October 2008 Books

[dirtylibrarian]

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Junot Diaz
Adult Fiction
Recommend?: Yes.
Dominican-Americans. Immigrant experience. Nerds. Science fiction. Comic books. Virginity. College. Dominican Republic. Tyrants. Storytelling. Family myths.
Not quite everything I was hoping for, but really good and fun to discuss with book group.

Get Some (The Boys - Volume 2)
Garth Ennis
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Corruption. Superheroes. Blackmail. Homophobia. Violence. Russia. Balance of power. Gore.
Disgusting, disturbing, and deeply satisfying.

Apocalypse Suite (Umbrella Academy - Volume 1)
Gerard Way
Teen Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Shrug.
Aliens. Superheroes. Families. Crime. Depression. Monkeys. Robots. End of the World.
Better than many, but nothing that particularly endeared it to me.

After School Nightmare (Volume 1)
Setona Mizushiro
Teen Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Shrug.
Horror. Schools. Secrets. Transsexuals. Supernatural. Tests. Romance. Sex.
Lots of teen appeal, but best stored in the adult collection.

Playboy's Silverstein Around the World
Shel Silverstein
Adult Non-Fiction
Recommend?: Definitely!
Travel. Humor. Exploration. People. Russia. Haight Street. Fire Island. Tokyo. Nudist colonies. Cartoonists.
Delightful glimpses at fascinating places during transformative times.

Dramarama
E. Lockhart
Teen Fiction
Recommend?: Definitely!
High school. Outcasts. Friendship. Drama camp. Theater. Acting. Summer. Romance. Talent. Drive.
Fun and wacky book, with much more going on that you would guess from the surface. Great stuff.

American Widow
Alissa Torres
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Yes.
911. Survivors. Widows. Babies. Bureaucracy. Help. Struggle. Sadness.
Honest and somewhat moving portrait of a family deeply hurt by 911.

Terrier (Beka Cooper - Volume 1)
Tamora Pierce
Teen Audiobook
Recommend?: Definitely!
Fantasy. Cities. Slums. Police. Trainees. Child killers. Kidnappings. Murder. Gangs. Bakers. Cats.
Delightful reading of a fun book. Like a police drama taking place in medieval times.

The Burma Chronicles
Guy Delisle
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Burma. Cartoonists. Oppression. Charity organizations. Medical care. Doctors Without Boarders. Parenthood. Babies. Culture shock.
Delightful and informative peek into a country not many of us know much about.

Emiko Superstar
Mariko Tamako
Teen Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Geeks. Performance art. Freaks. Friendship. Babysitting. Family. Growth.
Really enjoyable. I'm so sad Minx is being killed :(

Aquarium
Diane Cook
Adult Photography
Recommend?: Yes.
Aquariums. Walls. Photography. Artificial environments. Perspective. Husband wife art teams.
Cool look at the artifice and beauty of aquariums, with contrasting views from married photographers.

Book of Dead Days
Marcus Sedgwick
Teen Audiobook
Recommend?: Shrug.
Old European cities. Magicians. Servants. Bad bargains. Souls. Mysteries. Fantasy.
This book irritated me on more levels than I wish to list here.

Breakdowns: Portrait of the Artist as a Young %@&*!
Art Spiegelman
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Biography. Evolution. Reprinted material. Loss. Underground comix. Art.
Great combination of reprints framed in new material with Spiegelman exploring his place in the growth of comics to a "respectable" art.