Boy meets boy. Boys become friends. Boys fall in love. A sweet and charming coming-of-age story that explores friendship, love, and coming out. This edition features beautiful two-color artwork.
Soon to be streaming on Netflix!
Shy and softhearted Charlie Spring sits next to rugby player Nick Nelson in class one morning. A warm and intimate friendship follows, and that soon develops into … follows, and that soon develops into something more for Charlie, who doesn’t think he has a chance.
But Nick is struggling with feelings of his own, and as the two grow closer and take on the ups and downs of high school, they come to understand the surprising and delightful ways in which love works.
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Alice Oseman really knows how to tell a story through the graphic novel format. This YA series is sweet and inclusive, with characters who are impossible not to fall in love with. The second book is my favorite, but I love them all.
****4.25****
Talk about all the feels. I can tell this will be a set of books that will be near and dear to my heart from the art, to the characters, and the absolutely adorably beautiful story. I love it all.
Too cute and precious. These two make my heart burst with cuteness. Beautifully done.
My heart. Is bursting. This GN was perfect. It was so sweet, so cute. The art was adorable. This just made me happy. I cannot wait to read the rest of the series!
So good! The artwork is awesome! I loved the beginning of this story, and I want to know what happens next so bad! I definitely grabbed the next in this series right away because this one just leave you hanging and wanting more! Very cute, and I’m really enjoying the story of self discovery.
First off the artwork in this was amazing. The story was so sweet. By the end I needed volume 2 immediately. Charlie is such a teddy bear! Nick is a sweet protector. I cannot wait to read the next one.
This is incredibly adorable, diverse, and engaging. This comic is also perfect for teens who want to read about LGBT+ characters, it’s PG13.
CW: Heartstopper does deal with eating disorders and family interpersonal issues.
Note: The comic is being adapted for Netflix!
Heartstopper Volume 1 beautifully capsulates how it is to be young, but from different sides: one is arriving at the start of the journey of figuring yourself out and one that has already walked that road for a bit. This vague description obviously aims Charlie Spring being out as gay for some time now and Nick Nelson just starting to question his identity. It’s a beautiful dynamic, especially as it takes place between fairly young teenagers (14 and 15 years old), as that representation is so important for young people.
The play between the text and imagery is in an extraordinary balance, bringing across every part of the message and emotion, even those words can bring over. I am autistic, so I often have a hard time reading people’s expression and body language, which include people in graphic novels. But everything together made me able to completely immerse in the story and feel for and with the characters.
Content warnings: Depictions of an eating disorder, mentions of self-harm, mentions of past bullying, infrequent homophobia, swearing, very mild violence, one incident of a non-consensual kiss. Please note that there will be NO graphic or explicit imagery of any kind (e.g. violent, disturbing, or sexual) in this comic.
Alice Oseman’s artstyle is unique and super recognisable. It’s cute, it’s real, and shows the flaws in the characters without highlighting them. I also love that the art in Heartstopper is relatively minimalistic, as it’s black and white, the backgrounds are really simple and even the main images don’t have a lot of textures. I am very fond of the intricate and colourful designs, but the simplicity of Heartstopper really keeps the focus on the main characters and their story. The style of the story makes it that you can just read it without too much brainpower, while still absorbing all the important bits.
A coming of age graphic novel in which high schoolers Charlie and Nick befriend each other and learn about themselves in the process. We all need a friend who is going to stand up for us and introduce us to new hobbies and activities. I found this story to be heartwarming.
4 stars – It was really good
TW: Harassment by ex; forced kiss; references of bullying
Chapters 1 and 2 from the Webcomic.
Omg, this comic is just adorable. Today I realized this was available through Webtoon and I went and binge read everything that was available. Charlie and Nick were adorable. I loved their friendship and that it led to a relationship. Also I loved all the supportive friends.
This is the most wholesome book I’ve read in a long, long time! Alice manages to leave us with a wide smile at every turn of page. I fell in love with both Charlie and Nick and can’t wait to see where their journey will take them!