Punk Rock Karaoke was a fun ya graphic novel about the band Baby Hares (love the name btw), freshly released from high school and eager to spend the summer making a name for themselves.

Our central protagonist is Ariel Grace Jones (name is so dope, are you kidding?) and we explore how Ariel navigates her bandmate Michele's constant lateness and/or disappearing acts as well as a white, cis male punk elder from the band Rat's Breath that's been lingering around.

This graphic novel is a coming of age story that felt like it was about that murky, gray area between being a teenager and having the same solid group of friends and becoming an adult with responsibilities that mean that everything is going to fundamentally change - priorities are rearranged for money and for family, friendships drift off, etc.

This is a book about how much we want to give versus how much we're able to give while also doing what we need to do in the world. It's about making a place for yourself and about not letting the world take the things that you don't want to give.

Felt very punk to me. I really loved this one.

A massive thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!! I really enjoyed this book; definitely something I will tell my friends about!

Absolutely loved Punk Rock Karaoke. First of all I loved the art. It was very on point with the punk scene. Reminded me of being a teen and going to punk shows with friends. All the diversity is wonderful. I’m just wondering if we can get a playlist of all the music mentioned lol.
I will definitely be buying several copies and gifting to friends.

-Thanks NetGalley and Penguin Group for the arc-

This was definitely a little bit of a change of pace for me, but one that I enjoyed! Bianca Xunise has created a full story of coming-of-age interwoven with elements of punk rock, and uniquely expressed through the book’s art style. Xunise’s storytelling is fully implemented into the art itself and the way the characters are drawn from panel to panel and I can appreciate the full integration despite it being outside of the normal styles I typically look for in graphic novels. The story itself flows well, there are a few elements that feel kind of removed from the overall story, I think that’s just part of understanding the full story a graphic novel is trying to tell. Even if, like me, you have basically zero familiarity with the punk rock scene, I think that this book and its story is very accessible and a fun romp. It takes some classic young adult novel conventions of the coming of age story and presents them in a slightly new context that’s worth checking out!

This was a really great coming of age story. I enjoyed the premise. I thought there were a lot of storylines for such a short book and I wished there was a little bit more time to explore them all.
And while I appreciated the artwork - I found the panels a little crowded and hard to follow at times, but that is a total personal preference and was made more prevalent because this was a digital copy and not physical.
But I definitely recommend this one - especially for those into punk.

This was such a fun and colorful way of looking at some real issues that teens deal with. I loved the way they set things up for her to meet the singer she liked, and to learn from him about some important life lessons. Excellent art and excellent story!

Full of Punk Rock vibes!
The art style compliments the story so well, you can really become immersed into this coming-of-age graphic novel about finding yourself and where you fit into the world.

Overall, I loved the story, the musical elements, and diverse characters, but I did find the coloring to be a bit distracting.

Definitely recommend giving this one a try!


Thank you PenguinTeen for the e-ARC to read and honestly review.

This graphic novel is so fun. I definitely liked the artwork it definitely has punk rock vibes. The MC friends are there for her no matter what and I love that so much

An adorable book with characters students will connect with, especially those who might not have a group of people to hang with--the others.

The story is fun and engaging! Reminds me of Puffy Ami Yumi. The art was just a little too busy for my liking though,

This book such fun to read, the art style, the coming of age movie vibe this gave was just so fun. I was completely invested in this book and couldn't put it down for a second.