Raina Telgemeier is known for turning the unpleasant, awkward and uncomfortable experiences of her own childhood into candid, accessible graphic novels for middle-grade readers (Smile; Sisters). She once again accomplishes this in Guts, focusing on a rarely (if ever) touched-upon topic for children's literature: the body's physical response to stress and anxiety.
When a stomach flu passes through Raina's family, she and her mother get the worst of it on the same night in a house with only one bathroom. "...And then my mom and I spent the rest of the night puking!!" she animatedly tells her friends. Since "fourth grade was pretty much one long gross-out contest," this wasn't an unusual topic of discussion. It was, however, the beginning of Raina's struggle with "digestion issues" and emetophobia--a "nervous kid," Raina's anxiety began manifesting as stomach aches and diarrhea.
Telgemeier exploits the graphic novel format excellently, using art to express emotions and situations difficult to describe. One example is Raina's first experience with emetephobia: the panels are suffocating as anxiety begins to build; as the panic attack takes full effect, the panels disappear, her fear and stress a full-page bleed spreading across the page. "I didn't puke. But the thought that I might... was worse than if I actually had." Colorist Braden Lamb enhances these illustrations with sickly greens, yellows and blues, a cloud of noxious distress surrounding Raina's prone body. Uncomfortable--and sometimes humorously gross--"digestion issues" aren't a standard subject for kids' books. This is what makes Guts stand out: an enjoyable, enlightening read for any child, Guts could be life-changing for those who experience stress as Raina does. --Siân Gaetano, children's and YA editor, Shelf Awareness