Smoove City (Book Review)

Hey y’all! These graphic novels have been giving me a much needed break from the real world. I read an eARC of Smoove City through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air meets Archie comics in a refreshingly funny love letter to New Jack Swing.

In a 90s kind of world, 4 young friends try to navigate a New Jack Swinging landscape of shopping malls, demo tapes, and shady record execs. Will Ronnie, Mikey, Vinnie and Ray achieve boy band stardom with their friendships intact – or will they learn all that glitters ain’t double platinum?

Welcome to SMOOVE CITY.

Trigger Warnings: Arrest, prison

Representation: Diverse cast, Black MC, Latino MC

The Good

The story was so funny. I found myself laughing out loud the whole time I was reading it. It was hard to put down because of all the shenanigans, it definitely kept me invested the whole way through.

Love the attention to detail. There’s one scene where people are outside of a prison and one of the signs says “Abolish Prisons though” or something along those lines. There are other little gems like that throughout the novel.

Reading Smoove City was honestly such a good time. I enjoyed the characters and the way they interacted with each other. I loved how the boys got themselves into such a huge mess. It was just so much fun to read.

The art style is so cute. It definitely reminds me of 90s cartoons, which is probably the point. It’s a really fun, loose art style.

The Not so Good

It’s a silly story that doesn’t take itself too seriously which is honestly what I needed right now but it may not be for you if you’re not into that. The author/illustrator is white and there isn’t really much mention of the character’s cultures.

All in All

Smoove City is basically an ode to early 90s R & B. It’s funny, lighthearted, and a really good time.

Smoove City | Book by Kenny Keil | Official Publisher Page | Simon & Schuster — Publication Date: Oct. 13th, 2020

Wanna get it for yourself? Try using my Bookshop affiliate link! If you use my link, the price won’t go up but I will get a small percentage of the sale and that’s one way you can support me and this blog.

Have you read Smoove City?

Are you a fan of graphic novels?

What are your favorite 90s TV shows?

Let me know in the comments below, let’s chat!

Author: Rachelle Saint Louis

Rachelle Saint Louis is a Haitian-American writer, born and raised in South Florida. She received a 2018 Silver Medal in the Scholastic Art and Writing Competition for her poem “Red Blood Cell.” She is currently a Psychology and English double major at Florida Atlantic University. Her poetry has been published in Rigorous Magazine. Rachelle has been writing poetry since the 7th grade and you can often find her performing Spoken Word at local open mics. View all posts by Rachelle Saint Louis

2 thoughts on “Smoove City (Book Review)”