Two middle-schoolers find out that becoming professional comic strip creators means balancing tight deadlines, big dreams, and a testing friendship.
Mark Crilley, an experienced author and illustrator, brings us into the world of Pam Jones and Eliot Quigly. In the first book, The Mighty Onion, these young artists manage to get their comic strip published in their local newspaper, The Piffling Bugle. The story explores how they handle their new professional lives while dealing with the usual pressures of middle school. With two books currently available in the series, readers have a great opportunity to get hooked on the characters and see their creative partnership evolve.
These books are a fantastic choice for students who might shy away from standard novels. The format is incredibly varied, using comic pages, diary entries, and even handwritten notes to tell the story. This visual variety helps English language learners keep track of the plot because the artwork provides constant clues to the meaning of the words. Most of the writing uses short, direct sentences, and any specialized terms—like “syndicated”—are easy to understand through the context of the drawings. In a classroom setting, teachers can use Pam and Eliot’s creative conflicts to talk about empathy and how to work through disagreements with friends. Because the art style and character voices stay consistent from the first book to the second, students build confidence and feel more capable as they move through the series.
Total Books in Series: 2 Best Starting Point: The Mighty Onion
