Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Okay, first off… I had no idea that Sunny Rolls the Dice is part #3 of a graphic novel series and only found that out after marking the book on Goodreads. This was a random pick during an impromptu visit to a public library in Chennai, a city in South India I was visiting for a day. The original plan was to explore the Government Museum, but then it’s hard not to spot the Connemara Public Library right next to it. Library > Museum. And that’s how I randomly picked up Sunny Rolls the Dice in the kids’ section.
Created by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (illustrator), this is a super cute graphic novel and made me wish we had books like these in our own school libraries when we were kids. Set in the 1970s, the book opens with seventh-grader Sunny and her friend looking at teen magazines and taking a ‘how groovy are you?’ test. Funnily enough, protagonist Sunny is disappointed to get a ‘Not Groovy’ result, the lowest possible score, while her friend scores ‘Very Groovy’.
This ‘groovy’ meter becomes a funny parameter throughout Sunny Rolls the Dice, as Sunny tries to navigate the new rules of being a middle-grade student, which are abstract, confusing, and often frustrating. The best thing to happen to Sunny in the summer is getting introduced to Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) by a bunch of nerdy, sweet boys. It’s an easier imaginative world of monsters, sorcerers, and magic. In a hilariously relatable scene, Sunny tries to teach an older relative to play the game; however, he just ends up forcing his favorite card game upon her.
While Sunny absolutely loves playing D&D with her friend and the boys, her best friend grows weary of the game very quickly, since apparently it’s not a very ‘cool’ hobby to have. Or like the teen magazine would’ve put it: D&D is not groovy. That’s not to say Sunny doesn’t have things in common with her girlfriends, she likes rollerblading with them, listening to music, and largely has a fun time at school.
Sunny Rolls the Dice allows its characters to be kids who are thinking about snacks, movies, buying clothes, playing games, or thinking about things that scare or excite them. And I loved the bright, colorful artwork, and how the illustrations dominate the panels. The drawing style is quite similar to Raina Telgemeier’s work (Guts, Smile): cartoony cute and expressive.
If you’re looking for a simple, sunny book about middle-grade life, making new friends, and finding some new hobbies, this is an absolutely breezy read.
Rating for Sunny Roll the Dice: 4 out of 5.
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