My Thoughts:
Leap by author/illustrator/artoonist Simina Popescu (they/she) of Romania joins other difficult LGBTQIA+ coming of age graphic novels like Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera, Sunhead by Alex Assan, and Messy Roots: A Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese American by Laura Gao. I would perhaps also include a connection to Skim by Mariko Tamaki here. Some of these connections are complicated, or rather, my feelings about the graphic novels are complicated. However, I connect these because my feelings toward this graphic novel are also complicated.
Perhaps complicated is the wrong word. I felt so bad/sad/sorry for Ana as she just kept giving and giving to Carina without any real commitment back. As a high school teacher, I have seen this where one partner is not willing to give the other partner the same amount of devotion. It does not matter if the couples are same sex or cis. What matters is that the some partners want to be on the down low for lots of reasons that harm the other partner. As a teacher, it is difficult to watch, but also difficult to stop. It is part of the coming of age process. We can advise, but ultimately, it is the teen or young adult that needs to learn from this and come out stronger in the end (hopefully). That may be inaccurate or even bad advice on my part. Granted, I am not a trained counselor/psychologist. But really, that transactional conflict where the text digs into my own teaching experiences is what makes this a complicated read for me. I could not distance this text from my own students.
Ultimately, perhaps the best advice I should use is to give the right book at the right time when I am not sure what else I can do.
From the Publisher:
A coming-of-age graphic novel following two dancers at a conservative performing arts school―exploring friendship, first love, and what it means to fall out of step with your own dreams.
Ana has been studying contemporary dance since she was little, but her heart isn’t in it anymore. Instead her focus is on Carina―a beautiful, ambitious ballerina whose fear of being outed keeps Ana in the closet and their fragile relationship from seeing the light of day. Risking her own career, Ana gives up more and more in order to fit into the shadows of Carina’s life.
Sara, on the other hand, is fielding whispers she may be the best dancer their school has produced in years. Much of that is thanks to her mentor and instructor, Marlena, who plucked Sara from the classical track and encouraged her to blossom as a contemporary dancer. Sara has always been in awe of Marlena, but recently, that admiration has sparked into something more, and Sara’s not sure what to do about it.
As junior year at their performing arts school begins, Ana and Sara are assigned as roommates. What starts off as a tentative friendship soon becomes a much-needed anchor.
Ana has been studying contemporary dance since she was little, but her heart isn’t in it anymore. Instead her focus is on Carina―a beautiful, ambitious ballerina whose fear of being outed keeps Ana in the closet and their fragile relationship from seeing the light of day. Risking her own career, Ana gives up more and more in order to fit into the shadows of Carina’s life.
Sara, on the other hand, is fielding whispers she may be the best dancer their school has produced in years. Much of that is thanks to her mentor and instructor, Marlena, who plucked Sara from the classical track and encouraged her to blossom as a contemporary dancer. Sara has always been in awe of Marlena, but recently, that admiration has sparked into something more, and Sara’s not sure what to do about it.
As junior year at their performing arts school begins, Ana and Sara are assigned as roommates. What starts off as a tentative friendship soon becomes a much-needed anchor.
Publication Information:
Author/Illustrator: Simina Popescu
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press (November 12, 2024)
Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1250838308
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