BOOK REVIEW: In Real Life by Cory Doctorow and Jen Wang

As a (lapsed) gamer girl, I enjoyed the graphic novel In Real Life by Cory Doctorow and Jen Wang. The story focuses on a high school girl, Anda, who finds an online community of friends in the game Coarsegold Online. In the beginning, she and her friend Sarge go on a rampage against gold miners, until Anda befriends a miner, Raymond, and learns the truth about why the boy mines.

Told through vivid illustrations that show character emotions and motivation, the story progresses and we learn more about Anda's life and how she likes to help others. As the story unfolds, however, she has a breakdown of friendship between her online allies, and must navigate those emotional tolls with her real life issues as well.

Told with grace, while teaching a lesson on economics, this book shows the positive side of the gaming community.

WHAT I LIKED: Girl games unite! Not only that, but at the end of the novel we see that Anda, and her guild the Fahrenheits, help out others who are less fortunate.

Anda must learn a lesson about Internet security, honesty, friendship, and real life along the way. During her plight, I felt her depression and her elation.

Furthermore, the drawings made me feel like the game was real! I would play Coarsegold Online IRL (in real life)!

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: I felt the ending was a bit abrupt and could have explained more from Raymond's experiences.

RATED: 5 Stars

I had wondered if I would like reading a graphic novel or not, but I took the plunge and do not regret it. If you're on the fence, try this book, because the drawings help tell the story, and do not hinder the reading process. Also, it's a quick read--it took me only a few hours (and that's with a toddler badgering me from time to time!).

NOTE: This review is also posted on Goodreads. Additionally, I bought and paid for the book on my own, and did not receive any compensation for this review.