Giants Beware is a Fun Graphic Novel

On my last trip to Cover to Cover Sally handed me a copy of Giants Beware by Rafael Rosado and Jorge Aguirre. She'll be participating in the publicity of this new graphic novel and wanted to know what I think.

I think I like it! The heroine in the story is Claudette, a tom boy who dreams of nothing more than slaying giants. She is tired of the town historians telling the story of the battle against the Baby-Feet Eating Giant and how he got away. Claudette is tired of living in a town that lives in fear of the beast and wants to find him and slay him. Adding fuel to her fire is the fact that her father, the famous sword maker, was maimed by a giant during his giant hunting days. She wants to continue the family tradition, hunt down this gruesome beast and kill him once and for all.

The scrappy Claudette enlists the help of her friend Marie, a wannabe princess and her brother Gaston, a wannabe pastry chef/sword maker. The three of them set off with Claudette's dog, Valient, on an adventure that takes them through the Forrest of Death where they encounter an old crone who used to be the Maiden of the Forrest. Then they come to the Mad River where they meet the Mad River King and his son the fish face. Throughout all of the adventures humor prevails. When they finally meet the giant the fun doesn't stop and with the help of some "magic" berries they conquer him too.

While I'm not a huge fan of the graphic novel genre, I know a lot of my students are so I'm always on the look out for some good stuff to add to our collection. I'll be adding this one and telling Sally I like it a lot!

Adventures in Graphic Novels

I just finished reading 3 graphic novels in a row. As I've said before, I'm not a big fan of the genre but it's growing on me. Add the fact that when I went to buy the books on my daughter's summer reading list one of the three was in graphic novel form, and I'm becoming more accepting. Somewhere, my blogging mentor Mary Lee is smiling!

Wonderland written by Tommy Kovac and illustrated by Sonny Liew is a sort of retelling of Alice in Wonderland with some rather strange twists. The reader is introduced to the Queen of Spades and the main character the White Rabbit's house maid named Mary Ann. As the front flap says, the story grows "curiouser and curiouser" as all of the characters, new and old, mistake her for the Alice Monster. I liked the story of this one, I think it might be a bit too confusing for most of my readers, and I loved the artwork. Of the three I just finished, Sonny Liew's drawings are my favorite. I'm pretty sure those who are bigger fans of the real Alice in Wonderland story are going to love this one.

Hyperactive written by Scott Christian Sava and illustrated by Joseph Bergin III was probably my favorite overall of the three I read. I say this because I know I can put it in our library and it won't stay on the shelves. While sitting in class little Johnny Johnson realizes that the world around him moves TOOOOO SLLLOOOOWWW! Classes are too long, the walk home too slow, daily chores too much time, and then his metabolism goes crazy and he finds he can move at superhuman speed. As he races around the playground to prove that he has super speed, his best friend Freddy only has one request, to be his sidekick. I love the dodge ball scene where the girl bully has plans for Johnny's head that involve the two dodge balls she is holding, but Johnny's super speed kicks in and the bully's team is devastated on the gym floor and former drill sargent PE teacher is in shock. The story is fun and the kids will like this one as much as The Knights of the Lunch Table because it's simple and the illustrations bright and colorful. I like this one a lot.

Joey Fly Private Eye in Creep Crawly Crime written by Aaron Reynolds and illustrated by Neil Numberman was a funny take off on old detective movies complete with the beautiful butterfly victim who turns out to be trouble. Joey Fly takes on an assistant a young scorpion named Sammy Stingtail to solve the mystery of the missing diamond pencil case. I love the way that Joey talks in the classic tough guy detective phrases like "A butterfly. Swallowtail, if I didn't miss my guess. She was a tall drip of water. And I was suddenly feeling parched." The book made me laugh throughout and the case is pretty predictable so the kids will probably solve it too, and that's a good thing. I'm not sure they will get the humor as much as I did, but the drawings are well done and entertaining, so the kids will most likely enjoy this one.

It looks like I've found two more graphic novels to add to the library, our collection is growing and I'll keep looking. I'm pretty excited because I just learned at Frank Cammuso's blog that book two of the Knights of the Lunch Table is ready for release and can be pre-ordered at Amazon.

Two Graphic Novels....WHAT!?

My friend Mary Lee at A Year of Reading has long been a fan of the graphic novel, and has been bugging me to give them a try. She even suggested many titles, and I've always been hesitant to read them. I guess I can't get past getting in trouble for reading Archie and Friends or MAD Magazine in school. You all remember when teachers didn't consider that "real" reading.

I guess I'm a product of my times, but just like stretching myself to read more fantasy since I took over as librarian, I knew that the genre wasn't going away, in fact it's growing like crazy. So, my sense of responsibility took over and I began reading the graphic novel reviews in School Library Journal. I found two so far that I like and will most likely be adding to our library. The question is how do I shelve them, in their own section, or with the other fiction. It's a question that I go back and forth on over and over. Any help you can give would be appreciated, what do you think?

The first is the beginning of a series called Knights of the Lunch Table: The Dodgeball Chronicles by Frank Cammuso. The title alone made this one appealing to me!

Artie King is the new kid in school and in order to fit in he makes some wild claims about his dodgeball skills which get he and his misfit friends into some trouble. The book is filled with King Arthur references, from a locker that can only be opened by the true of heart, to the name of the middle school, Camelot. Artie's favorite teacher that seems to be oh so wise and full of advice is Mr. Merlyn and the list goes on. It would make a fun classroom activity to challenge students to read King Arthur and see how many references they can come up with. I like the story line of this one, the new kid getting into trouble, struggling to fit in and the humor of this graphic novel actually had me laughing out loud in some places. I know kids are going to love this one, and I can't wait for the next in the series. Be sure to read the author intro at the end of the book, very funny.

The second graphic novel was totally different, Wild Ride: A Graphic Guide Adventure has a non-fiction aspect to it which I kind of liked. Wild Ride by Liam O'Donnell involves a group of kids in the wilderness. They are flying to meet their parents, environmentalists working to protect the wilds of British Columbia. Following a plane crash they are forced to survive in the wilderness. It is at this point that the non-fiction kicks in. Survival tips such as what to pack in a wilderness survival kit, basic first aid, how to use a signal mirror, and other safety tips are included. While stranded, the kids find themselves in the company of an unscrupulous government worker with plans to foil their parents' environmental studies in order to collect a bribe from the logging company. The illustrations by Mike Deas are darker than I like, giving the book a much more serious somber tone even though the author tries to add some humor. As I read, I was reminded of the Boys' Life magazines I used to read in which one of my favorite features was a comic about real life heroes. I see on Liam Donnell's website that the second Graphic Guide Adventure will be out shortly and involves skate boarding.

Well, Mary Lee, I've taken the plunge, keep sending me those graphic novel titles!