The Faint of Heart

by Kerilynn Wilson, Kerilynn Wilson (Illustrator)

Overview

“Beautiful, tender, and relevant. Full of mystery, and not surprisingly, full of heart.”—Tillie Walden, award-winning author of Spinning

What would you do if you were the only person left with a heart? The only person left who felt anything at all? Would you give in to the pressure to conform? Or would you protect your heart at all costs? Part Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and part Severance, this debut teen graphic novel is a vivid and haunting read for fans of Nimona and This One Summer.

Not that long ago, the Scientist discovered that all sadness, anxiety, and anger disappeared when you removed your heart. And that's all it took. Soon enough, the hospital had lines out the door—even though the procedure numbed the good feelings, too. 

Everyone did it. Everyone except high school student June. But now the pressure, loneliness, and heartache are mounting, and it’s becoming harder and harder to be the only one with a heart.

One day, June comes across an abandoned heart in a jar. The heart in the jar intrigues her, it baffles her, and it brings her hope. But the heart also brings her Max, a classmate with a secret of his own.

And it may rip June’s own heart in two.

Part speculative fiction and part cautionary tale, The Faint of Heart is a moving and ethereal debut that questions morality and the feelings that seem too big to contain. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063116214
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	06/13/2023
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	359,634
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Kerilynn Wilson is an author/illustrator with a love of the weird and wonderful. She is the creator of the graphic novel for teens The Faint of Heart. She lives in Oregon City, Oregon, but her mind tends to wander to made-up places in her head filled with flying jellyfish and birds that eat the stars. 

Kerilynn Wilson is an author/illustrator with a love of the weird and wonderful. She is the creator of the graphic novel for teens The Faint of Heart. She lives in Oregon City, Oregon, but her mind tends to wander to made-up places in her head filled with flying jellyfish and birds that eat the stars. 

Editorial Reviews

05/01/2023

Wilson cultivates a gripping tale in which teenage June is the last person on earth with a heart in this speculative graphic novel debut. After an enigmatic figure known only as the Scientist pioneers a heart-removal surgery that promises to free patients from negative emotions, what’s left behind is a world populated by emotionless drones. When artist June’s parents schedule her surgery, she skips it instead and, while wandering through town, stumbles across an abandoned heart in a jar, which she hides in her family’s barren greenhouse. June endeavors to uncover a way to reintegrate a heart, bringing her closer to classmate Max, who believes his removal is failing. Together, the teens hunt for the truth about the Scientist, but the emotional strain of their search has June second-guessing her decision to keep her own heart. Bland halls and yards punctuated by urgent advertisements for the removal curate an eerie ambiance deepened by Wilson’s rich grayscale palette and the sunrise spot color depicting June and her own art, which appears throughout. This introspective read tackles issues surrounding the experience of navigating difficult emotions. Ages 13–up. (June)

Publishers Weekly

2023-04-24
A teenage girl refuses a medical procedure to remove her heart and her emotions.

June lives in a future in which a reclusive Scientist has pioneered a procedure to remove hearts, thus eliminating all “sadness, anxiety, and anger.” The downside is that it numbs pleasurable feelings, too. Most people around June have had the procedure done; for young people, in part because doing so helps them become more focused and successful. Before long, June is the only one among her peers who still has her heart. When her parents decide it’s time for her to have the procedure so she can become more focused in school, June hatches a plan to pretend to go through with it. She also investigates a way to restore her beloved sister’s heart, joining forces with Max, a classmate who’s also researching the Scientist because he has started to feel again despite having had his heart removed. The pair’s journey is somewhat rushed and improbable, as is the resolution they achieve. However, the story’s message feels relevant and relatable to teens, and the artwork effectively sets the scene, with bursts of color popping throughout an otherwise black-and-white landscape, reflecting the monochromatic, heartless reality of June’s world. There are no ethnic or cultural markers in the text; June has paper-white skin and dark hair, and Max has dark skin and curly black hair.

A fast-paced dip into the possibility of a world without human emotions. (Graphic speculative fiction. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews

Beautiful, tender, and relevant. Full of mystery, and not surprisingly, full of heart.” — Tillie Walden, award-winning author of Spinning

“June lives in a future in which a reclusive Scientist has pioneered a procedure to remove hearts, thus eliminating all ‘sadness, anxiety, and anger.’ The downside is that it numbs pleasurable feelings, too. . . . The artwork effectively sets the scene, with bursts of color popping throughout an otherwise black-and-white landscape, reflecting the monochromatic, heartless reality of June’s world. . . . A fast-paced dip into the possibility of a world without human emotions.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Wilson cultivates a gripping tale in which teenage June is the last person on earth with a heart in this speculative graphic novel debut. After an enigmatic figure known only as the Scientist pioneers a heart-removal surgery that promises to free patients from negative emotions, what’s left behind is a world populated by emotionless drones. . . . This introspective read tackles issues surrounding the experience of navigating difficult emotions.” — Publishers Weekly

“In this dystopian world, society is upended by a scientist’s discovery that every difficult emotion humans experience could be immediately wiped out by simply removing a person’s heart. . . . . Wilson is an exceptional artist, and this striking graphic novel progresses through her detailed, angular drawings as much as it does through the trim text. The precise use of color is effective, highlighting June’s isolation that is also her most precious held truth about herself—her heart sparks color, and the swirling mix of negative feelings is worth it for the radiance of the good ones.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“Sisters June and Maya bond over art and enjoy each other’s company until Maya has her heart removed, a routine procedure in their society. After that, she can no longer feel emotions and concentrates only on her other studies. . . . The graphic novel’s art is outstanding. . . . Wilson makes a strong statement about the importance of art and emotions in society.” — School Library Journal

From the Publisher

08/01/2023

Gr 7 Up—In this story that takes place in the future, sisters June and Maya bond over art and enjoy each other's company until Maya has her heart removed, a routine procedure in their society. After that, she can no longer feel emotions and concentrates only on her other studies. Even though June feels like an outcast at school, she believes that art is important and refuses to have the surgery. Eventually June's parents insist that she have her heart removed, but she only pretends to have the procedure. While researching the reclusive scientist who developed the unusual idea, June meets Max, who is beginning to feel emotions despite having undergone the surgery. While the plot seems unlikely and the teens rush towards their goal, the graphic novel's art is outstanding. The monochromatic background colors represent the heartlessness of society and set a sterile tone. Eye-catching pops of color are used to direct the movement and actions of June's mission. The artist uses color to represent shifts in time, allowing readers to reminisce along with June. Wilson makes a strong statement about the importance of art and emotions in society. June appears to be white, while the male lead has dark skin and curly hair. VERDICT While the plot moves at a fast pace, the art skillfully portrays the story and helps relay a relatable situation for teens.—Karen Alexander

School Library Journal