Thank you to NetGalley and Oni Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed this graphic novel. I thought the characters and overall themes were well written and I really enjoyed the illustrations. Only dislike is that I really wanted the book to address some problematic comments from the main protagonist’s friends and fellow cheerleaders. It was slightly addressed but only at the surface level.

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes for this book!

What an inspirational graphic novel! I have recently become obsessed with graphic novels and I kept seeing this book here and there and I definitely wanted to give it a go! This book is a quick read with some amazing commentary on one's sexuality and gender. This book did a fantastic job with regarding the struggles that can come with coming out and how that affects teenagers in school too.

Also the art is the most gorgeous thing I've ever seen!! The full page artwork was wow!

Thank you to NetGalley and Oni Press for the earc in return for an honest review.

Release date: August 10, 2021

I received a copy of this e-arc in exchange for an honest review thanks to NetGalley and Oni Press.

Ahhhhh this was just so cute!!

I don’t usually read graphic novels but I saw this on NetGalley and it sounded interesting.

It’s a sweet, quick and easy read. It’s got great lgbt representation - trans female, lesbian and non-binary.

It’s got a mix of heartfelt and heavy scenes, both of which were handled very well. The way the author dealt with Beatrice’s struggle in high school post-transition was really good.

It also showed her parents struggling with Beatrice’s transition in the sense of wanting to protect her from transphobes but coming across as too overprotective which is great parenting. However, they did threaten to “make her go back to being a guy” if she doesn’t get high grades in school which is problematic.

I adored Annie and her mother, such great characters! They’re both very open and honest, which means Annie ends up being disliked by her classmates.

I loved the character development for both Annie and Beatrice. I especially loved that they were friends pre-transition and Annie didn’t bat an eyelid about it - she just accepted it and moved on.

Fantastic book - i’ll definitely be picking up more queer graphic novels in the future!

An adorable LGBTQA+ high school romance about friendship and being true to yourself. Highly recommended!

This was such a lovely, quick read! Bebe and Annie are both lovable characters in their own right, and their dynamic is adorable! Girl that's a people-pleaser meets girl that doesn't care what other people think? A match made in cheer practice. While having an incredibly sweet romance, Cheer Up: Love and Pom Poms also shares really strong messages about standards for trans girls, performative allyship, microaggressions, and more. This graphic novel managed to tackle the issue of performative allyship better than anything on the topic I have read before. Bebe's feelings of wanting to speak up and defend herself but not wanting to bring attention to herself by seeming like an aggressive trans girl were so real. I love how her parents weren't necessarily unaccepting of her transitioning, but just extremely concerned for her safety. There are more than enough stories of characters being outright shunned by their parents for coming out, and while it is realistic it was a nice change to read this.

My only real complaint (okay, first of two really), is how fast the romance developed. This was my first graphic novel so this is probably normal and I shouldn't have been expecting novel type pacing, but I would've loved just a few more pages showing the girls' feelings for each other grow. My only other qualm was (SPOILER) how the rest of the cheer squad kinda got away with being transphobic to Bebe. They made multiple snide comments and even neglected to invite her to team events but they're never really called out for it (except once by Annie) It makes sense since Bebe isn't the type to call people out anyway, but it would've been nice to see them realize how they were really treating her and examine why they were doing it.

That aside, this was such a cute story and I highly recommend it!

This was very good, I really enjoyed it and would recommend it. It shows a great story and it's a well told story, the romance is good paced based on the amount of pages this have. And I was so happy with the way they portayed both the characters and how they're opposites, Annie doesn't care about the opinions people have of her, and Beebee is a people pleaser. It's a great way of showing different LGBTQ+ representation, me being a Lesbian reader can't say much about being Trans but there's a part where Beebee says and I quote:

"I know I shouldn't apologize all the time... I just feel like I have to apologize for being around.(...) And even the people who are nice get so much angrier when I get upset than they did before. Like they're just waiting for proof that I'm "One of the bad ones".".

I felt that part on another level, the LGBTQ+ community is already a very targeted community, we want to be loud and speak out but, at least for me growing in a very religious house hold and still closeted, need to be very carefull to not pass the line between nice and mean/angry, we have to say what we have to defend who we are and still be 100% nice to the people who is disrespectful and pejudiced towards something we can't control, otherwise we're the bad guys.

Sorry for my rant, but I really loved that part and this book!

Thank You NetGalley and OniPress for giving me acess to this book. (This is review contain only my honest opinion)

High school cheerleaders have long held a bad reputation in Western media, home to cliques of bullies who would torment underdog heroes, or rebellious young socialites eager to flex the latest big spend on their parents' MasterCard.

Yet, from the offset Crystal Fraiser's short and sweet high school romance makes an effort to dismantle this stereotype, presenting a (seemingly) supportive and diverse team at the heart of Cheer Up! Rather than centre her story around the typical highs and lows of teen melodrama, Fraiser explores a smaller story, paved by nuanced micro-aggressions and hidden biases; allowing readers reflect on their own potential to harm others, even when they might think they have the best intentions in mind.

Anti-social punk Annie immediately breaks the mould of the classic cheerleader archetype, and while she is initially unenthused about joining the team to gloss up her college applications, this is soon defused when Annie comes to understand her hesitations are only the result of her own biased assumptions. Annie isn't tall, thin, or a typical "girly girl", yet she still loves gymnastics, and she fits right in amongst Cheer Up!'s diverse team of teens.

Duel protagonist Bebe is almost Annie's on-paper opposite. She "looks the part", has a clique of friends following her, and the attention of one of the school's popular (not-so nice) guys. However, while Annie bubbles with confidence and self-determination, cheer captain Bebe is plagued by the pressure she feels to blend in with the crowd. Bebe's transness is not immediately made apparent, though as soon as it is, Fraiser's powerful dialogue combined with some highly emotive panels illustrated by Val Wise make for a beautifully realised story of self-confidence and the strength to simply exist as you are, rather than for the sake of others.

The relationship between Annie and Bebe is tender and sweet, though at times rushed. While Cheer Up! makes for a great and complete story in its own right, I couldn't help but sometimes hope for more, particularly to explore the cheer team's interesting cast of supporting characters. In this respect Cheer Up! reads like an excellent pilot novel with the potential to offer much more. However, even if we are not to see anything else of Annie and Bebe in the future, as a stand-alone graphic novel, Cheer Up! is a vibrant, easy, and heartwarming read very-much worth picking up!

Cheer Up is a ya queer comtemporary. We follow out two main characters, Annie, a plus-size, mean lesbian who has to join a sports team to get into a good college. She ends up joining the schools cheerleading team, where she meets our other main character, Beatrice, also called Bebe, a trans girl, she was Annie's friend before . She has to keep her grades and her social life to a certain standard, for her parents to keep supporting her transition. We follow Annie and Beatrice as they become friends again and Annie's cheerleading skills starts to evolve. But soon, their friendship evolve into something more....

This book was so cute! i found myself smiling on multiple moments for example when Bebe finally stood up for herself! It made me so happy. The artstyle itself was so pretty. Overall I give this book 4/5 stars, and I would recommend it if you enjoy cute queer lovestories.

This was such an adorable and quick read. I loved every moment of it, it left me wanting more. Maybe this graphic novel was too short and some of the problems was solved too fast, in my opinion. This was funny though. It's about family, friendship, about love, team loyalty and making amends. The illustration is a huge plus to it. I highly recommend it.

AUGH! What an adorable story!

Bebe is a 17 year old girl who recently transitioned. Despite being a member of the cheer squad and generally well liked at school, she is struggling with her confidence and her insecurities allow others to run all over her. Her parents, while supportive of her transitioning, are terrified she’ll be hurt and are wildly controlling. Her friends take advantage of her kindness and niceness, and she ends up in positions she doesn’t want to be in. Her friend Annie is a fierce lesbian who doesn’t take shit from anyone. She’s very intelligent, but she’s rude to almost everyone (sometimes from a point of righteous social justice but often just being an antisocial jerk) and as a result, she doesn’t have any friends.

When the universe pushes Annie & Bebe together (thank you universe!) they rekindle an old friendship that sparks something more.

I loved this graphic novel. The artwork is kawaaaiiiiiii and the supporting characters are just fleshed out enough (although I would’ve liked them to be even more developed!). The portrayal of Bebe’s struggles as she transitions feels authentic and heartbreaking. This is an excellent book for people to read who want to be a trans ally but aren’t sure what that looks like. First it’ll show you what NOT to do by putting microagressions and performative allyship on display and then you’ll see what true allyship and friendship looks like as the characters evolve in their understanding and themselves.

This is truly a lovely, sugary sweet comic book. It’s easily a middle school graphic novel that can also be enjoyed by onsen students. My only criticism is that I wanted more of it! I would’ve liked it double the length to allow the relationships more time to fully develop in front of the reader.

I think readers in grades 7 and up will love this book. There’s nothing in it that’s “inappropriate” (sex/drugs/rocknroll) for grades 5 and 6, but the characters are high schoolers, so I see it as more of an upper middle school/high school interest level read. It's an easy sell and it'll fly off the shelves.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was every bit of lovely that I could have ever wanted from a YA graphic novel. It’s light and fun with emotions and character growth that shines. The art is stunning and has a very accessible feel for someone who may be graphic novel shy. I’d love a book 2 or 3 from these creators. This also has big Check Please! and Heartstopper vibes. We love to see a sapphic relationship that’s joyful on page and this is it in spades.

this very cute, if succinct, graphic novel follows Annie and BeeBee, two girls who used to be friends but fell apart, as a lot of people tend to do in high school. Annie is an "antisocial lesbian" and BeeBee is a trans girl and people-pleaser who feels under a lot of pressure from her parents to get good grades; if she doesn't, she risks losing their support with regard to her transition. when Annie joins the school's cheerleading team, that BeeBee is on, they rekindle their old friendship, and soon enough we see it begin to blossom into something more.

i thought the graphic novel was cute. as it was so short, there wasn't much room for character development, and i felt like each individual scene was set up purposefully in a way that moved the story forward, not really allowing for a "break" in the plot as such. that said, the story made my heart warm, and i loved the art style. Annie and BeeBee were so sweet together, and despite the predictability of the plot, it was nice to see two sapphic characters who don't fit the tired cookie-cutter blueprint of those often seen in YA.

** thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eArc in exchange for an honest review! all opinions mentioned are my own. **

I received this book from the publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved every panel of this totally adorable graphic novel! Annie is so caustic and I love her for it. And Bebe is honestly the actual cutest. She’s so sweet and shy.

The story is a lovely mix of hope and standing up for yourself in whatever guise, and honestly just so positive. There is a little amount of people supporting for their own reason’s and not actually supporting trans people so be warned about that. It’s not exactly challenged but a general vibe of challenging opinions is :)

I definitely need more, I hope this will be a series, as I think there’s potential for one!

5 glorious stars.


(note post going live on 9 august)

That was such a cute graphic novel!! I loved the art style and detail, I loved all the characters and the lesbian and trans representation (though bear in mind I am not an ownvoices reviewer for this book). I thought the relationship between Annie and Bebe was so realistic and beautiful, they really learned and grew from each other and that's what I'm here for! I found it interesting that the parents were overprotective of Bebe, and that the issues she faced as the only trans girl in their high school was that, while people accepted her, they also tokenized her! She hates being the center of attention, and yet people view her entire identity as her gender, and I thought it was really interesting to read about her unique struggles and feelings through coming out in high school.

This was such an amazing read. I thought it handled several hard discussions in a beautiful way and the relationships and friendships in this were so heartwarming. The say that this book had in how allies can often get things wrong when trying to support was so important and I thought it was handled nicely. This book was also very beautiful artistically, I really loved the art style and the colours that were used to support different scenes. Overall 5 out of 5 stars!

"Cheer Up " is a wonderfully queer coming of age rom-com that tells the story of Bebe and Annie as they navigate their way through their senior year of high school.

I loved everything about this story. It was wonderful to see Annie as a tough, anti-social and incredible smart young lesbian woman who is so sure of herself from the get go. She knows exactly who she is and stands up for herself and her friends. She took no bs throughout the story and I loved seeing that in a character. Bebe is such a kind-hearted young woman who is trans and has such great character growth throughout the story as we get to see her grow stronger throughout the book. The cast of characters that make up the cheer squad are so beautifully diverse in race, body type and personality and it was wonderful that diversity was found so strongly throughout the book not for the sake of having diversity in a graphic novel but because it is an accurate representation of the world we live in.

Fraiser did a phenomenal touching on so many different topics that teenagers are faced with in high school. I feel as though she handled some really heavy topics with tact and grace. I enjoyed seeing the character growth throughout the book, not just the two main characters but also the cheer squad as well as Bebe's parents. The final Homecoming scene was the icing on the cake. I truly hope we're getting more books in this universe!

Cheer Up is an absolutely fabulous and heart-warming graphic novel! The story follows two former friends - Annie and Beatrice - as they start their senior year of high school. Annie is smart but anti-social and needs some extracurriculars to round out her application, so her mother suggests she try out for the cheer leading team. Beatrice is returning to the cheer team for her second year after being personally invited to join the squad after she came out as trans. Beatrice wants to believe that her teammates truly accept her and aren't trying to tokenize her or use her for attention, so she takes a stand when the girls try to block Annie from joining the team. Together, Beatrice and Annie work to bring unity and success to their team. Not only is their old friendship rekindled, but new feelings also begin to grow!

I'm brimming over with the best feels after reading this! There's so many things to love: friendship, team-building, diverse and queer characters, a range of body types, and amazing character growth and development all around. Much of Beatrice's story deals with the transphobia she faces from her classmates and people outside of school, and even from her teammates. Her parents are controlling and go overboard trying to protect her, even threatening to make her dress as a boy if her grades don't improve. Throughout this Beatrice tries to maintain a reputation of being a nice, approachable girl and not cause scenes by speaking up. Annie encourages Beatrice to stand up for herself and sometimes steps in to defend Beatrice, though Beatrice points out that it's not helpful to try to talk for her or make choices on her behalf. Beatrice also helps Annie navigate how to be herself without alienating other people. There's so many great conversations between them and the other characters! And, of course, there's cheering and being a part of a team. I enjoyed watching the team come together and learn how to actually be good allies and friends! Also, it must be said, the artwork is amazing and perfectly captures the tone of the story.

Sweet, fun, and empowering -- a must read!

This was such an uplifting read. Themes of acceptance, body positivity, self love, self acceptance, transitioning and setting boundaries.

Very enjoyable, very eye opening and educational. I would definitely recommend this to young adults and middle graders.

Over all, this was a really quick read about a transgirl and her former friend reconnecting on the Cheerleading team. The art was delightful and the story itself was nice. But, there isn't much of a plot here other than "learn to stick up for yourself" or "live your truth". My only real complaint is that the end felt really sudden. It's not necessarily a romantic HEA, or even a HFN. It's just kind of in your face and then done. I'm not familiar enough to know if this is going to be a series? I hope so, because I could definitely read more of these two!!

AD // gifted. Thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free digital review copy. Lovely storyline, and lovely artwork. I breezed through this book in two sittings. The plot was very well-rounded, and I enjoyed the characters. I felt this book was an easy read, and would recommend reading it if you are in a reading slump. Very much so would re-read.