Graphic-Novel-Loving Librarian Blog

Summary: "So you like scary things? Do you want to see something really scary?" That was a line from the movie The Twilight Zone Movie . If you liked that movie, or Goosebumps, then you'll enjoy this book. These stories are meant to scare you and you read it because you like to be scared. Scary Stories scares as you read it and allows you to use their stories to scare your friends. Whether it's a visitor coming down a chimney or the ever-popular man-with-a-hook. But, if you don't like scary things then you should probably skip this book, but if you do like those things then...did you hear that noise? I think it came from the book. I dare you to look inside. Reference: Schwartz, A. (2010). Scary stories to tell in the dark . New York, NY. HarperCollins Children's Books. Impressions: Reading these stories reminded of the The Twilight Zone and the Kolchak: The Night Stalker television series.  These tales were made to frighten you, but they weren't r

Summary: Have you laughed at a good poem lately? Can poems be deliberately funny? Of course they can. Poems can be of love, of sadness, and, in case you weren't expecting it, they can be of humor, too. Rolling in the Aisles is a book of poems that, as the title suggests, leaves you intentionally laughing. The poems cover a variety of topics that may be aimed for kids, but these are poems that many people would find funny. From family, school, hygiene, and even pets, no topic is off base and each poem is heart-warming and funny. This book is a pleasure to read from page to page, giving credence to the notion that poems can be light-hearted and unpredictable.     Reference: Lansky, B. (2011). Rolling in the aisles: A collection of laugh-out-loud poems. New York, NY. Meadowbrook Press. Impressions: I wasn't always a fan of poetry from my school experiences and it wasn't until later when I became a high school teacher that I learned that poetry can be fun.  This book

Summary: Second and third generation minorities are often caught in a dilemma, especially if they are far from their parents' native country. It's a dilemma because they have no connection to their parents' country, but at the same time because of the way they look, they're often considered to be a hyphenated Americans, second class citizens. American Born Chinese tells three different story lines that all wrap up into one. A young boy, Jin, dreams of being a Transformer so that he can become a pale-skinned American, teenager Danny transfers to other schools to hide his true ethnicity, and the Monkey King learns what it takes to be a god. All three tell of individuals just want to fit in, but they all must first learn where acceptance truly begins. Reference: Yang, G. L. (2006). American born Chinese. New York, NY. :01 First Second. Impressions: I was completely mesmerized by this book. I could easily identify with the characters in the book and I'm Mexi

Summary: Where do artist get there ideas; where do their muses come from? Anyone who has dabbled in the arts often times looks to those who came before them and searches for inspiration, hoping to find a spark that pushed others to somehow push them. Every artist has something that helped them pursue their dream and many a budding artist looks to the biographies of others to find a connection to their own lives. Fabulous! does a good job of presenting the life of Andy Warhol to young readers, depicting Andy as a weakling who overcame difficult obstacles to follow his gift. Then with strong explanation of his artistic style and technique, Christensen does well in explaining Andy's artistic expression and influence on others. From soup cans to celebrities, Andy's work is unmistakable. Yes, there are sordid details of his life omitted, but Christensen does an admirable job in simplifying his life. Reference: Christensen, B. (2011). Fabulous! A portrait of Andy Warhol. New Yo

Summary: "The number one book on number two." It's a great phrase to summarize a surprisingly great book about the history of the world and the way it's dealt with its...well, poop. Albee tells how earlier civilizations got rid of their feces and how their ignorance of the diseases brought illnesses and death.  So many cultures handled their waste by dumping it in the nearest river and then gathering that same water to drink from. It's unfortunate that this cycle repeats itself throughout history with the same fatal results.  Albee combines history and trivial facts with humor. Reading about Egyptian, Roman, Greek, and English history in this light was very enlightening and makes the reader appreciative of the current plumbing that we have today. What Albee also points out is that many contemporary third world societies live under the same conditions of the past, suffering from the same diseases and deaths of long ago. Albee hopes that by writing this book she&