Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me is a coming of age story with a welcoming and needed look at teen romance with a same-sex couple.

Freddy and Laura’s relationship is as normal (and toxic) as any other teen relationship might be; readers will immediately spot Laura’s selfish and callous treatment of Freddy and will be hoping that Freddy has enough strength to break it off for good. I believe teens can learn from this narrative on how to recognize an unhealthy relationship dynamic, and also how to be a better friend to people who truly do care. The narrative also included an in-depth look at Freddy’s friendships and her burgeoning interest in the larger LGBTQ+ community. There is also a very adult decision that one character needs to make, and I was impressed at how it is so respectfully addressed.

The artwork by Rosemary Valero-O’Connell was lovely with a greyscale and soft pink color palette. Her backgrounds are minimalist, but then you’d be treated to an ornate panel where she added much detail to a garden or to the medium’s home. Valero-O’Connell drew Freddy, Laura and the rest of their friends and family in a slightly anime-like style, which was an inviting and charming look for the graphic novel. The illustrations also had a running motif of stuffed animals of Freddy’s that gave their insights, which balanced some of the angst and heavy-hitting topics.

As I said in my earlier Bloom review, I do want to share one problem I had with that cover and this one too- if you were to take a quick glance without opening the book, you would think that the couple was of mixed sexes and I think that is a disservice to the storyline found within. I felt like the publishers weren’t being bold enough with their covers to show what the narrative was truly going to be about, and I found that disappointing. In fact, I was so confused when I first picked up this book that I thought Freddy was Laura and kept looking for the boy from the cover I assumed was Freddy.

I had the pleasure of reading this novel and Bloom for a Tournament of Books that I participated in with other teen librarians. While I pushed Bloom through to the next bracket, this graphic novel deserves the rave reviews and book awards it has already earned.

-Nancy