Help Kimberly meet her Goodreads goal!

Okay fellow book lovers. I need your help. I need to read 16 books before the end of the year. I'm SEVEN books behind schedule!! How did that even happen? Okay, so I hit several reading slumps this year, that's how it happened. It's been a weird year.

What are some of your favorite quick reads? Novellas? Graphic novels? Tell me all about them!  Help me reach my goal of 100 books this year!

Tahleen reviews: "Relish: My Life in the Kitchen" by Lucy Knisley

Title: Relish: My Life in the Kitchen
Author: Lucy Knisley
Publisher: First Second, 2013

Rating: 4.5 stars

Lucy Knisley is the daughter of two gourmands, and as a result grew up around all types of delicious food. In this graphic novel, she tells her story through the foods she's tasted, whether its fresh empanadas, spinach and garlic, Japanese cuisine, her mother's farm-to-table cooking, or just plain old junk food.

It took me a little bit to get into this book, as the amount of text is more than I'm used to for graphic novels, but once I hit my groove I devoured the whole thing. Pun intended.

Knisley has a way of making you crave just what she is describing. During my reading, I wanted to go find a bakery or a gourmet food shop or a cheesemonger, or cook one of her many delicious-sounding recipes inserted throughout the book (I love these, and I love the illustrations included with each step.

Here's one of her recipes! I definitely want to make this.

This is a memoir, yes, and it's a graphic novel. But most of all, it's a love letter to food, and to dining with people you care about. If you at all enjoy the act of eating, I highly recommend this one.

I'm glad this won an Alex Award, because without it I might never have picked this one up!

Disclaimer: I got this book from my local library.

Kelly reviews "Clockwork Angel:" the graphic novel

Title: Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, Manga #1)
Author: Cassandra Clare
Illustrator: HyeKyung Baek
Published: Yen Press, 2012

Okay, I'm pretty sure I'm some sort of publisher's hit list after this one (is there such a thing? I'm pretty sure there is). I received a beautiful copy of the graphic novel adaptation of Clockwork Angel in October....and here is the review at the end of June. As a HUGE fan of the world Cassandra Clare has created in her books, I devoured this in maybe an hour or so. Pretty pictures everywhere!

Hi, I'm a Silent Brother and I look TERRIFYING.

I've only read one other graphic novel, about two years ago for school, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. All of the illustrations were done by HyeKyung Baek and they are simply marvelous. I loved the aspect of further bringing this already vivid story to life. I've got to say though, some of the characters, particularly the villans, were straight from a nightmare. Just look at the Silent Brothers! ---->
I'd somehow forgotten about their horrible eyes and sewn-up mouths. I also loved actually being able to see the Shadowhunters with all of their tattoos.
Talk about the ultimate badasses, walking around Victorian London with crazy tatts. Just thinking about this novel is making me excited for the City of Bones movie coming out later this year! This graphic novel is a good refresher if you are catching up on the Infernal Devices series: it's super quick and easy to ready, plus it's so intriguing. I never thought I'd be so into a graphic novel, no matter how much I loved the book it's based upon!

Upon further investigation, I've noticed that a lot of books are being turned into graphic novels: Soulless, Beautiful Creatures, Vampire Academy, Hush, Hush, and, well, Twilight too. This is a trend I am now fully in support of! What are some of your favorite graphic novels that I should check out? Or what are some other books you think should be turned into a graphic novel? Leave a comment below!

Paula wishes you all a Happy Turkey Day

At the beginning of October I got a new job. And I love it completely. However there has been one downside to it that is killing me. Here I am on week 4 with the same book. Granted it's A Feast For Crows so it's a long book- but still usually I would be long done with it and at least two others. By the time I get home from work all I want to do is crawl into bed without even glancing at a book. As a result I am now falling behind on my reading goal and will probably be finishing the year out with some graphic novels.

So in a quick post (so I can use my rare day of nothing to do to keep reading) I'll be listing my top 5 graphic novels/comic series. Consider it a mini TTT... but you know... on a different day... or something like that

1. Y: The Last Man by Brian K Vaughan - This was my first dive into things that weren't Mainstream comics and I judge everything I read on a scale from 1 to Y. It also introduced me to Vaughan who has written a majority of my favorite series (Runaways, Ex Machina, and his current story Saga)

2. Scott Pilgrim by Brian Lee O'Malley- The time in my life when I was reading this series weirdly paralleled a lot that happens in the series. So it holds a special place in my heart. And it is just so full of pop culture references and sweet moments and bitter sweet moments. I am so excited that he is now putting out a color edition of all the volumes AND that he has a new graphic novel coming out soon. 

<-- That cover is a on my wall in poster form :D

3. Superman: Red Son by Mark Miller- This is a standalone comic. Oh my gosh it rocked my entire world. The whole premise of it was what if Superman's ship landed in Russia instead of Kansas. It re-imagines a lot of DC mythos and characters. As a result you get this awesome dystopian crazy head trip Superman story.


4. Runaways by Brian K Vaughan- Oh no I already mentioned this series above. Am I allowed to put it on the list? It's a series that follows a group of teenagers who discover that their parents are super villains and who decide it's up to them to stop them. Of course things get out of hand and nothing goes quite right. And they have to decide whether they will be heroes or villains. My favorite part of this series? One of the characters has a psychically linked Velociraptor that protects her. It's like my dream come true. Annnd I love this series so much that I used some issues to make a pair of comic book shoes. Oooers time to show off:

5. The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman- I'm sure all of you have heard of this series now that the TV show has blown up. And although I've called it quits on trying to watch the show. I love this comic series. I love the world he has created and how it's less about "AHH LOOK ZOMBIES" and more about trying to retain what's left of humanity in a world that has torn apart. How sometimes humans who have been driven mad by the apocalypse can be a bigger threat than the zombies themselves. I will always look forward to the new trade of this series being released.




And if anyone has tips for reading on a 40+ hour work week. Throw them my way because I'm desperate here.

Also! Here's a turkey!

 Happy Thanksgiving  everyone. Hope your holiday is filled with joy (and tasty food!)

Jessi Reviews "Anya's Ghost" by Vera Brosgol

Title/Author: Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol
Publisher/Year: First Second, 2011
How I Got This: Library copy 
Why I Read It: Totally grabbed my attention while I was searching the YA section 
Rating: 5 Stars 

Synopsis: Of all the things Anya expected to find at the bottom of an old well, a new friend wasn't one of them. Especially not a new friend who's been dead for a century. 

Falling down a well is bad enough, but Anya's normal life might actually be worse. She's embarrassed by her family, self-conscious about her body, and she's pretty much given up on fitting in at school. A new friend--even a dead one--is just what she needs. 


But Anya's new B.F.F. isn't kidding about the "forever" part...

Review: Wow. Where to start with this...

This is the first graphic novel I've ever read. It caught my eye as I was browsing through the library the other day, and I thought it was about time for me to try a graphic novel, so I picked it up.

And let me just say this--I LOVED it. It was SO flipping good. I have to admit (even though this is going to make me sound ridiculous), I never really had too much desire to read graphic novels, only because they seemed like glorified comic books to me. Well, silly me, now I want to read every one I can get my hands on.

This one was so good for a number of reasons. First of all, I really enjoyed the illustrations. C'mon now, the graphics are probably the most important part of a graphic novel, and these were phenomenal. They were nice and smooth; there was just enough detail without it being overwhelming. Not only that, but the emotions of the characters were crystal clear without having to come out and state "So-and-so was feeling whatever." Also, I LOVED the fact that this was done entirely in shades of black and white. I honestly didn't even notice that lack of color until about 3/4 of the way through. It was just that vivid for me.

The story itself was great, too. Here we have a teenage girl who is struggling to fit in at high school and trying to figure out just who she is in a cultural sense, as well. Anyone who has ever been a teenager or dealt with teenagers will be able to sympathize with Anya, but at the same time, you can't help but laugh at some of the stuff that comes out of her mouth. And can we talk about that ghost story? Holy twist I didn't see coming! I actually got pretty nervous there for a bit--that Emily chick is pretty scary! I flew through the pages. This is definitely a novel capable of being read in one sitting. You'll WANT to read it all in one sitting, it's THAT good.

--Jessi

Tahleen reviews: "Anya's Ghost" by Vera Brosgol

Title: Anya's Ghost
Author: Vera Brosgol
Publisher: First Second, 2011

Rating: 5 stars

Anya, daughter of a Russian immigrant, insecure in her body, and just trying to fit in at her private school, ends up finding a friend in the most unlikely of places. After falling down a well, Anya discovers a skeleton... and its ghost that's been hanging out down there for about 90 years.

At first, Anya is obviously freaked. But she escapes from the well, with help from Emily (the ghost). Who ends up following her out. Emily turns out to be a great friend, helping her with school and boys, but Anya soon figures out that Emily is here to stay... whether she likes it or not.

This graphic novel is beyond awesome. The illustrations are outstanding, all in black, white, gray and muted purple. The pacing of the story is excellent too—we jump into the story right away with Anya's fall, discovery of the skeleton, and subsequent befriending of Emily Reilly, who died 90 years ago after she fell down the well herself.

This is also a mystery. Anya promises to search for Emily's murderer, who she says killed her parents and then chased her through the woods the night of her fall. But Emily seems strangely uninterested and not very eager for Anya to start her search. She's much more interested in finding Anya a way into the heart of her crush, basketball star Sean. Even when Anya isn't interested anymore. Slowly we begin to see Emily's true personality and psychosis, and Anya tries to uncover Emily's history.

I had to keep going back after finishing this to just look at the illustrations and relive parts of the story. There is true terror within the pages, but a more subtle terror than you might expect in a ghost story.

There's also a lot in here about acceptance of yourself and your culture, with Anya's denial of her background and attempts to keep her family out of the line of sight of her schoolmates. She avoids another Russian student at her school because he acts too "fobby," without giving him a chance at any sort of friendship because of his social status. Throughout the plot, she has to come to terms with all of this.

Whether you read graphic novels or not, this is one you should go out and read immediately. The story and illustrations are in perfect harmony to make for one scary and mysterious ride.

Disclosure: I got this from my local library.

Paula Reviews Superman: Earth One

Title: Superman: Earth One

By: J. Michael Straczynski and Shane Davis

Published: 2010 by DC Comics

How I got it: DC Comics sent us a review copy

Why I read it: I love superheroes!

DC decided to create a new universe “Earth One” that will remain separate from the mainstream universe. As far as I’ve been able to gather, this will allow them to re-imagine their iconic characters in a way that is accessible to this generation of comic book readers. Superman: Earth One is the first title that will be published under this moniker, with Batman soon following.

So, this story was supposed to be a revamp of Superman’s origin story. And while it did delve into what happened to Krypton, I’m not sure how much new was really added to Clark’s story. The title did show him wrestling with what he was supposed to do, he felt obligated to become Superman, but he did not know if that was really what was going to make him happy. He went to various job interviews to see if something else would fulfill him, and attempted to reject the iconic S. *Spoiler Alert* Then, after an alien force came to destroy Earth because he was hiding there, he realized that he had no other choice but to be Superman because no one else is able to protect Earth *End Spoiler*.

I feel like the Earth One Universe gave this graphic novel tons of potential to work with. Having a completely new universe untied down by a character’s cannon should have produced something that really created something fantastic. But they stuck with the basic, Krypton blows up -> Jonathon and Martha Kent find a baby -> Later he moves to Metropolis -> He’s Superman! So my feelings are eh, a bit lackluster.

With that being said, the art is really pretty. I read some reviews that they made him look too much like Edward Cullen. I don’t think I really see that… Sure the art is a bit dark, and he’s wearing a hoodie… but he didn’t sparkle, and therefore I think he’s far from Cullen. Thank goodness. The copy I received is wonderfully put together and the nice quality of the pages really shows off the artwork. Also, the artwork was able to create some nice looking iconic pictures of him, such as:

Oooers, pretty. And:

Ooers even prettier!

So all in all, the story is a bit lacking, but even then it’s the first installment, so maybe it will progress into something really clever. When the next one comes out, will I read it? Most likely. Because even if there isn’t much story, the art is awesome to look at.

Rating: 3 Stars.

Tahleen reviews: "Rapunzel's Revenge"

Book Title: Rapunzel's Revenge
Author: Shannon and Dean Hale, illustrated by Nathan Hale (no relation)

Publisher: Bloomsbury, 2008
Where I got it: Through Inter Library Loan at my library.
Why I read this book: I read it for my children's literature class; our unit was on folklore and fairy tales.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Who remembers the old story of Rapunzel? If it's what you're expecting in this graphic novel, you're in for a surprise and a treat. In this tale, things are a bit different.

Rapunzel grows up in a beautiful villa, with servants and everything she could possibly wish for—except the love of the woman she believes to be her mother. Eventually she discovers that beyond her (ridiculously tall) garden wall, there is something she could never have imagined possible.

Things happen—Rapunzel is locked up in her tower, her hair grows. Her witch of a stepmother visits yearly, until Rapunzel crosses her one too many times. What's a girl locked in a tree tower to do? Why, put her 20-foot length of hair to use, of course.

This is a completely fractured and often hilarious Rapunzel tale, a hodgepodge of familiar fairy-tale characters and legends, with a few literary allusions thrown in for good measure. There are a lot of elements that are the same (taking from parents for some stolen lettuce, long hair, trapped in a tower), but the whole thing is completely turned on its head. Set in a vaguely Wild West–ish land, it's a great adventure full of thieves, rescues, acts of daring, narrow escapes, and a bit of romance—not to mention the most awesome fairy-tale heroine I've come across in quite some time. Just look at that picture of the cover! You know she's using those braids for some serious lassoing and butt kicking. Finally, a Rapunzel who knows how to DO stuff.

There's a lot of great detail in here, too, not only in the clever nods to various literary characters, but in the setting and the secondary characters. The ethnicities of each is clearly carefully chosen, especially concerning who owns what type of shop and who is in charge at various villages and towns. It looks pretty well researched, though it lacks any kind of source notes, which is unfortunate. I'd love to know why the Hales chose to use certain aspects and not others, why they decided to set it where they did, and a few more things.

But despite that one drawback, here we finally have a graphic novel heroine who not only holds her own, but is the one to fight for what's right and save the day. This is great for reluctant middle-grade readers, or even those in high school. (It will probably appeal more to girls than boys, but boys can certainly enjoy it too. There's a sequel titled Calamity Jack that came out in January, featuring the male protagonist in its predecesor, which might appeal more to boys. Either way, I certainly plan on reading it.)

Nathan Hale's illustrations are absolutely fantastic. He uses a lot of color, perspective, detail, and humor throughout. He's also great at showing what panels are flashback, what dialogue is meant to be an aside, and each character's face clearly shows their emotions (unless they are too far away in the panel for that kind of detail).

If you like retellings or fractured fairy tales, and you could do with a nice dose of graphic novel fiction, definitely go for this one. It's a fast read, the illustrations are beautiful, it's hilarious, and it's pretty much nonstop action—something for just about everyone.