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Description
Pretty Little Liars meets Teen Wolf in this sharply funny, and patriarchy-smashing graphic novel from author Maggie Tokuda-Hall and artist Lisa Sterle. When the new girl is invited to join her high school's most popular clique, she can't believe her luck--and she can't believe their secret, either.
When Becca transfers to a high school in an elite San Francisco suburb, she's worried she's not going to fit in. To her surprise, she's immediately adopted by the most popular girls in school. At first glance, Marley, Arianna, and Mandy are perfect. But at a party under a full moon, Becca learns that they also have a big secret.
Becca's new friends are werewolves. Their prey? Slimy boys who take advantage of unsuspecting girls. Eager to be accepted, Becca allows her friends to turn her into a werewolf, and finally, for the first time in her life, she feels like she truly belongs.
But then things get complicated. As their pack begins to buckle under the pressure, their moral high ground gets muddier and muddier--and Becca realizes that she might have feelings for one of her new best friends.
Lisa Sterle's stylish illustrations paired with Maggie Tokuda-Hall's sharp writing make Squad a fierce, haunting, and fast-paced thriller that will resonate with fans of Riverdale, and with readers of This Savage Song, Lumberjanes, and Paper Girls.
Press
Golden Poppy Award Winner: Young Adult
An Indie Next List Selection, November/December 2021
An Amazon Editor’s Pick Best Young Adult Book of the Month
Indiebound Bestseller
★ “Squad is a revenge narrative and a quasi fable about consent, but beneath its supernatural premise, it’s also a classic teen drama that will disrupt readers’ assumptions about fashion-conscious teenage girls.” —Book Page, starred review and interview
“What follows — period jokes, murder gone wrong, a queer love story that serves as refuge — becomes both a wildly entertaining, gory coming-of-age tale and a rebellion against the entrenched web of patriarchy and rape culture.” —The San Francisco Chronicle review and interview
“New student Becca can hardly believe her luck when Arianna, Marley, and Amanda, who sit at the top of the Piedmont High School hierarchy, pick her to join their exclusive friend group. . . . The story highlights important topics, including internalized misogyny and codependent friendships. . . . An exciting look at girl power gone wrong.” -- Kirkus Reviews
“Becca’s first day as a junior at Piedmont High goes surprisingly well after golden girl Marley invites her to sit with the popular girls . . . but she doesn’t feel like one of the pack—until some creepster dude tries to assault her and the girls show up, turn into wolves, tear him to pieces, and invite Becca to become one of them. . . . This feminist vigilante tale is made especially entertaining by the graphic novel’s contrast of bubbly, Barbie-esque illustrations with nightmarish scenes of blood and guts . . . Perennially satisfying.”
-- Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“If the popular girls at a Bay Area high school seem overly eager to befriend smart, queer, Asian-cued Becca, they have a specific reason in mind: they’re werewolves in need of another packmate. . . . Literalizing pack mentality, Tokuda-Hall smoothly explores the complexities of so-called sisterhood. Sterle’s long, lean characters don neo-1980s and ’90s fashions in art that dovetails with the economical storytelling to create an intersectional examination of high school social dynamics that doesn’t shortchange readers on adventure.” -- Publishers Weekly
Blurbs
“People call them all kinds of names—creeps, jerks. But the right word is predator. And that’s who we hunt. Becca wants what every high-schooler does: to have a group of friends, a squad. But Becca’s new friends are more than a clique, they’re a pack, and this pack is hungry. SQUAD is a fast-paced and feminist horror story for every girl who’s ever felt like prey, and asks how far a girl should go to hunt the hunters.”—Laura Ruby, author of National Book Award Finalist Thirteen Doorways, Wolves Behind Them All
“Squad is monstrously delightful and delightfully monstrous. This book is transformative, healing, and deeply powerful.” -- Sarah Gailey, author of When We Were Magic
"A story you can't help but sink your teeth into. Twists and turns you never see coming. I devoured this book." -- Colleen AF Venable, author of National Book Award nominee Kiss Number 8
"If the words 'badass lady-werewolves' aren't enough to convince you to read this book, the luscious art and brilliantly complicated portrayals of female friendship will. Squad will surprise, delight and horrify you. Get ready for this story to sink its teeth right into your heart." -- Mallory O'Meara, bestselling author of The Lady from the Black Lagoon
“A fast-paced and deeply satisfying read. Squad is a story fitted with the sharpest teeth that chomps down on the patriarchy, and I adored it with my entire vicious heart." -- Chloe Gong, author of New York Times–bestselling These Violent Delights