Comics and cookies: Kyle’s Little Sister

Each month, the Iowa City Public Library’s will feature a comic or graphic novel for kids, suggest a sweet treat pairing, include a game or activity, and ask a couple discussion questions about the book.

Kyle's Little Sister by BonHyung Jeong is a debut graphic novel that depicts Grace's first few days in middle school.

Grace is an introvert who loves gaming and is sick of living in her popular older brother Kyle’s shadow. She's also tired of the way girls — including her friends — act around him. When she has a falling-out with one of her best friends, though, and is targeted by a mean girl, she just might need Kyle's help sorting things out.

Pairs well with: Yakgwa (Korean honey cookies). The author is originally from South Korea, so try this popular Korean cookie that is crisp, fried, and coated with a thick honey syrup!

Discuss:

If you have siblings, what is your relationship like with them? Do you ever feel jealous of them?
Grace has a big, dramatic breakup with her two best friends. What do you think she could have done to patch things up before it got more out of control?

Do: Since this book is all about friendship, try making a simple friendship bracelet! You can work on this craft together with your friends, or make and give them as gifts to demonstrate you're thinking of them. You'll need at least four different-colored skeins of embroidery floss.

Classic Chevron Bracelet

Cut about 72" lengths of each of the four colors. Fold the strings in half so you have 8 36" lengths of thread — two of each color. Tie an overhand knot near the end of the folded end, so you have a small loop at the folded end. Use masking tape to secure the loop to the table. Arrange the strings so they are spread out in a mirroring pattern. For example, if the four colors you picked were red, orange, yellow, and green, you would lay them out in this pattern: red, orange, yellow, green, green, yellow, orange, red.
Starting with the outermost left hand string, tie forward knots one at a time on the next three strings until you reach the middle. Remember, forward knots are tied by making a "4" shape with the "working" string over the second string. Then bring the end of the "4" shape back up through the loop of the "4."
Now, using the outermost right hand string, tie backward knots on the next three strings until you reach the middle. Backward knots are the same as forward knots, except that you make a backward "4" shape with the "working" string on top of the second string.
Continue working back and forth in this manner until your bracelet is as long as you like! Stuck? There are lots of YouTube videos that can help!