Offside: A Graphic Novel
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Jul 7, 2026
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- $12.99
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- Pre-Order
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
From the author of the USA Today and Indie bestselling Invisible, a must-have graphic novel about five very different students who may just have more in common than they thought.
Can you get ahead if it means leaving everyone behind?
Al, Nicky, Palmer, Fabiola, and Seba are all on the school soccer team. But that doesn't mean they're all on the same side.
For the first time ever, the Jackson Middle School soccer team is going co-ed thanks to Nicky's determination. But Al is going to do whatever he can to keep the girls off the team, just the way his father wants.
When Al and Nicky's rivalry threatens to tear the team apart, everyone's going to have to pick sides. That is, until Palmer looks into why Nicky joined the team, and he starts to realize that there's a bigger problem than what's on the field. . .
And maybe the only way to truly win is together.
With text in English and Spanish, Offside features the groundbreaking format used in Invisible, paired with engaging, accessible, and entertaining storytelling. This Breakfast Club-inspired story by Christina Diaz Gonzalez and Mari Costa is a must-have graphic novel about soccer, friendship, and what it really means to work as a team.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Gonzalez (Invisible) and Costa (Forgive-Me-Not) thoughtfully fold questions of gender equity in soccer into a rousing sports graphic novel. When Jackson Middle School's boys' soccer team opens tryouts to female athletes, team captain Al responds by trying to recruit enough boys to edge the girls out entirely. That doesn't stop classmates Nicky, a striker who advocates for co-ed play, and Fabiola, a newcomer from Colombia who speaks limited English and would rather remain unnoticed, from making the team. Al's frustration is reinforced by his Brazilian-born father, who carries outdated assumptions about girls' soccer that manifest via his demeaning and closed-off presence toward female players. This dynamic, reinforced via character facial expressions and body language, offers a nuanced look into Al's seemingly unconscious adoption of his father's worldview. Nicky, meanwhile, pursues her goals with uncompromising intensity, a trait that both empowers her and leaves her feeling isolated from the team. A standout spread that reimagines bilingual communication as a steampunk translation machine captures the comic's inventive visual storytelling. What begins as a simple rivalry gradually expands into a layered exploration of access, recognition, and cultivating teamwork and understanding across differences. It's a moving, tightly observed story with genuine stakes and emotion. Ages 8–12. Author's agent: Jennifer Rofé, Andrea Brown Literary. Illustrator's agent: Allison Hellegers, Stimola Literary Studio
