So I didn't adore Jennifer Holm's recent Newbery Honor book Penny from Heaven.  But I did read on the dust jacket that she wrote this graphic novel series, which is illustrated by her brother, so I decided to check it out from the local library.

And it's fabulous.

Babymouse is an entertaining and imaginative young rodent with a mad love of cupcakes and a dream: to be invited to Felicia Furrypaws's slumber party.  Conflict: Felicia is the Popular Girl, while Babymouse is the girl who hangs out with boys watching monster movies.  How can Babymouse get her invitation to the most coveted event of the year? 

The daily trials of navigating relationships are deceptively simple, and interspersed with hilarious dream sequences involving squid, Cinderella fantasies, gum-shoe detectives, intergalactic adventures, and the Old West.  The perfect book for any girl who knows there is more to life than gossip and manicures, with the added bonus of being a graphic novel to lure reluctant readers to the page, this engaging, well-told tale with its sassy heroine and her unlikely hero is a sure hit with the 7-10 year old crowd.  Especially a girl I know named Abigail.    For more info. check out the Babymouse website here.