Kickflip Vol. 1 by L.D. Lapinski & Logan Hanning

On the school netball team Eliot is a valued member, even when not playing exceptionally well, but out of uniform, wearing a hoodie and track pants, bitchy classmate Kate makes the comment “could she look any more of a lesbian?” Eliot has a quick comeback and best friend Jess, who gets bullied because of her body shape, is quick to stand up to Kate and her cronies, but when Jess says "girls together forever, right?” Eliot is not so sure. Brooding about the incident Eliot stumbles into a skateboarding group, instantly having rapport with board rider Ryan who assumes Eliot is a boy and is keen to get another rider for their team. Eliot somehow doesn’t correct him and finds skateboarding with this friendly group an exhilarating experience. Eliot’s mum is supportive and intuits something is causing anxiety but Eliot is not ready to discuss the complex feelings of not fitting into either identifying as a girl or boy.

Eliot’s rollercoaster emotional journey is depicted graphically through characters who come sharply into focus where important interactions are happening but at other times form an energetic sketchy and edgy backdrop, animating each page. Comic artist Logan Hanning and author L.D. Lapinski seamlessly deliver the message to love who you are and that you don’t need to choose to fit into gender stereotypes. As one of the characters says "there’s enough crap in the world without worrying about someone’s gender”. I was a little disappointed at the end where various characters declare their gender identifiers; non-binary, bisexual, and pan-sexual'; I think it was better when labels were left out.

Themes: Graphic novel, Friendship, Gender identity, Skateboarding, LGBTQ+.

Sue Speck