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Category Archives: Graphic novels

Six sensational vampire stories

23 Jun

I already shared a post about witches so it’s appropriate that I share one about vampires- whether they’re making a comeback or they never really die (see that?!!) there are some oldies and some new for your reading pleasure.

  1. Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey: A witty mix of Romanian lore, romance, power, and deception.
  2. Camp Sylvania by Julie Murphy: A middle grade about a woman who is running a camp, but it’s not just any summer camp, it’ll be a blood farm for vampires.
  3. The Vanquishers by Kalynn Bayron: A group of pals realize their family’s history and lean into being a part of the solution even though the new problem is their new friend just became the thing they’re supposed to fear.
  4. A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal: This complex and epic beginning to a series drips with creativity.
  5. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer: No need to say more. Love it or hate it, it is a seminal read.
  6. Fangs by Sarah Andersen: This slim graphic novel is the sweetest love story.
 
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Posted by on June 23, 2024 in Adult, Authors, Comics, Fiction, Graphic novels, Illustrators, Middle grade, Young Adult

 

Six sensational books featuring Judaism

21 Jun

So often books with Jewish characters center around the atrocities of the Holocaust, but there are dynamic stories of contemporary Jewish life or folklore that deserve a post.

  1. Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar: Spanning generations, this one begins in 1492 with the Spanish Inquisition.
  2. The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen by Isaac Blum: A teen boy learning about the world having been cloistered for some time.
  3. The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R.M. Romero: A Jewish cemetery in Prague and a ghost in this atmospheric verse novel.
  4. Dancing at the Pity Party: A Dead Mom Graphic Memoir by Tyler Feder: Learning about bereavement in Judaism is second to Feder’s poignantly humorous take on losing a parent when you’re still young.
  5. The Boy In the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne: I still get chills thinking about the ending of his Holocaust novel featuring a nine-year-old protagonists view of the war.
  6. Wrath Becomes Her by Aden Polydoros: A golem created to get revenge- will she?
 
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Posted by on June 21, 2024 in Authors, Fiction, Graphic novels, Middle grade, Nonfiction, Verse, Young Adult

 

Six sensational stories with witches

20 Jun

It might not be spooky season, but that’s okay because a book with witches is immemorial!

  1. A Break with Charity by Ann Rinaldi: I devoured every book Rinaldi wrote when I was a tween and this was one of my favorites.
  2. Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama: I own the entire series and the spinoff Witch Hat Kitchen because the atelier of little witch girls is the sweetest.
  3. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare: A contemporary classic about the dangers of assumptions.
  4. The Witches by Roald Dahl: Whether in original format or the movie version which is unforgettable, I’m glad to have reread Dahl’s book to remember reading it as a child and being scared out of my mind!
  5. Garlic and the Witch by Bree Paulsen: This and its sequel featuring vegetables as characters and a mansion on the hill will delight all readers.
  6. The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner: If ever I’ve wanted a wardrobe, it’s hers.
 
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Posted by on June 20, 2024 in Authors, Childrens, Fiction, Graphic novels, Illustrators, Manga, Middle grade, Young Adult

 

Six sensational books near/by/about water

19 Jun

With a heat index of about 100 degrees here in New York State, I figured water both to hydrate and swim in is the best way to keep cool besides air conditioning. Hence, today’s topic featuring water!

  1. The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag: Featuring a selkie.
  2. A Most Beautiful Thing: The True Story of America’s First All-Black High School Rowing Team by Arshay Cooper: Like Crossing the Line by Kareem Rosser, addressing racism in sports notoriously dominated by white people leads to a deeper understanding of the discipline of any sport and how it shapes us as humans.
  3. In Waves by A.J. Dungo: Deeply emotional, this graphic memoir is an homage to surfing and a woman.
  4. Swim the Fly by Don Calame: So stinkin’ funny and also about a boy winning the affections of a girl on the swim team by joining the swim team.
  5. Aniana Del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Mendez: Being diagnosed with juvenile arthritis, Dominican girl Aniana conspires with her dad to swim against mom’s wishes.
  6. Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas: A middle grade graphic novel with a big heart.
 
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Posted by on June 19, 2024 in Authors, Fiction, Graphic novels, Illustrators, Middle grade, Nonfiction, Young Adult

 

Six sensational books about dads

16 Jun

It’s Father’s Day here in the United States, so it’s natural to highlight stories featuring dad’s prominently– the good, the bad, and anything in between.

  1. Brownstone by Samuel Teer and Mar Julia: A dad wanting to teach and get to know a daughter who he hasn’t raised but wants to reconnect starting over a summer while fixing up a brownstone.
  2. The Fire, the Water, and Maudie McGinn by Sally J. Pla: A dad who doesn’t see his daughter’s autism as a hindrance for her personal growth.
  3. My Brother’s Husband by Gengoroh Tagame: Single dads raising daughters and gay culture in Japan.
  4. Spy X Family by Tatsuya Edno: How do you be your spy self, find a wife, and adopt a girl all in the name of a work assignment?
  5. Peak by Roland Smith: Pushing his son to the limits of mountaineering but maybe he has different ambitions.
  6. Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry illustrated by Vashti Harrison: It takes all types of hair to be a dad and help a daughter with hers.
 
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Posted by on June 16, 2024 in Childrens, Fiction, Graphic novels, Manga, Middle grade, Young Adult

 

Six sensational school stories

15 Jun

With school coming to a close for us in New York State, I’m dedicating today’s post to six sensational stories that rely on school as a primary backdrop for the story. This doesn’t include the boarding school stories typically providing the vibe for dark academia books which will come in a future post.

  1. Assassination Classroom by Yusei Matsui: A classroom of students whose quest it is to try to surprise and kill their alien octopus teachers before he destroys the world… good luck.
  2. The Superteacher Project by Gordon Korman: How many of your teachers do you think might have been robots??!?!
  3. The Pregnancy Project by Gabby Rodriguez with Jenna Glatzer: A memoir of a girl who faked a pregnancy in her senior year of high school to capture the attitudes of teen pregnancy provides a mirror for us all.
  4. Schooled by Gordon Korman: How does a kid go from homeschool to middle school and not make a few mistakes?
  5. Invisible by Christina Diaz Gonzalez and Gabriella Espstein: The racism the students experienced being put together in the cafeteria for a service project bonds them in more ways than one.
  6. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: Ostracized after Melinda called the cops at a summer party, it’s making her first year of high school miserable, especially when she has to see HIM; luckily her art teacher is helping her lean into her pain.
 
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Posted by on June 15, 2024 in Fiction, Graphic novels, Manga, Middle grade, Nonfiction, Young Adult

 

Six sensational haunted house stories

11 Jun

Having recently finished Not Quite a Ghost, I realized there are quite a few fantastic stories that featuring houses- not necessarily always haunted but possibly enchanted, but quite the characters all on their own. A list of six of them here.

  1. She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran: Body and house horror combine for a haunting good time.
  2. Saint Juniper’s Folly by Alex Crespo: When a house takes you hostage.
  3. Things in the Basement by Ben Hatke: We all have things in the basement.
  4. Not Quite a Ghost by Anne Ursu: In the mind or in the walls?
  5. The Curious Vanishing of Beatrice Willoughby by G.Z. Schmidt: A mystery from a house party ten years before.
  6. Delicious Monsters by Liselle Sambury: A ten year difference in the same house for two different girls both yield danger.

 
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Posted by on June 11, 2024 in Fiction, Graphic novels, Middle grade, Young Adult

 

Six sensational books with animal friends

07 Jun

I decided that there are too many books featuring a dog as a companion that that’ll get it’s own post this month, so today’s post features non-dog animal “friends”.

Version 1.0.0
  1. The Spirit Glass by Roshani Chokshi: Gecko.
  2. Saving Sunshine by Saadia Faruqi and Shazleen Khan: Turtle.
  3. Plain Jane and the Mermaid by Vera Brosgol: Seal.
  4. A Drop of Venom by Sajni Patel: Snake.
  5. The Elephant in the Room by Holly Goldberg Sloan: Elephant
  6. The One and Only Family by Katherine Applegate: Gorilla.
 
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Posted by on June 7, 2024 in Fiction, Graphic novels, Middle grade, Young Adult

 

Six sensational fashion-forward characters

04 Jun

I love a good dress. I definitely notice when characters in graphic novels have style or pay attention when the character is fashion-conscious or has designs (yup, I went there) on being in the fashion industry. Here are six favorites:

  1. Any Way You Look by Maleeha Siddiqui: A fashionista Muslim girl working at her mother’s custom shop has an eye for details.
  2. 100 Unforgettable Dresses by Hal Rubenstein: Recommended by a colleague who knows I love dresses, this one paints a portrait of 100 dresses from the past and present.
  3. Dressed in Dreams: A Black Girl’s Love Letter to the Power of Fashion by Tanisha C. Ford: A collection of items and styles that absolutely meets expectations.
  4. I Love You So Mochi by Sarah Kuhn: Kimi loves fashion and sees a future in it even when others might not. She perseveres during a trip to Japan and back to her roots.
  5. The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang: Enough said!
  6. The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner: If I’ve ever loved a character’s fashion sense, it’s Moth’s. Thank you to Steinkellner for creating her fabulous wardrobe.
 
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Posted by on June 4, 2024 in Authors, Fiction, Graphic novels, Illustrators, Middle grade, Nonfiction, Style, Young Adult

 

Six sensational siblings stories

03 Jun

I realize that could probably do a second post of siblings stories because there are plenty of stories featuring siblings that I find special in some way. Maybe toward the end of the month I’ll revisit the topic again.

  1. Take Me With You When You Go by David Levithan and Jennifer Niven: A mystery in a runaway sibling leads to divulging plenty of dysfunction in their household.
  2. When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed: The ultimate support as two boys look out for one another in a refugee camp without their parents, trying to survive.
  3. Huda F Cares? by Huda Fahmy: The follow up graphic novel features Huda’s siblings prominently in a road trip, theme park visit. We all remember those car trips sandwiched in between siblings.
  4. Saints of the Household by Ari Tison: Max and Jay don’t want to be like their father, but did they just become him in an impulsive decision to help save a classmate. How they cope with the fallout is the the lyricism of the story.
  5. Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez: Naomi returns to a “vipers nest” to protect her twin siblings even if it means putting herself in danger.
  6. Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley: Bonded in trauma, Suki and Della’s life consist of overcoming multiple hardships, but they want to be able to lean on each other though they might also have to let someone else in too.
 
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Posted by on June 3, 2024 in Fiction, Graphic novels, Middle grade, Young Adult

 
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