A review by hmiceli
The Deep & Dark Blue by Niki Smith

5.0

I had kept seeing this on the graphic novel shelf in the children's library and pointed it out to my daughter a few times, and she finally grabbed it. The past week she's been carrying it around saying it's the best book she's ever read and telling me I have to read it. So I did. It's a beautiful coming of age/coming out story about Grayce, a transgender girl. Her and her brother are heirs to throne after their cousin Rayden, but another cousin stages a coup to take over. The siblings hide out in the Communion of Blue, a sanctuary where the the blues of the world are spun into wool. Hawke, the brother feels out of place, but Grayce finds her home. The art is very Manga inspired and is beautiful - the facial expressions serve to move the story forward. The only flaw was that the hairstyles of the communion members were so similar, I had to go back a one point to figure out who was in the scene.