Amazing Fantastic Incredible: A Marvelous Memoir by Stan Lee

Touchstone, 2015

If you are looking to add more non-fiction to your collection, then look no further!  Well...look further than this book but definitely add this one to your collection.

Stan Lee, creator and Marvel characters Spiderman, The Hulk and the Fantastic Four has FINALLY created a comic book memoir of his life.  Starting with his very humble beginnings, he narrates his life from there and his journey through the halls of comic bookdom, including some amazingly talented people he was not only able to meet but work with as well.  He tells about his stint in the military during World War II writing beside the likes of Theodor Geisel and other notable cartoonists that would become famous in their own right.  Lee also lovingly shares the story of his romance with his wife of six decades and the reader is able to see how their relationship had an impact on Lee's professional career.  He takes us all the way to present day where people watch for his cameo appearance in any Marvel movie.

What made Stan Lee such an icon is the fact that he changed the face of comic book writing, broke through some huge barriers put up by corporate suits and federal laws (on comics, of all things!) and continued the popularity of comic books from page to screen while continuing to write to audiences ranging from children to adult.

And if you think this is just another memoir, think again.  Lee manages to expertly weave the history of Marvel Comics from page to screen and beyond so the reader not only gets a glimpse of his life, but a timeline of Marvel from its early beginnings to present day.

Another interesting facet of this book is the narrator himself.  Yes, it's Stan Lee (and artist Colleen Doran did a stellar job of creating real life superheroes...got to see it to understand what I mean) but in the audience is a little boy who is fascinated with his tale and inserts himself into Lee's narration.  Lee knows that little boy well because....it's himself.  He weaves narrator and audience into a beautiful story of past and present which any comic book fan will devour.

Highly recommended by JH/HS and beyond.  As only Stan Lee can do so well.

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

2015, HarperCollins

Take one slightly OCD supervillain with a penchant for science, one golden knight who works for the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics, and one superbad shape-shifter girl.

Swirl it all with a heavy dose of sarcastic humor, a heaping of death and destruction, and a taste of the days of Lancelot with a hint of today's science technology.

Read for a day (or two) and you'll see what an OUTSTANDING graphic novel this is!!

Ballister Blackheart is a supervillain.  He's created not only a name but a reputation for being the nemesis of the kingdom's golden boy, Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin (and the humor begins...).  They've been fighting for years because of a joust gone wrong and nothing will mend the friendship they once shared.

And then along comes Nimona.  Such a cute girl with red hair...and a penchant to want to destroy, kill and maim.  She's a shapeshifter, and can replicate into anything in order to help Sir Blackheart take over the kingdom.  But there are a few slight problems.

He wants control and order, she lives in chaos.
He's not into hurting or killing people, she doesn't think twice about not doing it.
He's a seasoned veteran, who's been working on his reputation for awhile.  She's a young newbie, with lots of enthusiasm and curiosity.

Together, they are beginning to tear the kingdom apart (even though she's allergic to bananas  and can hardly watch a scary movie), especially after they find out what the Institution is truly up to.

The Director assigns Sir Goldenloin the task of killing the girl and capturing Blackheart, but he's not sure he can do it.  Go against the Institution and lose his place of glory or kill a little kid?  What's a knight to do?

Stevenson creates a graphic novel which not only tells a great story, but also brings about fits of laughter.  Her art is a spot-on delivery of building and creating characters and their personalities the reader understand through through the artwork Stevenson creates.  She carries it forward not only through artwork, but the subtle ways the characters interact and speak to each other all while an exciting tale is told.  No wonder this was nominated for the National Book Award....it's truly an excellent GN!    HIGHLY recommended for JH/HS

Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans by Don Brown

HMH Young Readers, 2015

I picked up this graphic novel because I was intrigued not only by the cover, but by how this non-fiction GN would stack up to what happened....I wasn't disappointed.

At this moment in time, there are two very significant historical moments high school students have lived through and will tell their grandchildren they were alive when it happened.  Most students can tell you about the 9/11 tragedy because there is a memorial set up, it's been televised and Youtubed, and schools usually honor those who died every year.

When asked what the other significant historical moment happened during their lifetimes, most had to think about it until I showed them the cover of the book.  Don Brown, who wrote and illustrated this GN, tells the tragic story of not only Hurricane Katrina the natural disaster, but also the tragedies that happened to those who stayed, the heroes and the villains, and how this natural disaster was SO overlooked not only by the state, but also by the federal government.  Brown's illustrations depict the sadness and desperation people felt, from those at the Superdome to those trapped in their homes, to the patients in hospitals left behind and based on factual evidence.

Brown also injects sad truth into the book as well.  Authorities in charge of the city from the top down weren't available or around during the aftermath.  Some in the police force abandoned their posts and the companies who volunteered their services  before the hurricane hit to transport those who couldn't get out were turned away...but there were the unknown heroes as well, who used their boats and other water vehicles to help those stranded on their rooftops.

While booktalking this book last week, I asked students to recall the heat in Texas in August, when temperatures easily reached into the 100s.  Would they be able to stand on a paved road for 24 hours with little or no water or food?  Coupled with extreme humidity, raw sewage, toxic water and the smell of death in the air....that's what people went through who were left behind.

This is the powerful image Don Brown creates, not only physically but emotionally as well.  And it is also something students need to know more about instead of compartmentalizing it as another hurricane that wrecked a city.

This is an important book to have in any library because it tells a story needing to be told in a format conveying more than words on pages.  Highly recommended.    

Fiction book pair:

Hurricane Song by Paul Volponi

Batman Superman Volume 1 Cross World

DC Comics, 2014

Before reading this graphic novel, you should know that the storyline takes place on two worlds, which are both like each other with small variations.  Earth One is where the novel begins, with Batman and Superman meeting in Gotham City not only as old friends, but also to unite against evil mechanisms invading the city.  As they fight they way through the mayhem, Kaiyo, the Chaos Bringer, enters the scene.

Kaiyo is from another universe altogether and she loves to dabble with unexpected outcomes.  She does this well when she takes both Batman and Superman to another world where they meet their younger selves.  Enter Earth Two.

In this world, Batman and Superman are younger versions on themselves, not quite up to speed with their older, newly transported counterparts.  On Earth Two, Superman hasn't yet learned to fly or fall in love and Batman is young and arrogant, thinking himself above any one and any fray.  It's here they meet Kaiyo and find out the chaos she brings is  far bigger and badder than they expected.  Darkseid is coming....

The novel then leaps into another story altogether, giving background into who Darkseid was as a person and how he became an ultimate destroyer with the power of gods.  He rules with an iron fist, leaving no human alive and destroying any worlds he comes into contact with.  Darkseid, taunted and teased for the first time by Kaiyo, is out to kill her, and with this knowledge, Kaiyo is willing to introduce him to opponents worthy of his strength and might.

Can Batman and Superman join forces in both worlds to stave off destruction or can they even begin to see eye-to-eye as they fight to find equal footing, friendship and trust in a completely different world? 

I admit, I haven't read a graphic novel in a long time, and this was a great introduction back into the world of GN and superheroes.  The author and illustrator lead the reader down a rabbit hole of chaos that may not make sense until later in the novel and may require double reading.  But when the reader finally understands the plot...that's when it thickens and begins to mold into the bigger story that continues in three other volumes.  Not only are Superman and Batman present, but Catwoman and Wonder Woman also make their debut.  Filled with larger-than-life characters in situations worthy of them, Greg Pak and Jae Lee write and illustrate an outstanding novel readers will want to continue in the other GNs that follow.  Excellent addition to any graphic novel collection! Recommended upper JH/HS and beyond.
ADDED BONUS:  There's a great addendum that goes through the artwork of this graphic novel from idea to sketch to full image that's AMAZING!!