The Witch Boy: A Graphic Novel (The Witch Boy Trilogy #1)

I found this book in the #WeNeedDiverseBooks catalog on Scholastic Book Clubs, which is my favorite place to shop for my classroom. This book appealed to me because it was a graphic novel, and because of its premise in examining gender norms. Aster is a boy who lives in a magical society where the girls are trained to be witches, and the boys are supposed to grow to be shapeshifters. Aster's shapeshifting magic hasn't come to him, and he's really much more interested in witchery. At one part of the story, he points out to the other boys that it's silly that the girls are in lessons learning things while they are just running around playing fighting games. As a teacher, this made me smile! His family then runs into a mysterious danger, and no one will listen to him when he thinks he has a way to help make things right. Will he be able to use magic his way to help save his family? This book features a diverse cast, which is readily apparent to the reader thanks to the graphic novel format. Aster is a likable protagonist, as is his friend Charlie. I love the message that shatters the binary gender norms, especially because they are sometimes quite rigid in this age group. When I listed the books I had bought to my students this last year, some of them questioned me on how the title could be "The Witch Boy." Even in the world of fantasy, they had clear gender norms established in their head. I am all for books that can help loosen those norms and create more open minds. There is no reason for our children to feel like there are things that they cannot do or be because they have been assigned a certain gender. Because of its fantasy setting, I feel like it's a book that can be more readily accepted by readers and gatekeepers with more conservative views. This kind of representation is very important for our children who are coming of age and discovering themselves. Because it's a middle grade novel, the plot of THE WITCH BOY moved very quickly and I would have loved more details about the characters and the world. However, I think it'll be more than enough to keep kids engaged, and the story line is easy to follow. It's a quick read, which is a huge plus for some of our reluctant readers, and my students were definitely attracted to the full color, high-quality pages. This was the nicest looking book in the book order that it came in, and one of my students must have liked it enough to keep it, because it never made it back and I had to order a new one on Amazon.

The Witch Boy is a spellbinding graphic novel that my preteen devoured in one sitting—and honestly, so did I. It beautifully explores what it means to be different, to challenge family expectations, and to find your own magic (literally and figuratively). The story follows Aster, a boy growing up in a family where boys become shapeshifters and girls become witches. But Aster doesn’t fit the mold—he’s drawn to witchcraft, despite the risks and disapproval. When something dark starts hunting the boys in his community, it’s Aster’s courage and gifts that may save them all. What we loved: ✨ The lush, expressive illustrations pull you right in. ✨ Aster’s journey is a wonderful mirror for kids who feel like they don’t quite fit in—whether that’s because of interests, identity, or just growing up. ✨ It weaves in big ideas (gender roles, acceptance, family pressure) without ever being heavy-handed. ✨ It’s just spooky enough to be thrilling, but not nightmare fuel. If you’re a parent looking for books that spark conversation about being true to yourself, kindness, and empathy—or if your kid loves stories about witches, werewolves, and secret magic—this is a must. We can’t wait to get the next in the series. Highly recommend!

I absolutely adored this MG graphic novel! In this fantasy adventure we follow Aster, a young boy raised by a magical collective of families. For as long as they can remember, boys have always shifted and girls have always performed magic, but Aster knows he has magic inside of him, the kind the girls are always using. As a mysterious force thrusts the families' adolescents into danger, Aster must come to terms with his true nature and find the strength to thwart the evil threat. I think what worked best for me was our MC Aster. He's an introverted kid that's going through puberty, and naturally everything is confusing. I remember feeling the same way growing up, so it wasn't hard to resonate and cheer for him as he struggled and sorted things out. I thought he was a great hero with intelligence and a sound, rational mind, someone younger readers could look up to. The world this was set in was so cool! This little colony of magical families is set just outside the reach of the normal human world, and I loved the easy to understand magic system and the little secrets within. I had to know everything! Plotwise this book had it all. Magic, mystery, and a little dollop of mayhem. A core theme of this novel is questioning gender roles, and I think it made some great points while keeping things light and fun. Pacing was great and moved quickly like I prefer, and I honestly have no complaints about this great work of fiction. If you're looking for a light LGBT read for you or your youngster, this is the perfect pick!

My sons both really enjoyed this book. They found the magical theme and characters very enjoyable. The graphic novel format is especially awesome. My 10 year old is dyslexic and graphic novels have been instrumental in cultivating his love of reading. He's a very visual and kinesthetic learner, and graphic novels make it so he can dive into a book and understand the story, even if he can't quite decipher all the words. With all the tutoring and reading support that challenges him, it's important to find ways to make reading enjoyable and relevant. This book is now part of our collection that helps us accomplish that! My 8 year old is not dyslexic, but he's not reading totally fluently yet, so he gets the same benefit out of graphic novels. The reasons I'm giving 4 stars instead of 5 is because I felt like the story missed some opportunities for more depth. The story arc was a little flat, and the relationship between Aster and Charlie wasn't very well developed so you just had to assume they had some sort of soul connection that explained their closeness. Also, at the end of the story the parents say the most annoying thing to the main character when he reveals his differences and saves the day, "We love you no matter what." "No matter what" is what I imagine Charles Manson's mother would say about loving him. The phrase implies that they believe there is something terribly wrong with him, but they still love him in spite of it rather than loving him because of his uniqueness and without conditions. These, of course, are things that only I as an adult picked up on. My kids still loved the book, and want to read the rest of the series. Overall, I'm super happy with this book and am grateful to have it!

cute story and great art. I like it just fine. Although it does do a bit of a too heavy handed "parents never understand thing". which is a part of the thing's theme. I get that. Still though, having a secret family of magic peeps being staunch gender conformity supporters doesn't make sense. Witches have an extensive history of cross gender stuff. There are a few not so great magic rules that the book doesn't really answer but I can't expect it to. It's a very short story and doesn't have time to answer my quibbles. It's a delightful read, but it does have flaws. I'd give an average book 3 or 4 stars. but seeing as how important this sort of story is I'm giving it the full 5. It is creative enough to deserve it and the majority of the metaphors and representation are treated very well and understandable through a child's eyes. I look forward to the prospect of reading this story to my kids.

Read this for the Trans Rights Readathon, and it's so good. While it's not an explicitly "trans" narrative, it is clearly about the often restrictive and even harmful nature of enforcing gender roles. Kids know what they like, be it sports or art or magic or all of it; it's adults, like Aster's entire family and culture, who have created and clung to dividing kids between boy things and girl things. The art is perfect for this story, and very dynamic. Every character is different and recognizable, even in different forms. One of my favorites.

I loved all the characters and I really loved reading the plot & how it all wrapped up in the end.

The first part of Witch Boy is defintely our favorite!!! My daughter loved the story of bullying inside a family and how the character found support outside. She quotes the book whenever we encounter a person who feels "different" or not as they’re supposed to be, or not following societal expectations.

per mia figlia ottimo li è piaciuto molto

Ótimo hq, em inglês mas de fácil leitura.

Piękna, wrażliwa opowieść z cudownymi ilustracjami. Syn zadowolony, pochłonął od razu.

Great book and nice illustrations

Todo perfecto