This graphic novel is the first in a series by Ivorian author Marguerite Abouet, telling the story of a neighborhood in Abidjan called Yopougon (baptized Yop City by the local youth, aiming to make it sound more like the cool neighborhoods in Hollywood movies).

This first one focuses on three best friend teenage girls (Aya, Bintou, and Adjoua) as they navigate their lives, relationships, and the place they occupy in the world as young women in the 70s. It's a coming-of-age story that showed me personally how no matter where we are in the world, some experiences are the same everywhere. And this feeling always warms my heart.
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The main objective of this book, according to the author, is to counter the mainstream western narrative selling Africa through the lenses of poverty and underdevelopment. And it does so beautifully while addressing issues such as sexism, gender norms, financial inequalities, and much more.