Joanna Cacao is a Canadian Filipino illustrator and author who lives in Winnipeg. She illustrated the graphic novel The Tryout authored by Christina Soontornvat (Scholastic, 2022) and the sequel The Squad (forthcoming Nov. 2024). Cacao writes webcomics available on Tapas using the pen name Jocabako. She self-published two collections of her webcomics: Toxic for You (collecting April 4, 2015-May 28-2017) and Theo & Simon, episodes 001-025 (collecting April 9, 2022-December 11, 2022).
Fiction (Juvenile, Graphic novel)
The Secret of the Ravens
New York: Clarion Books, 2023.
Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)
Twin siblings Elliot and Liza only have each other. Their parents are gone. Their home was taken, and to survive on their own, they’re forced to scrounge up plastic and metal to trade for coin within an abandoned garbage heap. Desperate to escape the vagabond cycle that they’re trapped in, the answer to their plight seemingly appears when they stumble upon a Raven Quest—magical tasks offered by mysterious message-carrying ravens that when successfully completed, promise the victors coin and untold riches.
…
When a quest goes terribly wrong, Liza is poisoned, and Elliot finds himself racing against the clock to find the cure. Now the only way to save his sister is to join forces with a royal apprentice and a dark mage with mysterious motives of her own—even if it means sacrificing everything.
Awards and Honours
2024 Jean Little First-Novel Award (Finalist)