Friends with Boys, by Faith Erin Hicks

Courtesy of Google

I LOVED this book!  I always wished I had a brother or brothers.  J  I do gain one brother when I get married next year – admittedly it’s a little different, since I did not grow up with him. 

This graphic novel is about Maggie, who is about to attend her local high school after having been home-schooled her whole life.  She has three older brothers and has never really socialized with anyone but her family.  At school, she has to navigate a new environment and figure out how to make friends.  Friends with Boys is a great coming-of-age story with compelling characters.  I love the dynamic Maggie has with her family and how she handles high school. 

The art is fantastic! My fiancé read this as a web comic and later bought the trade paperback when it was released to support Ms. Hicks.  I could not put it down – I understand it was agonizing having to wait for each successive page.  ;) I recommend to teenagers and adults.  

Gone to Amerikay, by Derek McCulloch, Colleen Doran, José Villarubia Remember several posts back when I wrote about Mangaman (Barry Lyga)? Well, if you enjoyed Colleen Doran’s artistry as much as I did, you will not be disappointed in Gone to Amerikay. There are three storylines that intertwine as you follow the main characters from the beginning of the tale to its end. It is just as well-written as it is well-drawn. Find it at your local comic book shop!

Remember several posts back when I wrote about Mangaman (Barry Lyga)?  Well, if you enjoyed Colleen Doran’s artistry as much as I did, you will not be disappointed in Gone to Amerikay.  There are three storylines that intertwine as you follow the main characters from the beginning of the tale to its end.  It is just as well-written as it is well-drawn.  Also, Jose Villarubia is the colorist as he was for Gone to Amerikay!  Find it at your local comic book shop!

Get Jiro! By Anthony Bourdain, Joel Rose, Langdon Foss, José Villarubia

Imagine if power was divided up among the best chefs in the area.  Get Jiro!, written by renowned chef Anthony Bourdain, envisions a future where if you are do not display the utmost loyalty to a given chef and constantly eat at his or her snazzy restaurant in what is supposed to be a future Los Angeles, your life is generally lacking.  But Jiro, a master sushi chef, is a quiet sort, who runs his restaurant out of a strip mall.  One day, the two rival chefs of the city learn of his existence and a race ensues in which they go to whatever extreme lengths necessary to get him on their respective sides…

This is a great read for readers 17 and up.  The artwork is amazing, and the concept is unlike anything I have ever heard of, which is why I picked it up in the first place.  Happy reading!

Scary Godmother: Comic Book Stories, by Jill Thompson

This is a truly delightful collection of stories about Hannah Marie and her friends who live on the Fright Side of her bed.  It’s perfect for boys and girls 10 and up (and their parents and/or older siblings) who enjoy funny, spooky stories that are not too scary.  The artwork is whimsical and amazing to look at; it took me a week to read this book (almost unheard of; I am usually the one who finishes a book in a few days) because I spent a lot of time appreciating the artwork and examining the beautiful detail in all the panels.  People my age and older may be more familiar with Jill Thompson’s contributions to Neil Gaiman’s Sandman universe, so if you have not yet checked out Scary Godmother, I recommend it!  Find it at your local comic book shop!

Wonderland, by Tommy Kovac and Sonny Liew

Wonderland, by Tommy Kovac and Sonny Liew, is about what happens right after Alice has visited the White Rabbit’s cottage.  The story focuses on Mary Ann, the housemaid, and how she gets mixed up in her own Wonderland adventure.  It’s very well-written and stands up on its own: even if you are only familiar with Alice’s story and have not read the books, you will still be able to enjoy Wonderland.  That being said, you will appreciate it more if you have at least read Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass.  Also, watch the animated Disney film (it’s a trip!): the illustrations are meant to look like the Disney characters, but the artwork is a style all its own and very beautiful.  It’s a laugh-out-loud read, and great for ages 8 and up (though teenagers and adults. will be quicker to understand some of the wit and humor than most children).

The Sandman Volume 2: The Doll's House, by Neil Gaiman et al

I believe the Sandman Volume 2: The Doll’s House, by Neil Gaiman, is much darker than the first Sandman book. It is still a good read though; while I have not read many DC universe comics, I think that Gaiman’s contribution with the Sandman character gave the DC universe a different feel. The personifications of Dream, Death, et al., feel more universal because such beings appear in many tales from around the world. The Doll’s House is not for the fainthearted, and it is definitely for mature readers. I look forward to progressing with the series.

The Sandman Volume One: Preludes and Nocturnes, by Neil Gaiman et al

Wow! I finally read Volume One of Neil Gaiman's Sandman series. How do I begin to describe it? Lord Morpheus, the King of Dreams, has been mistakenly summoned and is trapped. He bides his time, waiting for the right moment to escape and take his revenge...but it is so much more than that (after all, there are about 9 other books after this one, plus a bunch of spin-off series). I did not realize that the Sandman was actually a character created for the DC Universe: I thought he was an original creation of Mr. Gaiman's! In any case, Preludes & Nocturnes is definitely for a mature reading audience. If you like Neil Gaiman's prose or just want a good graphic novel to read, check this one out!

Manga Man, by Barry Lyga and Colleen Doran

Last week I read Manga Man, by Barry Lyga, and it's pretty funny. The premise is that there is a Rip between our 3-D world and the 2-D manga world. Ryoko ends up in our world because of the Rip, and until the ex-army scientist doctor guy who made the machine that facilitated the Rip can fix said machine, Ryoko must learn to live on Earth. It's really well drawn (illustrator is Colleen Doran) and it's a light read. If you read a lot of manga and other types of comics, you will definitely appreciate Manga Man. I was laughing as I read it.

Nightmares and Fairytales, Volume 2, by Serena Valentino

SO the definition of this graphic novel is "scarily cute", or maybe "cutely scary". Nightmares and Fairytales: Beautiful Beasts, by Serena Valentino, is about a rag doll named Annabelle. Annabelle tells stories to her current owner Gwen of her past owners, and several of those stories happen to be re-imaginings of tales such as "Beauty and the Beast" and "Little Red Riding Hood". Some stories are darker than others, so if you're into that, this is the book for you. I would say ages 13 and up is an appropriate reading audience age threshold.

Marvel Fairy Tales, by C. B. Sebulski

Marvel Fairy Tales, by C. B. Sebulski, is a collection of fairy tales and classic stories featuring well-known Marvel characters. They're all rather fun, though of course I preferred some over others. I loved the artwork; it's really neat seeing these re-imagined superheroes starring in such familiar tales as Peter Pan and Red Riding Hood.

Y The Last Man: Unmanned, by Brian K. Vaughan et al

I read Volume One of Y: The Last Man: Unmanned, and I have also read Volume 2: Cycles and Volume 3: One Small Step. So far, so good! The first book pretty much sets up the story and introduces us to some very important characters. I don't want to go into it too much for those who haven't read it: I myself did not really know what to expect. All I heard was that the series was and is good. Sometimes, I prefer to let the story unfold as I read.  This is definitely a series for mature readers.

Monster Volume 1, by Naoki Urasawa

This is just a picture of the first one, but this is an 18-volume manga series by Naoki Urasawa. I have finished the entire series. It's a really well-written and well-drawn mystery/thriller set in Germany, about a Japanese doctor who becomes entangled in a serial-murder case. Highly recommended!!

Habibi, by Craig Thompson

Habibi is EXCELLENT. For those of you already familiar with the graphic novel, I highly recommend this to you. If you are new to the format, this is a heavy read (literally and figuratively-the book clocks in at over 450 pages), but it's a beautifully drawn and written story about a girl surviving on her own somewhere in the Middle East. You will find yourself spending just as much time appreciating the artistry as you will reading the words.