A middle-school student confronts all the ways she doesn’t fit in in Opting Out, a new graphic novel by Gender Queer creator Maia Kobabe and artist Swati ‘Lucky’ Srikumar, to be published by Scholastic’s Graphix imprint on May 5, 2026. The book, which is rated for ages 10-12, will be available in two formats, a hardcover with an MSRP of $25.99 and a paperback with an MSRP of $14.99.
Opting Out is a fictional story about a seventh-grader, Saachi, who is uncomfortable with the way her body is changing and also feels left behind as her classmates begin to pair off with boyfriends and girlfriends. Saatchi doesn’t feel much like a girl or a boy, and with support from her parents, she comes to realize that she doesn’t have to put herself into a category right away, and that she might choose to make different decisions as she gets older.
Kobabe’s memoir Gender Queer was published by Oni Press in 2019 and is one of the frequently challenged books in the country (see “Graphic Novels Most Challenged“). Oni Press recently published a new, annotated edition (see “Oni to Release Annotated Version of ‘Gender Queer’”).
Source: ICv2
