Review: Valiant High

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Title: Valiant High
Author: Daniel Kibblesmith
Genre: Graphic Novel
Publisher: Valiant Entertainment
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Release Date: September 4, 2018
Rating: ★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Valiant proudly presents its first ALL-AGES escapade with a pitch-perfect entry point for new fans and longtime readers alike!

Before they became legends, the world’s most formidable heroes were roaming the halls at Valiant High – a super-powered preparatory academy where Aric “X-O Manowar” Dacia is a record-setting running back, Colin “Ninjak” King is a debonair foreign exchange student, and Coach Bloodshot is way, way too into dodgeball. Now, Amanda “Livewire” McKee and her best friend, Faith “Zephyr” Herbert, are taking it all in for the first time at the one high school where power trumps popularity!

From rising star Daniel Kibblesmith (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) and Eisner Award-winning artist Derek Charm (Jughead), get ready for your first day of school inside a hilarious reimagining of Valiant’s award-winning superhero universe – one where the next world-ending cataclysm will have to wait until after prom night!

In the tradition of Archie and DC Super Hero Girls, this side-splitting adventure takes place outside of Valiant’s standard continuity…and comes packed with all-new incarnations of virtually every Valiant hero and villain! You’ve never seen the heroes of the Valiant Universe quite like this before!

Collecting VALIANT HIGH #1–4.

Review:

This story collects many characters from Valiant Entertainment comics and puts them in a high school setting.

I haven’t read many Valiant comics before, so I felt a little left out reading this story. I’m sure there were some jokes about the characters that I would have understood if I was familiar with the characters. The only one I recognized was X-O Manowar. I wish there was more to the story than just showing a variety of characters from their comics.

This comic reminded me of other series by comic book publishers that make all of their characters interact with each other. DC Comics has a few series which their super heroes in a school setting, such as DC Super Hero Girls and DC Comics: Secret Hero Society. Those series were better for me because I know the characters of DC Comics much better than Valiant entertainment.

If you’re a fan of Valiant comics, this would be a great comic for you!

What to read next:

  • X-O Manowar, Volume 1: By The Sword by Robert Venditti, Cary Nord

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  • Harbinger, Volume 1: Omega Rising by Joshua Dysart, Khari Evans, and Lewis LaRosa

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Have you read Valiant High? What did you think of it?

 

Review: Sheets

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Title: Sheets
Author: Brenna Thummler
Genre: Graphic Novel, Young Adult
Publisher: Lion Forge
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Release Date: August 28, 2018
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Marjorie Glatt feels like a ghost. A practical thirteen year old in charge of the family laundry business, her daily routine features unforgiving customers, unbearable P.E. classes, and the fastidious Mr. Saubertuck who is committed to destroying everything she’s worked for.

Wendell is a ghost. A boy who lost his life much too young, his daily routine features ineffective death therapy, a sheet-dependent identity, and a dangerous need to seek purpose in the forbidden human world.

When their worlds collide, Marjorie is confronted by unexplainable disasters as Wendell transforms Glatt’s Laundry into his midnight playground, appearing as a mere sheet during the day. While Wendell attempts to create a new afterlife for himself, he unknowingly sabotages the life that Marjorie is struggling to maintain.

Sheets illustrates the determination of a young girl to fight, even when all parts of her world seem to be conspiring against her. It proves that second chances are possible whether life feels over or life is over. But above all, it is a story of the forgiveness and unlikely friendship that can only transpire inside a haunted laundromat.

Review:

Marjorie is in charge of her family’s business, a laundromat. She struggles because she had to take over their business when her mother passed away. She doesn’t have friends at school. It gets worse when Mr. Saubertuck starts sabotaging her business so that he can build a resort on their property.

I found this story so sad. It was sad that Marjorie’s mother passed away, and her father didn’t really do anything after because he was so depressed. Marjorie didn’t have time to explore her feelings because she had to look after the family.

Wendell and the land of ghosts were also sad. Wendell is starting to forget his former life.  The ghosts have a whole world, where they float around in sheets. The idea of the land of ghosts in sheets was funny sometimes. They had support groups and jobs. But it was still sad to think that all of those people had died and they were beginning to forget their former lives.

This was an emotional story with a positive ending about the power of friendship and forgiveness.

What to read next:

  • Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier
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  • This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki
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Have you read Sheets? What did you think of it?

 

Review: The Prince and the Dressmaker

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Title: The Prince and the Dressmaker
Author: Jen Wang
Genre: Young Adult, Graphic Novel
Publisher: First Second
Source: Library
Release Date: February 13, 2018
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Paris, at the dawn of the modern age:

Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride―or rather, his parents are looking for one for him. Sebastian is too busy hiding his secret life from everyone. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the fabulous Lady Crystallia―the hottest fashion icon in the world capital of fashion!

Sebastian’s secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker Frances―one of only two people who know the truth: sometimes this boy wears dresses. But Frances dreams of greatness, and being someone’s secret weapon means being a secret. Forever. How long can Frances defer her dreams to protect a friend? Jen Wang weaves an exuberantly romantic tale of identity, young love, art, and family. A fairy tale for any age, The Prince and the Dressmaker will steal your heart.

Review:

I’m so glad I finally read this graphic novel! I saw everyone raving about it in the spring, and it definitely lived up to the hype!

This is an important story about being yourself. Sebastian and Frances have a unique relationship. Frances puts her own dreams on hold to support Sebastian’s nightly activities of dressing up as Lady Crystallia. They both have to protect his secret identity, but it can only last for so long.

One of the most fascinating things about graphic novels for me is the art. I always wonder how the artists create the story through the different panels. At the end of this story, there are a few pages where Jen Wang talks about her process. I loved reading about this, because it is so different from the work that I do. I would love to make a graphic novel one day, just to see how the entire process works.

I highly recommend this book! It was great!

What to read next:

  • In Real Life by Cory Doctorow and Jen Wang
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  • Giant Days by John Allison, Lissa Treiman, and Whitney Cogar
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Have you read The Prince and the Dressmaker? What did you think of it?

 

Review: Paths and Portals (Secret Coders, #2)

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Title: Paths and Portals (Secret Coders, #2)
Author: Gene Luen Yang, and Mike Holmes
Genre: Middle Grade, Graphic Novel
Publisher: First Second
Source: Library
Release Date: August 30, 2016
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Gene Luen Yang is the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature.

There’s something lurking beneath the surface of Stately Academy—literally. In a secret underground classroom Hopper, Eni, and Josh discover that the campus was once home to the Bee School, an institute where teachers, students, and robots worked together to unravel the mysteries of coding. Hopper and her friends are eager to follow in this tradition and become top-rate coders. But why are Principal Dean and the rugby team suddenly so interested in their extracurricular activities?

From graphic novel superstar (and high school computer programming teacher) Gene Luen Yang comes the second volume of Secret Coders, Paths & Portals, a wildly entertaining new series that combines logic puzzles and basic programming instruction with a page-turning mystery plot!

Review:

This story begins right where the first story ended.

The kids have to figure out the challenge that Professor Bee gave them. He gave them the challenge at the end of the last book and this one begins with them solving it. The only problem with this is that the reader may have forgotten the very end of the last book. This one ended the same way, with a cliffhanger. If you don’t have access to the book or if you read the previous one a long time ago, it could be a problem.

I liked the way coding was incorporated into this story. The characters gave tasks for the reader to figure out along with them. The kids in the story had to figure out how to make the robots do certain tasks by typing in a list of instructions. This is a good way for kids to learn simple coding.

I enjoyed this book, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.

What to read next:

  • Secrets & Sequences (Secret Coders, #3) by Gene Luen Yang, and Mike Holmes

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  • Study Hall of Justice (DC Comics Secret Hero Society #1) by Derek Fridolfs and Dustin Nguyen

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Have you read Paths and Portals? What did you think of it?

 

 

Review: In Real Life

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Title: In Real Life
Author: Cory Doctorow and Jen Wang
Genre: Graphic Novel, Young Adult
Publisher: First Second
Source: Library
Release Date: October 14, 2014
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Anda loves Coarsegold Online, the massively-multiplayer role-playing game where she spends most of her free time. It’s a place where she can be a leader, a fighter, a hero. It’s a place where she can meet people from all over the world, and make friends.

But things become a lot more complicated when Anda befriends a gold farmer–a poor Chinese kid whose avatar in the game illegally collects valuable objects and then sells them to players from developed countries with money to burn. This behavior is strictly against the rules in Coarsegold, but Anda soon comes to realize that questions of right and wrong are a lot less straightforward when a real person’s real livelihood is at stake.

From acclaimed teen author (Little Brother, For the Win) and Boing Boing editor Cory Doctorow and Koko Be Good creator Jen Wang, In Real Life is a perceptive and high-stakes look at adolescence, gaming, poverty, and culture clash.

Review:

I’ve always loved video games. One of my favourites, World of Warcraft, is similar to the game Coarsegold that Anda plays  in this book. This book shows both the positive and negative parts of gaming.

Anda’s mother was worried about Anda playing games online. She didn’t want her to speak to strangers. She told her to only speak to kids her age, but you can’t tell how old someone is online. Her suspicions were validated when she sees strange deposits into her PayPal account, which was from the gold farmers that Anda had stopped in the game.

There are also good sides of gaming. Anda made a good friend from another part of the world, which wouldn’t have been possible without the game. She even helped organize a protest for the gold farmers to get health care provided in their jobs.

The game taught Anda how to be a better person, much to her mother’s surprise. I really enjoyed this book, and I recommend it for kids and adults!

What to read next:

  • Secret Coders by Gene Luen Yang and Mike Holmes

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  • Tournament Trouble by Sylv Chiang and Connie Choi

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Have you read In Real Life? What did you think of it?

 

Review: The Adventures of Superhero Girl

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Title: The Adventures of Superhero Girl
Author: Faith Erin Hicks
Genre: Graphic Novel
Publisher: Dark Horse Books
Source: Library
Release Date: February 26, 2013
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

What if you can leap tall buildings and defeat alien monsters with your bare hands, but you buy your capes at secondhand stores, and have a weakness for kittens, and a snarky comment from Skeptical Guy can ruin a whole afternoon? Cartoonist Faith Erin Hicks brings her skills in character design and sharp, charming humor to the trials and tribulations of a young, superhero battling monsters both supernatural and mundane in an all-too-ordinary world.

Review:

Superhero Girl is just an ordinary girl who works as a superhero. She has a brother with lots of superpowers, but she can only leap over tall buildings. She must keep her secret identity separate, but she forgets to take off her mask sometimes.

I loved how Superhero Girl is really just a regular person. She doesn’t have a tragic past, which caused her to become a superhero. She has to deal with ordinary life, but she also fights lots of ninjas.

I also loved the Canadian references. There were jokes about Tim Horton’s. She encounters a hilarious “League of Villainous Canadian Stereotypes.” It wasn’t a huge part of the story, but it was nice to see so much of Canada included in the story.

One thing I would have liked was for the comics to be separated into chapters. Some of the comics had scenes that continued for many pages, but some were just one page long. These comics were originally published online and they would have been separated then, so I wish they were also divided up in this book.

What to read next:

  • Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong by Faith Erin Hicks

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  • Goldie Vance Vol. 1 by Hope Larson

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Have you read The Adventures of Superhero Girl? What did you think of it?

Review: Archie’s Weird Mysteries

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Title: Archie’s Weird Mysteries
Author: Paul Castiglia, Fernando Ruiz
Genre: Graphic Novel
Publisher: Archie Comics
Source: Library
Release Date: August 9, 2011
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Everyone is used to hearing Archie tell wild stories and tall tales, especially in his “Weird Mysteries” newspaper column, but when vampires, werewolves, aliens and Bigfoot start popping up, it’s up to Archie, Betty, Veronica, Reggie and Jughead to get to the bottom of it!

There’s always something strange going on in a little town called Riverdale… jump into the mystery!

Review:

When I was a kid, I loved watching the TV show Archie’s Weird Mysteries. In it, Archie and the gang came up against strange things in Riverdale, including werewolves and vampires.

I was surprised when I saw this graphic novel, because I hadn’t thought about the show in years and I had never seen a comic version of it before. It was actually a TV series before it was a comic book. Since the show was so popular, they decided to make comics based on the episodes.

The stories in this graphic novel were great. One of them was a crossover between Archie and Scooby-Doo, where Archie and his friends were dressed as Scooby and the gang and they drove the Mystery Machine. Another one was confusing because it literally summarized an episode, but then it started a new story.

This is a great graphic novel for Archie fans!

What to read next:

  • Jughead, Vol. 1 by Chip Zdarsky and Erica Henderson

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  • Afterlife with Archie, Vol. 1: Escape from Riverdale by Robert Aguirre-Sacasa and Francesco Francavilla

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Have you read Archie’s Weird Mysteries? What did you think of it?

 

Review: Pashmina

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Title: Pashmina
Author: Nidhi Chanani
Genre: Graphic Novel, Young Adult
Publisher: First Second
Source: Library
Release Date: October 3, 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Priyanka Das has so many unanswered questions: Why did her mother abandon her home in India years ago? What was it like there? And most importantly, who is her father, and why did her mom leave him behind? But Pri’s mom avoids these questions–the topic of India is permanently closed.

For Pri, her mother’s homeland can only exist in her imagination. That is, until she find a mysterious pashmina tucked away in a forgotten suitcase. When she wraps herself in it, she is transported to a place more vivid and colorful than any guidebook or Bollywood film. But is this the real India? And what is that shadow lurking in the background? To learn the truth, Pri must travel farther than she’s ever dared and find the family she never knew.

In this heartwarming graphic novel debut, Nidhi Chanani weaves a tale about the hardship and self-discovery that is born from juggling two cultures and two worlds.

Review:

Last year, I saw this book everywhere, so I was curious to read it myself. It was great!

I liked the way that Priyanka discovered her history throughout the book. She had a lot of questions about her life, including who her father was, but her mother didn’t give her any answers. She felt much more comfortable with herself and her relationship with her mother once she finally got all of her answers.

The pashmina was a magical item. It gave Pri a taste of what India would be like, which made her want to go there. However, the pashmina only shows one side of things. Not all of India looks the way it did in the fantasy. There is also a lot of poverty that Pri wasn’t expecting.

I really enjoyed this story. It showed how Pri learned to combine her two cultures, American and Indian.

What to read next:

  • Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol

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  • Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier

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Have you read Pashmina? What did you think of it?

 

Review: Josie and the Pussycats Vol. 1

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Title: Josie and the Pussycats Vol. 1
Author: Marguerite Bennett, Cameron DeOrdio, Adurey Mok
Genre: Graphic Novel
Publisher: Archie Comics
Source: Library
Release Date: June 13, 2017
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

READ THE LATEST, SUREFIRE TOP-OF-THE-CHARTS NEW RIVERDALE SERIES!
JOSIE AND THE PUSSYCATS VOL. 1 is the first collection of an all-new take onthe world’s biggest comic book band. Marguerite Bennett (DC Comics’ Bombshells, Marvel’s A-Force) and co-writer Cameron DeOrdio team with Audrey Mok (Heroine Chic) to retell the origin and story behind the music for Josie, Valerie, and Melody.
Friends, countrymen, lend me your long tails and ears for hats–the Pussycats are back! In this series kick-off, Josie’s getting the band together to help achieve her dreams of musical stardom. But for the group to last, it needs a strong foundation of friendship and trust. Can the girls get going, or will Alexandra Cabot’s plotting put a stop to the whole thing? Don’t miss comics’ supreme songstresses’ return to the limelight in this exciting first volume!

Review:

I loved the Josie and the Pussycats movie when I was a kid, but I think this is the first Josie and the Pussycats comic that I’ve read!

This story tells the origin of the group. Josie McCoy is a twenty-four year old girl who lives in Riverdale. Her love of animals leads her to a charity concert, where she forms a band with her roommate Melody and their new friend Valerie. Though these characters come from Riverdale, like Archie and the gang, these girls are adults so it isn’t the same scenario as the kids at Riverdale high.

I really enjoyed this book. There was good tension between Josie and her former friend and arch nemesis Alexandra. There were loads of puns and references. At first they were funny, but then there ended up being at least two puns or references to pop culture on every page. It got a little annoying by the end. I think there should have been less puns and more conflict.

Overall, this was a great book. I can’t wait to read the next volume.

What to read next:

  • Josie and the Pussycats Vol. 2

  • The Archies & Josie and the Pussycats

Have you read Josie and the Pussycats Vol. 1? What did you think of it?

Review: Target Practice (Cleopatra in Space #1)

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Title: Target Practice (Cleopatra in Space #1)
Author: Mike Maihack
Genre: Middle Grade
Publisher: Scholastic
Source: Library
Release Date: April 29, 2014
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

A funny, action-packed graphic novel featuring a young Cleopatra — yes, THAT Cleopatra — who’s transported to the future and learns it’s up to her to save the galaxy!

When a young Cleopatra (yes, THAT Cleopatra) finds a mysterious tablet that zaps her to the far, REALLY far future, she learns of an ancient prophecy that says she is destined to save the galaxy from the tyrannical rule of the evil Xaius Octavian. She enrolls in Yasiro Academy, a high-tech school with classes like algebra, biology, and alien languages (which Cleo could do without), and combat training (which is more Cleo’s style). With help from her teacher Khensu, Cleo learns what it takes to be a great leader, all while trying to figure out how she’s going to get her homework done, make friends, and avoid detention!

Review:

This book is a really cool combination of ancient Egypt and science fiction.

Cleopatra travels in time from ancient Egypt into the future. She is a teenager, and struggles with her studies and the fact that she will become queen, and she is shocked when she lands thousands of years in the future. Her surprise at time travel wasn’t too dramatic but I think if it really happened to her, she would have been freaking out rather than adjusting to her new life just fine.

I flew through this book. It was really funny at times. There were lots of talking cats in charge of the school! Cleopatra was quite the fighter, which made for some exciting scenes. I also never imagined that space in the future would look so similar to ancient Egypt.

This story was very fast paced, with lots of stuff packed in! I’ll definitely be continuing this series!

What to read next:

  • The Thief and the Sword (Cleopatra in Space #2)
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  • The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #1)
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Have you read Target Practice (Cleopatra in Space #1)? What did you think of it?