Tag: graphic novels

REVIEW: DC Super Hero Girls: Weird Science by Amanda Deibert

REVIEW: DC Super Hero Girls: Weird Science by Amanda Deibert

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and DC Comics in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

The DC Super Hero Girls are friends at Metropolis High. And it’s time for the science fair. The judge of this year’s fair is a Cadmus scientist, and the first prize is an internship at Cadmus as well as a year of treats from the Sweet Justice Cafe. All of the girls are excited to get their science on!

All the girls except “Zee” Zatara.

Zee is all about magic, not science. But the Cadmus scientist and Zee’s friends encourage her to help her friends with their projects while she tries to come up with one for herself.

Each project ends in some sort of disaster. Is Zee bad luck? Is she sabotaging her friends? Or is something else going on?

Review

I’ve enjoyed the previous DC Super Hero Girls series, which takes place at Super Hero High, for awhile now. You can read my reviews of those graphic novels here. This is my first book, though in this new Metropolis High series. I prefer the earlier series myself, but I enjoyed this new iteration and setting.

At Metropolis High, the girls have to balance their superhero lives with their alternate identities at school which adds an interesting dynamic to this series. I also enjoyed references to other DC characters. There are appearances here from Hal Jordan, Barry Allen, Steve Trevor, and Lex Luthor as well as references to Superman. The next book – Midterms – promises Lois Lane and Harley Quinn and will release this fall.

This is a meaty story. Zee “helps” Bumblebee, Batgirl, Supergirl, Wonder Woman and a Green Lantern as she prepares for the fair. (It looks like this was originally published as 15 issues of a comic book series. There’s a lot here to dig into.) Every time Zee tries to use magic to fix a problem or speed something along. And almost every time it backfires. Zee doesn’t really learn a lesson from this, but she does find her way to the science fair for herself, and the mystery of the disasters gets solved.

Hand this to DC fans, graphic novel fans, super hero fans, and fans of this series!

Rating: ♥♥♥½

REVIEW: Shadow of the Batgirl by Sarah Kuhn

REVIEW: Shadow of the Batgirl by Sarah Kuhn

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and DC Entertainment in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Cassandra Cain was a trained assassin with no friends, no language and many questions about her past.

When her latest target pleads for his daughter, the word catches Cassandra’s attention and she runs. She finds refuge in a noodle shop and then at the library.

A red-headed young woman in a wheelchair named Barbara leads sessions at the library with some kids, talking about Batgirl and what she meant to the city. Her stories grab Cassandra’s attention. As her literacy skills grow, she starts to seek out the woman’s lessons, reading what she can from articles about Batgirl. She also starts to see her early life in a whole new light. The question is what does she do with this new insight – and her shame over the things she has done?

Review

This was fantastic!! The art style isn’t my favorite – it’s beautiful, but not a style that I gravitate towards – which distracted me at first. But I was obsessed with watching this furtive, skittish girl warm up to the two women in this story who could help her so much if she gave them a chance. And of course I loved the library setting for this!

I did some research on the history of Cassandra Cain in DC Comics. (I’m more familiar with the Barbara Gordon version of the character of Batgirl.) I like the choices made in this with her language development and the relationship with Barbara and Jackie. The developing friendship between the three of them was one of my favorite parts of the story.

There’s a small romantic storyline in this and tons of identity exploration. Who is Barbara now if she is not Batgirl? What is Erick going to choose for his life – will he be the man he wants to be or the one his parents expect him to become? Can Cassandra choose to be something other than the assassin she was created to be? I was here for every one of those questions. It was all amazing.

DC continues to impress me with their non-comic graphic novels for kids and teens. You can read my thoughts about the DC book universe here. You can also read some of my recent DC reviews – Black Canary Ignite, Diana Princess of the Amazons, Teen Titans: Raven, Wonder Woman Warbringer, Mera:Tidebreaker. And there will be more this spring – I can’t wait to tell you about them! But this one just might be my favorite of all of them. I hope you will check it out! (Some language)

DC Entertainment graciously shared some of the interior art work with me so I could show you what’s in store for you with this terrific story!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Marvel Super Hero Adventures

REVIEW: Marvel Super Hero Adventures

Posted on by Jaymie

The debate over whether or not graphic novels “count” as “real reading” continues, but for me there was never any doubt. As a visual learner, I love comics and graphic novels. And plenty of my students did, too.

These three Marvel Super Hero Adventure graphic novels immediately grabbed my eye at our local comic book store. I couldn’t pass them up. These collect five comics starring Spider-Man and various other Marvel heroes and villains. The art is perfect – exactly the style I love in graphic novels.

To Wakanda and Beyond – This is the first book of the line. I was a little disappointed with this one. I read it last instead of first, and it didn’t include some of the features that made the other books extra fun. Each of the stories here is part of a lesson Spider-Man is trying to impart to someone else. It’s fun, but not as fun as the other two books. Black Panther only makes an appearance in one story in this volume. There is also a Doctor Strange team up, a young heroes adventure (Cassie Lang, Kate Bishop), an adventure with Ms Marvel and another with one of the Inhumans. There is also a teaser for the Marvel Rising line as well as a Super Hero Adventures early chapter book teaser. Rating: ♥♥♥½

Captain Marvel – Remember that this is a Spider-Man collection (the title is misleading), and you will be happy with this one. Captain Marvel plays a major role in one story and a smaller part in two others. So kids picking this up looking for a lot of Captain Marvel might be disappointed. But if they go in expecting just fun Marvel stories, this won’t disappoint. This book includes a collection of small Halloween stories, an adventure with Nova, Ms. Marvel and Shuri (!), a Spider-Gwen story, and a Thor/Loki battle that eventually draws in the rest of the Avengers. One story in this collection is duplicated from the Wakanda book. One feature I loved in the last two books of the line (so far) are the comics in between stories. They include various Marvel characters but the comics are done in the style of famous Sunday funnies – Calvin and Hobbs, Garfield, Peanuts, etc. Rating: ♥♥♥♥

Spider-Man – Fans of Marvel’s Into the Spider-verse will enjoy this collection which includes several members of the Spider-verse. This is probably my favorite of the three books for that very reason. This includes one story that also appears in the Captain Marvel book. This book also includes the Sunday funnies interludes between stories. Rating: ♥♥♥♥

I think all of these would be terrific for Marvel fans, super hero fans, and in classroom libraries!

REVIEW: Nick the Sidekick by Dave Whamond

REVIEW: Nick the Sidekick by Dave Whamond

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Nick’s super-amazing hearing – and extra large ears – aren’t always an advantage. Sure, he can hear a kid trapped in a backpack by bullies and hear the teacher planning a pop quiz. But he also gets hassled for his crazy-big ears.

When Super Fantastic Guy recruits him as a “superhero assistant,” though, Nick is ready to use his powers for good!

Unfortunately, being a side kick is just as annoying and clichéd as Nick was afraid of. And Super Fantastic Guy likes to always take all the credit! Maybe Nick should give up his dream of ever being a real superhero.

Review

This is a fun graphic novel that will feel familiar to any superhero fan. Nick is absolutely right about all of the superhero tropes and clichés, but he also calls them out when he sees them.

This was a great introduction to Nick, Super Fantastic Guy, and Nick’s best friend, Tess. Lots of potential for future stories – criminals to foil, skills to learn (like flying), and ways for Super Fantastic Guy and Nick to find balance in their relationship.

My students would have loved this graphic novel when I was teaching. This will be popular with elementary-aged readers.

Thanks to Netgalley and Kids Can Press for the opportunity to read an electronic review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: ♥♥♥½

SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: Must-Have Graphic Novels for Kids

SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: Must-Have Graphic Novels for Kids

Posted on by Jaymie

Recently a teacher friend asked me for my list of “must-have” graphic novels for her classroom (5th and 6th graders). Graphic novels are fun for a lot of kids. While some folks feel like it’s not “real reading,” that is not really true. With graphic novels, students get to practice thinking through the sequencing of a story. Visual learners get a lot of material to work with as they read the pictures as well as the text. Graphic novels can give extra support to kids who are still working on word decoding because the pictures support the text. They can introduce kids to material they might not try otherwise, but they explore because of this format. And for kids who feel like reading is a chore, graphic novels can make reading feel like fun.

Here is the list I gave her for my personal “must have” graphic novels:

Autobiographies

Some of the most popular graphic novels for this age group are autobiographies. Raina Telgemeier is maybe the best known for telling her personal stories in this format. When I was teaching, her books were always checked out from the library from the first day of check outs to the end of the school year. Many kids think of biographies and autobiographies as dry books that someone will have to force them to read. These books challenge that impression. You can read my review of Real Friends here.

Fantasy

I personally read a lot of fantasy, so these graphic novels are ones I read and enjoy. Wings of Fire: The Dragonet Prophecy and The Lightning Thief are both based on novels. The Wings of Fire book series is 10 books long to date, with book 11 releasing this summer. The Rick Riordan mythology books have been around for years. Three of the original Percy Jackson books have been released as graphic novels, too. His entire Egyptian mythology series, The Kane Chronicles, as well as two books in the Heroes of Olympus series have been released in this format as well. HiLo is an original series that I fell in love with when I was teaching. I’ve reviewed the DC Super Hero Girls GN series here on the blog before. I received the Star Wars graphic novels for Christmas (one volume for the original trilogy, another for the prequels, and a stand alone book for The Force Awakens). I love the art style in these and I know my students would have loved these too.

Nonfiction

Some of my students had the idea that nonfiction books were a drag. Thankfully there are a lot of visually appealing nonfiction books being introduced for kids, including these two series of graphic novels. Science Comics covers a variety of topics from dogs to dinosaurs to volcanoes and rockets. Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales cover different time periods in history. Readers will find some swearing in these books as the author directly quotes some historical figures. This series has covered Harriet Tubman, Nathan Hale, World War II and other topics.

Miscellaneous

These final recommendations were “maybes” for my friend. The Action Bible is a graphic novel of the Bible which we had in the school library. I thought it was a great way to get reluctant students to check out the Bible for themselves (I taught at a Christian school). Binky the Space Cat is targeted for a younger reader than my friend is teaching. But the stories I think still work for older elementary students. My younger readers zeroed in on Babymouse and the Lunch Lady graphic novels and sometimes missed Binky. I still love this series and think it is great for kids of any age. I have blogged about Phoebe and her Unicorn many times. These are more comic strip books than graphic novels that tell essentially one story from start to finish. The quality and humor make them perfect for the older elementary crowd. Finally, there is a graphic novel for A Wrinkle in Time. I have not read it (yet!), but with the movie releasing later this year, it could be a terrific addition to a classroom (or home) library.