MWD by Brian David Johnson and Jan Egleson
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Liz left high school and went straight to Iraq. Her town was a dead end, her mother in prison, her grandmother as selfish as ever, and the military was an escape. There was good and bad, but through it all, she had Ender, a Military Working Dog that she trained and worked alongside. When a bomb abruptly ends her tour of duty, however, she finds herself back in her miserable hometown where even the few friends she used to have can no longer relate to her, no matter how hard they try. But when she has a run-in with an aggressive stray dog, Liz finds a new sense of purpose. She knows that Brutus could learn to be a great companion if only he were given a chance and the right kind of training. Unfortunately, he is on doggy death row. Desperate to save Brutus, Liz takes a job at the animal shelter and begins building her relationship with him–and with the people in her life.
A powerful story of a young woman whose connection to animals helps her rebuild her life after the trauma of war. The characters and relationships are complex and the subject matter heavy. Some of the more complicated action sequences were difficult to follow without any accompanying text due to the chaotic, dark and occasionally unclear black and white illustrations. But the story overall still came across powerfully in the text and artwork. I highly recommend it to mature teen fans of graphic novels and realistic fiction.
Susan the Librarian 