Graphic Novels Off the Beaten Path

     I recently picked up two very different but equally satisfying graphic novels, both  of them completely outside of the superhero vein. Reading them back to back gave me a flavor of how different graphic novels can be from storyline to artwork. I first picked up Relish: My Life in the Kitchen , by Lucy Knisley, because anything having to do with food is a draw for me.  Lucy has written a story about herself and it proves to be funny, thoughtful and thoroughly charming.  The author is the daughter of established foodies: her mother is a chef, a pioneer in the farm to table movement and inspiration with her love of food culture.  Her father, a more distant and difficult character, is an appreciator of fine restaurant dining and helps to give Lucy an exposure to fantastic as well as disastrous restaurant dishes.  Sprinkled in amongst the stories of her relationship to food as she was growing up, are recipes such as Marinated Lamb, Mom's Pesto and Huevos Rancheros.  Whether you like to cook or not, you'll love reading about Lucy. 

   Native American Classics in the Graphic Classics series is actually a collection of several historic tales and poems about Native Americans.  Some were written in the 19th century and some in the early 20th century, and all by indigenous American writers.  The graphic art in this collection brings these timeless stories of loss, betrayal and change alive.  There are ten different illustrators of Native American heritage, each with a distinctive style ranging from the "cartooney" of old children's comics to a more picture book illustration style.  I could tell that the artists connected with these writers from the past and that they deeply feel the experience of their ancestors. Some of the stories have heart wrenching endings, some are sweet, some funny and some hopeful.  Take a look at this graphic novel if you went to get new insight into America, past and present.
 

Summer Reading Favorites

School's almost out and that means it's almost time for Summer Reading!  Register at the nearest library and get a fun flip-book to keep track of your progress.  You can win a $10 Bookman's certificate, a Brooklyn's Pizza coupon, and a Breaker's Water Park pass.  Or you can exchange one of those prizes for a book!

Last year, the favorite teen books were:

1.  The Hunger Games series

2.  The Harry Potter series

3.  The Twilight series

4.  The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series

5.  The Percy Jackson series

6.  The Lord of the Rings series

7.  Pretty Little Liars series

8.  Eragon

9.  The Hobbit

10.  The Vampire Diaries series

Some of these books have new movies coming out this summer:  Hunger Games, the Hobbit, and Percy Jackson.  The Pretty Little Liars and the Vampire Diaries are still showing on TV and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever animated film will be released this Christmas.  If you haven't already, now is the time to read the books while waiting for the movies or new season to start!

Of course, you can also find some new favorites this summer.  The library shelves are full of good books waiting to be discovered!

~ Book Ninja

Pssst!  Go to the Murphy-Wilmot Library and fill out a book recommendation to be entered into a drawing for a free book each month.  The more recommendations you fill out, the more chances you have to win!  We have comics, manga, and other fun books - the choice is yours!  And hey, you're going to be reading books for those cool prizes anyway, right? 

How Afraid Are You To Die?

In a world where vampires have taken control over society, humans are divided into two groups--the Registered and the Unregistered. Registered humans are required to attend a bloodletting once a month in order to feed their vampiric masters. Unregistered humans are free from the obligation to "donate," but the freedom comes with a price; while Registered humans are provided with food cards, Unregistered humans are not, and the penalty for stealing food is death.

This is the world Allison Sekemoto survives in Julie Kagawa's The Immortal Rules. She lives on the edge of the city of New Covington in the slums, scrounging for food and trying to avoid becoming a vampire's prey. She vows that she'll never be anything like the soulless monsters that treat her species like cattle, but when a food raid goes terribly wrong and Allie is left dying in the street, she must make a choice--she can either die for good, or wake up again as the very demon she despises.

Rats Saw God

Steve York is a mess.  He is a senior in high school in San Diego and a National Merit Finalist who is frequently stoned and on the verge of not graduating.  He has also been spending a lot of time and energy trying not to be like his father, the famous astronaut. When a school counselor offers him the chance to write a 100 page paper in exchange for graduating with his class, Steve takes him up on the offer.

Rats Saw God by Rob Thomas tells the story of what is going on with Steve as he writes that paper. That story is interspersed with the paper itself in which he reveals to himself (and us) how he got to this place in his life. We learn about the astronaut's disappointment, the parent's divorce, Steve's first love and his broken heart. 
The book was written by Rob Thomas in 1996 but was re-released in March.  You may know Rob Thomas by his other claim to fame - as the creator, writer and producer of several television shows, including Veronica Mars. 

Pick up this book if you have ever felt like you couldn't live up to someone's expectations, or had your heart broken. Does that leave anyone out?  I don't think so. And the title? You will just have to read the book!

Betsey S

Tiaras, zombies, and (yarn) sushi

I have a confession to make: I am a wanna-be crafter.

Wanna-be because a lot of the time I can't seem to get around to doing everything I want to do. Sometimes I manage to actually make something out of these books; a lot of times I want to mostly just look at the pictures and pretend like I'm going to make it. This, however, doesn't stop me from piling up DIY books to dangerous heights both at home and at work. It's sad, a little pathetic, but true.

It has made me a craft book expert though and there are some amazing ones, ranging from zombie felties to homemade bling to an Obi-Wan Kenobe cloak. Let me share the magic and the sparkly beads with you:

Robin Hood Gets Angsty

Okay, I admit it.  Technically, the main character of Scarlet by A. C. Gaughen is Will Scarlet, who is actually a girl in this telling.  But Robin Hood is also a pretty big part of her story and he's a little more angsty than the Robin Hood we usually see.  And there's Little John and Much the Miller's Son and the evil Sheriff of Nottingham and Sir Guy of Gisbourne, who everyone loves to hate. 

I love Robin Hood tales.  They were some of my favorites as a child and I spent a lot of time running around the woods behind our house pretending to be an outlaw with a heart of gold.  So when I picked up this book, I was a bit skeptical that this retelling would hold up to my love of the classic tales.  But oh, it does.  I like Scarlet so much!  She's conflicted but tough, smart but still a bit naive, deadly but caring.  Also, she's an excellent pickpocket and she throws knives.  How badass is that?  And there's plenty of action as Robin and his crew struggle to do the right thing in a world gone wrong. 

My little kid self, who was constantly on the lookout for heroines, would have loved this story even more than I do now.  As it is, I think I know what my Halloween costume is for this year. 

~ Book Ninja

Angel of Death

Assassin nun.

Oh, yes, you read that right.

Assassin. Nun.

That's the character at the heart of Grave Mercy, by Robin LaFevers. Ismae had a fairly bad early life. Born in 15th century Brittany (a tiny European country, now part of France) to an abusive father and a mother who tried to abort her, she was married very young to an equally abusive husband. When she ran away, she discovered the convent of Saint Mortain, where nuns live in service to their patron saint and, by the way, also learn the arts of murder. That's because Saint Mortain is the new name for the old god of death, and he helpfully marks the people that he wants his nuns to kill.

After a few years and a lot of skills, Ismae is sent forth to the court of Duchess Anne, the very young ruler of Brittany. She is to assist the girl by killing off those who would do her harm. But the world outside the convent is new and frightening to Ismae, who is used to the safety and sisterhood of Saint Mortain's. The person who scares her the most is Duval, Anne's half-brother. All the men Ismae has ever known have been nasty and brutish, but Duval is intelligent, gentle, and awfully interested in her.

Complex, romantic, and action-packed, this book will stay glued to your hands. I mean, seriously. Assassin nuns!