While full of rot and decay, the earth also plays host to exquisite rebirth and dazzling transformation that seeps into our own seemingly ‘normal’ and static lives. Witchcraft, in Snap and Jacks’s universe, is transformative, all about the shifting natural world. We feel Snap’s loneliness and isolation sharply even when it leads her down fantastical paths. Even Snapdragon’s social status as town weirdo isn’t brushed over in favor of progressing the story. And while class stays on the back burner, the struggle of Jessamine, an overworked single mom struggling to take care of Snap and fending off a shady ex-beau, brings real tension to the story. Lu is bullied viciously for her new gender expression. Throughout the twists and turns of the story, there is a conscious undercurrent of absolute honesty and dedication to depicting real life in all of its ugliness. It feels organic and exciting when we realize that magic and witchcraft are more than metaphors in this story, thrilled by the presence of animal ghosts possessing motorbikes and feisty Snapdragon waving a real magic wand to save a rabbit. Snapdragon becomes an apprentice to Jacks, the ‘roadkill witch’ who nurses animals back to life and also maintains a lucrative side business selling the reconstructed skeletons (of the critters who didn’t make it) on the internet. Unlikely friendship and even more coincidental connections run through this story, but I was happy to suspend disbelief in favor of fun. Even three-legged GoodBoy (Geebie) the dog, kicks off the story by leading Snapdragon to the front yard of the enigmatic wicked witch of the small town woods, Jacks. Snapdragon’s hard-working mother Jessamine, takes no backseat either, with her own story of ambition, night classes, and cocktail umbrellas. Lu, Snapdragon’s best friend, and next-door neighbor is discovering her new identity as a girl and coping with the turmoil from the roof of her trailer.

However, make no mistake, the characters which surround Snapdragon leap from the page to page with personalities and stories of their own. Snapdragon, or “Snap,” is the bully-headbutting, animal-loving, hoodie-clad misfit heroine of the story. She has worked as a cover artist for the comic series Lumberjanes and as a backup artist for BOOM! Studios. This is her first published, creator-owned work, and while it’s appropriate for YA readers, it can be enjoyed by fans of all ages. Leyh is a Chicago based graphic novelist best known for her queer superhero webcomic Supercakes.

Witches, motorcycles, ghosts, and the best dog in town: Kat Leyh’s Snapdragon abounds with the unexpected and magical while seamlessly blending an archetypal coming of age story with an urgent, real-world tale about identity and rebirth.

Snapdragon graphic novel