Dear Jackie
Jessixa Bagley author Aaron Bagley illustrator
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Simon & Schuster
Published:9th Oct '25
Should be back in stock very soon
A middle schooler’s plan to fit in with her new friends by writing herself a fake love letter backfires spectacularly in this funny and all-too-relatable graphic novel perfect for fans of Raina Telgemeier and the Berrybrook Middle School series.
Jackie and Milo have been best friends since they were born. Whether they’re reading comic books in their tree house hideout, playing video games, or spying on their neighbors using walkie talkies and code names, it’s always been the two of them versus the world. But in middle school, things are changing. Milo joins the soccer team and starts hanging out with a new crew. Jackie gets taken under the wing of Adelle, who wants to give her a total makeover and find her a crush. Suddenly, it seems like there are certain acceptable ways to be a girl or a boy, and Jackie starts to feel like everything about her is wrong.
In an effort to get Adelle and her new friends off her back, Jackie sends herself an anonymous love letter. But her plan backfires, and soon Jackie’s secret admirer is all anybody at school can talk about. Now she’s wondering: Dear Jackie, how are you going to get out of this?
“Hilariously relatable and compelling. I wish I could have read this book in middle school.” -- Sharee Miller, author and illustrator of Curlfriends: New in Town
"Smart, sweet, and sophisticated, Dear Jackie is a fresh, fearless take on the most meaningful and cringiest parts of the middle school experience. You’ll swoon, squeal and cheer in that order.” -- Tegan Quin (Tegan and Sara)
"Dear Jackie offers a fresh, loving perspective on middle school drama—pimples and all. Discover: A newly minted middle schooler navigates friendship, self-consciousness, and eventual self-acceptance in this charming graphic novel collaboration." -- Shelf Awareness
"A realistic read that will make readers want to know what happens next. Give this to fans of Terri Libenson’s “Emmie & Friends” series and Maria Scrivan’s “Nat Enough” books. Highly recommended." -- School Library Journal
* "Slice-of-life vignettes by the Bagleys (Duel) portray Jackie’s grappling with issues surrounding puberty, body image, and shifting relationships; glimpses into Milo’s own challenges navigating toxic male environments deepens the graphic novel’s authentic presentation of kids in social transition." -- Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
"This graphic novel deftly depicts the roller coaster of emotions that come with middle school, focusing on a girl negotiating her desire to fit in while remaining true to who she knows she is. Kids worried about how they’ll fit in and how their friendships will change as they take the big step up to middle school will find a helpful guide in Jackie." -- BCCB
"A funny, heartfelt look at growing up and pushing back against narrow expectations." -- Kirkus Reviews
ISBN: 9781534496576
Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 15mm
Weight: 558g
288 pages