Gamerville

June 1, 2024
Can online gaming strategies help a boy escape from summer camp in time for a video game tournament? Maxwell lives for video games, and qualifying for the Gamerville tournament is his greatest achievement yet. However, recognizing the negative impact excessive gaming is having, Max's highly protective mother realizes he needs more outdoor time: She signs him up for technology-free Camp Reset, a place she has fond memories of attending as a child, although it conflicts with the tournament. Zanzi, the great-great-granddaughter of Camp Reset's founder, strictly and enthusiastically adheres to tradition, causing her friends to pull away. Camper Dylan struggles with overcoming his past as a cyberbully. Through his video game lens, Max at first sees other kids as recruitable allies, but he gradually realizes they're true friends. Still, he's determined to escape to Gamerville; could strategies he's learning at camp help? Max's and Zanzi's families are Black; the supporting cast is racially diverse. This vibrant, colorful graphic novel shows that change engenders growth and improvement, and that strategies and skills are transferable between very different settings. The lavish facilities (for the small number of campers), minimal adult supervision, and questionable safety protocols strain credulity, but Christmas' work commendably demonstrates respect for both video game culture and unplugged living, showing the positives and negatives of each while offering valuable representations of Black kids enjoying nature and gaming. Themes of positive change thread this tribute to video games, summer camp, and emotional growth. (Graphic adventure. 9-12)

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June 1, 2024
Grades 3-6 Maxwell lives the anxiety dream of countless kids: just before the championship tournament for the video game he's mastered, his parents inform him that he's going off to nature camp for a month--starting tomorrow! Turns out nature's as bad as he feared, and he hatches an escape plan, which brings him to two allies of necessity, each of whom is working through their own difficulties. As relationships deepen and unexpected skills accrue, Maxwell makes his escape just in time for the big competition, but all three friends find that truly worthwhile goals may not have been the ones they've clung to for so long. Christmas tackles interesting, relevant, and unusual themes--tradition versus change, anger management, the value of well-rounded interests--and presents thoughtful, emotional outcomes. The fairly straightforward visualization gains pep from clever character designs and zippy in-video-game action sequences, and a campground heist that generates suspense also gives the three allies with distinct outlooks and issues the chance to bond into a satisfying friendship.

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Starred review from June 24, 2024
After he qualifies for the Gamerville Video Game Tournament, tween Max finds himself attending Camp Reset, a Black-owned sleepaway program for digital detoxing. Undeterred by his parents’ efforts to inspire more healthful habits (“No screens! No distractions!”), Max attempts to escape immediately. Instead, he’s paired with peer supervisor Dylan, who has his own objective: atone for his previous behavior bullying campmates. Max agrees to help Dylan break into Toy Tower—where all games, video and otherwise, have been collected and locked away since the camp’s founding—so campers can finally enjoy them, and Max can use his confiscated Game Guy to confirm his spot at Gamerville. With help from Zanzi, the most decorated camper and the great-great-granddaughter of the establishment’s founder, the boys scheme to find the key to Toy Tower and unlock their redemption. Christmas (Swim Team) explores common middle school issues such as bullying, friendship fallout, and expanding one’s perspective in this ambitious, fast-paced graphic novel. Video game aesthetics paired with brightly colored illustrations craft two distinct and complementary settings: one teeming with digital adventure and the other filled with wilderness whimsy. Even Max’s go-to game, The Lone Wolf of Calamity Bay, reinforces themes of camaraderie, change, and courage. Characters are depicted with varying skin tones. Ages 8–12. Agent: Judith Hansen, Hansen Literary.

June 28, 2024

Gr 4-7-Max loves video games and he's good at them. In fact, he made the championship finals for his favorite game, "Lone Wolf of Calamity Bay," and is going to Gamerville! But his mother is overprotective; she worries about his safety and that video games will make him weird. As a result, she pulls strings to get him into Camp Reset, which starts the next day. Max schemes to escape from this tech-free camp, and the story's perspective shifts to Zanzi, a Camp Reset lover and veteran, and to Dylan, who struggles to control his anger. The shift to these and many more camp characters turns Max's singular narrative into additional story arcs that add depth but can sometimes be tricky to follow. But messages about unhealthy habits, conflict resolution, connection, and being open to new challenges even out the wonkiness of the storylines. Structured into 12 chapter "levels," Max's journey to redemption ties together all characters. Christmas's art is clean and dynamic with striking colors and a variety of panel layouts. Immersion into the world of "Lone Wolf," with asides of Max strategizing, will resonate with video game players, as will the parallels between Max's gaming mind and the survival and collaboration skills he gains at camp. VERDICT The success and relatability of Christmas's Swim Team will draw middle grade readers to this charming graphic novel of video games, camp, making friends, and finding balance. Recommended.-Jamie Winchell

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