A Beginner’s Guide to Leveling Up: A Graphic Novel

Coco meets Tron in this heartfelt and fantastical graphic novel where a pixelated quest helps one girl navigate grief, friendship, and the wilds of middle school.

Sixth grade. The game just got real.

For Lexie, this year was supposed to be all about joining clubs, claiming the perfect lunch spot, and gaming after school with her best friends. But shifting friendships and the grief of losing her beloved grandfather make middle school feel more like someone switched her life to hard mode.

Then Lexie discovers a mysterious journal tucked inside her grandfather’s things. It’s filled with cryptic notes and cheat codes from an unfinished video game he was creating: Warrior’s Quest. When Lexie and her older sister, Eunice, are suddenly transported into the game’s pixelated world, the line between reality and fantasy starts to blur.

Can Lexie and her sister level up and face the monsters in the game–and in real life–or is it game over for good?