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jbeoin's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
CONTENT NOTE: age appropriate discussions of photos being shared without consent, mention of the death of a loved one, animal death (discussed and visually implied, but not shown), confined space
Super Boba Café is a fun and quirky adventure romp that touches on serious topics affecting kids and their families while remaining lighthearted and magical.
What Worked for Me:
Just a quick note: I received an ARC of this comic, and it came to me as a grayscale preview at a visibly low quality instead of the full color the book will be in later, so I can only comment on what I was given.
I'm a little sad about this because the colors of the comic was one of the things that drew me to the book, but I really enjoyed the story and fully believe that the colors will enhance the comic even more! This also applies to the lettering; the ARC version had pixelated lettering that I believe will look much better in the final version, but I can't give a proper review of it as is.
Due to all of this, I won't be analyzing the art as much as I usually do for comic reviews since I don't think it would be fair to the book and the creators given that I didn't see the full intended version. From the few previews of the interior pages that I've seen, though, it looks very promising!
✦ The story is a fun one! I like the way so many elements came together to create an entertaining and cohesive tale about so many ideas: magic and fantasy, modern day adolescent issues regarding social media, familial relationships, boba, a cat café, responsibilities and independence, and even marketing. I think the diversity of ideas in here helped it feel grounded and realistic, like fully developed characters existing in their own world.
✦ I love the relationship between Aria and her Nainai! The back and forth between these two characters felt very realistic to me for a grandparent-grandchild dynamic: a little more indulging than perhaps a parent-child relationship, the grandparent being a little more rigid in their set ways, still firm about setting rules, but also warm and deeply caring.
✦ I liked that Nainai encouraged independence in Aria and respected her as her own person. I think this is one of the things about grandparent-grandchild relationships that feels distinct from parent-child relationships in that grandparents who don't live with their grandchildren have a bit of that distance from the day to day discipline and rearing and are invested in providing a safe space for their grandchildren to explore their independence. I loved seeing that dynamic in this comic.
✦ The art was super cute! I like Nidhi Chanani's playful character designs, facial expressions, and clear body language, as well as her clean line work and well established values. I think once the color is included, the level of charm this book has will be even more amped up!
✦ The magic of the world in the story was also interesting and creative. I always enjoy the exploration of liminal spaces, and I liked how Nidhi Chanani approached them in her book.
✦ I love bubble tea, so I really enjoyed having a comic revolving around it! I can relate to the, uh, stuff that happens later in the book (trying not to spoil lol), as I, too, am such a fan 😂 It was also fun to see the way it gets made and to see a little about the process and recipe.
What Didn't Work for Me:
✦ There were a few moments in the story that felt a bit forced to me. It's not that they shouldn't have been included-- more that I wish they had been included in a more organic way, such as the moments where Aria was interacting with Jay, one of the neighborhood children friendly with her Nainai. Maybe it was meant to be a bit jarring whenever he was in the story, as a way to show his presence as unwelcome in Aria's perspective, but it did feel a bit odd to me the way Aria, an otherwise friendly kid, would immediately reject this entire human's presence as an offensive one lol.
I think the information shared later in the book helped explain it a bit, but I felt like it was a little overly simplistic, especially since it was only applied to one of the male characters. I think it would help me if I had understood the trauma of what had happened to her a little earlier or if the impact of the trauma were a bit more clearly defined. I think the trauma mentioned is valid regardless of the degree of intensity; however, I felt like the impact described didn't quite align, to me, with Aria's reaction to Jay, which makes me suspect that the trauma's impact is greater than we're shown. And if that were the case, I would expect to see that show up in other ways, too, not just with this one kid.
✦ I think, given that we're told in the jacket copy about the monster and the boba, the comic takes a lil while to build up to the reveal. I honestly think this is more of a critique of the jacket copy than the story, though.
Overall
I give Super Boba Café 4 out of 5 speech bubbles: This was a fun adventure with great themes explored! Wonderful for a summer read, and I look forward to the next book!
How to Read It
Interested in checking it out for yourself? Here are a few ways you can get your hands on a copy!
Local Options
Your Local Library!
Your Local Comic Book Shop!
Your Local Book Store!
Small + Indie Options
Abrams Books
Bookshop
Loyalty Bookstores
Big + Boxy Options
Barnes & Noble
Target
Books a Million
Hardcovers provide higher royalties for writers and illustrators, but a royalty is a royalty, so go forth knowing your purchase will support them either way!
Read This Next
If you liked this, check out Squire, Snapdragon, and Atana and the Firebird
If you enjoyed this review, I have a monthly comic review series called More Comics Please! on my website with interior page excerpts and additional information not shared here on Storygraph. You can sign up to receive them in your inbox by subscribing to my newsletter Into the Bramble.
Super Boba Café is a fun and quirky adventure romp that touches on serious topics affecting kids and their families while remaining lighthearted and magical.
What Worked for Me:
Just a quick note: I received an ARC of this comic, and it came to me as a grayscale preview at a visibly low quality instead of the full color the book will be in later, so I can only comment on what I was given.
I'm a little sad about this because the colors of the comic was one of the things that drew me to the book, but I really enjoyed the story and fully believe that the colors will enhance the comic even more! This also applies to the lettering; the ARC version had pixelated lettering that I believe will look much better in the final version, but I can't give a proper review of it as is.
Due to all of this, I won't be analyzing the art as much as I usually do for comic reviews since I don't think it would be fair to the book and the creators given that I didn't see the full intended version. From the few previews of the interior pages that I've seen, though, it looks very promising!
✦ The story is a fun one! I like the way so many elements came together to create an entertaining and cohesive tale about so many ideas: magic and fantasy, modern day adolescent issues regarding social media, familial relationships, boba, a cat café, responsibilities and independence, and even marketing. I think the diversity of ideas in here helped it feel grounded and realistic, like fully developed characters existing in their own world.
✦ I love the relationship between Aria and her Nainai! The back and forth between these two characters felt very realistic to me for a grandparent-grandchild dynamic: a little more indulging than perhaps a parent-child relationship, the grandparent being a little more rigid in their set ways, still firm about setting rules, but also warm and deeply caring.
✦ I liked that Nainai encouraged independence in Aria and respected her as her own person. I think this is one of the things about grandparent-grandchild relationships that feels distinct from parent-child relationships in that grandparents who don't live with their grandchildren have a bit of that distance from the day to day discipline and rearing and are invested in providing a safe space for their grandchildren to explore their independence. I loved seeing that dynamic in this comic.
✦ The art was super cute! I like Nidhi Chanani's playful character designs, facial expressions, and clear body language, as well as her clean line work and well established values. I think once the color is included, the level of charm this book has will be even more amped up!
✦ The magic of the world in the story was also interesting and creative. I always enjoy the exploration of liminal spaces, and I liked how Nidhi Chanani approached them in her book.
✦ I love bubble tea, so I really enjoyed having a comic revolving around it! I can relate to the, uh, stuff that happens later in the book (trying not to spoil lol), as I, too, am such a fan 😂 It was also fun to see the way it gets made and to see a little about the process and recipe.
What Didn't Work for Me:
✦ There were a few moments in the story that felt a bit forced to me. It's not that they shouldn't have been included-- more that I wish they had been included in a more organic way, such as the moments where Aria was interacting with Jay, one of the neighborhood children friendly with her Nainai. Maybe it was meant to be a bit jarring whenever he was in the story, as a way to show his presence as unwelcome in Aria's perspective, but it did feel a bit odd to me the way Aria, an otherwise friendly kid, would immediately reject this entire human's presence as an offensive one lol.
I think the information shared later in the book helped explain it a bit, but I felt like it was a little overly simplistic, especially since it was only applied to one of the male characters. I think it would help me if I had understood the trauma of what had happened to her a little earlier or if the impact of the trauma were a bit more clearly defined. I think the trauma mentioned is valid regardless of the degree of intensity; however, I felt like the impact described didn't quite align, to me, with Aria's reaction to Jay, which makes me suspect that the trauma's impact is greater than we're shown. And if that were the case, I would expect to see that show up in other ways, too, not just with this one kid.
✦ I think, given that we're told in the jacket copy about the monster and the boba, the comic takes a lil while to build up to the reveal. I honestly think this is more of a critique of the jacket copy than the story, though.
Overall
I give Super Boba Café 4 out of 5 speech bubbles: This was a fun adventure with great themes explored! Wonderful for a summer read, and I look forward to the next book!
How to Read It
Interested in checking it out for yourself? Here are a few ways you can get your hands on a copy!
Local Options
Your Local Library!
Your Local Comic Book Shop!
Your Local Book Store!
Small + Indie Options
Abrams Books
Bookshop
Loyalty Bookstores
Big + Boxy Options
Barnes & Noble
Target
Books a Million
Hardcovers provide higher royalties for writers and illustrators, but a royalty is a royalty, so go forth knowing your purchase will support them either way!
Read This Next
If you liked this, check out Squire, Snapdragon, and Atana and the Firebird
If you enjoyed this review, I have a monthly comic review series called More Comics Please! on my website with interior page excerpts and additional information not shared here on Storygraph. You can sign up to receive them in your inbox by subscribing to my newsletter Into the Bramble.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Death
More...