Trung Le Nguyen's ANGELICA AND THE BEAR PRINCE

Thanks to partners NetGalley and Random House for the digital ARC of Trung Le Nguyen’s Angelica and the Bear Prince. The book will be published tomorrow!

The Magic Fish, a graphic novel by Trung Le Nguyen, was one of my absolute favorite reads last year. The author’s new book, Angelica and the Bear Prince, has a similar rootedness in fairytales, though they’re less of a presence through the book as a whole.

The book centers on a high school student named Angelica who became over involved and experienced the near-inevitable burnout as a result. Now, she’s trying to ease back in to extracurriculars by working backstage at a local theater.

The theater’s mascot is a bear . . . and the bear has a social media account. Angelica has struck up a correspondence with said bear but doesn’t know who actually brings the mascot to life, though she is intrigued.

Woven through the story is the story of a Bear Prince with a secret of his own.

While I didn’t find Angelica and the Bear Prince to be quite as captivating as The Magic Fish, it’s a lovely story that will feel relatable to so many YA (and adult!) readers. Who among us hasn’t felt the need to take a step back from life, to recenter ourselves on what matters? And finding the right supporters along the way is key to actually feeling different.

The relationships here are beautifully developed, and Nguyen highlights the ways that Angelica interacts with her parents, her best friend, and—of course—the person behind the bear. The art is beautiful and tells the story expressively, with an emphasis on emotions. Nguyen is now an auto-read author for me!

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