a part of was the right fit for me (spoiler alert: life is more than just two groups!). I wish I had been able to read this when I was going through my own preteen crises.

I love when stories acknowledge that friendships are just as important as crushes or romantic partners and this did it wonderfully. A smaller but still lovely part of this story was Tuva's relationship with her single father. There's one scene in particular where the two are talking about what Tuva's been going through with her friends that's incredibly sweet.

The one thing that disappointed me was when Tuva does some Googling online about girls who like girls and comes away with the idea that these girls are either lesbians or bisexuals, ignoring pansexuality and the fact that you don't have to prescribe to any label to be valid.

Besides this, I enjoyed Cross My Heart and Never Lie. It's a beautiful exploration of the trials and tribulations of preteen life and the complications of friendship at that age. I can definitely see myself giving it to my future child when they're the right age.

Thank you to Astra Publishing House for providing me with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!