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Real Friends

(Friends #1)

Shannon Hale (Goodreads Author),

LeUyen Pham (Illustrator),

Jane Poole (Colorist)

4.22 · Rating details · 34,652 ratings · 2,802 reviews

When best friends are not forever . . .

Shannon and Adrienne have been best friends ever since they were little. But one day, Adrienne starts hanging out with Jen, the most popular girl in class and the leader of a circle of friends called The Group. Everyone in The Group wants to be Jen's #1, and some girls would do anything to stay on top . . . even if it means bullying ...more

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Hardcover, 224 pages

Published May 2nd 2017 by First Second

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Average rating 4.22 ·

Rating details

· 34,652 ratings · 2,802 reviews

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Jan 22, 2017 Betsy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: graphic-novels, memoirs, bully-books

The autobiography assignment. I don’t pretend to know precisely why teachers give it out or what they hope child readers will get out of it. About ten years ago, when I was a children’s librarian in New York City, it was to be feared. A small child would walk into my room, belly up to the reader’s advisory desk, and ask for an autobiography. You mean a biography? No (of course not, silly librarian). An AUTObiography, see? And there, clear as crystal, was the printed assignment. So like any good ...more

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Jun 14, 2020 Swaroop rated it liked it

A simple and beautiful graphic memoir!

"
Once upon a time there was a girl with red hair

who believed her destiny was to ride alone.

But an old evil was rising in the north lands,

at the final moment, when all seemed to be lost,

she cried out for help.

The many friends she had made on her journey heard her call.

And they came running.

After all, no one's destiny is to be alone.

"

Real friends

Real Friends (Real Friends, #1) by Shannon Hale

Blurb:
Shannon and Adrienne have been best friends ever since they were little. But one day, Adrienne starts han ...more

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Sep 16, 2017 Heidi The Reader rated it it was amazing

Shelves: for-my-kid, fiction

Perfect for a 10-year-old, Real Friends looks at the complex relationships among elementary school girls. It teaches readers that good friends don't treat you badly.

It also delves into the thorny issues of sibling abuse and rivalry, bullying and crushes.

I liked Real Friends not only for its story, but also for the way that it allowed me to connect with my child. We read the book together and shared our thoughts on friendships.

The author, Shannon Hale, based this book on her real life experiences ...more

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Jun 15, 2018 Nat rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: graphic-novels

I've had my eye on this graphic novel memoir set in the 80s for awhile now, so I was beyond keen on getting my reading on. I sped through this thrilling ride in one big whirlwind.

When best friends are not forever . . .

Shannon and Adrienne have been best friends ever since they were little. But one day, Adrienne starts hanging out with Jen, the most popular girl in class and the leader of a circle of friends called The Group. Everyone in The Group wants to be Jen's #1, and some girls would

...more

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Aug 16, 2017 Idarah rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, reread, memoir-bio, middle-grade, own

"Friendship in younger years can be especially hard because our worlds are small. If you haven't found your 'group' yet, hang in there. Your world will keep growing larger and wider. You deserve to have real friends, the kind who treat you well and get how amazing you are."

I didn't realize this was a memoir about Hale's elementary school years! That made it all the more awesome. I hate cliques, so I could relate to Shannon's loneliness when her best friend joins "the group." I sometimes wish I c ...more

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Mar 15, 2018 Jessica rated it it was amazing

Shelves: graphics-n-comics, middle-grade, own

Accurate to the point of heartbreaking, this is a very honest look at the complexities of friendship and family dynamics. Some of this felt like it was copied from my Cabbage Kid Diary, some of it made me grateful that it never happened to me. Such an important read for kids and parents! This is a good one to have the whole family read and discuss, not forgetting the author's note at the back.

And of course the art is just amazing, love LeUyen's work. Just stunning. ...more

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Oct 20, 2019 Caroline rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novels-or-sequential-art, child-narrator, short-and-quick, she-wrote-it, for-children, nonfiction, academia

Real Friends will be highly relatable to many. This is a nonfiction, graphic-novel account of author Shannon Hale's elementary years up to 5th grade, specifically, her upsetting experiences with friendship. Going only by the title and cover art, I thought this would be a mostly feel-good story about friendships that grow into the solid kind that last a lifetime. It's the opposite. Hale struggled with a selfish clique of popular girls who included her in their group sometimes but simply tolerated ...more

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Jun 30, 2017 Kelli rated it really liked it

Shelves: memoirs, graphic-novels, not-fiction, childrens

I got this graphic memoir from the library for my 5th grader. I can't believe I have a 5th grader. She has the kindest heart, she is much smarter, funnier, and more athletic than I ever recall being (ever) but guess what? I still hear reports about girls calling her weird, about girls forming groups, about the timeless, treacherous terrain of elementary school friendship. Children today are educated about bullying and my girl puts up with nothing, but at the end of the day, we all just want to f ...more

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Dec 02, 2018 Manybooks rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: friendship, families, biographies-memoirs, childrens-literature, graphic-novels, book-reviews

Although I do have to admit that I probably would have enjoyed Shannon Hale's autobiographical middle grade Real Friends considerably more in a non graphic novel format (mostly because I do think that LeUyen Pham's accompanying illustrations, whilst bright and descriptive, were and are just a bit too cartoony for my own aesthetic tastes and perhaps also my present mood), I have indeed found Real Friends both engaging and evocative (and also very much and in a painful manner reminiscent of my own Although I do have to admit that I probably would have enjoyed Shannon Hale's autobiographical middle grade Real Friends considerably more in a non graphic novel format (mostly because I do think that LeUyen Pham's accompanying illustrations, whilst bright and descriptive, were and are just a bit too cartoony for my own aesthetic tastes and perhaps also my present mood), I have indeed found Real Friends both engaging and evocative (and also very much and in a painful manner reminiscent of my own childhood and how difficult and fraught with emotional turmoil making and keeping friends could be, and that school with its cliques often was anything but enjoyable, often at best somewhat problematic, with bullying especially being a constant spectre). And while therefore I actually have found much of Real Friends more than a bit too close for comfort and thus a reading experience that I have personally found not all that pleasant in and of itself, I still very much appreciate Shannon Hale's candour and that she has basically opened up her soul and her memories to write a personal account of her childhood and the issues she had to face both at school and at home (something that likely must have been difficult, but might also have felt liberating).

Now I do have to admit that part of me does rather chafe at the fact that in Real Friends, when it is obvious that Shannon is being both verbally and sometimes even physically tormented by her older sister Wendy, her mother basically seems to just walk away and tell Shannon that she is on her own so to speak. For while by the end of Real Friends (and after also having perused the included author's note), I do have much more of an understanding of Wendy and why she behaves and acts in the manner she does and has been, and even if I do appreciate the ending of Real Friends in so far that Wendy and Shannon seem to finally be willing and able to call somewhat of a truce and have a bit more acceptance and understanding of and for one another, I still do believe that considering how much of Wendy's anger and her outbursts at Shannon often were physically violent, that really, and for both Wendy's and Shannon's sake, the mother should have been much more proactive (but then again, I also very much consider Shannon Hale's honesty both refreshing and necessary, and that telling even younger readers the truth about bullying, about abuse, about family dysfunction and the like is most certainly much much better than pretending it away, making light of, not mentioning it). ...more

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May 02, 2017 First Second Books marked it as first-second-publications

Following little Shannon's life from kindergarten through fifth grade, Real Friends captures the emotional roller coaster ride of friendship, from navigating the tricky waters of cliques and bullies to her never-ending struggle to stay in "The Group." Shannon’s honest and heartfelt story reminds us of how hard it was to learn what real friends are—and why finding them is worth the journey. ...more

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Jan 23, 2021 Jasmine from How Useful It Is rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: library, memoirs, graphic-novel, nonfiction, middle-grade

Yeah I pretty much read it overnight in one sitting! This memoir was a great read, though I loved book 2 a bit more. This book deals with bullies, both at home and at school. Definitely hard being kids even though their main goal was to find one best friend. The next day I questioned my third grader if he was bullied in school and unfortunately yes and that it happened last year in second grade. I'm heartbroken that kids so young and already know how to be so cruel. Graphic novels are fast reads Yeah I pretty much read it overnight in one sitting! This memoir was a great read, though I loved book 2 a bit more. This book deals with bullies, both at home and at school. Definitely hard being kids even though their main goal was to find one best friend. The next day I questioned my third grader if he was bullied in school and unfortunately yes and that it happened last year in second grade. I'm heartbroken that kids so young and already know how to be so cruel. Graphic novels are fast reads and I'm loving it. This memoir written this way makes the read fun and easy. The illustrations were excellent as well.

 This book followed Shannon, being the middle child at age 6 who was often alone. Her two older sisters had each other because they were close in age as well as her two younger sister and brother. At school, she had trouble making friends. Eventually she was part of a group of friends but she was picked last as a favorite of the most popular girl in her grade. One mean girl in the group often made her cried. At home her older sister was mean to her. Shannon couldn't do anything right by her sister and she often run from the room crying. Until one day, Shannon happened to have a new group of friends in school where even the mean girl wanted to join.

 Real Friends was a good read for kids everywhere. My third grader read twice on each book and like me, he also liked book 2 a bit more. Being a memoir, the experiences of feeling alone, feeling left out, feeling difficult to make friends are real that kids everywhere can easily relate to. I was not the popular girl in school and I wasn't part of the popular group so I was not aware of girls fighting over each other to sit on the right and on the left of the popular girl in school. That part got me wondering about my son but he said his school assigned lunch seats so that's even better! I recommend everyone to read this duology! I already recommended my sister-in-law to get the books for her kids!

xoxo, Jasmine at www.howusefulitis.wordpress.com for more details ...more

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Feb 26, 2021 stuti ☾ rated it really liked it

Shelves: middle-grade, graphic-novels, contemporary, non-fiction, realistic-fiction, 4-stars, regular-review

This review does contain a few spoilers...

3.5 Stars

Real Friends is a graphic novel, the first book in a duo-logy, Real Friends, I read it because, well, I love graphic novel's plus, I kinda thought it'd be fun to read, a short, quick read.

Plot, of the book starts with Shannon, who make a friend, Adrienne, they are friends for quite some time until, Adrienne moves, and everything goes wrong, but then she moves back, but now Adrienne's friends with the popular kids, then later so is Shannon, but ...more

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Apr 01, 2017 Elle (ellexamines) rated it really liked it

Shelves: y-2017releases, x-arcs, 4-star, z-2017reads, y-notowned, contemporary

The cover on my arc edition is so much nicer! description

Oh my god, this was awesome. Real Friends is a brief yet heartfelt tale of being the outcast in a middle school.

This book stands out from other books about the same topic because of its emotional heart. Never does this story feel fake or fictional; it's effortlessly real. That's for a reason, given that this book is based off the author's own experiences. It was very easy to empathize with the main character.

I loved the emphasis on being real with ...more

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May 16, 2017 Melki rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novel, girl-power, middle-grade-readers

Why is it so much easier to have virtual friends than real friends? Couldn't we just walk up to someone, and say, "You wanna be my pal?"

Shannon Hale takes a look at the difficult prospect of making and keeping friends in this terrific graphic novel. We follow the author through her sometimes lonely years at elementary school when her best (and only) friend joins a clique comprised of popular girls. Shannon gets to hover around the periphery of the group, but never really "belongs" to the gang. ...more

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Feb 06, 2018 Julie Zantopoulos rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-in-2018, library, graphic-novel

This was such a cute graphic memoir about friendship, the social structure as you grow up, and the anxiety navigating it can cause children. It also touches on sibling relationships, how adults interact and listen to children and mental health issues in younger kids and teenagers. Overall, it was a very sweet graphic novel that I think would be an important and useful book for a lot of elementary aged kids.

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Apr 29, 2018 tiffany rated it really liked it

Shelves: pretty-good, must-reread

i really liked the plot & illustrations in this book. i think it moved at a nice pace and it was a fun, easy read.

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Dec 02, 2018 Tucker (TuckerTheReader) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: memoir, contemporary, graphic-novel, middle-grade, mental-illness

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May 12, 2017 Kathryn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: kidlit-upper-elem, children-s-books, kidlit-mid-grade, memoir-autobiography-biography, graphic-novels

Like many, my tween years were rough. Actually, that’s a vast understatement. I spent most of sixth grade hiding in my bedroom, trying to will myself into the narrow constraints my school’s resident Mean Girls set for us. Were GAP jeans cool this week? Or was it The Limited? Is 90210 still a thing? And if so, am I supposed to hate Brenda or Kelly? Is Brandon or Dylan the cute one? All I wanted to do was ride my bike and play with Barbies. Not read YM magazine and debate the finer points of lip Like many, my tween years were rough. Actually, that’s a vast understatement. I spent most of sixth grade hiding in my bedroom, trying to will myself into the narrow constraints my school’s resident Mean Girls set for us. Were GAP jeans cool this week? Or was it The Limited? Is 90210 still a thing? And if so, am I supposed to hate Brenda or Kelly? Is Brandon or Dylan the cute one? All I wanted to do was ride my bike and play with Barbies. Not read YM magazine and debate the finer points of lipgloss application. When I turned to books for either advice or solace, as any reader does, no narrative ever fully captured the social complexities, hurt, and confusion I was experiencing. Most did the one thing I swear I’d never do as an adult: develop an unusual case of amnesia that causes one to forget how truly earth-shattering and soul-crushing friendship problems are when you’re a kid. That combined with the 30-minute, Full House solution where the adult enters at the end & magically all problems vanish. NEWSFLASH TV EXECS: THIS DOES NOT WORK IN REAL LIFE. So when I read Real Friends, Shannon Hale’s graphic novel describing her personal experience with the complicated elementary school social scene, I. JUST. ABOUT. DIED.

I love Shannon Hale normally. She’s a ya goddess. But y’all….this book is PERFECTION. I’ve never read a book that more accurately depicts tween friendship problems than Real Friends. It legit felt like Shannon read my mind and translated my memories into graphic novel form. Shannon, forever an introverted reader and writer, and her bestie Adrienne are like two peas in a pod until Adrienne joins the dreaded popular group. Shannon is granted partial admission due to association, but never quite figures out how to navigate the choppy waters. Some days she’s in, some days she’s out, and Shannon can never quite decode the seemingly unspoken social rules that other girls seem to master effortlessly. Worse still, the competition to be #1 or rather sidekick to #1, results in the kind of insidious girl-on-girl bullying that plagues our society.

Real Friends never gives a pat ending. It exists in shades of grey that are more reminiscent of our life experiences. What I particularly love is that the book subtly explores personal boundaries and communicates that it’s okay and even necessary to advocate for your own. It’s a message so many girls, and even women, aren’t given. We’re supposed to be sweet and kind to all people even when grossly mistreated. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. No lie, if I could personally hand deliver this to every tween I would.

...more

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Dec 28, 2017 Joy rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novel

This is a very sweet graphic novel about friendship. I really enjoyed it. It was just the kind of book I needed to read right now.

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May 18, 2017 Monica Edinger rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

My blog post.

Shannon Hale's Real Friends was a Reading Without Walls challenge for me. That is, as a child and still today, I'm not much of a group person, most likely related to my introversion. From childhood on I can recall being part of groups of people I liked, but they almost always wanted to spend way more time together than I did. Shyness is probably also a factor as we moved a lot and so I was never in a school more than three years. This made me happy to find just a single friend. Now My blog post.

Shannon Hale's Real Friends was a Reading Without Walls challenge for me. That is, as a child and still today, I'm not much of a group person, most likely related to my introversion. From childhood on I can recall being part of groups of people I liked, but they almost always wanted to spend way more time together than I did. Shyness is probably also a factor as we moved a lot and so I was never in a school more than three years. This made me happy to find just a single friend. Now Shannon wanted this too, but in her case the single good friend always seems to be tied to bigger group politics which was not my experience. So I wasn't gravitating to read this one, but did because of Gene's challenge and because this is so much the reality of many children and especially my students.

That is, I've been a classroom teacher for decades and have observed and helped kids navigate friendships throughout that time. Sometimes it is one person snubbing another, sometimes it a group thing (with the popping up of clubs always a sign that someone is probably being excluded), sometimes it is sweet and lovely, and sometimes it is mean and vile and intractable. And so while I didn't read Real Friends for nostalgic or personal reasons, I did read it because it was so real and raw in terms of many children's reality.

Shannon's description of the ups and downs of friendship and, especially, the complicated dynamics of groups and popularity are vividly and honestly done. For kids for whom this resonates this book will be a life-saver, something that will speak to them, that they will see themselves in. Or perhaps they are yearning to be part of a group --- this may help them understand it isn't necessarily nirvana. I appreciated that Shannon isn't represented as perfect when part of a group by any means --- she doesn't do the usual forgiving of one culprit, she doesn't significantly help another bullied child (authentically being too self-absorbed in her own woes to do more than recognize her and talk to her when they are thrown together). Kudos to Shannon for being so authentic and real and honest. As an adult, I found the family dynamics most potent, especially her relationship with her big sister. Shannon doesn't hold back and, boy, is some of it rough. Fortunately, there seems to be the start of a better understanding at the end and more in the afterward that is reassuring for any who worried about Wendy.

A piercingly honest view into the complicated social life of one young girl that is certain to resonate for all who have observed, participated, or otherwise experienced the difficult dynamics of school friendships.

...more

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Aug 02, 2021 Reading_ Tamishly rated it it was amazing

One of the best young readers' graphic novels ever!

I do love reading such relatable stories because I feel everyone of us has a story like this we all live with.

The story brings back so many memories of my childhood and school days.

Bullies are everywhere. I still remember a bunch of this so called "popular girls" groups and they were being mean whenever we were left alone.

I like how the siblings relationship is so realistic and presented so well.

I just love everything about this graphic novel. ...more

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Nov 21, 2017 Skip rated it it was ok

Shelves: graphic-novels

Not for me, and I would have given 1 star, but for the afterword by Shannon Hale, explaining her reasons for telling the story. Reminded me of Smile, which I also disliked for some of the same reasons. Basically, this is a book about the mean girls, where you are in the popular group and put up with the shenanigans or you're not/don't. Shannon tried to fit in, but ultimately could not abide this behavior, but then she completely ignored a girl with similar ostracism, when they met behind a bush ...more

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Jun 27, 2017 Katie Grace rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 5-star, contemporary, graphic-novels

Now I'm convinced that I need to read more graphic novels. Writing and art? Yes please.

Real Friends is a memoir of the author's younger life and her struggles with friendship, which made it extremely heartfelt. Lots of emotion went into this story -- props to the author for willing to be vulnerable. Quick, beautiful read. <3 ...more

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Mar 01, 2021 Simona D rated it it was amazing

Backstabbing. Broken Friendships. Fake Friends. Best Friends. Crying. Breaking. The middle child is always said to get the worst luck. That metaphor is seemingly coming true for Shannon Hale in elementary school. But soon the tornado is really coming.

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Dec 26, 2017 Xueting rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, graphic-novels-comics

This graphic novel SPEAKS to me. I think most people grow up with the struggles of making not just friends, but real friends who will stick with you no matter what. Shannon Hale digs deep into her own experiences of making friends from elementary school to middle school, all the nitty gritty and painful trauma of bullies and peer pressure to join a “popular” friend group. She’s honest and introspective about her past actions and worries, her retrospective commentary is perceptive but she keeps i ...more

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Dec 06, 2017 Dov Zeller rated it it was ok

Shelves: graphics-comics, middle-grade-ya, kids, graphic-memoir, existential-pain-and-angst, sibling-stories, will-enemies-become-friends

Hmmmm. For some reason I deeply dislike this book. I am going to read a bit more work by the author and perhaps read it again and see if I change my mind. It's just kind of unhappy and uncomfortable and episodic with wonderful moments of imagination playing out in comic form, but mostly just a bunch of unlikeable characters we don't get to know very well. the book brings up a lot of issues (anxiety, ocd type symptoms, sibling abuse or cruelty, seemingly emotionally absent or neglectful parents, ...more

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Sep 22, 2019 Jessica Woodbury rated it really liked it

Shelves: graphic-novels-comics

4.5 stars.
Elementary school friendships and all the drama around them are still all deep in the recesses of my brain. They have become personal mythology, and even if I don't talk about them much as an adult, all the joy and the pain is still vivid. So reading REAL FRIENDS was almost like a therapy session, bringing a lot of things back to the surface, identifying a lot of emotions that were familiar.

It is amazing how complex Hale gets, the twisted strands of different friends, family and sibl ...more

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Jun 19, 2017 Tammy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: graphic-novels, children, non-fiction

Great story and great illustrations! If you like Raina Telgemeier you'll like this! ...more

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Aug 02, 2019 Megan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: childrens, female-author, graphic-novel, family, non-fiction, memoir, well-written, growing-up, sisters, being-different

I'm always trying to stay up with what my students are reading (basically impossible with wanting my own reading time, but I try!). I had this one in our March Madness reading bracket and was surprised it made it to the final round! EVERYONE was reading it. I expected to think it was cute, but not be overly impressed, as I often feel that way about some of their favorites.

But I LOVED it. It took me right back to elementary school. I think you would be hard-pressed to find a girl who didn't have I'm always trying to stay up with what my students are reading (basically impossible with wanting my own reading time, but I try!). I had this one in our March Madness reading bracket and was surprised it made it to the final round! EVERYONE was reading it. I expected to think it was cute, but not be overly impressed, as I often feel that way about some of their favorites.

But I LOVED it. It took me right back to elementary school. I think you would be hard-pressed to find a girl who didn't have some experience with THE GROUP (basically a gaggle of girls who are usually popular and/or thrive off the drama of who is in or out or other general drama) in school. And ours was actually referred to as THE GROUP too. I remember clearly thinking the whole group dynamic was stupid, but also, as a child, these are your friends. Despite some drama, you would rather be in than out and you still enjoy your time together. I thought I was a semi-solid part of my group (definitely not the leader though)...then I got mono. I was out of school for about a month and kept up with my friends through phone calls. I clearly remember how floored I felt when one of my friends called and said, "_________ said you were faking mono just to get out of school and that you are being a baby. Everyone says you're out of the group."

It seems so ridiculous now as an adult but we have to remember for kids this is their whole world and she portrays just how stressful and confusing these social situations are. Your world IS your family, friends, and school.

I love that she has so many silly moments of creative play throughout. Shannon and her friends play Spies, Wonder Women, write stories, pretend they are orphans, and even have some weird game where they have to keep other students away from a "pee hole" (a patch of yellow snow at recess). Even if the reader didn't play those exact games, the moments are relatable, as is their cracking up at everything and nothing the way friends do. It lightens the mood of the heavier subject of the other situations in the plot, and also shows WHY it's worth it to her to stick in the group. It's not all bad! I also like to think it subconsciously lets kids know this kind of play is still totally okay and normal into fourth fifth, and even sixth. I worry all the time about my 4th graders and kids in general not playing enough like this anymore and growing up coming too soon. So it's nice to see on the page and nice to see this book is so popular!

I also loved that this was a memoir and she is very clear about that and includes an afterword that goes into detail on how she handled this issue and that clearly life went on. It's great for kids to see this drama is not life-ending and that she went on to be a successful author.

Finally, I love that OCD is very clearly a part of her life and is mentioned several times throughout the book but is NOT the whole plot. There are SO many kids' books that center the plot around whatever it is that makes someone different. Off the top of my head I can think of some famous ones about dyslexia, biploar disorder, having braces, being deaf, and being adopted. I LOVE many of these books and am not against them....but I also love the way Hale just snuck in the OCD and didn't make it the central issue. Kids and adults alike all have these things we have to deal with, but it's not always the central part of our story or controlling our lives. It just normalized it nicely. ...more

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Feb 10, 2021 Mir rated it really liked it

Shelves: school, graphic, realism, younger

More like a 3 for me personally because I am an adult and because I felt like this was a story I have read (and heard in real life) so many times before. BUT it was well executed and kids do need to keep having new* accounts of how it isn't just them being bullied or feeling like they don't fit in.

*(Because people don't keep and read old books, I guess?) ...more

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About Shannon Hale

Shannon Hale

12,623 followers

Shannon Hale is the New York Times best-selling author of six young adult novels: the Newbery Honor book Princess Academy, multiple award winner Book of a Thousand Days, and the highly acclaimed Books of Bayern series. She has written three books for adults, including the upcoming Midnight in Austenland (Jan. 2012), companion book to Austenland. She co-wrote the hit graphic novel Rapunzel's Reveng ...more