Review By: Liz Geist
Published: 2024
Series: Nat Series #5
Genre(s): YA Graphic Novel, Realistic Fiction
Audience: Grades 4 to 8
Content Warnings: None
Goodreads Link: All is Nat Lost
Publisher’s Summary:
A companion to the New York Times bestselling series that began with Nat Enough. Nat’s class trip is a bigger adventure than she imagined. Nat is on an overnight class trip to Philadelphia, her first time in a big city without her parents. It is a big deal because her parents are finally giving her the independence she has been longing for. But the trip starts off badly with one disaster after another. If things keep going wrong, Nat might lose her newfound freedom for good. Can she turn things around in time, or will her first chance at liberty be her last?
Review:
All is Nat Lost is book 5 in the Nat series. In this graphic novel, Nat is looking to gain more independence and she wants to prove herself while on an overnight class field trip to Philadelphia. While on the trip, Nat and her classmates are tasked with a scavenger hunt. The winner of the scavenger hunt has the chance to win a new bike. Nat really wants the prize because her bike was recently stolen, and she was heartbroken because that was one source of her independence.
Along the way, Nat loses her cell phone, one of the conditions of Nat going on the trip was to check in with her parents, and then she loses her classmates. Throughout the book, we go on the adventure with Nat and Flo through the city of Philadelphia. They stop and answer questions about landmarks and the history of Philly. But will Nat and Flo find the missing phone and classmates before the bus leaves? Will Nat win the scavenger hunt and get a new bike?
The reviewer really enjoyed this book and could easily imagine the landmarks and attractions of Philly. The author does a fantastic job weaving historical fiction into the story, without it taking away from the book. It is incredibly relatable for young readers craving independence while navigating the challenges that come with it. The illustrations are spot on. At the end of the book Maria Scrivan does a wonderful job going into more details on the monuments and more history in Philadelphia. This book balances adventure, history, and real life friendship dynamics in a way that would keep young readers hooked on the Nat series.
