Excluding Archie. That will be its own post.

Fiction

Nathan Hale’s Hazerdous Tales by Nathan Hale

Modern day Hale (same name, no relation) uses the famous Revolutionary spy, Nathan Hale (of “My one regret is that I have one life to give” fame) to narrate adventures and incidents throughout history. This abundence of knowledge from the future occurs after Hale is scooped up into a magical history book, and uses these entertaining stories to keep the Hangman and British Officer from hanging him. Sort of like Schrezade in 1001 Nights. As you can tell it is cartoony in its executions and the childish Hangman is always there to lend comedic relief. But it is very good in condensing such vast histories like the start of WW1 and the first three years of the Korean War. While also going into more individual events like the Donner Party and Harriet Tubman’s lifestory. And don’t worry it doesn’t skimp on the gore, it has hazerdous ratings on the back so readers can be warned of the assassinations, eye stabbing, massacre-ing and such that is within.

For a lighter, broader comic about history try Stan Mack and Susan Chaplin’s The Cartoon Chronicles of America duology.

Lumberjanes by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis, Noelle Stevenson and Brooklyn Allen

Fun little series about girls being badass and meeting up with all sorts of fantastical creatures a la Adventure Time style. It is very girl power being an all-girls camp and wishes to impart life lessons in its chapters with each badge the girls undertake to get. And it works. The series really makes the girls three dimensional in their flaws and conflicts, even with each other. But it is always all right in the end because friendship is power. There is also an overarching mystery with why the mysterious creatures and dinosaur portals always hit the camp. Plus plenty of sweet friendships and Lgtbq romances for the fans.

Avatar the Last Airbender by Gene Luen Tang (formerly); Faith Hicks (currently)

It’s spins off just moments after the finale of Avatar the Last Airbender so of course it is great. It does well in keeping everyone in character while expanding on the worlds and inevitable problems that come with a new world order whether it be rising pro-Ozai factions, the rumblings of anti-benders and more conflict between spirits and humans. Plus I love seeing them all interact each other and grow closer or farther apart as they face new challenges. Great art too. And yes, The Search is my favorite of the trilogies so far.

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson

This book introduces kids to the niche world of roller derby through Astrid. A young, slightly impatient girl going through her rebellious phase as her friendship falls apart. Likewise, her dream to be a forward on the rink is quickly sunk when she finds roller camp not as easy as it seems. I very much enjoyed its themes of persistance and sisterhood in this coming of age story and really speaks to the heart and the confusion of adolesence and finding your passion. Her next book covers another niche world through the eyes of a pre teen in All Faire’s in Middle School following a girl whose family is part of a travelling renissance fair.

Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol

This is a genuinely creepy book in my opinion as it follows Anya who accidentally attracts a ghost when she falls into a hole. There, the ghost of lonely girl sticks by her since Anya carries her finger bone in her pocket. At first, she’s all for chucking it away but then is intrigued by the ghost’s offers to help her cheat on tests and give crush advice. But as ghosts are wont to do, she wants more. It has a lot to say about love, about boundaries and about heritage. Well worth it for a spine tingling read under the covers. For 14 and up.

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Tang

This book neatly ties its three stories into one showing various cases of Chinese heritage, one through what looks like a traditionally-illustrated kung-fu, zodiac epic. Another through the story of a Chinese immigrant attempting to fit in and assimilate with his peers, gravely ruining his friendship in the process. And then the final one with all-American boy, Danny trying to prevent his visiting stereotypical Chinese cousin from ruining his social life. How they are connected may surprise you.

W.I.T.C.H. by Elisabetta Gnone

One of my first childhood memories even though I only recently found out the actual name. Now that I’m older I can actually appreciate the friendship goals between the girls and the dangers they were in. It’s very much in the magical-girl-series vein, but with its unique world, it may provide something alternative if they feel the Winx Club is too sparkly and girly. I also appreciate how the girls actually grow and time progresses forward.

Rapunzel’s Revenge by Dean and Shannon Hale

For those who are a fan of fairytales and westerns this is the one for you. It follows the plotline pretty much exactly but its expressive, colorful art and western aesthetic make it riveting with its blazing guns and whipping hair-rope. I also very much its unique worldbuilding and the growing relationship between Rapunzel and her thief of a friend, Jack (who climbs a beanstalk in its sequel).

New Kid by Jerry Craft

This book follows Jordan and his time at an elitist prep school as one of the few black kids. As you can guess, he’s the new kid, and faces lots of micro-aggressions from his peers and some falculty and even his old friends. I think this book will be very relatable to several kids who find themselves in his position and while it can’t offer a permenant solution, he does provide some worthwhile tactics for how to get through it and get people to know better. Has a sequel entitled Class Act.

My boyfriend is a Monster by Evonne Tsang

Each book features a different monstrous couple as they fight off the obstacles in the way of their love. As cliche as it sounds, it has a totally different spin on that kind of genre and there are no weepy declarations of love and emo-ness. Overall, I find it very enjoyable.

Dead Weight: Murder at Camp Bloom by Terry Blas, Molly Muldoon and Matthew Seely

Now don’t let the premise fool you of four kids at weight loss camp who accidentally stumble on a murderer. Yes, it’s a weight loss campp but it is not fat-shaming or overdone. It actually has really nice message about body confidence, the different reasons for getting fit and just feeling like an outcast. So it makes sense that these different kids would come to bond, well that and they’re the ones who saw a grisly murder, captured it on their phones and must find the killer before it targets them. Played out with all the suspense of a camp horror movie with some humorous Scooby Doo sleuthing, it seems Camp Bloom has a lot of secrets making finding the real suspect even more tricky.

Memoirs

Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol

This is a fun memoir about the misery tha is summer camp. Made even worse for young Vera because it is a Russian summer camp. One that is supposed to help her connect with her homeland but she has little experience with. Combine that with mean tentmates and being the youngest one there, all she wants to do is go home. She can’t but there is a light at the end of the tunnel as she does find a way to become self-sufficient as the motto (and title) says and finds a way to camp victory for herself.

Hey Kiddo by Jarret J. Krosoczka

This memoir is part homage to the grandparents that raised him (while acknowledging their flaws) and part therapy working out his relationship with his mom, a woman that was in and out of his life due to her drug use. Family is messy and complicated and Jarret lays all of it bare which is what it makes it so compelling to read. Combined with the use of memorabilia scrapes and the significant orange palette, it is a well-done memoir.

Real Friends by Shannon Hale

This trilogy is one that I think most girls could relate to at one time or another. The world of girl friendships is shifting and slippery especially as rivalries and mean girls show up. Combined with little Shannon’s anxiety, it makes everything even worse. But the imagination spots and how writing provided a bright spot to her was an uplifting thread, and also a bit of time capsule showing her life in the 70s and 80s. A good read for middle schoolers.

Almost American Girl by

This memoir gives insight to Korean culture and the immigrant experience when Robin is moved to Georgia, completely unprepared with her mother’s new, also unexpected marriage. They live with the husband’s family but it is clear with the language barrier, Robin doesn’t have much in common with them. Not that the in-laws care to try. Same with most people at school. It is all very lonely and hard for her but she does find some outlet with her drawings. And that’s what helps ease her time. Robin is considerate of her mother, as she wrote in the author’s note, trying to show her side of the story and went drove her to such drastic measures. It also gives insight to how the living of two cultures influenced her today to making the best of both worlds.

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

This will be short as I believe this is required reading for most classrooms, but the point is, it is a good memoir. It succintly explains the Iranian Revolution for those who have no clue of what it entails, and provides the humor, tears and fears that come with living in such a turbulent time.

Maus by Art Spiegelman

As the news people have been saying, this is a banned book so you should definately go read it. Taking an horrific personal history filled with gore, suicide, trauma and more and slapping it with animals makes it a little more bearable. Just a little. But not only is it important inportraying the horrors of the Holocaust but it is also a cartharatic look into the Speigelman family history and how trauma and history still carry over.

Smile by Raina Telgmeier

Much like Real Friends above, Telgemeier navigates slippery friendships and growing up. While dealing with the worst dental issue in the world. That helps make the book stand out which combine with clean and colorful drawings, make it a fun easy read.

Honor Girl by Maggie Thrash

about the summer that changed her life. The summer she realized she was gay which is never a good realization in the South. This memoir is bittersweet and thoughtful as it acknowledges those small moments have big impacts but some relationships are never meant to be.

Quiet girl in a noisy world: An Introvert’s Story by Debbie Tung

This compliation of webcomics are sweet, relatable fun for any introverted book lover who wishes they could be more extroverted but must admit defeat when the social battery is down. However, it’s not just giggles and relatability. It has a hopeful stream that you don’t have to change who you are to fit in and people will love you even if you prefer a party of one rather than a party.

They Called Us Enemy by George Takei

This I believe is an important memoir on a part of our history that I believed is still glossed over-The internment of American citizens of Japanese descent. Now Takei was only 4 when he was sent to the internment camps in the middle of the desert, so Takei relied on his father’s memories/retelling as well. Using the two he can depict the realities of the camp from an adult point of view, knowing the prejudice fueling these events, and from a child’s point of view, uncomprehending of the bigger picture. He discusses the historical figures who engineered the idea, as well as the aftermath. Most important, he emphasizes the danger of prejudice and of forgotten stories, because if we forget we are doomed to repeat.

Amazing Fantastic Incredible by Stan Lee

This marvelous, fantastic, incredible memoir delivers on its bombasticity. Lee takes readers through his life starting in the slum tenents during the 30s where books were his portals to new worlds. Then with these hard times, he has to get a job, which is where he makes his first step into the comic book industry as an eraser for the famous Jack Kirby. He goes through the ups and downs and permutations of the company from Atlas to the Marvel industry it is today as well as big events in history like the Comic Book Code. And of course, he dives into his inspiration and reasoning for the creation of his biggest heroes in Marvel. With wry humor and great colorful panels, the story of Lee’s life is just as epic as his work. Plus it has some really heartwarming moments and passages.