Guts

Starred review from May 13, 2019
With disarming candor and in her now instantly recognizable panel artwork, Eisner Award–winner Telgemeier weaves a tangle of personal preadolescent traumas into another compelling graphic memoir. A bout of stomach flu and some unpleasant encounters with food create in young Raina’s mind a swirling miasma of fear that she’ll throw up. This anxiety blights her school days (she freezes during a class presentation with her best friend and lashes out at a bullying schoolmate) and extends into fears about sickness and schoolwork, and frustrations with her raucous household. Telgemeier frames the girl’s panic attacks accessibly as sickly circles of green crowded with big, blocky words (“pain drowning choking death bad at math”). Raina’s parents take her to see therapist Lauren, who helps her to ground her fears and gain enough emotional strength to reconcile herself to changing friend dynamics, and an IBS diagnosis clarifies the way that mind and body can intertwine. Moments of middle school drama are portrayed with credibility, and the story both normalizes therapy and shows a child developing useful coping mechanisms for anxiety in a way that will reassure, even inspire, readers. Ages 8–12.

Starred review from August 1, 2019

Gr 3-6-Telgemeier presents a new story from her childhood, which takes place when she was in the fourth and fifth grades. After her little sister brought home a case of stomach flu, young Raina woke up one night with an upset stomach and had to vomit. Then a boy in her class was made fun of for throwing up at school, and Raina worried about getting sick again. Her anxiety only led to more stomach troubles, and she also dealt with a school bully and a friend moving away. Raina's parents stayed supportive throughout, and they got her into therapy; eventually, she was diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome. The subject matter is conveyed realistically but with humor-anxiety can be taken seriously, and farts can still be funny. Telgemeier's art is incredibly expressive, and the green circles that surround Raina will have readers feeling nauseous along with her as her panic intensifies. Especially important is a scene in which Raina's therapist talks her through a grounding technique and deep breathing exercise, giving readers a coping technique that they can use. VERDICT A must. Fans of Smile and Sisters will adore this new story starring Raina and her family, but newcomers to Telgemeier's work will also love Guts.-Kacy Helwick, New Orleans Public Library

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

rickdog - Guts is a true story about young Raina in 4th grade. Her sister has the stomach flu, and one night Raina and her mother wake up with it too! It seems like the kids at school too are getting sick, and Raina is now afraid of getting sick. While dealing with that, Raina also has to deal with schools bullies, and ups and downs, AND she also has to go to a physical therapist, to help her get rid of her fear of throwing up, and being sick. I really liked the comic book because I thought it was fun to read, and very interesting to learn about! Thanks for the wonderful book Raina! Guts is another enjoyable comic by Rainda Telgemeier. In this book, Raina shows her story about her in 4th grade always getting a stomachache whenever she feels anxious or nervous. On a night when Raina's sister, Amanda, has a stomach flu, Raina wakes up in the middle of the night with a horrible stomachache. She starts throwing up -- her mother too. On the next day of school, she gets really anxious and rushes to the restroom. She basically got traumatised of having stomachaches and ending up throwing up, so that is why she always starts to act a little... nauseous. Her mother starts bringing her to a therapists, to help her on her upset stomach and help Raina opening up a bit. This story ends up really enjoying for me, because it has all types of details and many comfortable drawings in the comics.Guts is another enjoyable comic by Rainda Telgemeier. In this book, Raina shows her story about her in 4th grade always getting a stomachache whenever she feels anxious or nervous. On a night when Raina's sister, Amanda, has a stomach flu, Raina wakes up in the middle of the night with a horrible stomachache. She starts throwing up -- her mother too. On the next day of school, she gets really anxious and rushes to the restroom. She basically got traumatized of having stomachaches and ending up throwing up, so that is why she always starts to act a little... nauseous. Her mother starts bringing her to a therapists, to help her on her upset stomach and help Raina opening up a bit. This story ends up really enjoying for me, because it has all types of details and many comfortable drawings in the comics.this book is so cool i read it 10 times cool book I love this book❤️!! But Dork Diaries Are really, REALLY,better 😊!,! This book seems so cool. I've read GHOSTS and love it i haven't read it yet but i looked at a couple of pages and i seems good. i love her books and i respect your opinion!!!I think it was not that good there are a lot of other books out there like harry potter are wrinkle in time this book was kinda gross really do not read it when eating I did not do that by the way. so who ever wins this book it will be amazing!

June 1, 2019
Grades 3-6 After a particularly bad bout of the flu in fourth grade, Raina keeps having stomach aches and intense feelings about food and germs. The thought of being near a sick person sends her into a panic, and conflicts among her friends at school and embarrassment about bodily functions in general certainly don't help matters. In this third graphic memoir, Telgemeier describes her childhood anxiety in an approachable, nonjudgmental way and emphasizes how useful talk therapy can be. Her depiction of her spiraling anxious thoughts, often in noxious greens and crowded by negative self-talk in bulky fonts, nicely show both how isolating anxiety can feel and how physical it can be. Telgemeier's particular talent for rendering evocative facial expressions with only a few carefully placed marks makes the pain, worry, and panic in Raina's face and body language unmistakable. As in Smile (2009) and Sisters (2014), Telgemeier gets to the heart of middle-school experiences, from the playground jokes to the minefield of shifting friendships, and the many, many fans of her work will be enchanted by this as well.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Telgemeier is a force unto herself in kids graphic novels. Trust me, this will have a lengthy wait list.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)