We're connected!

A multiracial group of teen friends learn how computing can empower them personally and politically, and why all students need access to computer science education.

This lively graphic novel follows a diverse group of teens as they discover that computer science can be fun, creative, and inspiring. Taylor, Christine, Antonio, and John act like typical teens: communicating via endless texts, sharing jokes, worrying about the start of high school, and helping one another out. But when a Black man is shot and killed by police in their town, they are outraged, and then they learn he had been mistakenly identified and tracked by an AI program. How can an algorithm be racist? And what is an algorithm?

At school they decide to explore computer classes with mixed results. One class teaches only typing. The class Christine wants to join is full, and the school counselor suggests she take Tourism and Hospitality instead ("Seriously?!"). But Antonio's class is a blast, and when Christine finds an after-school program, they decide to teach each other what they learn. By the time summer arrives, four friends have discovered that computing empowers them both personally and politically.

Interspersed in the narrative are text boxes with pertinent computer science explanations and inspiring profiles of women and people of color in tech (including Katherine Johnson of Hidden Figures). Connected! is an essential read for young people, general readers, educators, and anyone interested in learning about the power of computing—its ability to do good and to do harm—and why addressing underrepresentation needs to be a priority.

Author: Jean J. Ryoo, Jane Margolis
Publisher: MIT Press
Published: 04/29/2025
Pages: 136
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.80lbs
Size: 9.90h x 6.70w x 0.40d
ISBN13: 9780262551687
ISBN10: 0262551683
Language: English
BISAC Categories:
- Young Adult Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | Diversity & Multicultural
- Young Adult Fiction | School & Education | General
- Young Adult Fiction | Technology

About the Author
Jean J. Ryoo is an avid manga and manhwa reader, and an education researcher and writer committed to ensuring all students experience meaningful and inspiring learning in and out of school.

Jane Margolis is a UCLA education researcher and author who has long advocated for an end to inequity and segregation in computer science education, for which she won a 2016 White House Champion of Change award. She is co-author of Unlocking the Clubhouse and Stuck in the Shallow End, both published by MIT Press.