This is a cute New Adult/Adult romance between Ruthie and Teddy (and maybe a few more) with exploration of careers, self-identity, family, and past traumas. I enjoyed this book for what it was - for the most part. One thing that really rubbed me the wrong way, however, was Ruthie's invasion of Teddy regarding why he was going to therapy. Multiple times she asked him bluntly to tell her why he was seeing a therapist and not until after about the third (3rd) or fourth (4th) time did he tell her. I just feel like that is not an appropriate way to have a conversation with someone about therapy, no matter how close you think you are to them. 

I just have to say that I am so happy for Aggie and Renata. I had my suspicions that they were not sisters, and once Renata started talking about her tattoo I was pretty convinced that they were in a relationship together. It did not take away from the reveal of the moment or the dance floor scene! Fresh, new love encouraged by strong, consistent love. 

I also just have to say that I was SHOCKED in the end to read that Renata was the one who passed before Aggie. Every time something would happen to Aggie in the story, my heart would get really sad, so I was definitely expecting her to be the one who passes. Either way, the love they showed for each other is beautiful, and I am so glad they were able to make peace with what they were forced to miss in high school.

Overall, I am satisfied with this book and would be interested in listening to more of Sally Thorne's books. 

I enjoyed reading the different trickster stories from Indigenous Native American culture. The stories, each with their own storyteller and illustrator, carried their own uniqueness which made them feel a bit disjointed at times. I wonder if having buffer pages would have helped make each story stand out on its own a bit better. On those buffer pages, it could have been nice to get a background on the story's origin and to even move the author/illustrator information up to sit with each story. 

I was planning to use this graphic novel for a book club for middle-grade readers as most recommendations said it was appropriate for 10+, however, I decided that it seems more appropriate for older middle-grade/high school and above, at least in my opinion. The content in some of the trickster stories seemed a bit mature for a 10-12-year-old in that some of the drawings showed minor mutilation of animals and some showed animals as having cartoon-human bottoms. I also think some of the power and meaning of the trickster stories could be a bit difficult for younger readers to fully comprehend and enjoy. 

**Thank you to NetGalley, author Kellye Crocker, and  Albert Whitman & Company for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.**

Dad's Girlfriend and Other Anxieties tells the story of Ava, a young girl, who travels to Colorado with her dad to meet his new girlfriend and her daughter, Z. Ava struggles with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and faces many struggles throughout the book that led to her feeling out of control of the situation. 

I am happy to see more middle-grade books represent mental health in such real, raw ways. I think that the struggles Ava faces are those that many children face - including meeting new people, having changes within a family, and having their voices not be heard. I know many have mentioned this, as well, but the fact that Ava is mostly open about her mental health and about going to therapy is such a positive thing for young readers to be experiencing. 

**Some spoilers in this next section**

One thing I was a little…hesitant (I don’t know if that is the correct word to use here) about was the actions Ava took to stop her family from going on the camping trip in the mountains. As someone who struggles with anxiety, it was interesting to process how Ava reacted to this situation. Ava is about 10-11 years old I believe - it seems maybe a bit odd that she would be able to partially dismantle a car, call and cancel the resort registration, and get away with “revenge” plots to ruin the trip for everyone. Anxiety is so vastly complex and different for each individual, so this could be something that a 10-11-year-old might do, however, it did not feel the most realistic while reading through it. 

Overall, I can see this being a book that I might talk about with middle-grade readers in the future. Text that represents mental health, therapy, and blended families can be a lot to pack into about 200 pages, however, they are important topics and representations that need to be more prevalent in young people's literature. 

Mina selflessly sacrifices herself to save her brother, but at what cost? A feminist retelling of “The Tale of Shim Cheong”, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a fantastical story of love, dedication, and generational change.