"Outside a dog a book is man's best friend, inside a dog it is too dark to read!" -Groucho Marx========="The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid." -Jane Austen========="I don’t believe in the kind of magic in my books. But I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a good book."-JK Rowling========"I spend a lot of time reading." -Bill Gates=========“Ahhh. Bed, book, kitten, sandwich. All one needed in life, really.” -Jacqueline Kelly=========

Tuesday, January 31, 2017

TTT: My favorite graphic novels

Top Ten Tuesday: My favorite graphic novels/memoirs/biographies/information books.

1. Tales from Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan...love this collection of little quirky stories by one the best in the field. Graphic 'short stories'.

2. Blankets by Craig Thompson...wonderful illustrations in this compelling coming-of-age story. Graphic novel.

3. Stitches by David Small... the artist uses illustrations to tell his own story about his horrifying childhood with a mentally ill mother and a father whose doctoring actually gave him cancer. Graphic memoir.

4. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson...more complicated than just a superhero/antihero story. Graphic novel.
5. March, Book Three by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, illustrated by Nate Powell...actually I love the whole series about the American hero: John Lewis. Graphic autobiography.

6. Steve Jobs: Insanely Great by Jessie Hartland...I love this graphic biography of an American icon. Quirky illustrations lend to its charm.

7. This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki...the best coming-of-age book I've ever read (outside of To Kill a mockingbird, of course.) Graphic novel.

8. Boxers and Saints by Gene Luen Yang...Yang is an award-winning novelist. This collection of two books explains the Boxer Rebellion in China from two points of few. It is EXCELLENT. Graphic information book.

9. Pyongyang: A Journey Into North Korea by Guy DeLisle...the artist Guy DeLisle spent time in North Korea working on a project. This book is an enlightening information book highlighting what life is like in this closed-off country.

10. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and Nancy Butler...a favorite novel and a charming graphic novel.

11. Inside Out: Portrait of an Eating Disorder by Nadia Shivack...a sadly enlightening book about what it is like to live with a eating disorder. Graphic memoir.

12. The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis... wow, just wow. The illustrations in this graphic memoir are so detailed.

13. The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman...a graphic retelling of the Sleeping Beauty story with absolutely gorgeous illustrations by Chris Riddell.

14. The Arrival by Shaun Tan...this graphic novel about the immigrant experience has no words at all. Tan is one of my favorite illustrators. He is so creative.

-ANNE

29 comments:

  1. You let me know when we can switch jobs, and we can try it for a week. Sounds very fun.

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    1. I'm afraid you wouldn't think my job is so sweet...with iPads and cranky high schoolers.

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  2. A graphic novel of Pride and Prejudice, I must get my hands on it! Great list.

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    1. I know. Really. I also have a graphic novel of Sense and Sensibility but I don't like the art work as well.

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  3. Awesome list!! I should read more graphic novels!

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    1. It is hard to capture the feel of a graphic novel in one page. Glad you think they are pretty.

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  4. Wow, so many of these look BEAUTIFUL!! I really need to up my GN game :)

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    1. I know. I wish I had more time to read them. I have trouble with manga because of the reading backwards, thing, though.

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  5. I love your selection of graphic novels this week! :-)

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    1. This exercise made me realize just how many great graphic novels I have read and that I have in the library.

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  6. I've heard good things about both Nimona and This One Summer- they both look good.

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    1. Both are excellent but in different ways. I had to read THIS ONE SUMMER twice to really appreciate it.

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  7. I don't usually read graphic novels but your post made me look twice. I didn't realize there was a graphic novel of Pride and Prejudice. I also think memoirs in the form of graphic novels are good.

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    1. I actually like reading unique graphic novels better than books I've already read i print version first. But I am always trying different versions of P&P.

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  8. Great list! So many of these look brilliant; I'll definitely be picking up a copy of This One Summer this year and I really need to check out some of Shaun Tan's work. I love Nimona and I enjoyed The Sleeper and the Spindle, too - then again any book becomes 100x better when Chris Riddell illustrates it.

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    1. Chris Riddell is AMAZING. I will look for more books illustrated by him for sure.

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  9. Out of all of these, I'd only heard of Nimona before! Some of the other covers look familiar...but I'm not 100% sure. I'll have to check them all out because I've been wanting to read more comics :)

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  10. Great selection! I've read a lot of these but there are couple of I'm not familiar with and will have to check out.

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    1. I think you would really find the Pyongyang book interesting and enlightening.

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  11. I haven't been able to get hold of Blankets or This One Summer but I LOVE Nimona and The Sleeper and the Spindle. So beautiful <3
    I also hadn't heard that there was a graphic novel of Pride and Prejudice: wow, that looks beautiful!

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  12. These all look good, will check them out and add to my list :) Thank you for stopping by and thank you for sharing this post :)

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  13. Oooh, nice way of presenting them, too! I need to read March, though I haven't seen it in stores in the UK, so I'll have to order it.

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    1. MARCH is a trilogy. Look for all three books and read them in sequence.

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  14. You're got some classics, but also some I haven't heard of! I CANNOT WAIT to read Boxers and Saints. I've been waiting so long to read it! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

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  15. Amazing post! Love your suggestions, about four of these have been on my TBR for the longest time :)

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  16. Such a good list! I would add to it Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. The color illustrations are wonderful!

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  17. Oh The Sleeper and the Spindle is great too, I agree!

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