The Cardboard Kingdom

One summer, the kids on a single suburban street turn cardboard boxes, tape and paint into costumes and invent a whole fantasy world in their own backyards. In the Cardboard Kingdom, a quiet boy can become a powerful sorceress, a girl can be a fearsome beast, and a shy kid can find the courage to be someone new. As more neighborhood children join the game, each brings a story of their own, from family expectations to friendships that are changing, and the group's adventures grow bigger and bolder. Chad Sell's graphic novel moves between the epic battles the kids imagine and the everyday reality of cardboard creations knocked over by a garden hose, celebrating imagination and the freedom to be oneself. It was a Texas Bluebonnet Award nominee.