Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and finished copy from the publisher for a tour. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Anne of West Philly
Author: Ivy Noelle Weir & Myisha Haynes (illustrator)
Book Series: Standalone for now
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Black foster care MC, Black characters, Hispanic characters, siblings living together
Recommended For…: middle grade readers, graphic novel, retelling, Anne of Green Gables retelling
Publication Date: March 1, 2022
Genre: MG Graphic Novel Retelling
Age Relevance: 10+ (sexism, foster care trauma, alcohol briefly mentioned, slight bullying, medical emergency)
Explanation of Above: Sexism and foster care trauma is discussed and shown slightly in the book. There is a very small brief mention of alcohol, but nothing was drunk in the book. There is some slight bullying that only lasts a few scenes. There is a medical emergency and hospital stay shown.
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 245
Synopsis: When Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert decide to foster a teenage girl for the first time, their lives are changed forever. Their redheaded foster daughter, Anne Shirley, is in search of an exciting life and has decided that West Philly is where she’s going to find it. Armed with a big personality and unstoppable creativity, Anne takes her new home by storm as she joins the robotics club, makes new friends in Diana and Gilbert, experiences first love, and turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. But as Anne starts to get comfortable, she discovers one thing she wasn’t looking for: a family.
Review: I absolutely fell in love with this Anne of Green Gables retelling. Anne was one of my first book series that I fell in love with as a child and that I identified with greatly. She was feisty and spirited and didn’t take anything from anyone. And I feel like that spirit translates well to modern day retellings. I absolutely loved this iteration of Anne and she was everything I always remembered and loved most about Anne. The story of foster care kids is something that’s not really changed since L.M. Montgomery wrote Anne and making a retelling of Anne’s story can only help current foster care kids who are going through the system now. I also loved all of the updates to the story, including STEM! The character development of Anne was so well done, I love the illustrations and feel like they conveyed the heart of the story well. The world building was artistically illustrated and detailed. The whole book is a masterpiece that I would love to see in libraries and freely available to foster care kids.
The only issue I had with the book is that it did feel a little disjointed when we skipped times, but it was otherwise well done and I can’t wait to read another iteration of Anne of West Philly.
Verdict: I highly recommend this one!
Book Info:
Ann of West Philly: A Modern Graphic Retelling of Anne of Green Gables by Ivy Noelle Weir
Genre: Middle Grade Graphic Novel
Publishing Date: March 1, 2022
Synopsis:
Anne of Green Gables with a twist: in this follow-up to Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy and The Secret Garden on 81st Street, this full-color graphic novel moves Anne Shirley to modern-day West Philadelphia, where where she finds new friends, new rivals, and a new family.
When Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert decide to foster a teenage girl for the first time, their lives are changed forever. Their redheaded foster daughter, Anne Shirley, is in search of an exciting life and has decided that West Philly is where she’s going to find it. Armed with a big personality and unstoppable creativity, Anne takes her new home by storm as she joins the robotics club, makes new friends in Diana and Gilbert, experiences first love, and turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. But as Anne starts to get comfortable, she discovers one thing she wasn’t looking for: a family.
Book Links:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58340720-anne-of-west-philly
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/anne-of-west-philly-ivy-noelle-weir/1139648074?ean=9780316459778
Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/Anne-West-Philly-Ivy-N-Weir/9780316459778?ref=grid-view&qid=1641836186740&sr=1-1
IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780316459778
About the Author:
Ivy Noelle Weir is a writer of comics and prose. She is the co-creator of the Dwayne McDuffie Award-winning graphic novel Archival Quality (Oni Press), the upcoming The Secret Garden on 81st Street (Little, Brown for Young Readers), and her writing has appeared in anthologies such as Princeless: Girls Rock (Action Lab Entertainment) and Dead Beats (A Wave Blue World). She lives in the greater Boston area with her husband and their two tiny, weird dogs.
Author Links:
Website: http://www.ivynoelleweir.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ivynoelle
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ivynoelle/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17128756.Ivy_Noelle_Weir
Tour Schedule:
PopTheButterfly Reads 
2 thoughts on “Anne of West Philly by Ivy Noelle Weir & Myisha Haynes (illustrator)”