It’s that time of the month again! How was your May? Mine was a little hectic. I went to Megacon which was so much fun! I did a whole post of that here if anyone is interested in checking out some of the pictures. Right after that we had a not so great thing happen and my fiance and I ended up driving back and forth to Miami to spend time with a family member that is currently in the hospital. And we are moving at the end of June so it has been a little crazy around here! But I still managed to read a bunch of really great books that I can’t wait to share with you guys!
The first book that I wanted to talk to you guys about is a graphic novel called Operatic by Kyo Maclear. This book is about a group of kids in 8C, a music class in middle school. They are tasked with doing a project on a genre of music that defines them. Charlie is having a hard time figuring out what type of music defines her. They are learning about a different genre of music each day and Charlie doesn’t know which one she relates to the most. Until they come to opera. She discovers Maria Callas, an amazing opera singer. She finally finds something that she connects to.
This is a fantastic book. I loved the story and the artwork. This is one of those books that I would recommend to someone if they are just starting out reading comics/graphic novels. I think that this is a fantastic addition to any library – personal or public.
The next book is called Croquette & Empanada by Ana Oncina. This is an adorable little comic book about Croquette and Empanada, a couple just going though life and having adventures. I really liked that there were a bunch of different stories in this collection but that they still had an overarching story line that they kept to. Some of the stories were just a page long and then some were up to a few pages long. I liked the variety of the lengths of all the different stories. I also really liked the artwork and the color palette in this graphic novel. I would recommend to pretty much anyone. The stories could be enjoyed by any age group with no problems I think.
The next book is a new one that we have at the library, called Witches in Training, Hex Vet #1 by Sam Davies. Here is the description from Goodreads: “In a world where magic is an ordinary part of daily life, two young apprentice veterinarians pursue their dreams of caring for supernatural creatures.
Have you ever wondered where witches’ cats go when they pull a claw? Or what you do with a pygmy phoenix with a case of bird flu? Nan and Clarion have you covered. They’re the best veterinarian witches of all time—at least they’re trying to be. But when an injured spectral wolf beast from another realm stumbles into their lives, Nan and Clarion have to put down their enchanted potions and face the biggest test of their magical, medical careers…outside of the clinic.“
This is a fantastic book for a younger audience (but I also enjoyed it so I think everyone would too!) that talks about following your dreams, even if people don’t think you’re right for the job. I loved the artwork in this one and the color pallet as well. It was a lot of pinks, purples, and greens and it made everything flow very nicely.
The next two books that I read were both non-fiction. Binge is a collection of essays by YouTuber Tyler Oakley. Having watched Tyler Oakley’s YouTube channel for a few years (and really enjoyed it) I was really looking forward to reading his book. And I was not disappointed! I really enjoyed all of the different essays that were in this collection. You really get to know him more than just what’s on YouTube. If you are a fan of his I would highly recommend checking this book out! The other book is a memoir called In Real Life: My Journey to a Pixelated World by another YouTuber, Joey Graceffa. Joey Graceffa has also written a trilogy of children’s books called The Eden Trilogy (I haven’t read those yet but I am looking forward to checking them out!). I had watch a few of his videos before reading this memoir but I wasn’t to familiar with his life or style before diving into this book so I wasn’t really sure what to expect. I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. The content was not what I expected and I was shocked by what a horrible childhood that he had. I had no idea about any of it and I was really surprised by how he wrote about everything with such candor. I really enjoyed the book even though there was some things in there that were a little bit hard to read about. I would recommend this for teens or young adults.
The next book that I really enjoyed last month is called Zebrafish by Sharon Emerson. Here is the description from Goodreads: “Vita is a purple-haired singing queen, and she has big dreams for her rock group, Zebrafish. But when she holds auditions for the back-up band, tryouts are sorely lacking in the musical ability department. Luckily her new band mates—Walt, Tanya, Jay, and Plinko—have other talents. But lately Tanya has been missing a lot of rehearsals. When Vita discovers why, she realizes that the group can be about much more than one person, one band, or even one school. A concert won’t cure Tanya’s cancer or make her treatments any less painful, but, in their own way, Zebrafish can make a difference—and the tale of their unlikely success is sure to strike a chord with young readers looking to make their world a better place.”
This was such a cute book. I found it in our Juvenile Graphic Novel section at the library and I had never heard of it so I decided to check it out without knowing what it was about first. I really enjoyed the story and the lessons that the kids learned throughout it. This is one that I would recommend to preteens or teenagers.
The next couple of books that I read were some comic books by Hope Larson called Goldie Vance. I read the first three volumes of the comic book which center around Marigold “Goldie” Vance who likes to solve mysteries at the Florida hotel that she works at as a valet. Goldie’s dad manages the hotel and her best friend, Cheryl, works at the front desk. This reminds me of a more modern Nancy Drew with a queer, POC, MC who solves mysteries and drag races. I really love how the three volumes that I read turned out and I’m very excited to see how this story continues to develop. This is a really great comic book series, especially for teenage girls (but really for anyone!).
That’s it for the month of May! How was your May? Did you get to read a lot of books? If you have any good recommendations I would love to hear about them in the comments! I hope you all have a great day and I can’t wait to talk to you all soon!
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