FRAMED: A Graphic Novel, by Karina Evans and Andrea Bell, HarperAlley, Sept. 22, 2026, Paperback, $15.99 (ages 8-12)
A girl deals with the aftermath of being wrongfully accused of throwing out other students’ art projects in Framed, by Karina Evans and Andrea Bell.
Lately, Toby has had a bad attitude. In art class, her mood goes from bad to worse when she’s given the assignment to paint something important to her. But before she can finish, she throws it out, snaps at her teacher, and is sent straight to detention. While in detention, Toby’s art teacher storms in makes a big accusation: she says Toby threw out not just her painting, but all of her classmates’ paintings, too…They were found just outside the art classroom in a trash can, and now Toby is in big trouble.
Toby knows she hasn’t been the easiest person to be around lately, but she would never vandalize her classmates’ stuff—she’s been framed! Can Toby get to the bottom of this mystery before the end of the school day, or will she find herself stuck in detention for the foreseeable future? —Synopsis provided by HarperAlley
Framed is a lower middle-grade graphic novel that deals with the anger and confusion that comes with divorce. And it’s done through a mystery.
Framed is a fairly simple, straightforward graphic novel where the pictures do most of the heavy lifting. The tone feels in-keeping with today’s social expectations, but it’s more than a little jarring to see three kids that age sneaking around school when they should be in class. Though kids will relate to the realistic emotions and behaviors.
The suggested age range for Framed is 8-12, but it fits better with younger, less mature readers closer to 8-10.
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