A Work In Progress: Special Excerpt from Jarrett Lerner’s Latest Biographical Title

My middle school aged daughter is well-versed in a wide variety of issues that she or her friends may be facing in the coming years. Why? She’s a comic book reader. And if you are a comic book reader in the year 2023, that means you’re going to have a fairly thorough knowledge on a wide range of issues. The autism spectrum, the history behind Black vs. European attitudes towards hair, OCD, growing up queer, dealing with a family member with a drug addiction, menstral parity, and more. Where once these issues remained the purview of middle grade fiction alone, now graphic novels have become the go-to source for dealing with issues that other books don’t want to touch.

But if I can say anything about the age of books after the advent of the internet, it’s that sequential storytelling and visual images are not the sole property of comics alone. As Diary of a Wimpy Kid has shown us, illustrated novels for kids are their own separate kind of title, and informative in their own ways. So into this market steps Jarrett Lerner. Author of everything from easy books to activity books and middle grade series as well, he comes out with his most personal title to date this May 2nd. A Work In Progress tackles an issue that too few discuss these days.

I usually quote the publisher at this point, but why not have Jarrett himself tell you a bit about the book? He says:

“I’m Jarrett Lerner, award-winning author-illustrator of over a dozen books for kids and father of three awesome daughters. My newest book, an illustrated novel in verse titled A WORK IN PROGRESS, comes out May 2nd. 

A WORK IN PROGRESS is based on my own struggles with body image, body dysmorphia, and disordered eating — all things that I  never thought I’d publicly discuss.  But then I had kids, and learned anew the power and importance of modeling vulnerability and using your voice for good.

You can find me on Twitter and Instagram @Jarrett_Lerner, and online at  www.jarrettlerner.com.”

Today, I am delighted to report that we have an excerpt from the beginning of Jarrett’s latest book here on the blog. Read and enjoy:

Great big thanks to Jarrett and to Elena Stokes and the folks at Aladdin and Wunderkind PR for this excerpt. A Work In Progress is on shelves everywhere May 2nd.

Filed under: Excerpts