Heartstopper Volume One by Alice Oseman

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Charlie. Baby. I love him. I will protect him with my life. 
Nick. I also love him. Big teddy bear. Clueless cutie pie. 
Ok but the dog. Because winter coat. She's like Pep Pep. I'm just over here crying about a rat sized dog wearing a winter coat. I feel so seen by the existence of a calf high dog. 
Everyone shut up I'm enjoying fluff.

And by feed birds I mean read this wholesome content. 
The drawing style is adorable and I love it and I just. jdsfkla
288 Pages
P.S. Happy Pride, y'all. Don't @ me

Ooh Pretty Pictures

When Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed

A true story about a Omar and his nonverbal brother growing up in a refugee camp. I don't think I've read anything quite like this, and the artwork is so vibrant while still being realistic. This book is incredible and I think everyone should read it. All the feels.

Read Harder Challenge #19

256 pages

Adventure Zone: Petals to the Metal by Clint McElroy

Fantasy Nascar, a giant magical wrench and sexy plant puns. I've really enjoyed this series. I've listened to a bit of the podcast it is based on, but I just love the colorful artwork and humorous background objects. The story is quirky, funny, and just a lot of fun all around. 

244 pages

Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass by Mariko Tamaki

A different take on Harley's origin story, with class struggles, gentrification and green activism (led by Poison Ivy, of course). I thought this is one of the better DC Ink graphic novels, and I love the representation included among the urban population. A fun afternoon read for comic fans.

196 pages

Attack on Titan: Volumes 2/3 by Hajime Isayama

This series is so much fun! Perfect blending of horror, science fiction, and dystopia. Lots of gruesome titan battles, with a family mystery thrown in. I'm starting to get to the point where I may give the anime another try. 

400 pages    (192+208) 

Cheshire Crossing by Andy Weir, Sarah Andersen

Andy Weir does comics? Whaaaa? Such a great concept, mashing Alice/Wonderland, Wendy/Neverland, and Dorothy/Oz together into a fun fantasy adventure. I am very glad that he got a different illustrator though-Andersen is one of my favorite web comic artists!

117 pages

My Hero Academia Vol. 1 by Kohei Horikoshi

Ah, yes. The superhero academy trope. I've never really liked these stories. This one is very well done, and I can see why it is so popular, it's just not for me. Also, skinny/buff guy is creepy.

187 pages

Aquatlantic by Giorgio Carpinteri

This one was so strange. The artwork is gorgeous, and I enjoyed seeing Soviet Constructivism, which isn't used much in art today. Heavy allegory, almost to the point where there isn't much story. Pretty pictures though.

49 pages

Attack on Titan: Volume 1 by Hajime Isayama

 

I've been looking for a new manga to read, so I thought I'd try this one out. Matt tried to get me to watch the anime with him, but only two episodes gave me nightmares of being chased by titans, so... no. But he kept raving about the story and the plot twists, so finally I decided to give this another try. It's really good! 

Big scary vivid moving images? Noooooooo. 

Black and white static images narrating a thrilling plot? Yeeessssssss....

208 pages 

Avatar: The Last Airbender series

 I flew through the cartoon series once it was put on Netflix, so of course I picked up the graphic novels after I was done to fill the void in my life. They did not disappoint. 

This one fills in some of the gaps of the Gaang's adventures between the show's episodes. I love me some Sokka.

Pages: 240

Picking up exactly where Avatar: The Last Airbender left off. The Promise takes Aang to a Fire Nation colony in the heart of the Earth Nation, where tensions between neighbors threaten to shatter the world's newfound peace--putting the Avatar on a collision course with one of his closest friends, Fire Lord Zuko.

 We find out what happened to Zuko's mom!!! 

Pages: 240 

Pages: 240

Avatar Aang and friends honor an Air Nomad holiday that hasn't been celebrated in over one hundred years, but when cryptic visits from the spirit of Avatar Yangchen lead Aang to a refinery operating on land sacred to the Airbenders--they soon find themselves in peril as a dangerously powerful ancient spirit awakens with vengeance and destruction on its mind.

Pages: 240

The Fire Nation is threatened by a prophecy told by the Kemurikage--mysterious figures thought only to exist in legend: "remove Zuko from the throne or the country will perish!" Unrest is brewing as the New Ozai Society prepares to make its move against the crown, and children begin to go missing from their homes under mysterious circumstances.

Pages: 240

When Katara and Sokka return home to the Southern Water Tribe, they are shocked to find that it has gone from a small village to a bustling city! Malina, a Northerner, is behind the change and plans to unify the two groups, but Gilak, a Southerner, leads a fierce rebellion to stop her. In the face of these two opposing tribes, Katara will have to make peace with her nostalgia and distrust to save the home she loves from being permanently torn apart.

Pages: 240

When Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph return to Earthen Fire Industries--the factory owned by Toph's father--Aang is surprised when their arrival is met with a cold shoulder. As soon as the team is asked for help at a business council meeting, the reason for the slight becomes clear: a massive bender-versus-non-bender conflict has gripped the town and is threatening to turn violent. In order to heal the divide and save the town, Aang and the team will all face tough decisions about power and identity that could tear them apart.

Pages: 240

Graphic Novels

Snug by Catana Chetwynd

I love these. They are cute little comics about dating your best friend! They remind me of Matt and I. The drawings are funny and playful.

Warm Fuzzies.

129 pages






Under the Moon: A Catwoman Tale by Lauren Myracle

Catwoman's backstory is always so sad.The scenes with her mom's abusive boyfriend made me cry. Poor kitty!! It was fun watching her learn parkour and make it on the streets to learn her heist skills. Portrays depression, self harm and abuse realistically. All in all, a good take on the character.

222 pages



The Oracle Code by Marieke Nijkamp

When a gunshot leaves her paralyzed, Barbara Gordon, daughter of the police commissioner and hacking extraordinaire, enters the Arkham Center for Independence for rehabilitation. Although a DC comic, I thought it was a thoughtful depiction of characters with a wide range of disabilities. The dark foreshadowing and unexpected answer to a mystery left me pleasantly surprised with the ending. Many teens could relate to Barb's search for identity and acceptance of herself.

Read Harder Task #21

198 pages

Waves by Ingrid Chabbert

Waves by Ingrid Chabbert
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was touching and emotional. It’s beautiful and painful, both the story and the artwork.

It’s the story of a young woman, and her wife, who want to have a child but are struggling to successfully do so. This graphic novel is so well done that it takes very few words, paired with the gorgeous and easy to understand illustrations, to help tell a strong, emotional story.

The artwork uses color and shading as a tool to help indicate shifts in mood and tone, which is very interesting and effective.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review an early copy of this graphic novel, which will release on May 7, 2019.

With the diversity, emotional artwork, and excellent storytelling, this should be an automatic purchase for all adult graphic novel collections. It brings something new to the table, and I could see this drawing in new and different readers who have never experienced a graphic novel before.

Pages: 96

Pilu of the Woods by Mai K. Nguyen

Pilu of the Woods by Mai K. Nguyen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

At it’s heart, this is a story of grief, friendship, and moving forward

The artwork for this graphic novel is always clear, and it has a muted palette for scenes from the past (which I really enjoy). It sets the tone well for the story, and the artist does a great job of showing me the world/setting.

The story is fantastic, because it says a lot, with as few words as possible, which I find delightful. After having just slogged through two really text heavy graphic novels with too much telling, I loved how this graphic novel just showed me the story. I found myself rushing forward and often had to slow myself down, so I could really enjoy the scenes and artwork.

This was perfection. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this title in advance.  It releases on April 17, 2019, so go pre-order your copy today. 

Pages: 160

Alex + Ada, Vol. 2

 Alex and Ada, Vol. 2

by Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn

Pages: 

Rating: 3 out of 5

The story picks up with Alex and Ada trying to figure out their new relationship now that she's sentient. But tensions are rising and the government decides to crack down on humans with sentient robots. Now can Ada pull off that she is still an android when she needs too. Her life and Alex's may depend on it.

Scott Pilgrim, Volume 6: Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour

 Scott Pilgrim, Volume 6: Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour
by Bryan Lee O'Malley
Pages: 245
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Six years and almost one-thousand pages have all led to this epic finale!

Now that Scott has vanquished six of Ramona's exes it's time for him to face the worst, Gideon Graves. But Ramona has disappeared does he still need to face him?

Scott Pilgrim, Volume 5: Scott Pilgrim Vs. the Universe

 Scott Pilgrim, Volume 5: Scott Pilgrim Vs. the Universe
by Bryan Lee O'Malley
Pages: 173
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Scott Pilgrim turned 24 and things are going great. He has a job, he's living with Ramona. Now two of Ramona's evil ex-boyfriend's are in town to fight with Scott and some of Scott's ex-girlfriends have shown up to complicate his life even further.

Graphic Novels with Names in the Title

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Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is an upper-elementary school graphic novel. Some people are calling it middle school, but after being a middle school librarian for six years, this might appeal to a handful of 6th graders, at best. I can't see 7th or 8th graders picking this one up, despite the fun space theme. It's just too childish, and the story leaves something to be desired.

I'm trying to keep its audience in mind while reviewing it, so on the positive side, this has cute artwork and adorable creatures and robots. They all have lousy, boring names that the characters like to say out loud over and over and over again until you're tired of reading those names. It's basically just wasted words, so I'm not sure why that persists. I found it very tedious and unnecessary.

The plot isn't great, and there is no decent character development. There is a character who is suddenly a good guy, then a bad guy, then a decent guy again, unless maybe he's still a little bad. It changed so fast and illogically that it basically gave me whiplash.

The words are sparse, which was helpful, because the story ended faster, which I appreciated, since there wasn't much of an interesting story here. Something bad would happen. It would miraculously resolve with little effort. Then something else bad would happen. Another very convenient and miraculous resolution, repeat ad nauseam.

This might work for early readers who like cutesy aliens and don't tend to worry much about plot or story structure. For adult readers, just don't expect a satisfying progression and conclusion. Or any real tension or surprises. It's an acceptable read for a young reader, but I honestly wouldn't recommend it. I think there are better picks out there, though it's likely to appeal to some with an interest in aliens. And the robots are also pretty cute.

Book 108 read in 2018

Pages: 192

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Paul Has a Summer Job by Michel Rabagliati
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The start of this graphic novel was unexpected, and I just really wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this story. But I was wrong. It ended up being a pretty decent read with some touching moments, and it reminded me a lot of those younger, more carefree years between high school and true adulthood.

Book 109 read in 2018

Pages: 160

Scott Pilgrim, Volume 3: Scott Pilgrim & The Infinite Sadness

 Scott Pilgrim, Volume 3: Scott Pilgrim & The Infinite Sadness
Bryan Lee O'Malley
Pages: 192
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Scott's former love, Envy Adams is now dating Ramona's third evil ex-boyfriend, Todd Ingram. Now Envy is back with her art-rock band and she's gotten Scott's band to agree to open their show. But what is she really up to?

Scott Pilgrim, Volume 2: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

 Scott Pilgrim, Volume 2: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
by Bryan Lee O'Malley
Pages: 200
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Scott Pilgrim meets and falls for a girl his own age, Ramona Flowers. But before he can officially be her boyfriend he has to fight her evil ex-boyfriends. Is it worth it to Scott?

Scott Pilgrim, Volume 1: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life

 Scott Pilgrim, Volume 1: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life
by Bryan Lee O'Malley
Pages: 168
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Scott Pilgrim is a 24 year-old unemployed musician who is trying to figure out his life. Meanwhile, he nurses his broken heart by dating a safe, innocent 17-year-old girl named Knives. Scott's world contains magic, super hero powers and normal people having amazing fighting abilities.