Garlic and the Vampire is a heartwarming graphic novel that follows the story of a young and anxious protagonist named Garlic who lives with fellow vegetable folk and Witch Agnes. However, when the garden discovers a supposedly evil vampire recently moved into a castle not far from where they live, Garlic ends up being asked to confront him, because… well, she’s entirely made of garlic. She reluctantly agrees to face the vampire, though it’s not without feeling immense self-doubt.

Paulsen did such a wonderful job presenting what it means to deal with anxiety in such a gentle way. Garlic was never depicted as weak for feeling reluctance due to a lack of self-confidence, plus she was surrounded by a wonderful support system (particularly Carrot). I really appreciated that Paulsen depicted to the reader that facing your anxiety head-on can also lead to something wonderful, showing that your efforts won’t be for naught.

I’m most definitely not the target audience, considering that this is a middle grade graphic novel, and it didn’t appeal to me the way it might to someone from a younger demographic. I still found this graphic novel incredibly charming, though, and if you’re looking for a quick and lighthearted read, it’s worth picking up this book.