This quiet tale of queer teen Azar and the benefits and difficulties of navigating relationships with her newly single mother, her now-living-at-a-distance-father, and the found family she forms after she and her mother relocate provides opportunities for emotional resonance and empathy with the readers. I anticipated a stronger correlation between the fictional world created by Azar's landlord, passages of which are interspersed among her story, but that is a minor quibble.

3.5 ⭐️

🌈 Rainbow Ratings:
Representation: 8
Atmosphere: 7
Intrigue: 7
Narrative: 6
Build-up: 7
Originality: 7
Wow Factor: 6

Set against the backdrop of quiet Vermont, this atmospheric and profound coming-of-age graphic novel follows fifteen-year-old Azar, a Malaysian American teen navigating the uneasy space between friends, family, and her own identity. After moving to a new town where she knows no one, Azar finds comfort in a pair of unconventional neighbors and the pages of a sci-fi novel—until her queerness disrupts the fragile balance she’s built.

This story had a lot of moving pieces that were a bit confusing at first, but once everything clicked, it really clicked. The plot was fun, and the romance—though unexpected—was a lovely surprise. I especially enjoyed watching Azar and Tristan grow into themselves, and seeing Azar realize she deserved more and finally demand it from her family was so satisfying. I also appreciated how the story explores the dysfunction that exists in all of our homes, reminding us that the grass isn't always greener.

Thanks to NetGalley and Top Shelf Productions for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

I really liked Low Orbit overall. The art is beautiful and expressive, and I enjoyed spending time with the characters. The only part that didn’t quite work for me was the story of the book. It didn’t resonate as much as the rest, and I found myself more drawn to the main narrative. Still, it’s a solid read with a lot to appreciate.

Low Orbit is a quick read of a graphic novel in which Azar, a young Malaysian American girl who is hiding part of herself from her family after her mom's job moved them to a new state and split her family up (temporarily). She's made a friend, she found a book she likes, but life is just a lot.

Though there was sort of a story here, I just didn't feel like there was much going on. It was almost a coming-of-age, almost a romance, almost a story, but it just never really found its footing in anything. Azar is almost likeable and almost relatable, but she makes a lot of mistakes and doesn't own up to them or seem to learn from them. The different dilemmas that happen throughout don't really get a conclusion either. Like, Azar came upon some rough stuff, and it just kind of gets glossed over?

In conclusion, I thought this was OK. I didn't hate it, but I didn't enjoy it either.

Thanks to Netgalley and Top Shelf Productions for the e-ARC!

A great story about the power of friendship, secrets, compromise and being yourself. I liked the main characters and the intertwined stories. Loads of great LGBT+ rep in this!

Low Orbit follows Azar as she tries to fit in to her new Vermont town. She discovers a sci-fi novel written by her friend's dad and grows obsessed with the story and schemes to have him finally talk to his agent. Things get messy with big emotions and secrets, leading to a fallout with Azar's mom and her only friend. This graphic novel is full of heart and real feelings, but I do think the ending wrapped things up a little too nicely.
Thanks to NetGalley and IDW for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

After being forced to move to Vermont because of her mom’s job, Azar doesn’t quite know where she fits in. Making new friends is hard, and she’s missing her dad in New York City. When she discovers The Exiles of Overworld, a sci-fi novel written by her new neighbor, she’s finally found her escape. But a new discovery about her identity is about to throw her entire life out of balance.

Thanks to NetGalley and Top Shelf for an advanced copy of Low Orbit by Kazimir Lee to review! The cover is what grabbed me for this book, and I’m happy to say that the art throughout matched the vibes. I’m also always a sucker for those discovering identity kind of books, and this is definitely that!

Though this isn’t sci-fi, there are pieces of the sci-fi novel that Azar grows to love interwoven throughout the story. Azar also deals with some complicated family/friend stuff, in addition to trying to figure out her identity. There’s a lot for teens to relate to in her story, and I appreciated that the ending isn’t necessarily quite a happily ever after. But it still ends with hope.

There’s a cast of strong characters here, with all of their relationships evolving over the story. Tristan, Azar’s neighbor turned best friend, was possibly the most interesting to me. They have a lot on their plate with their dad, but their friendship with Azar allows them a little more freedom to be themselves again. It really is a sweet story.

All in all, if you like graphic novels that explore identity and relationships, definitely check it out when it comes out at the end of this month!

Growing up is hard, especially when you're a closeted queer Malaysian kid in North Carolina. I really liked the way this novel treated a coming-of-age story. Azar was a struggling teen, and she made a lot of flawed choices. She forcefully inserted herself into Shannon and Tristan's life, she refused to compromise with her mom, and she got obsessive about Shannon's life and career. She was messy, but so sweet. Her and Tristan's awkward and short almost-romance reminded me of growing up with all those crushes that never ended up going anywhere. I appreciated how Azar's mom tried really hard to support Azar, even if she couldn't get there at first. The artstyle was absolutley lovely, and the final reconnection at the epilogue was adorable. I think this is a great novel for anyone, but especially someone looking for a queer coming-of-age with messy teen protagonists.

Azar life has been upended - she and her mom have moved to Vermont from New York City and her dad, who was supposed to follow, is now staying in NY, for much longer than planned. As Azar tries to adjust to a new life, mother and daughter begin chaffing against each other without dad as a buffer. Azar feels like she cannot live up to her mom's high standards, and has more in common with her neighbors than with her own family. As Azar starts to find herself through science fiction, fandoms, and conventions, she also realizes her own queerness. This additional strife may be too much for her mom to handle, and Azar isn't sure where she belongs.
A very relatable story about families and expectations, and how we all have to learn to live with the people we love.

A fantastic exploration into the life and existence of a queer Malay teen. I found myself so disheartened by Azar’s relationship with her family and though I found some comfort in the evolution of her relationship with her mother, her father storyline felt so disheartening and I am hoping for a sequel where he can find peace. I'm glad that she had such a great relationship with her landlords but I hate that it because so dependant that she ultimately felt so betrayed by them. My only issue with this was the pacing, the end came so suddenly and without any true resolution (though I guess that's life), some of the important aspects of discussion also felt rushed which was a ashame and I felt jarred by the book inserts as they did not feel relevant to the main plot, I think if the quotes/storyline of the novel felt attached and relevant to Azar's relationships then I would have enjoyed them.

Really enjoyed this debut graphic novel from Kazimir Lee! Stunning artwork, compelling story, and diverse and complex characters. Azar’s journey of self discovery, navigating her queerness in a new small town, and dealing with her dysfunctional family, were very well executed and overall a wild ride crammed full of chaos and emotion.

I thought that the sci-fi/ fantasy novel Azar became engrossed in ‘The Exiles of Overworld’ running alongside her own journey was a really intriguing idea. Though I can’t say I was always following its connection to the events unfolding (whether this is just something I missed I’m not sure) but it was an effective representation of the escape from reality and growing comfort Azar had found in the Wathe family. This ‘found family’ dynamic was also super heartwarming, though of course it came packed with its own twists, turns and dramas that aren’t as easy to escape as in the pages of a fantasy novel.

Overall, I think this story, and the artwork, really represented well how life, relationships and our inner selves can be so incredibly messy and complex, and in this case how difficult it is to navigate queer identity and our place in the world. A super funny, moving, and tender story, with beautiful art. I would love to see more of these characters in the future/ more from this author in general!

I really enjoyed the story and the art style.

It's a heart fealt story where I got pulled into the life and troubles of the main character. I felt all the feels, the joy and the heartbreaks.
The art convayed the emotions and the loneliness in a small town.
Damn though, wasn't expecting it to go that way.

This was an interesting read that dealt with a variety of issues, ranging from the diaspora experience to homosexuality and coming out. However, I feel that the pacing had some issues; it dragged during minor events and, on the contrary, rushed through significant ones. Lastly, the ending left me with mixed feelings. Trying to keep it spoiler free, let's say it was not as gratifying as I would have liked. Of course, open or dubious endings are nothing new so maybe it's a personal matter of taste in my case.

Thank you for providing me with a free copy.

I love that faked that Az had a support system for coming out and that she was able to live in her truth. I hate that her father was hiding his queerness though. I’d definitely read more from this author.

While I did enjoy the mother/daughter relationship growth the book could be confusing at times. I was not a fan of the ending as things felt unresolved. The language was also a little too much for me to purchase for my middle school. Excellent for high schools and good representation of the LGBTQ+ community. Thank you to NetGalley and IDW for allowing me to read this eARC and determine purchases for my library!

This debut graphic novel is a complicated YA coming of age story about a queer Malaysian American teen girl dealing with living in a small Vermont town, her parent's separation and figuring out how to come out to her less than supportive mother.

When Azar finds an old sci-fi book, she finds solace in its pages and with its author and his nonbinary teenager, Tristan. I enjoyed the diverse characters and found family aspects of this story but I wasn't a huge fan of the art style or the way the very open-ended, unresolved ending.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review. Recommended for fans of books like The deep dark by Molly Knox Ostertag. Content warning for depictions of alcohol abuse and addiction.

I loved this graphic novel by Kazimir Lee, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a coming of age and self-discovery story with queer characters. The illustrations are gorgeous, the style is able to depict the diversity of characters while also conveying the very personal and emotional journey of our Malaysian-American main character Azar.

Azar navigates her queer identity amongst a not so accepting town community. Each character has more going on than what appears and I appreciated their complexity; Tristan, Shannon, and Azar's parents all felt important. The the main story's focus is on family dynamics and friendship, but there is also escapism with a story-within-the-story found in The Exiles of Overworld (a sci-fi novel). I really enjoyed that aspect of the book and found it to be the most relatable (who doesn't like to get lost in a good book?). I look forward to reading more works from Lee.

Thank you to IDW Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this graphic novel.

Low Orbit is a intersectional queer coming of age graphic novel that represents the chaos of growing up pretty good.

I loved the color palette even if the line art wasn't always my favorite. The idea of a SF novel that is intermingled with the story of Azar is a nice thing because I came to like science fiction in the last years. The different font made it a little bit harder to read and I was sometimes confused if it had anything to do with the story of our protagonist but I liked how it was layed over the passage of time.

I often felt for Azar and liked her as a protagonist. So I was quite happy about the Epilogue. I would love to read more by Kazimir Lee!

I really enjoyed reading this graphic novel and following some alow everyday things going on in the life of this teenager. I don't like the drawing style but that's just a personal preference, it doesn't take anything away from the story. There's lots of conflicts (between teens and adults, between the adults, between the teens), and her mum is dealing with a lot of queerphobia and slowly works through it (not the perfect mum or a great example, but also not the worst). I would have been interested in seeing more of the neighbour/friend/crush development and I loved the positive nod to the future in the last chapter.

Representation: all letters of LGBT including secondary character with they/them pronouns, coming out, Malaysian-American main character wearing a headscarf when outside of home, a side character in a power chair, separated parents, (mentioned but not on page) parent with schizoaffective disorder

Atmospheric and full of uncomfortable moments, Low Orbit follows the story of young Azar, a Malaysian American teen who has just moved from New York to Virginia and her struggles between her loneliness and isolation, her separated parents, and her queer identity. Azar finds an escape with her next door neighbors and by diving deep into a Sci Fi novel which serves as her escape from reality.

While there are many parts of this that I enjoyed, such as Azar's identity and her separate relationships with her parents, as well as the Cosplay and fandom culture depicted here, I struggled with following the message and the narrative of this graphic novel. It's filled with interludes from the Sci Fi novel that Azar is reading which are dense and incomprehensible and add little to the story. Adding to this is the fact that the story is quite complex on its' own - it's full of a gray areas, incomplete narratives, and unsatisfying conclusions for many of the characters. I appreciated the complexity and unsettling feelings this tried to capture, but the combination of all these things made this graphic novel read like a dense and confusing journey, and at the end of it I'm still not sure what all I'm supposed to take from it.