Yen Press has announced that it will publish a manga adaptation of the first volume in Lisi Harrison’s series of Y.A. novels for girls, The Clique.  Harrison was the Senior Director of Production Development at MTV, and she has a real handle on how to write for her target audience.  Nearly 8 million copies of the various The Clique volumes have been sold, and the property is in development for a major motion picture from Warner Bros.  Yen’s adaptation of the first volume in Harrison’s 11-volume series (her 12th Clique novel is due out in February) will be released in July as a trade paperback with art by manga artist Yishan Li.

The Clique series centers on a group of fashion-obsessed middle school girls.  In her Clique novels Harrison manages to be funny (titles include Bratfest at Tiffany’s, Sealed With a Diss, P.S. I Loathe You), sophisticated (Time described the series “Sartre with lip gloss”), and yet age appropriate.  The Clique has the kind of popularity and relevance that could make this manga adaptation a hit with young female readers.