A First Time for Everything

A First Time for Everything is a graphic memoir by Dan Santat, the Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator, about the summer that changed his outlook on life. Growing up in Camarillo, California, Dan has a happy childhood, but middle school brings a steady stream of embarrassment and bullying, and he learns to keep his head down and stay out of sight. In the summer of 1989, just before high school, his parents encourage him to join a three-week student trip to Europe. Far from home, he makes new friends, gets a taste of independence, experiences his first crush and sees places he had only known from books and movies. Told in full-color comics panels with flashbacks to harder school days, the book captures the awkwardness and excitement of growing up. It won the 2023 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.