The Center for Children’s Books Review calls THIEF OF THE HEIGHTS, illustrated by Robin Yao, an “ambitious and disquieting graphic novel”

In this ambitious and disquieting graphic novel, privilege is represented in a vertical city—the higher up you go, the better off you are, with the bottom level shockingly poor and the highest a grotesque display of unappreciated opulence. Mustafa, Basem, and Aarfah are destitute engineers, hoping to improve life through better prosthetics, an industry that is particularly important given Habar, a virus that is everywhere on the lower levels and, should one survive it, usually leads to the amputation of at least one limb (Aarfah has recently lost both legs to the illness). Their genius is spotted by a visiting ambassador, and they are offered an impossible choice between moving up (literally) in the city and sending resources back down or staying exactly where they are in order to provide the most direct assistance they can to their own community, despite the limited resources with which to do so. The three teens are well-developed, each with their own understanding of how to change the world while still deeply united in their shared belief that it needs to happen. The visual story is compelling—lush colors, creative use of shadows and dark areas, and occasional, deeply impactful wordless panels all work to emphasize the text. Yao also captures the incredible diversity that is woven into the story, particularly in terms of representations of people with disabilities, and how those contrast with the elective surgeries among the bored and rich at the top levels. Thoughtful readers will likely appreciate the social commentary and the stark choice these characters face: try to change a system from within or tear it all down.