Ananth Hirsh is an award-winning author and designer who has worked with Oni Press, BOOM!, Dark Horse, Lerner Publishing, Red5, and more. His current focus is the Reuben Award-winning Barbarous, a comedy-drama involving magic and monster men.

Tess Stone is a fan of comedy, horror, and really bright colors. He often tries to smash them all into one horrendously delightful package either in terms of writing or drawing. Or both. He also really enjoys sloths because they take life slowly and he's very jealous.

"In a world where spelling bees are more dangerous than mixed martial arts and more popular than any sport ever devised, one group of ragtag spellers unite to destroy the secret society behind it all or die trying. Because losing a match surely means D-E-A-T-H!" That (or something very much like that) had to have been the pitch the authors delivered to Oni Press when they first talked about this book. This not-quite-our-world features a society built on the English language, where every class in high school is somehow related to the language arts (except for PE, of course), back-alley spelling bees exist for those banned from official matches, and a shadowy organization called the Spelluminati run everything and remove undesirables with swift efficiency. Words and letters can be (and often are) used as weapons in the right mouths (and occasionally hands) in videogame style matches where dichotomy can be more dangerous than thaumaturgy. While the world is interesting enough and the main characters engaging, the awesome cast of supporting characters is very enjoyable: they're other spellers who come with superhero names, great gimmicks and excellent, word-related backgrounds. My favorite is the Immortal, who is rumored to have been alive since the first spelling bee, and knows the meaning and history of every word thrown at him. Handselling Opportunities: Fan of magical realist comics like Scott Pilgrim, Sharknife, Street Angel and Suburban Glamour, among others (it's pure synchronicity that they all start with "S")."-- "Shelf Awareness"

"New kid Webster has fallen in with a bad crowd at his new high school, and before he knows it, he's thrown into the dangerous underworld of competitive spelling bees. But with the help of his friends, reluctant Webster rises through the ranks of this perilous competition to take on the dreaded Spelluminati. Hirsch completely commits to this campy concept, fleshing out a world where spelling is king and the high crimes surrounding the spelling community are as serious as they are hilarious. Stone's edgy art style and Garza's bright palette heighten the book even further, making the face-offs feel like actual battles. Remarkably, each encounter looks unique and feels fluid while always packing an unexpected flair--at one point a contestant will throw Scrabble tiles at an opponent, while another uses a lower case "t" as a sword. Much like a series like "Scott Pilgrim," this title offers the best of both action and absurdity. E-X-E-M-P-L-A-R-Y!"-- "School Library Journal, Starred Review"

Publisher: Oni Press

Pub date: 2025-02-18

Length: 176 pages