Brooms by Jasmine Walls, illustrated by Teo DuVall, is a beautifully crafted graphic novel that blends magic, history, and rebellion in a way that feels both exhilarating and deeply meaningful. Set in 1930s Mississippi, the story follows six extraordinary women navigating unjust laws, societal expectations, and the thrill of illegal broom racing as they fight for a better future.

I absolutely loved both the story and the artwork in this book. The full-color illustrations really enhanced the world-building, adding depth to each scene and making the magic feel even more alive. The queer and BIPOC representation was just incredible and the storytelling weaved together themes of identity, resistance, and found family in a way that felt powerful and authentic.

Although the graphic novel is short, it still manages to pack a lot of emotion and depth into its pages. That said, I do wish it had been longer so we could explore the characters’ personal growth and relationships even further. Despite that, it’s an incredibly compelling read that I finished in one sitting.

I’d highly recommend Brooms to anyone who enjoys graphic novels, but especially to queer and BIPOC readers looking for a story that celebrates resilience, history, and the magic of community.

Thank you to Levine Querido & NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Brooms is a wonderful graphic novel. While the story is rooted in magical broom races, the heart of the story is the racism, classism and sexism the main characters undergo because of the color of their skin or their sexual preferences. It's a great and interesting read.

This is a gorgeously illustrated story of underground races, found family, magic, and the incredibly real truths of the 1930s in the Southern American states.

Set in an alternative 1930s Mississippi, where magic is alive, the story follows six women as they take on the (slightly illegal) underground races to earn the money they need to change their lives. This is a wonderful read for young and old, and provides a new perspective on the real lives of women of colour and marginalized communities in the 1930s.

The art is stunning, and makes for a perfect fall read. The afterward with all the characters had me in tears, just because it was so beautiful, and spoke to each of the characters hopes and dreams for the future.

Thank you to NetGalley, Levine Querido, and the authors for allowing me to read an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Brooms center Billie Mae, captain of the Night Storms racing team, and Loretta, her best friend and second-in-command, as they find a way to make enough money and move out west to a state that allows Black folks to legally use magic and take part in national races.

The artstyle isn't my favorite, NGL, but the cover really caught my attention and I had to request it when I saw it on NG. I'm glad I did bec the way the story was told, as well as the behavior of the characters, clearly showed love, understanding, and care in the representation of minorities and communities they represent.

I know that the story is metaphorical to actual historical events (prohibition era? segregation?) but idk US history so a lot of it went over my head. Still, the struggle and injustice isn't lost on me and there was something beautiful in the end when the Night Storms not only overcome their struggles, but even thrive in life after everything.

Other things i loved about it:
+ Emma and Mattie's story was given the same importance as the other story arcs. It stood out to me, actually.
+ Luella doing the grand gesture thing is my jam! The magic in the climax was amazing to me! (Calling on to the ancestors for help?? I LIVE!)
+ I knew the Pedigrees were gonna pull a nasty revenge plot, but not bec the story was predictable or what, it was more bec I needed closure that it felt so validating and satisfying to me when they actually did it.
+ The explanation of the choices made about the language wasn't clear to me in the beginning, esp the sign language part, but as I was reading through it, I understood. And I realized the power and impact of not having translations on the page.
+ Love the epilogue bits 💝

I really liked it and I recommend picking this up when you see it in stores/Amz.
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*The eARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley for free in exchange for an honest review. It doesn't affect my opinion of the book. Thank you.

I think this may be one of my favorite graphic novels, especially this year! I loved all of the character, I loved the ending, and I loved that we got a look at the rest of their lives. The drawing style was also absolutely breathtaking.

I absolutely loved this graphic novel. It has such stunning art! I even went out and bought the physical copy.

I absolutely loved the representation and the art style. I loved getting to know all of the characters, but I wish we got a little more about the competitors, too.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel and it was a nice book. I loved the cast of characters and I found it to be such a beautiful book. I love graphic novels and this one did not disappoint! This was such a cool concept and I'm glad I was given the chance to read it.

Such a stunning graphic novel! I love graphic novels, especially witchy ones. The illustrations were beautiful.

Super cute artwork and I really enjoyed the casual diversity, including a variety of LGBTQ+ characters, as well as characters of varying ability levels, and races. The idea of magical broom racing was also executed beautifully and the book managed to capture the excitement and tension of a race well. I also loved how the plot addressed important issues, such as how non-white people were unable to participate in the official broom races no matter how good they were. No issues with pacing and just the right amount of background information was given when it was necessary (ex. the broom racing rules). This book reminded me why found family is one of my favourite tropes!

I appreciate the idea of this graphic novel, but BROOMS didn’t give me the entertainment, feels, or attachment I like to get from reading one. The representation was tremendous and included race, identity, and disability. And I love that it used magic to fight the patriarchy in 1930.

Despite these issues, I can’t help but appreciate the potential of BROOMS. The art style, though not my personal preference, was undeniably cute. The concept of the story, as described, was intriguing. However, the execution and pacing left much to be desired, and I found myself fully invested in the story only when it was almost over.

I thought the author’s note on why they wrote the book was a great addendum at the end. I always appreciate it when an author includes that.

I wish the book had been flushed out more and longer. But I didn’t mind reading it.

Thanks, Netgalley, for the arc!

5 Stars (I received an e-arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

Once again I wish I had read this soooo much earlier, I loved this book!!! At the core of the story is about fighting against colonization and trying to live as your true self, as much as one can in the 1930's. This needs to be put into schools immediately because it has all the representation for everyone. Different cultures, found families, LGBT characters, disabilities and residential school/concentration organizations. Broom racing is illegal but also lucrative for witches, when the jobs are drying up in the depression era. I don't want to say much more, as not to spoil the story but you should mount your brooms and wiz down to the nearest book store or library to check this out.

I really liked this. I did read it as an ebook copy on my phone so there's a lot of zooming and sometimes that can actually ruin a graphic novel for me but it didn't do that in this case. I was excited to go back and finish it and I really liked all of the characters. I do think that the younger girls didn't get as much fleshing out as the three older girls but as a whole definitely a win.

I actually think my favorite part of the whole book are the last 10 pages that's sort of a yearbook / scrapbook esque set up for all of our characters.

Black disabled queer MC, Asian Trans woman MC, fat disabled Black woman MC, deaf Black woman MC, Black Indigenous queer MC.

I’m a simple reader - I see witches, I click!

I highly recommend this book for those interested in YA! It grappled with a lot of important issues that are unfortunately realities for a lot of us, and I think it did so excellently. There was incredible and diverse representation within this book too which, again, is something that I feel is a must.

What an exciting and magical book this was! I don’t read many graphic novels but when I saw the premise of this one I knew I had to read it.
Brooms is the tale of a group of queer witches in an alternate 1930s Mississippi, where magic is banned for non white people and in sanctioned broom racing is outlawed. But they need the money and there’s a lot to be found in the illegal broom races, as well as the thrill of racing through the sky.
This book had incredible representation, from disabled and queer rep to Asian, black, indigenous and black indigenous rep. The author says at the end of the book that they were inspired by the underground communities of queer people of colour and how they uplifted and supported each other, and that really shone through here in the book.
The artwork is gorgeous, colourful and bright. I had so much fun reading this graphic novel, and I especially enjoyed the little epilogue that showed us where they all ended up years later. 4/5 stars.

Witches, check. Diversity, check. Fabulous telling set in the past that sheds light of current day societal issues including racism and targeted bullying. Those with powers must keep it secret. Using their powers is the only way to make money and avoid being taken and placed in a government boarding school. Walls does a fab job embedding inclusive representation throughout this welcoming graphic novel. VERDICT Must for teen and adult libraries where graphic novels are read.

This graphic novel was genuinely beautiful. There is women, native and black, transgender, and deaf representation. It was so amazing seeing the graphics incorporate American Sign Language while communicating with the deaf character and there was no issues of communicating because the ASL was normalized and inclusive. The book handles several major and important topics like references to the 60s sweep, racism, (magic) policing, and intertwines these with a unique and beautiful story about found family, witches, witches broom racing, and overcoming oppression.

The character dialogue was easy to follow and the graphics were so detailed, I truly loved every second of it and I plan to get a physical copy. I read this ARC on my Kindle and wish I got to see the full breadth of the graphics and art in color, but experiencing it nonetheless was so worth it.

This was fantastic! The historical aspect was lovely, and the art was so beautiful and interesting. Also a great story. Highly recommend this to everyone!

Broom racing is illegal and magic can be taken away from people of color without a fair trial. Four friends come together to race to get enough money to save younger sisters from the residential schools. If they can save enough money the sisters can be trained in magic by their ancestors. But racing is dangerous and the boys from the private schools are angry about losing to the girls.

This was a great mix of historical fantasy, full of people of color, queer, and folx who are disabled, sharing a wide perspective of inclusiveness in the fast-paced adventure.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for an ARC of this title

I. Love. This. Book.

This book was spectacular. I could read this book over and over again and fall in love with it over and over again. I don't have the words to express how fantastic I found this story.

Strong women. Magic. Broom racing. The magic of being young and exploring who you are.

I will 100% be purchasing this book for my library