Halfway There: A Graphic Memoir of Self-Discovery
by Christine Mari; illus. by the author
High School    LB Ink/Little, Brown    304 pp.
10/24    9780316416658    $24.99
Paper ed.  9780316416726    $17.99
e-book ed.  9780316416825    $9.99

A Japanese American author-illustrator describes her inner journey to find herself while taking an actual journey to Japan. With an Asian mother and a white father, nineteen-year-old Christine has never felt as if she fit in anywhere and hopes that a year living in the country of her birth will make her feel like a whole person instead of just “half.” Initially excited, Christine soon finds fitting in just as hard in Japan—she’s exoticized for being biracial, and her lack of fluency in the language makes her feel awkward and lonely. Her range of emotions is well expressed in the illustrations, which are tinted in various shades of purple that manage to suit both her upbeat outlook and her eventual depression. Pops of pink (neon and pastel) add interest, and the book’s only full-color scene (a single-page illustration of a blooming cherry tree) highlights Christine’s crucial realization that the blossoms’ beauty lies not in their short life but in their resilient return year after year. With support from her Japanese grandparents and through regular conversations with a therapist, Christine slowly and believably regains hope and learns it’s okay to be uncertain about what life holds for her. Biracial identity, mental health, and Japanese culture are explored in this deeply personal graphic memoir.

From the ">November/December 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.