Take:
- Cutthroat competion
- Heartthrob athletes in various states of (un)dress
- Painfully well-executed cliffhangers
- Rivalry rife with sexual tension
and you get this cheeky, enthralling, character-driven volume for those who wish the Rocky movies were a little gayer.
This gem of a graphic novel derails the imaginative escapades of a neighborhood of kids with serious creativity, major crafting skills, and and overwhelming capacity for dynamic supportiveness. Through ups and downs of relationships with family and friends, these characters give each other the emotional and creative encouragement they need to be their best, most authentic selves. A reminder to all that the more you connect with your community, the brighter you (and it) shine!
The first comic book to be nominated for the Booker Prize! The deadpan style of an in-flight safety pamphlet heightens the alienation and suppressed anxiety in this story of private tragedy hijacked by the Internet.
Reading Mark Beyer's Agony is a uniquely surreal and exhilarating experience. Beyer--a giant within the world of underground comics who once regularly graced the pages of Art Spiegelman's RAW magazine--draws with childlike abandon and tells stories (and jokes) like a man with a lifetime of suffering under his belt. I could try to say more about this book's bizarre charms, but the excellent introduction from Colson Whitehead does a much better job than I ever could. I'll just say: this is a book to tickle your funny bone and haunt your dreams.
I read Deadendia poolside in 95 degree weather. I couldn't tell you if I even broke a sweat because I was completely swept away from the first panel. Norma, Barney, and dog Pugsley work the haunted house at Dead End theme park. Is the house really haunted? No. It just happens to be a portal to all levels of demon and angel worlds. Deadendia is filled to the brim with loveable and diverse characters, adventure, humor and real heart. I finished it wanting more. The Scooby Doo kid in me will be rereading this one for years to come.
In the skilled hands of cartoonist Tom Gauld, the story of David and Goliath becomes a downbeat and melancholy meditation on the human cost of war. Gauld’s retelling centers on a gentle-hearted Goliath, better suited to administrative work than combat, who becomes a reluctant bargaining chip in a conflict beyond his ken. Somber, quiet, and darkly funny, Tom Gauld’s Goliath is a testament to the power of visual and narrative minimalism.
Sean Rubin's debut graphic novel Bolivar is a great idea beautifully realized: What if a single dinosaur not only survived extinction, but made his home in Manhattan's Upper West Side, living off corned beef sandwiches and buying copies of the New Yorker from the newsstand each month? What if everyone in the city--except a young girl named Sybil--is simply too busy to notice their prehistoric neighbor? Heightening this playfully absurd premise is Sean Rubin's art, replete with a level of detail and visual wit that captures all the chaos and whimsy of city life. Bolivar will thrill readers of all ages, and its hybrid comic/picture book style makes it particularly well suited for young readers new to graphic novels.
This graphic novel is cuteness overload and should be read by everyone! Kids, teens, adults...all can find something to love in this cute tale about a prince and his dressmaker. Heartwarming and beautiful, it's a story about working hard to follow your passion and building up those around us with friendship and love.
Before the Me Too movement, there was Laurie Halse Anderson's award-winning novel Speak. Emily Carroll has illustrated beautifully Melinda's story as a high school freshman suffering from aimless depression that is rooted in an unspeakable trauma, and how a voice taken away can be reclaimed. Content warning: this story contains references to sexual assault and self-harm.
Psychadelic surrealism meets high school drama in this story of teenage friendship and paradise found and lost in a basement washing machine. Full of deadpan humour and delightfully weird visuals!
