American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Just in time for the premier of the TV show later this month -- Neil Gaiman's book American Gods (2001) is a folk tale for the modern age with plenty of action and unexpected twists.

While Beauty Slept by Elizabeth Blackwell

While Beauty Slept (2014) by Elizabeth Blackwell is a beautiful, more realistic, behind-the-scenes tale of Sleeping Beauty. A very nice adaptation of the classic story, this time told from the perspective of one of Beauty's mother's ladies-in-waiting, therefore mostly taking place before Beauty is born and during her childhood and not focusing on her directly.

The characters were highly developed and entirely sympathetic (including, in some way, even the "evil queen"-type character); I felt like I knew all the main characters very well, and I could understand why they did they things they did. The setting was fairly standard fantasy medieval fare (not that there's anything wrong with that), and the story certainly kept me interested and engaged.

I really love this genre of re-telling classic stories / fairy tales from another perspective. I've really liked most of the from-the-villan's-view versions, but this was a good twist as well. Definitely worth reading.

“I am not the sort of person about whom stories are told. Those of humble birth suffer their heartbreaks and celebrate their triumphs unnoticed by the bards, leaving no trace in the fables of their time.” 

Keep reading! Beth

Flight by Kazu Kibuishi (Ed)

Flight V. 1 (2004) edited by Kazu Kibuishi is a collection of 23 comics (and one very funny essay) by different artists with VERY different visual and storytelling styles, all with the general theme of flying.

This was a wonderful book that really showed the extent to which comic art can vary, from the detailed and ornate to simplistic and suggestive. Some of the individual stories really spoke to me, and I enjoyed those very much. But even for the ones I didn't like, I could appreciate the skill and talent that went in to developing the story and creating the multiple layers of art.

My favorite parts of this collection were:
"Maiden Voyage" by Kazu Kibuishi – an adorable story about failure and never giving up,
"Paper and String" by Jen Wang – about feeling like an outsider and finding something to inspire you,
"The Maiden and the River Spirit" by Derek Kirk Kim – a funny twist on a classic Aesop fable, and
"The Bowl" by Clio Chiang – which tells the story of a Native man who makes 3 wishes, and doesn't quite get what he expects.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone curious about comics / graphic novels but doesn't know where to start – this is a wonderful way to explore many different interpretations of the genre and decide what you like!

Keep reading! Beth

Lumberjanes by Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson

Lumberjanes by Grace Ellis and Noelle Stevenson Volumes 1 & 2 (2015) are very fun graphic novels, especially for young girls and those who are young at heart!

The main concept is a group of girls (whose age is somewhat ambiguous, but I'd say maybe junior high school-age?) attending summer scout camp. Both volumes are all about friendship and girl power, with some fun fantastical and mythological elements thrown in for good measure. The dialog felt very Gilmore Girls-esq, with intelligent pop culture references (including one of my favorite shows, River Monsters) and rapid-fire exchanges. I especially loved the references to lesser-known but still important women from history; in every case I was interested enough to research each reference and learned a lot about some very cool women, such as Annie Smith Peck and Sister Rosetta Tharpe!

Volumes 1 & 2 together comprise one major storyline, so I recommend reading them together. Though the details of the story are at times a little silly and/or glossed over, the point is really much more about the girls working together as a team to save the day and it does that very well. Though the illustrations were a little rough at times, the artwork was still fun and funky, and really fit in with the story.

Overall, this series promises to be very fun, and would be a wonderful introduction to graphic novels for young girls!

“Did you have a plan?"
"I thought adrenaline would take over but it did not."

Keep reading! Beth

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black

The Darkest Part of the Forest (2015) by Holly Black was a great book! It kept me engaged and interested from beginning to end. I loved all the characters and the integration of the fairy world with the real world in just this one small town. The main character Hazel is reckless and headstrong, but also brave and kind.

Hazel's relationships with both her brother -- how much they loved and looked after one another -- and with her brother's best friend and fairy changeling, Jack, were really deep and interesting. The secondary storyline of Jack's journey, feeling out of place and slightly isolated -- with his peers being at times amazed and at other times afraid of his otherness -- was also really moving and compelling.

Lastly, I especially enjoy when 'villains' are given some depth and meaning to what they are doing, which this story does very well. Even though the 'villains' in this story aren't even human, and it would have been easy to simply make them evil in a black-and-white sense, Black really gives some insight into why they do what they do, and how different perspectives allow actions to be interpreted in many different ways.

“They were in love with him because he was a prince and a faerie and magical and you were supposed to love princes and faeries and magic people. They loved him the way they’d loved Beast the first time he swept Belle around the dance floor in her yellow dress. They loved him as they loved the Eleventh Doctor with his bow tie and his flippy hair and the Tenth Doctor with his mad laugh. They loved him as they loved lead singers of bands and actors in movies, loved him in such a way that their shared love brought them closer together.”

Keep reading! Beth

Sandman Overture: Deluxe Edition by Neil Gaiman

Sandman Overture: Deluxe Edition (2015) by Neil Gaiman is the newest entry in the classic Sandman series that has long been considered one of the best graphic novel series ever published. It has long been on my to-read list, and when I saw an article online that suggested this new "prequel" book was a good place to start, I decided to give it a try.*

This was a pretty interesting story by itself, when taken apart from the rest of the Sandman series (which I had to do by default), with some very interesting themes about mistakes, consequences (even, or perhaps especially, from actions with the best of intentions), regrets, asking for help, reality, and family relationships.

As with other graphic novels, my biggest problem was that often I couldn't figure out the direction to read things in (this was not consistent from page to page) and I'm only mostly certain that I understood what was happening. But it was interesting, and the artwork was really beautiful. Perhaps not the best place to start in the series, but it certainly didn't put me off reading the rest of the series, and I think worth reading for its own merits. After #1-75.

Keep reading! Beth

*The funny thing was, several times in the book Gaiman specifically says that this is not a good place to start for new readers of the series, but I was already committed so I persevered and, feeling very rebellious, completely ignored the author's own warnings. This was perhaps a mistake, as I did think the Overture was a little strange, but on the other hand, was a pretty cool introduction to the series. But maybe don't follow my lead :) 

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (2015) is the not-quite-a-sequel follow-up to Rowell's Fangirl (which I loved and have been recommending to so many people!). This spin-off was such an interesting concept: in Fangirl, the main character spent the entire book writing fanfiction for her favorite fantasy series. This is that story she was writing, her version of the last book in a very Harry Potter-esq fantasy series.

I was very impressed by how Rowell managed to write a story that was clearly the final book in the series, but still made sense to read as a stand-alone. I liked that in Fangirl, you saw the writing process and what Cath was going through when she was writing her story, and then we actually get to read the story that we got such tantalizing snippets of before.

Once again, Rowell has written great characters that are flawed but very likeable. You really root for them. This was of course incredibly similar to Harry Potter in basics, but she had plenty of specific details that really set it apart from that series. I especially liked the way she dealt with the rules of the magic in her world. I loved the connection to literature, cliché phrases, and nursery rhymes, and the message that not only do words have power but common phrases have more; the more ingrained in popular culture a phrase is, the more power it has.

Overall, this was an interesting, funny, and magical story for fans and non-fans of fantasy alike! Highly recommended with Fangirl (which is really worth reading first but not totally necessary).

“Sometimes when I’m walking through the dining hall, just saying hello to people, she’ll drag me by my sleeve to hurry me up.
“You have too many friends,” she’ll say.
“I’m pretty sure that’s not possible. And, anyway, I wouldn’t call them all ‘friends.’”
“There are only so many hours in the day, Simon. Two, three people — that’s all any of us have time for.”
“There are more people than that in your immediate family, Penny.”
“I know. It’s a struggle.” 

Keep reading! Beth

Ruth Galloway Series #2-4 by Elly Griffiths

Ruth Galloway mysteries is a series of books written by Elly Griffiths, which center around the life of one (surprise, surprise) Ruth Galloway, a forensic archaeologist who teaches at a university in the Norfolk region of England and occasionally consults with the local police in cases involving unidentified bones. Ruth is a very likable, endearing character who -- despite being the 'heroine' of her own series -- is definitely human enough (and makes enough mistakes) to be truly relatable. I have greatly enjoyed the series so far, and look forward to reading the rest soon!

For my review of the first book in the series, see this post from this past summer.

#2: The Janus Stone (2010)

I liked how realistic this story was, in the sense that lots of intelligent people contributed to solving the case, rather than one person displaying super-human skills of deduction. I also liked that at the end, though Ruth again was the one who ended up in danger, she saved herself just as much as (or more than) the men who rushed to her rescue.

#3: The House at Sea's End (2011)

One of the great things about this series is the secondary characters, and how they are developing as we get to know them better. Judy (the policewoman) is especially becoming an interesting character, unhappy as she already is in her new marriage. Of course Ruth ends up in mortal peril again in this book, but unlike the previous two books in the series, the ending was a total surprise; I had not guessed at all who the killer was and was totally fooled by all the twists in the story.

#4: A Room Full of Bones (2012)

Though in general, I'm not super thrilled by the whole affair story line developed early in the series, I do like the way Elly is handling the love triangle, and the continued development of the secondary characters. Cathbad especially is such an interesting character -- sometimes a bit too stereotypical, but always intriguing and very charming. I'm interested to see if he continues to be such a constant presence in the cases in future books. It's one of those instances where it feels like a bit of a stretch for him to be involved in every case (a bit along the lines of Ruth's involvement in the first place), but he's a such a great character I hope he sticks around.

The danger for a mystery series with a non-detective in the lead is that sometimes the ways to get the main character involved in each case gets more and more unrealistic. Ruth's involvement is addressed somewhat by her status as an official consultant, and of course there are plenty of local cases that are not mentioned that she has no hand in at all. Still, I hope that the core stories in each book continue to justify her central role in each investigation in a believable manner. Regardless, outside of the case details in each book (which are always interesting), it really is the characters that make these books worth reading.

Keep reading! Beth