Frankie’s World is the new graphic novel by Aoife Dooley, who is from Dublin.
The main character is a girl called Frankie, who has a best friend called Sam. Everyone tells Frankie she talks too much and can’t work out why she doesn’t fit in. Frankie lives with her six-year-old sister called Abbie, who she finds really annoying, her really nice mum and her stepdad Gerry.
The book is like a comic and the pictures are great as they really express how Frankie is feeling.
Frankie feels like she isn’t the same as other kids in school. She listens to rock music, doodles in her journal and doesn’t like noise, and the kids in class make fun of her because of this, particularly Nadine.
The book can be very sad but also very funny. Even on school tour, the mean girls in school are cruel to Frankie but my favourite bit is where Frankie gets her own back on the mean girls.
Frankie doesn’t let all this upset her too much. She has learnt to stand up for herself and has two good friends who she has fun with, including sleepovers. I thought there was a lesson that you will always find a group to be friends with.
The book talks about Frankie trying to find her dad, and she finds her birth certificate with her dad’s name on it. When she meets her dad she sees that he is just like her and realises that she has autism just like her dad.
Frankie is actually relieved as she understands why she is different, and she enjoys spending time with her dad.
I would recommend this book to people who like graphic novels and anyone who has autism or feels like they don’t fit in, as this book might help you see that everything will turn out okay, and to accept who you are.
I hope Aoife Dooley writes more books, I would definitely read them.