Christmas, Johnnie

Johnnie Christmas is a #1 New York Times bestselling graphic novelist. Best known for co-creating the Angel Catbird series with celebrated writer Margaret Atwood, he has adapted William Gibson’s lost screenplay for Alien 3 into a critically acclaimed graphic novel of the same name. He also co-created the series Sheltered. In his contemporary middle grade graphic novel Swim Team (HarperAlley), we meet Bree. She couldn’t wait for her first day at her new middle school, Enith Brigitha, home to the Mighty Manatees – but now she’s stuck with the only elective that fits her schedule, the dreaded Swim 101. The thought of swimming makes Bree more than a little queasy, but she’s forced to dive headfirst into one of her greatest fears. Lucky for her, Etta, an elderly occupant of her apartment building and a former swim team captain, is willing to help. With Etta’s training and a lot of hard work, Bree suddenly finds her swim-crazed community counting on her to turn the school’s failing team around. Can Bree defy the odds and guide her team to a state championship, or have the Mighty Manatees swum their last lap?