Independent Opinions, News, and Reviews of Graphic Novels, Manga, and Comic Books
The Strange and Brilliant Life of Robert “Believe It or Not!” Ripley I hadn’t thought about “Ripley’s Believe It or Not!” in years. I remember reading it as a kid, before the internet made it much easier to find these kinds of weird factoids and information about different cultures. And that’s why Neal Thompson’s biography of Robert Ripley appealed to me — it reminded me of a long-ago time when the world was a much larger, more unusual place. Ripley […]
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Would you like to read a mashup of Agatha Christie, Jane Austen, and Lumberjanes? Then The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place, by Julie Berry, is the book for you. The seven young women at St. Etheldreda’s School for Girls have been sent there because their parents find them too unladylike in one way or another. To make clear the “shame” they each bear (and help the reader keep them straight), each is referred to with a demeaning adjective, such as […]
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Out in early 2015 is this fascinating young adult novel dealing with the issues of being transgender and intersex. Alex appears to be a boy, but she’s determined that she should really be a girl. When she decides to go public, attending a different school while dressing as female, her family falls apart, revealing a secret that’s been kept from her her whole life. As written by Alyssa Krugman, Alex as Well is told mostly in internal monologue, giving the […]
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Of All the Gin Joints is a wonderful read for anyone interested in Hollywood history and/or alcohol — and really, can the two be separated? Mark Bailey has assembled in one volume short profiles of movie stars and writers, particularly those notable for how much they imbibed; their often notorious incidents involving drinking; descriptions of famous clubs and watering holes from the past; scenes from classic movies affected by alcohol; and classic cocktail recipes. I wanted to try them all, […]
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The Prep School Confidential trilogy, a set of young adult novels about murder mysteries at an exclusive boarding school (think Gossip Girl as written by Agatha Christie), concludes with Deadly Little Sins. I reviewed the first book at the first link; the second was Wicked Little Secrets, in which protagonist Anne Dowling solves a 30-year-old student disappearance. You can read this newest one, Deadly Little Sins, without either of the others, although the characters will be deeper and more recognizable […]
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If you have an older relative who loves either trains or old-fashioned cartoon art, then I have the perfect gift for you to give them. Railway Ribaldry was originally published in 1935 to mark the centenary of the (English) Great Western Railway. Now its 96 pages have been reprinted, which should delight those who enjoy pen-and-ink portraits of another way of life. Most of us will have no idea what the subjects refer to, since few of us take trains […]
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I got Bellweather Rhapsody from my local library, and I read it through in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down. The publisher describes the book as “full of knowing nods to pop culture classics from The Shining to Agatha Christie to Glee.” True enough. The Bellweather Hotel is a decaying old Catskills resort, the location of a high school music festival that promises great things for the few who stand out there. Alice and Rabbit, twins, are attending […]
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written by Tania del Rio; art by Bill Galvan and Bob Smith Archie Comics is tackling the popular “illustrated diary” format (think Dork Diaries or Diary of a Wimpy Kid) with this hardcover starring the Riverdale girl next door, Betty. It’s aimed at kids 9-12 years old, which is obvious. Although the stories are supposedly about Betty’s fears and struggles entering high school, she seems much younger. It’s a well-known saying that kids like to read up from their age, […]
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