Flamer by Mike Curato
The simplicity of Flamer is deceptive. There is a lot going on within an image driven story. The text is realistic, and could be from the year 1995 (when the book is set) or today. The black and white illustrations help the story stay the main focus, and the use of fire and the color red is telling. Red is a strong plot mover/plot point as the red color and images becomes its own character. There is even the use of fire and it too becomes its […]
This is Your Mind on Plants by Michael Pollan
Bingo 1: Edibles I think the only other thing I’ve read of Michael Pollan’s was Food Rules, which was as it sounds, a general rules list with brief discussion per rule. They were pretty common sense, and I generally agreed with them. I know he’s actually a bit more controversial than that, but it’s only now I know why. I’ve had This is Your Mind on Plants on my TBR shelf for a while. Now I’ve read it. While the subject isn’t edibles in the […]
B Is for Bellies by Rennie Dyball
Parker’s Place by Russ Willms
Big Wig by Jonathan Hillman
I was going to use B Is for Bellies by Rennie Dyball as my Bingo Bodies but found another one instead. Therefore, I just decided to add this to a review of two other books about being yourself. Starting with a bunch of bellies (well, we have A first as B is for Bellies is an alphabet book) we have a self explanatory picture book. This book is about big bellies, small bellies, black and brown, and white and purple bellies (okay maybe not purple). […]
Two Tribes by Emily Bowen Cohen
The girl on the cover has a necklace with a Star of David and she also has one that represents her Muscogee Nation heritage. And inside the Emily Bowen Cohen graphic novel, the struggle of a young girl unfolds as she learns what it means to be a “Real Native” and a “Real Jewish” Girl. In the story Two Tribes (inspired by the life of Cohen), we follow Mia and see how her two tribes/cultures have similarities, even in their differences. This is a coming […]
Permanent Detention (Piggy Original Graphic Novel) by Vannotes
I have seen this pig toy on Five Below’s website for ages now. I had no idea what it was, but assumed it was from some online/video game. It was this pink pig with a baseball bat and had the look of a zombie-like character. Recently, I saw this book cover with a similar character on it, and thought, “oh, that is the book I just saw advertised in a catalog. Maybe I will give it a shot.” While subconsciously realizing it was the toy, […]
Enlighten Me by Minh Lê
Enlighten Me is a mindfulness/meditation graphic novel for the 10 and up crowd. There is a little bit of a social theme added with the racism the school bully directs towards the narrator, but the idea is how to deal with the emotions and a situation that triggers and not necessarily this particular situation. The entire book is mostly in “thought bubbles” as the narrator and his family are at a silent retreat, and therefore, unable to talk once there. But to allow the teachings of […]
