Reading List 2008

Books are listed in order of when I read them, starting on January 1st. 'GN' refers to graphic novel.

Donaldson, Stephen R. - Fatal Revenant: The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book Two - What is it that I just eat up about these books? The character names range from okay to 'what the heck?' ('Saltheart Foamfollower'?); the plot is sometimes incomprehensible (wait, where are we going again and why?); the motivations are frequently unknown to the reader (Why does EVERYONE hate Linden, and should we?) and the protagonist spends entire chapters either whining or having 'family meetings'. Somehow, the world Donaldson has created is bigger than any of that, and seems real enough to matter to us. He does a great job with extremes of beauty and despair and power and helplessness. And where in many fantasy books the magic seems small, in his books it is epic, mythic even. Now awaiting the next one, and it may be a while.

Various - Simpsons Comics Royale - I don't often list GNs that are just funnybook collections, but this also had a number of short 'essays' by Matt Groening that talk about his growing up in Portland and some of the stories of his own life that show up in the Simpsons. Interesting just for those, and the comics are fairly funny too.

Stewart, Paul and Riddell, Chris - Beyond the Deepwoods: The Edge Chronicles, Book One - Seemed a bit choppy at first, with the short chapters, each one some new peril being dumped on Twig. He had no time to stop and think! Still, everything worked toward a goal and all his challenges prepared him for the end of the story... fun, and kept Penelope and I interested. She wants the subsequent books!

Smith, Jeff - SHAZAM: The Monster Society of Evil - Very fun new beginning for Captain Marvel. He clearly loves the old comics, but updated them for modern readers, making goofy old characters (Mary Marvel and a talking tiger) palatable and fun. Gorgeous art!

Brake, Colin - Doctor Who: The Price of Paradise - Would be a fun episode to watch, but somehow not as 'important' as the other books. Planet in such perfect balance that it freaks out and attacks if anyone new lands on it.

Geary, Rick - The Saga of the Bloody Benders - Non-fiction GN chronicling the freakish serial killer family of the Kansas homesteading days.

Burner, Brett and Miller, Mike - Hand of the Morningstar: Resurrection - Second in ygn superhero series by Zondervan. Curse it all, interesting characters. That Bible, it has some good stories. I don't really want to keep reading, but I suspect that I will. Gaah.

Oppel, Kenneth - Dead Water Zone - earlier work than Airborn, probably something that didn't get as much attention until he got popular. Interesting short work about a grim kinda-Earth where people are being turned into pale non-bloodsucking vampires (strong, fast, not so good in the sun) by drinking 'dead water'. Boy looks for his missing brother, meets weird pale girl. More interesting: the stratified society in the background. A fun ride...

Lovelace, Maud Hart - Betsy, Tacy and Tib - (Bedtime reading with Penelope). The kids are just plain funny, in that universally inventive way that kids still are, despite all the technology and nonsense these days. What a neat picture of a bygone age.

Various - Superman: The Amazing Transformations of Jimmy Olsen - That kid is the most resilient person in the DC universe. Megabrain, fatboy, freak/superhero, werewolf... silly fun.

Wright, John C. - The Golden Age - The 'Jack Vance' wikipedia entry listed this as a book based on Jack's style of storytelling, world-building and language use. Just so! Not derivative, just a fabulous homage, yet truly its own tale of a future society gone awry, and a look at what happens when we can consciously edit our own reality to fit our preferences. One stunning concept after another... to be continued!

Palin, Michael - Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years - Excerpts from Palin's copious diaries. Short, interesting insights into the times and events concurrent with (but not necessarily all about) the Monty Python television series and movies. Read the first eighth or so, but then it was due... will try to get it again, good fun and interesting commentary.

Nix, Garth - One Beastly Beast - Contains four short stories that have humor and unlikely situations for young folks. Read with Penelope, and she enjoyed them quite a bit. Definitely for kids, less exciting for adults. 'Blackbread the Pirate' was my favorite.

Mieville, China - Un Lun Dun - About the place where obsolete things go, a girl foreseen to be its savior, and someone who finds out that she's the 'funny sidekick', yet seems to have to do everything. Deeba is a fabulous character, imperfect, occasionally irritable, but heroic. Lots of 'Who's on who's side?'

Wright, John C - The Phoenix Exultant - Picks up where 'The Golden Age' left off, like the second part of one long work rather than a separate book. Much like the first, it's stuffed with intriguing concepts. The protagonist, Phaeton, is a fearless individualist immersed in a society where nearly everything is done for you. It's just plain fabulous. More to come!

Card, Orson Scott - Ender's Game - I wasn't planning on rereading it just now, but I picked it up while waiting for something on the computer to load, and before I knew it was 50 pages in. I'd forgotten how good this actually is.

Gaiman, Neil - M is for Magic - Short story collection, featuring some of my favorites ('Chivalry', for instance).

Wright, John C. - The Golden Transcendence - Last of the Golden Age trilogy... and curse it all, it's over. An excellent ending; keep reading through the appendices!

Stracyzinski, J. Michael - Spider-Man: Back in Black (GN of course, covering the aftermath of Marvel's Civil War in Spidey's life. Aunt May takes a bullet meant for Peter, and the gloves are off.)

Burroughs, Edgar Rice - At the Earth's Core - First of the Pellucidar series. Great adventure, certainly reflective of the time written (oh good, savages to uplift!), but fun for all that.

Fox, Sonny - Jokes... and How to Tell Them - I had this as a kid, and now I thank MCL for its participation in the Interlibrary Loan System, for I got to read it again after all those years. To think I've been mistelling the Great Dane in the ice cream shop joke for all this time! Q. How do you make a car top? A. Tep on the brake, tupid! Fox notes to avoid offensive jokes that may be hurtful, but when this came out in 1965, it was still okay to make fun of Native Americans and the Japanese. Kind of odd to read as an adult in the 21st century. Still, many old gems to be found.

Bourne, Malcolm - Tales of Ordinary Madness - Painful and disturbing GN, truly affecting. Started reading it standing up, and didn't notice I was still standing up until I was done reading it. Scary how close the 'sane' are to the mentally ill....

Elsey, David - Always There - Short book (chapbook?) of poetry and prose. Especially liked 'We Give Death the Finger'. Nice fellow, too!

Grossman, Austin - Soon I Will Be Invincible - Account of the supervillain Doctor Impossible and the rookie superhero Fatale. Reasonably literary, thoughtful and fun. Some action but not a lot; most is off-camera, and the mood is more introspective. I liked it.

Shivack, Nadia - Inside Out: Portrait of an Eating Disorder - Nonfiction GN about the author's lifelong battle with bulemia. Very painful to read. 2007.

Anthony, Piers - Battle Circle - What truly engrossing stuff. Classic Anthony, hopeful sci-fi but not sugar-coated. The scenes in the circle (and pretty much all of the 'Sos the Rope' third) are just plain excellent.

Vance, Jack - The Five Gold Bands - Rogue of the future Paddy Blackthorne has the secret to spacedrives, and those controlling the use thereof want it back! Early Vance, not quite as fanciful or, well, 'Vancian' as his later stuff, but very fun and a quick, rollicking read.

Moore, Alan - League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier - It's many years later (WWII), and Mina and Allan are looking quite immortal and young. They're afoul of James Bond & MI5. Bits about Roland/Orlando, Fanny Hill. Plenty of sexual stuff as usual per Moore; he shies away from nothing. '1984' happened, 'Little Nemo' (I think) is there, and the best bit of all, a text piece called "'What Ho, Gods of the Abyss' by the Rt. Hon. Bertram Wooster," where Jeeves and Wooster run afoul of Cthulhu worshippers at Aunt Dahlia's. Poor Gussie. Spot on! Looks like the last tale of the League. 2008 GN

Orwell, George - 1984 - This is so much scarier NOW considering the 'reforms' made under the Bush presidency. Far more relevant with this reading, perhaps because I know more than I did years ago. Everyone should have to read this.

Coupland, Douglas - JPod - About six odd people whose last names all start with J, and who happen to work together at a computer-game design company. In turns, wildly funny, briefly poignant and highly improbable.

Johnson, Mat - Incognegro: A Graphic Mystery - 2008 GN. A painful tale based on the adventures of a real person, a black man who could pass for white, and who went into the deep south to report on lynchings. Affecting and very good.

Gurewich, Nicholas - The Trial of Colonel Sweeto and Other Stories - GN (07) - macabre collection of very odd and disturbing little cartoons. Very funny for those who can laugh at the painful side of human nature. I kept flipping back to it in amused, shocked disbelief.

Kinney, Jeff - Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules - Funny, painful and mean just like the other one. Everyone has a little of Greg in him, but thank goodness the actual Gregs and Rodricks are few and far between. This is an illustrated 'j' book (not officially a graphic novel, according to the catalogers), but I think it's really best for adults looking back.

Palin, Michael - Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years - After finishing this, which I might add is a considerable investment in time and interest, it being a rather long book, I feel that I have a new friend. It's intensely personal, reading a diary, very immediate and engrossing. As he writes, he has no idea what lies in store for him. It brings me to the edge of considering a journal for myself, but now I think that my reading list fulfills that for me, in some small way. Although few are likely to wish to read it, it's already 'published' and out there being shared. It makes me wonder if Mr. Palin now blogs... I should investigate, as his 1969-1979 entries, despite their length, left me wanting more!

Albom, Mitch - For One More Day - Somehow when I pick up his books, I always think that I should be rolling my eyes, preparing for something preachy or cheesy or something. Picking it up for a quick browse down at the library's beach house, I soon found myself settled into a comfy chair, 50 pages in. My philosophy of life is already one of joie de vivre, and living life as if it could end at any time, but this is a good reminder to keep on doing just that. Satisfying and optimistic, without that preachiness or cheesiness that makes me run away. Maybe it's someone else's writing I keep expecting.

Thompson, Craig - Carnet de Voyage - GN chronicling Thompson's promotional tour (for his excellent 'Blankets') through Europe and a side trip to Morocco. Considering what an honest and heartfelt charmer he is in real life, it's funny to see him depicting himself as a hayseed when in fancy places. You feel like you have been given permission to read a good friend's diary, a good friend who happens to be a keen observer and excellent artist. I need to write him a letter.

Sfar, Joann and Guibert, Emmanuel - The Professor's Daughter - Wonderful GN, gorgeous art that has the quiet intimacy of sepiatone while still in fact being in color. The gentleman mummy and his romance with the title character in Victorian England is actually a rather exciting tale. The queen herself has a role, and comports herself appropriately. Fun; a bit of a love story, a bit of a mystery, and it would be a wonderfully odd movie.

Simone, Gail - Welcome to Tranquility - A very pleasant surprise, worthy of Kurt Busiek, and that is saying something. Tranquility is the city where superheroes (and supervillains) go to retire, and the murder mystery that unfolds kept me going. Characters are great; iconic abilities, yet not stereotypical personalities. And, the normal people are just as heroic and interesting as anybody with powers. The little asides and fake ads actually added to the story. This was handled really well.

Anderson, Eric A. - PX! Book One: A Girl and Her Panda - 2007 GN with striking colors, an amusing villain, a very cool non-ninja, and a walking nuclear-powered arsenal shaped like a panda. The little asides are hilarious, and Weatherby (Queen's Agent OO-VII) is great fun. Loved by people aged 10 and 46.

Card, Orson Scott - Red Prophet - Tales of Alvin Maker, Vol. 2 - 2008 GN, and it turns out that Volume 1 was not 'Seventh Son', as I expected, but part 1 of Red Prophet. Whoops! Still, having read and very much liked the books, it was easy to jump into the middle of this. The story was strikingly true to the book. It was fun to see the artist's conceptions of the characters, but Alvin wasn't quite as I had pictured him. I liked it, but as with (most) books adapted into movies, I prefer the original to the adaptation.

Cornwell, Bernard - Sword Song - Fourth in Uhtred/Alfred the Great series of historical fiction. It stuns me that I liked this so much. Sure, I'm a bit of an Anglophile, and sure, I love his Sharpe series... well, never mind, I guess it's not that surprising. Cornwell is my favorite 'page-turner' author. The stories are gripping, the characters interesting, the history well-researched, and the Author Notes always worth waiting for. I love how he lets us know that there will be more to come; other authors, take note!

Drooker, Eric - Flood! A Novel in Pictures - Almost totally wordless GN, yet vividly evokes a dark, mythic New York City. Read it, study the notes at the back, then read it again with more well-informed eyes. Gorgeous and sad.

Casey, Joe & Scioli, Tom - Godland: The Celestial Edition - The best and most cosmic homage to Jack Kirby I've ever seen. I love the art, I love the story, the characters are iconic and powerful, and in case I didn't mention the art, wow! The most sincere legacy to the early Stan & Jack Fantastic Four and all the New Gods stuff, and that's saying something. GN.

Lem, Stanislaw - One Human Minute - Reread the title story because it's so bizarre to think about, but some of the surprise is gone on the second reading. Central concept: a review of a book yet unwritten, about everything that happens to humanity in the course of a minute. Strange (yet fun) to read due to sheer plausibility.

Gaiman, Neil - The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch - Beautiful Michael Zulli art graces a pleasantly weird short story, now in (2008) GN form. Odd and mystical, a nicely done tale of wish fulfillment, freaks, humanity.

Various - Green Lama - 2008 GN collecting the first four issues of 'Green Lama', a 1940's comic anthology series with a hooded Buddhist superhero ('The Man of Strength') as the central character! A remarkably enlightened comic for the time, it also featured 'Rick Masters', flyboy with a very competent Native American partner; 'Angus MacErc', a pixie from ancient times having fun with today's Americans; and the very goofy Lieutenant Hercules, with the power of everyone from comic books! Blows a raspberry to activate his powers... Pretty darned fun stuff for those who enjoy Golden Age comics.

Simmons, Danny - '85 - 2008 GN, and one of the most powerful and affecting stories I've read thus far this year. 'Pulp Fiction' wasn't my typical cup of tea, with its fierce violence and consistently profane dialogue, yet I couldn't look away because the story was so tight and so well done. '85 invoked a similar 'can't put it down' sort of response.

Cotter, Joshua - Skyscrapers of the Midwest - 2008 GN. People in the story are cats, cicadas = migraines, God is a giant invisible robot that walks the Earth, and for all that, this is a very human story of a boy dealing with imminent adolescence in the Midwest. The little ads and asides and letter columns with Skinny Kenny fit right in to the world Cotter has remembered/created, and are snort-milk-out-your-nose funny. Some strong language...

Munroe, Jim & Sam, Salgood - Therefore Repent! - 2007 post-Rapture GN. All of a sudden, people rise into the sky and disappear. But not everyone. Those left behind do various things: loot & pillage, despair, keep living their lives as best as possible, and some of them are able to get real results from New Age magic, psychic powers and witchcraft. Really good! NOT preachy, and certainly not Christian propaganda. The ending surprised me.

Moore, Alan, and various - Tom Strong, Book 4 - GN collection from the ongoing comic series. As always, excellent adventure stories, happy fun Moore work, a pleasure to read.

Novik, Naomi - Victory of Eagles - A Temeraire novel. This one somehow seemed even tighter and more dramatic than the last, and, excellently, she blends varying kinds of drama - family disapproval, internal moral struggle, the choice between following orders or doing what is right, and of course the strategic and tactical military fun of Napoleonic Era battles with the added feature of a dragon air force! Pure fun; I wish I could make them last longer.

Mashima, Hiro - Fairy Tail, Vol. 1 - 2008 GN and manga, to boot... Enjoyable tale of a loosely-organized wizard's guild featuring the fiery, scrappy Natsu, effervescent Celestial summoner Lucy, and a flying cat-critter. Worth pursuing.

(Various) - New Recruits, Vol. 1 - Dark Horse GN collection of short tales from auspicious new writer/artists. All good, all intense, but Ian Culbard's 'Wild Talents' stood out as my favorite, creating a gaslight England world out of Wells or Verne. Definitely something I would keep reading. I also liked Jacob Chabot's 'The Mighty Skullboy Army' a lot, for very different reasons. 'Discreet Despair' was painful and disturbing, not for me despite the powerful nature of its images and words.

(Various) - Robot, Vol. 5 - 2008 GN collection of manga story snippets. They appear to be ongoing, which would explain my general level of confusion with this. Some interesting bits and gorgeous art, but I don't think I'll pursue more editions of this.

Cebulski, C.B. - The Loners: The Secret Life of Super Heroes - 2008 GN about five young adult superheroes who give up the public life and try to ignore or avoid the use of their powers, and attend 'superheroes anonymous' meetings to help each other. They have trouble and keep falling off the wagon! Kinda predictable.

Gaiman, Neil and McKean, Dave - Signal to Noise - 2007 GN/movie in print form. It's about people, about mortality, about the Millennium. A dying filmmaker has an idea for a movie about the impending Apocalypse at the end of the year 999, but it seems he won't be around to make it. Gorgeous, affecting. While some of the poetry bits before the main story were a bit impenetrable for me, 'Signal' itself was masterful in terms of story and art.

Stein, Garth - The Art of Racing in the Rain - The narrator is Enzo, a dog, but it's a story about people. The lives of these folks seemed very real to me, and it rang true. Despite large amounts of grief and grim family drama, the book was about hope, and the wisdom found in (of all places) auto racing is exactly the amount of inspiration I enjoy. I loved the canine perspective on things and recommend this book to nearly every adult.

Tamaki, Mariko and Tamaki, Jillian - Skim - 2008 GN featuring an excellent look at high-school stresses like grief, love, depression, changing relationships, overzealous peer support and preconceptions. Very good; probably likely to create some controversies. Definitely recommended for older teens and adults looking back.

Hamilton, Laurell K. - Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Guilty Pleasures Vol. 2- More thrilling and fierce vampire-hunting action in a world that somehow combines fascinating paranormal subject matter (were-critters, the undead, and magic) with the realism and interesting characters of 'Law & Order'. Art: gorgeous. Words: enticing. This is a comic? 2008 GN. Yum yum, a guilty pleasure indeed.

Shiga, Jason - Bookhunter - Nice... an action movie about library police (in GN form)! An in-depth knowledge of libraries and how they work is in evidence, but you don't need it to enjoy this tough cop 'show'. The art is simple, but very effective, and Special Agent Bay is awesome, right up there with the best of detectives. Plus, having met Jason and finding him a really nice guy makes this even cooler. I wish I'd read this BEFORE I met him! From 2007.

Porcellino, John - Thoreau at Walden - 2008 GN. Elegant in its simplicity, this depicts the thoughts and deeds of Henry David Thoreau during his two years at Walden Pond, living simply. Not a chronology, but rather a glimpse. Thoreau's words appeal to me, as did the quietly expressive cartoons.

Satrapi, Marjane - Persepolis 2 - 2004 GN covering the continued story of Satrapi's life growing up in Iran and Austria, and the lessons she learned about life, love, society and identity. Why her story is so popular: she's honest. She makes mistakes and stupid decisions like everyone else, but has the courage to chronicle them. Excellent.

Aleichem, Sholem - Tevye the Dairyman - Quite different from 'Fiddler on the Roof', despite these tales being the inspiration thereof. Tevye is commentator on the vagaries and atrocities of society, but his outlook (at least, as he describes it) never changes. One could say he is fatalistic, but really, it's more of an acceptance of what happens and his best effort to face it all. Painful for me, since it deals with my saddest subject: daughters growing and moving away. His humor and his adapted quotes make the sadness bearable. Excellent.

Fall, Thomas - Canalboat to Freedom - This held up marvelously for me, not having read it since approximately age 13. Some of the language required explaining for my daughter. She loved it.

Brown, Chester - I Never Liked You: A comic-strip narrative - GN, painful to read in the way that 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid' was, in that the protagonist wasn't all that nice.... Because of that, it certainly rings true. People can be cruel at any age, but it always seems so brutal when you look back on how you acted while growing up. It makes me wonder if the artist really grew out of it, and if he can still only express himself through his art. Well worth reading.

Remender, Rick + Various - Tales of the FEAR Agent - 2008 GN. Short stories about Heath Huston, a mostly amoral interstellar alien exterminator. Tough, competent, funny, with just a smidge of redeeming courage & compassion. Shades of gumshoe noir and cowboy stories blend in with this sci-fi romp. Good stuff, and a quick read.

Standage, Tom - A History of the World in 6 Glasses - The stories of beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and Coca Cola. Informative and fun, well-researched and very readable.

Giffen, Keith and DeMatteis, J.M. - Hero Squared: Another Fine Mess - 2008 GN. Giffen really has gotten better over the years, and he effortlessly blends 'really funny' with 'honest and poignant'. The stories of the hero trapped in a 'real Earth' with his slacker counterpart is just plain good stuff. I was feeling misty-eyed at the end of this excellent character study; the characters are very complex and the pacing of the story gives enough time to examine them.

Stewart, Aaron - The Other Side - GN. (07') Gripping, powerful tale from two perspectives: one, a North Vietnamese patriot, battling against imperialism, and the other, an indifferent American soldier. Both of them are plagued by visions, demons that push them onward. Whew. Horrific and excellent.

Various - Mome, Spring 2007 - GN anthology. Some bits are dreamlike and bizarre, some surreal, some realistic, some are only one page, some are comic-book length. Good stuff! My favorites, I think, were 'Seven Sacks', about a ferryman trying desperately not to know too much, and an untitled page about a girl who let a horse go where it would.

Geary, Rick - J. Edgar Hoover, a Graphic Biography - 2008 GN, and Geary is at his factual & illustrative best. It's nice to be able to trust someone, and I trust Rick Geary. He always sticks to what truth is known and labels theories as just that. His bios are readable and and fun (sometimes despite the subject matter), and his cartoony art captures the essence of his subjects with economical line. Worth recommending to those who don't know that they might like graphic novels; have them read three pages and see if they want to put it down.

Rudahl, Sharon - A Dangerous Woman - 2007 GN, a graphic biography of activist icon Emma Goldman. Anarchist, public speaker, friend of the downtrodden and firm believer in joie de vivre, she was one fine human being. An excellent character study.

Duncan, Dave - Ill Met in the Arena - Men manifest physical powers... teleportation, telekinesis and flight, while women wield mental ones - mind reading, illusions and such, and the more noble you are, the stronger the powers. Also, noble=tall. An interesting world as always, with fun arena combat and a very motivating mystery. Quite the page turner!

Akamatsu, Ken - Negima! Volumes 1 & 2 - For silly escapism, go no further. A 10-year old Welsh wizard teaching in a Japanese girl's school where everyone seems to have an amazing talent... and his sneezes tend to cause clothes to fly off. Some highlights : they delve deep under Library Island and find hidden chambers, secrets, traps and a magic book that makes you smart. Negi makes a love potion as a favor and then is forced to drink it himself.

Busiek, Kurt & Ruth, Greg - Conan: Born on the Battlefield - 2008 GN collection of Busiek's meticulously researched and lovingly extrapolated stories of Robert E. Howard's archetypical barbarian. The gorgeous art is like a book of posters, and reads like watching a movie. These stories cover Conan's early formative years in Cimmeria before he left to 'tread the jeweled thrones of the earth under his sandaled feet.' A MUST for Conan, Busiek and Sword & Sorcery fans.

Busiek, Kurt & Wein, Len - Conan: Book of Thoth - 2008 GN that is the flipside of the last item. This one is entirely Conan-free, and chronicles the 'origin' of Conan's greatest foe, the evil Stygian archwizard Thoth-Amon. No touching bits here, nor gruff warrior bravado like the last one. This is like watching Anakin turn into Darth Vader. He just keeps getting worse and anyone you like will probably die horribly. Excellent writing, but not 'fun'.

Larson, Hope - Chiggers - 2008 JGN about girls at camp, and friendship with someone who your other friends don't like. Honest, quiet and unassuming like Abby (the main character), but with some spark and wit and bite (like Shasta), and certainly a good dose of nerdiness ( like Teal). A very good choice for discerning preteens.

Various - Flight Explorer Vol. 1 - 2008 JGN anthology, and mostly VERY good. Ranges from wordless and cute (Snow Cap, 2nd Verse) to adventurous and fierce (Missile Mouse in 'The Guardian Prophecy'); from NOT wordless and cute (Jellaby: First Snow) to just plain cool (Fish & Chips in 'All in a Day's Work').

Hague, Michael - In the Small - 2008 GN... nicely illustrated (but oddly lettered) tale of what happens when Earth's human population is suddenly shrunk down to 6 inches in height... but the cats, rats, bugs and snakes AREN'T. An interesting take on humanity... what would we do if we could no longer use our tools? Physics note: even though small animals can fall several feet without really getting hurt, a 6-inch person falling off the swings apparently just dies. They're falling proportional, not real distance. Maybe not great, but definitely worth reading and thinking about.

Owen, James A. - Here, There Be Dragons - Adventures in the lands of imagination, aboard dragonships, meeting people and creatures from legend, history and fiction... dragons, the Ark, Prydain, Dickens, elves, the hook-handed Winter King, all in the quest to either protect or destroy the map-book of it all, the Imaginarium Geographica. This is absolutely stuffed full of wonder. I loved this book.

Vaughan, Brian K. - Ex Machina: The Deluxe Edition - Quite the collection of tales in this 2008 GN. Mitchell Hundred, exposed to an alien artifact, can now speak with (and command) machines. He gives up heroics for politics, and runs for Mayor of New York City. This is an R-rated spy thriller with social issues, politics and personal conflicts, peppered with horrific violence and strong language. Extremely engrossing with distinct, powerful personalities, but being a collection of individual issues, it cuts you off rather abruptly at the end. Definitely worth pursuing.

Waid, Mark - Flash: The Wild Wests - 2008 GN collection of current Flash stories where Wally, once 'Kid Flash', now has a family full of his own sidekicks. Nicely written, interesting family and all strong enough characters to hold their own. Fun, upbeat stories, great for all who actually like superheroes or want to.

Sfar, Joann - Little Vampire - GN collection of 'Little Vampire Goes to School', 'Little Vampire Does Kung Fu!' and 'Little Vampire and the Canine Defenders Club'. Extra cute and funny in a pleasantly European style. Mr. Sfar (yes, MISTER) blends whimsical and touching with grotesque and slapstick in an excellently unapologetic way that few Americans can do.

Cammuso, Frank - Knights of the Lunch Table: The Dodgeball Chronicles - 2008 jGN retelling in the most inventive way I've yet seen (except maybe for Monty Python and the Holy Grail) of the King Arthur story. All the usual suspects are present, but their lives revolve around Camelot Middle School: Artie, Gwen Lee, Artie's snarky sister Morgan, good friend Percy, math teacher Mr. Merlyn... even Excalibur shows up, but as a magic locker. The best bits are the little asides to true myth & legend nerds: look at the names of the urban legend kids who have gone missing. Well done! Intended for kids, but very fun for adults looking back.

Hernandez, Jaime - The Education of Hopey Glass - A Love and Rockets collection (and 2008 GN) featuring two main story arcs: Hopey is trying to figure out who she likes and who she loves and who she is while working at a less than optimal new job as a teacher's assistant, and Ray pursues and has a love/hate relationship with the full-throttle Viv (aka Frogmouth), a fascination with the very athletic and somewhat clueless Angel amid his perpetual mooning over Maggie. All in all, a fun and engrossing soap opera, even if you're starting in media res. Los Bros Hernandez, even solo, never fail to entertain.

Bamman, Henry; Odell, William; Whitehead, Robert - Ice Men of Rime - When I was in sixth grade, there was a series of science-fiction books for young readers that included this, Space Pirate, Milky Way, Planet of the Whistlers, Inviso Man and Bone People. My friend Robert and I simply ate them up, having little else in the genre that wasn't aimed at adults. Reading them now, I am amazed that at that age, I still liked material this simple. No idea what the lexile number is, but it's *low*. This is probably what we would call an 'easy reader'. Also, the female character (Tanya, the "girl-scientist", is the only character with no last name) is there to be cute and helpless, apparently a sign of the times (1970). I ordered this through Interlibrary Loan for nostalgia's sake, but should have left this in my fond memories.

Akamatsu, Ken - Negima Vols. 4, 5, 6 - I didn't realize that these GNs were 'rated' for ages 16+. Apart from the occasional (okay, frequent) nudity (which is less of a shocker outside prudish America), I'm not sure what the fuss would be. Anyway, these are happy, silly fun, a bit of soap opera in a magical world, where a class of middle school girls is full of surprisingly talented students: computer programmers, journalists, ninjas, bold librarians, samurai, robots, vampires, ghosts, inventors, gymnasts... well, you get the idea. A talking ermine and a 10-year old teacher who is also a wizard almost make sense after that!

A bunch of reference material on the geologic history of the Bridge of the Gods.... See my bibliography at bridgeofthegods.wikispaces.com.

Rothfuss, Patrick - The Name of the Wind - Very promising! A fantasy complete with demons, swords, minstrels, etc., and interesting, original and consistent to itself. This came highly recommended by a fellow library person, and am I glad of it. Some bits are adapted from our world (the nomadic 'Ruh', storytellers and musicians, not always trusted by those they entertain, seem very similar to the Roma people, aka 'gypsies'), but this is probably my favorite discovery of the year. The style is solid, the world fantastic, the writing good but not pretentious. Magic here is not that of 'high fantasy', but rather the tool of the inquisitive mind. Magical tinkering at the University reminds one of engineers and scientists, rather than Gandalf and Dumbledore, and that is just fine. (It also reminds me of an old fave, 'Master of the Five Magics', for the variety of kinds of magic shown.) I like the pace, I like the epic length (as it suits the epic central character, Kvothe the Minstrel/Wizard/Rogue/Warrior/Assassin). I can't wait for more.

Willingham, Bill - Fables: Wolves - GN collection from Willingham's excellent series, featuring story-arc where Mowgli crosses the world seeking Bigby Wolf (Big B. Wolf!) to call him back for one last mission: go up the beanstalk, befriend the giants and travel across their land to rain down destruction on their Enemy: Geppetto. Snow White and Rose Red, Prince Charming, Bagheera, the North Wind... all have their parts, and of course half the fun is looking for the cameo appearances. Great as usual. (Hey, Bill: Any more 'Elementals', like, ever? Just for fun? Please?)