Mabuhay!

by Zachary Sterling

Scott County Library paperback 229 pages

Published: 2023

Genre: YA graphic novel

 

I saw this showcased at the Scholastic Book Fair at NPMS and was curious. I love graphic novels! This one has the tagline "Can two kids save the world and still work their family food truck?" 

JJ is the older brother who wants to be part of the cool crowd. He's embarrassed by his weird family and having to wear the "beautiful pig" costume at their food truck stops. Althea is younger and loves horror films. She loves being weird and is pretty angry that her former best friends have changed so much and now avoid her. She can be downright hostile.

A strange person turns up at their food truck one day and pays with an ancient Filipino coin. She is a witch and she is determined to get back the kids' mother who has a powerful relic. There's a lot of mythology, magic, and superhero style fighting. There's also a lot of Filipino food and culture in this book (with footnotes and a glossary). 

My favorite part was when Althea became attached to Juan and Pinya. So sweet! It's a delightful book that I would gladly purchase for a middle school collection (if I were still a librarian).