June 2011 books

[dirtylibrarian]

Zendegi
Greg Egan
Adult Fiction
Recommend?: Definitely!
Science fiction. Iran. Artificial intellegence. Loss. Family. Video games. Virtual reality.
I really enjoyed this. Touching and provokative.

M.I.A. (DMZ - Volume 9)
Brian Wood
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Yes.
NYC. Civil wars. Journalism. Guilt. Redirection.
Getting a bit stale. Seems to be trying for a reboot.

Will Supervillains Be on the Final? (Liberty Vocational - Volume 1)
Naomi Novik
Teen Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Shrug.
Boarding schools. Superheroes. Manga.
Nothing new here.

My Life as a Book
Janet Tashjian
Tween Fiction
Recommend?: Shrug.
Summer. Boys. Reading resistance. Mysteries. Death. Babysitters. Parental relations. Best friends. Dogs. Drawing.
Likely to appeal to Diary of a Wimpy Kid crowd.

Rose Red (Fables - Volume 15)
Bill Willingham
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Fairy tales. Leadership. Babies. Witches. Villians. Plots. Snow White. Talking animals.
Solid continuation of a great series.

Mister Wonderful: A Love Story
Daniel Clowes
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Yes.
Middle age. Dating. Hopelessness. Hope. Romance. Flaws. History. Humanity. Blind dates. Homeless people. Parties. Matches.
Felt like another D.C. bummerfest, but carried hope all the way through to end upbeat. I liked it.

Forgotten
Cat Patrick
Teen Fiction
Recommend?: Definitely!
Memory. High school. Romance. Friendship. Family. Loss. Trauma. Supernatural.
Very fun and unusual read that will keep teens guessing and entertained.

Daytripper
Fabio Moon
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Life. Death. Family. Friendship. Dogs. Writers. Obitiuaries. Possibilities. Children. Childhood. Brazil. Love.
Really quite wonderful. Highly recommended.

Collective Punishment (DMZ - Volume 10)
Brian Wood
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
War. Collateral. Spies. Art. Babies. Torture. Bombings. Journalism.
Still gripping and honest, making it easy to imagine what war would look like on our homefront.

Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany
Bill Buford
Adult Audiobook
Recommend?: Definitely!
Foodies. Cooking. Chefs. Television personalities. Restaurant business. Apprentices. Obsession. Food. Italy. Travel. Butchers. Small food.
Nice that Buford does all this hard work to get this experience, so I can just read about it and not do it myself.

Incredible Change-Bots Two
Jeffrey Brown
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Shrug.
Robots. Aliens. Adventure. Parody.
Not totally sure why I wanted to read this, or finished it. Sort of amusing? And small.

I Love Him to Pieces (My Boyfriend Is a Monster - Volume 1)
Evonne Tsang
Teen Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Yes.
Zombies. High school students. Romance.
Sweet nerd and jock love/survival story.

Inside Man (The Unwritten - Volume 2)
Mike Carey
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Yes.
Characters. Writers. Supernatural. Prison. Reporters. Flying cats. Nazis. Children's stories. Anipormorphic animals.
Well done and slowly unwinding. Kinda wish I had re-read the first one before picking this one up.

Trapped
Michael Northrop
Teen Fiction
Recommend?: Yes.
Snow storms. Extreme weather. High school. Friendship. Crushes. Bullies. Survival.
Not bad, but I wanted more from it. Will do well with adolescent male readers.

Yotsuba&! (Volume 9)
Kiyohiko Azuma
Teen Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Japan. Manga. Small girls. Imagination. Teddy bears. Neighbors. Road trips. Hot air balloons.
Delightful, as always.

The Lathe of Heaven
Ursula K. Le Guin
Adult Fiction
Recommend?: Definitely!
Dreams. Science fiction. Supernatural powers. Fate. Change. Aliens. Romance. Manipulation.
Really excellent. One to re-read in time.

Saturn Apartments (Volume 3)
Hisae Iwaoka
Teen Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Definitely!
Manga. Science-fiction. Space stations. Window washers. Clients. Help. Kindness. Ghosts.
A suprisingly moving series with great characters and interesting art.

Bad Dog: A Love Story
Martin Kihn
Adult Non-Fiction
Recommend?: Yes.
Alcoholics. Dog training. NYC. Bernese mountain dogs. Love. Marriage. Rocky times. Self confidence. Healing.
Not the most amazing story, but a decent tale if you are interested in alcoholism and dogs.

Forged in Flames (Four Eyes - Volume 1)
Joe Kelly
Adult Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Yes.
Great depression. New York City. Alternative history. Fantasy. Dragons. Loss fathers. Gangsters.
Pretty good, though the main character didn't seem aged correctly somehow.

The Club of Angels
Luis Fernando Verissimo
Adult Fiction
Recommend?: Yes.
Brazil. Foodies. Clubs. Friendship. Gastronomic pleasures. Death. Scandals. Mysterious strangers. Murder. Suicide. Food.
Weird but enjoyable.

Yo Gabba Gabba: Comic Book Time
Various
Kids Graphic Novel
Recommend?: Shrug.
TV spin-offs. Comic books. Monsters. Dancing. Wigs. Friendship.
Might be good intro to comics for YGG lovers, but unclear if aimed at pre-schoolers or adults.