Children's book reviews, all age comic books, Kidlit, mglit, movies, entertainment and parenting
Charming is such a nice and underused way to describe a graphic novel. A charming graphic novel is one that’s happy, might (or might not) teach a lesson, has a shareability factor, and is just fun to read. With that build-up, it’s no spoiler alert that Batter Royale is a very easygoing, affable, and charming graphic novel that’ll be in the sweet spot for ages eight and up.
Little kids want to be big kids. They want to until they have to do the big kid work, and then they’ll revert back to being little kids. Getting elementary school-aged kids to read as soon as possible is integral to their success. Being able to read and comprehend text when you’re younger will only make school easier, less frustrating, and more fun. Everybody likes to have fun, don’t they? Bug Scouts Camp Out! is the second book in this series by Mike Lowery. This graphic novel checks off so many boxes in the pre-k and early elementary school book that a housing inspector would be jealous.
Recently I was surprised to find out that Enola Holmes was a series of books before it was a Netflix movie and before it was a graphic novel. To some folks, I realize that fact sets my surprise barometer rather low, akin to the water is wet crowd. For upper elementary, through middle school readers the Spy School series of books by Stuart Gibbs is a bulletproof vehicle for fun, fast-paced reading that helps those ages fall in love with literature. When Spy School The Graphic Novel came out I was less than impressed. As the series of mglit books goes, so goes the graphic novels and Spy Camp The Graphic Novel is upon us. And perhaps it took the Enola Holmes graphic novel to brush off our burs, but Spy Camp The Graphic Novel is an entertaining and fun book.
Make me interested in a quasi-graphic novel about a fashion designer. I Am Coco, The Life of Coco Chanel by Isabel Pin politely, says “Hold my glass of wine.” I Am Coco is an excellent of example of how the medium of a graphic novel is able to tell a story to an otherwise unapproachable audience. It’s not that I’m a fashion snob. It’s just that the only thing I knew about Coco Chanel is that it’s a perfume presented via esoteric voiceovers and dreamy visuals where it’s always windy and people are having grand adventures in foreign vistas with exotic animals by their feet. In reality, the story of Coco Chanel is much more about an entrepreneur who was creating her own path during a time when many of the world’s greats were making their mark.
The cover to Best Shot in the West looks like a promotional poster for a rodeo or a cowboy recruitment drive. Come join us, see the west, rope horses, and let the only boundaries for what you can become only be limited by your abilities, getting trampled by steer or disease. That was the modus operandi in the late 1800s for those who wanted independence, adventure, or financial freedom back and the superstars who opted for the first two had great nicknames. Nat Love had a great name from the get-go, but his cowboy nomenclature was equally as great, Deadwood Dick.
There is a reason why successful intellectual properties cross over to different mediums and it all comes down to the fact that we’re busy. I was too busy to read the book, but I saw the movie or television show and really liked that. As a matter of fact, I liked it so much that I read the next chapter in the book when it came out. Enola Holmes is an example of this occurrence. Enola Holmes: The Graphic Novels, Book Two is out and it compiles three graphic novels of Ms. Holmes’s happenings.
Xerox and Coca-Cola are brand names that have become synonymous with their product. Cola, soda, or ‘make a copy’ are their siblings that are hiding in plain sight. Likewise, books that are closely associated with their contemporaries are often grouped together, for example, it’s like Harry Potter, Wimpy Kid, or Dog Man. For young readers of a certain age or period of their life, Wimpy Kid, and the world that surrounds him, represent their go-to entertainment. However, Wimpy Kid, when used in those instances is an adjective and not a noun. Quest Kids and the Dragon Pants of Gold is a great example of that being used as an adjective. It follows the cartoon and text format to an extent; but has aspects that allow the book to be embraced by readers who are younger, as well as, reeling in those reluctant readers.
Prior to reading We The People! I had no idea about the woman who was the first Second Lady and the second First Lady. Abigail Adams was the wife of John Adams, the first Vice President and second President of the United States. Abigail Adams is also the narrator in Big Ideas That Changed The World, We The People! The Big Ideas That Changed The World graphic novel series is from Don Brown and absolutely nails the intersection of education and entertainment down to the floor. We The People! gives people a deep, yet entirely accessible, dive into American democracy and how it came to be.
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