A Map to the Sun

About the AuthorSloane Leong is a selftaught cartoonist, artist and writer of Hawaiian, Chinese, Italian, Mexican, Native American and European ancestries. She explores themes of survival, displacement, relationships, spirituality, identity and mental illness through genres like science fiction, horror, adventure and sliceoflife. Her work aims to connect personally with individuals through storytelling and to cultivate a kinder, more understanding future. She has been selfpublishing her own comics since she was 16 and has done various work for companies like Image Comics, First Second, Top Cow, Cartoon Network, DC, Dark Horse, Boom!, Namco and BuzzFeed. Recent projects include A Map to the Sun and Prism Stalker. She is currently living near Portland, Oregon.Product DescriptionA Map to the Sun is a gripping YA graphic novel about five principle players in a struggling girls basketball team.One summer day, Ren meets Luna at a beachside basketball court and a friendship is born. But when Luna moves to back to Oahu, Rens messages to her friend go unanswered.Years go by. Then Luna returns, hoping to rekindle their friendship. Ren is hesitant. Shes dealing with a lot, including family troubles, dropping grades, and the newly formed womens basketball team at their high school.With Rens new friends and Luna all on the basketball team, the lines between their lives on and off the court begin to blur. During their first season, this diverse and endearing group of teens are challenged in ways that make them reevaluate just who and how they trust.Sloane Leongs evocative storytelling about the lives of these young women is an ode to the dynamic nature of friendship.*Lettering by Aditya BidikarFrom School Library JournalGr 9 UpRen and Luna were inseparable after meeting the summer before their first year of high school. Then a family tragedy necessitated a move for Luna, and despite Rens attempts to reach out, she never got a response from her erstwhile best friend. Fastforward a couple years and Luna is back, eager to rekindle their friendship. But Ren is dealing with a mountain of trouble: a sister entangled in drugs and abusive relationships, her parents separation, and her lingering resentment toward Luna for never texting back. Basketball brought Ren and Luna together in the first place, and Luna tries to use their passion for the sport as a path back to their closeknit friendship. A new teacher announces a girls team tryout, and Ren and Luna both show up, along with some of Rens friends and a tall girl recruited at a party by an intoxicated and bold Luna. There is a lot going on in this captivating graphic novela teacherstudent relationship, body shaming, cutting, queer undertones, familial addiction, and regular teen drama. Still, Leong offers an intricate exploration of camaraderie, teamwork, friendship, and expression with a BIPOC cast of characters. The color work is gorgeous, with dreamy greens, purples, and yellows setting a breathtaking, surreal backdrop for the realistic story. The illustrations of the game scenes are captivating, full of movement and power. VERDICT A vivid explosion of color, this tale shines.Abby Bussen, Muskego P.L., WIa(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.ReviewThe pages shifting layout maintains a dynamic pace while the artwork conveys the intenseoften conflictingemotions inherent to adolescence and young adulthood. Leong concludes with a tribute to the inner light of her characters and to the power of friendship.KirkusExtraordinary tension is created just through Leongs use of color, which shifts between unexpected and often intense color schemes that infuse skin color, backgrounds, and even the gutters with raw emotion.BooklistLeong offers an intricate exploration of camaraderie, teamwork, friendship, and expression with a BIPOC cast of characters... A vivid explosi