It takes seventy pages to reach that recognition, and 240 before Maggie begins looking into OCD. When the story starts Maggie just feels confused and has no idea her feelings may relate to a condition. Even taking into account the age group she’s writing for Durfey-Lavoie can’t distil events to their essence, so there are endless scenes of ultimately very little value. In addition to clocking in at over an intimidating three hundred story pages, so many of those pages are wasted. With an admirable purpose, and Agarwell’s attractive cartooning and clarity, it would be nice to note that Maggie’s story is a delight that will reach the right audience and maybe set off a few lightbulbs among them. OCD is a broad spectrum, and as this graphic novel is aimed at young adults, it takes a simpler approach by only featuring a few. It manifests in multiple ways, and in an afterword cartoonist Veronica Agarwell notes her own diagnosis made sense of many of her habits. The purpose of Just Roll With It is to highlight some forms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, or OCD, whereby sufferers are compelled to repetitive behaviour as a means of avoiding unpleasant thoughts. If she sees a high number all will be well, but if not… As if that isn’t intimidating enough, she thinks she’s seeing a dragon in the school grounds. It’s Maggie’s comfort as she faces the scary experience of beginning sixth grade with all the new subjects she has to learn. Lee Durfey-Lavoie broadly adapts that idea for her protagonist Maggie, updating it slightly via the use of a multi-sided role-playing device rather than the traditional six sided cube. The 336-page graphic novel is available in hardcover and softcover editions, as well as in audio book form, now.In Luke Rhinehart’s 1971 first person novel The Dice Man, a psychiatrist commits to make all decisions on the roll of a die. I wanted this story to be something that shows how a lot of us live alongside our anxiety, and that the end goal of one’s mental health journey doesn’t have to be ‘fixing’ yourself, but rather becoming the best version of you, anxiety and all.”Ĭheck out the exclusive five-page excerpt from Just Roll With It below. “I was inspired by Svetlana Chmakova’s ‘Berry Brook Middle School’ series (Awkward / Brave / Crush) that highlights issues kids deal with but doesn’t belittle them. “JUST ROLL WITH IT aims to open a dialogue about mental health for young readers and give them some terminology to help navigate talking about it,” said Veronica Agarwal. In a statement back when the book was first announced, Agarwal described what she hopes readers get out of Just Roll With It, and named work that inspired her as she worked on the book: She is also the creator of the webcomic Magical Girl Problems, Magical Girl Solutions, which ran until 2017. Summer Vacation, was written by Sarah Jamila Stevenson and published by the Center for Responsive Schools in 2019. Just Roll With It is the second full-length graphic novel from Veronica Agarwal. But what happens if Maggie rolls the wrong number?Ī touching middle-grade graphic novel that explores the complexity of anxiety, OCD, and learning to trust yourself and the world around you. But between finding the best after-school clubs, trying to make friends, and avoiding the rumored monster on school grounds, she’s having a tough time…so she might need a little help from her twenty-sided dice. Maggie just wants to get through her first year of middle school. As long as Maggie rolls the right number, nothing can go wrong…right?
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