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Summer Comics/Manga
Princess Jellyfish by Akiko Higashimura
This fun manga follows a group of amars/okuta (women who don’t need men/adult fangirls) as they try to save their building from being sold to greedy developers by creating their own fashion line.
Tsukimi is the star of it, and as you can guess from the title, her specific obssession is jellyfish thanks to an enduring sweet memory from her childhood with Mom. Jellyfish bring beauty to ‘s life and her staunch support for jellyfish as when she buys one from a local pet store is what leads her to meet .
Kuranosuke is the cross-dressing son of a prominant politician. He’s so convincing he manages to safely enter the sancutary of the which men are forbidden. His great sense of style and secret crush on is a vital part to the mission as he helps set up to start making the Princess Jellyfish fashion line, runway show and pop up store.
There’s also Shū, Kuranosuke’s half brother, a promising politician himself and a 30 year old virgin (it’s a plot point I swear) who falls for Tsukimi’s glamorous makeover and she for him.
I know love triangle. . drama! But don’t worry it doesn’t take up too much tedious time as other love triangles do. Rather the manga is focused on the characters as readers learn the stories of each okuta, finding passion and beauty in what you love, standing for what you believe in and found family. Also the minor characters are just funny.
It’s a hilarious twisting premise that is sure to delight fellow okutas.
(more…)#akikohigashimura, #amazingagentluna, #azumangadaioh, #boom!studios, #cecilcastellucci, #comics, #dreaminsun, #emmieandfriends, #giantdays, #graphicnovels, #harpercollins, #hudaf.areyou?, #hudafahmy, #ichigotakano, #jimrugg, #johnallison, #kiyohikoazuma, #kodanshainternational, #littlebrownbooksforyoungreaders, #manga, #nunziodeflippis, #omarmohamed, #penguinrandomhouse, #plainjanes, #princessjellyfish, #rachelreads&reviews, #sevenseasentertainment, #terrilibenson, #victoriajamieson, #whenthestarsarescattered, #yenpress -
DC Ink
Raven by Kami Garcia
I believe this is the start of Garcia’s Teen Titans books for DC Ink. Well they were the start for me at least and it gets right into the action of a fatal car crash. Raven has amnesia, and her mother is dead. Luckily, she still has her aunt and cousin even though she doesn’t remember anything at all. Least of all, her powers or the importance of her necklace.
Garcia does a fine job with the suspense, letting readers slowly come to their own conclusions of Raven’s powers, how much her family knows and what Raven is trying to figure out herself. Plus Picolo’s art is amazing. I love the visual representation of Raven’s empath powers and the invasive mind reading that she can’t quite control.
Additionally, I enjoyed the addition of what I believe is Santeria or at least New Orleans vodoo in regards to Max and her mom’s powers. Raven is so lucky to ave such a cool family in that regard.Beast Boy by Kami Garcia
Like above, Garcia does a good job in defining Garfield’s personality as a regular, joking kid who aspire to bulk up and ask out the girl of her dreams, be a little more popular than he is. Though it sounds like a classic loser boy-realizes-popularity-isn’t-all-that-cracked-up-to-be, it isn’t. Garfield never turns into a jerk, oblivious but not a jerk.
First off he has two friends that keep him grounded, and second, his love of animals shines through as he takes drastic measures to save lab animals during his epic prank. The latter is excelllent forshadowing about what is to come regards his mysterious powers surfacing when he stops taking his supplements. Once again Picolo’s art shines in depicting the rough animal changes Garfield goes through.
Beast Boy Loves Raven by Kim Garcia
As before, Gacia’s mystery is the bets part as Raven and Garfield end up in Nashville to find shady Slade who claims to have answers to their powers. While waiting, there is some cute tourist exploration with the two that allows them ample time to bond.
However, the romance feels a bit forced. Even though I believe that they can come to care for each other and have a crush on each other in two days, the “I love you’s” seem too soon. Again, it was two days, let’s slow down people.
Meanwhile, Max continues her covert babysitting which allows her to bump into Robin! I know, awesome surprise and nicely sets up the next book and the eventual team up. So excited for the next one.
(more…)#beastboy, #beastboylovesraven, #comics, #dccomics, #dcink, #dearjusticeleague, #gabrielpicolo, #gothamhigh, #gustavoduarte, #isaacgoodhart, #kimgarcia, #kodykeplinger, #laurenmyracle, #lauriehalseanderson, #manuelpreitano, #mariekenijkamp, #melissadelacruz, #michaelmoreci, #michaelnorthrop, #nicolegoux, #poisonivy:thorns, #rachelreads&reviews, #raven, #sarahkuhn, #sarakipin, #sasmilledge, #shadowofthebatgirl, #thelostcarnival, #theoraclecode, #thomaspitilli, #underthemoon, #victorandnora:agothamlovestory, #wonderfulwomenoftheworld, #zatanna:thejewelofgravesend -
Top 5 Dork Diaries
1. Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
This was the first book I read from the series even though it’s the second. My mom got it from some used books bin so yeah. Anyway the hilarious running around Nikki went through trying to juggle the three different parties literally made me breathless from laughter. That plus the (now outdated) current pop culture references with Nikki’s fiesty dialogue contrasted with her more wimpier actions made it feel relatable. From there I was hooked.
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Kiki’s Delivery Service Review
When I saw this classic by Eiko Kadono in the library, I just had to read it and see how it compared to the movie. My conclusion is that it’s delightful in its own way.
Inspired by a drawing by her 12 year old daughter, this is the book that inspired Kadono to make writing her life’s work, and to make it relatable, she kept things simple. Kiki is a twelve year old girl, a witch as passed down from her mother’s blood. But witches and their ways have been slowly disappearing and so Kiki only posseses one power-flight on her broom. That way, Kadono forces Kiki to use her head and her creativity to problem solve.
And that’s what she does on her coming of age year. She travels to an unfamiliar town at the river leading to the sea, Koriko. There, Kiki and her black cat, Jiji set up a delivery service next door to the bakery and get into several adventures. It’s really more like a series of vignettes from delivering a stuffed toy to a spoiled boy and having Jiji briefly act as a replacement to delivering secret admirer letters to giving a tugboat a belly warmer. My personal favorite was the spring concert where she delivered the forgotten instruments and made a concert of her own.
While there is not one big plot, and yes, it’s hard to not think of the movie (in the book Kiki doesn’t have the magic block and subsequent finding her joy again nor does Trombo nearly fall off a blimp or collide with the clock tower. The artist is unnamed in the book etc.), I do enjoy the hints to Kiki’s coming of age. Learning to deal with homesickness, curiosity about crushes and love, making new friends, and just standing on her own two feet. Or her own broom in this case.
Additionally, I enjoy how the relationship between Kiki and her mother is fleshed out here and more background of her childhood in the town. It’s very sweet.
If you’re a fan of big plots and momentuous coming of age insight, you will probably be bored by this book. But if you’re in the mood for a light slice-of-life book with a charming sweetness in the vein of the Ghibli movie, you’ll enjoy seeing its original source.
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Ella Enchanted Review
I did it! I finally read Ella Enchanted. Now I just have to see the movie like the rest of the world.
Anyway, I enjoyed the book. I can see why it is so beloved. As I’ve said before, Levine has a way of adapting the fairytale stories that are so well-known and making them her own. I really admire her imagination when building her magic system and creating four distinct languages as well as different kingdom dialects. It really makes Kyrrhia and Ella’s story memorable.
Ella herself is a wonderful heroine. I love that Levine shows the relationship she shared with her mother as to make it even more heartbreaking when she dies. I enjoyed her humor, her interest in languages, and defiance to those who don’t deserve her respect and try to order about. She doesn’t mince words and she’s no one’s puppet though the curse often forces her to otherwise.
Also Levine does a wonderful, albeit at times heartbreaking, job of depicting why the curse of obedience is a curse. From giving away her mother’s necklace to almost allowing herself to be eaten, it’s an awful situation even more awful by the dizziness/pressure that compells her when she tries to resist. It’s even more heinous when combined with the justice mushrooms her father gives to her and the brief happiness spell from Lucinda. It’s just awful to not being able to make decisions on your own.
Which makes it all the more triumpant when Ella succeeds at the end. I really love the ending. I also loved the friendship/romance between Prince Char and Ella. As Sir Stephen said, she brings him laughter and he brings her a purpose and duty.Additionally, the other characters like fairygodmother, Mandy, the fairy Lucinda who started this whole curse to the greedy Dame Olga and daughters, Hattie and Olive are unique and fufill their roles quite nicely to make you enjoy hate or love them.
While I was not so interested in the end when it turns into a Cinderella story, I much preferred the wholly original adventure it had been for the first 20 chapters, it was still enjoyable and the curse provided enough suspense so I had no clue how it would end.
So 4 stars.
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Jamie L. Rotante Interview
Jamie L. Rotanate is a full-time writer and editor for Archie Comics after working up the ranks of the industry. She graciously took some time to answer my questions about her work, the enduring friendship of Betty and Veronica and upcoming news! 1. To start off simply, what were some of your big influences when you began writing?
I’ve been writing in some capacity since I was in about third or fourth grade. At that time it would just be shorter stories, usually inspired by whatever we had to read for school at the time. That love of writing continued to grow throughout high school and college. A big turning point for me was when I took a James Joyce class in college. It opened my eyes to how a writer could really manipulate the words on the page and make them come to life. I’ve also always had a love of reading personal stories–ever since I was a pre-teen scouring the pages of Cosmo Girl magazine, I was drawn to accounts from women’s real lives. Post-college I got even more into reading essays and non-fiction. A book of essays called Fine, Fine Music by my friend Cassie J. Sneider made me realize that I could write about myself, too. It’s not about the events that happened; it’s about the feelings, emotions, and reactions behind them.2. What is your daily writing routine?
I wish I had one! At the time of answering these (week of August 15), I’m attempting to cultivate a routine. I’ve just enrolled in a Summer Writing Sanctuary online workshop that’s meant to help find that creative spark and begin a steady routine. This is something I struggle with the most, making time for myself to write, esp. if it’s personal writing without a deadline. I hope to be better at that someday, but it’s definitely still a work in progress.
3. What drew you to comics/graphic novels in particular?
Growing up, I had a huge Archie comic collection (with a few Barbie comics peppered in for good measure). After middle school, I didn’t read comics as much. I finally returned to them sometime in college, diving into notable works like Watchmen and Sandman. Those helped reignite the spark for comics, and the amazing stories that could be told through the medium. I wouldn’t say I was actively searching out working on comics, but I held that love of Archie with me as a child, and when I saw an internship opportunity there, I jumped on it. I really didn’t know if writing comics would be for me, and it was about seven years into working at Archie before I gave it a try, but being able to tell a full story while allowing the breathing room for someone else to come in and bring it to visual life, adding their own nuances and ideas as well, is always such an amazing process.
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J.B. Lynn Interview
J.B. Lynn is the topselling author of the hilarious Hitwoman series as well as The Psychic Consignment Mysteries, and Cursed Chicks Club. She kindly took the time to answer my questions and reveal her thought process, character creation and exciting news on her upcoming books. - Easy questions first, what are some of your favorite authors or books to read on your downtime?
One of my goals this year is to read a poem every day. I signed up to a site that emails me one daily so all I have to do is open my email in searching of finding one on my own. It’s been an interesting exercise, a very different way of utilizing language to convey thoughts and emotions.
In terms of fiction, I’m a fan of Isabella Maldonado, S.A. Cosby and Clare Pooley. (You couldn’t get much further apart than those last two, but I enjoy the work of both.)
In terms of non-fiction, I just re-read Stephen King’s “On Writing” for the umpteenth time. On a recent road trip I listened to actor Zachary Levi’s autobiography “Radical Love”. Up next for me is Steven Pressfield’s “Put Your Ass Where Your Heart Wants To Be”.
- What is your writing routine?
It varies from day to day, book to book. I either write the book blurb first, or I write out the major plot points in a loose outline and then write the book blurb. The outline reminds me of WHAT I want to cover. The blurb reminds me of WHY I wanted to write the book. Both are necessary reminders when I hit the middle of any manuscript. I tend to write in the morning and/or at night. The middle of the day is a dead zone for me in terms of creativity.
I write and publish quite a bit so I’m almost always in some phase of editing one book while writing another.
3. What drew you to the “cozy/comedy mystery” genre?Honestly, I stumbled into it by mistake. I’d always thought I’d be a thriller/suspense writer, but then I came up with the idea for my Neurotic Hitwoman series and the publisher classified it as a cozy mystery and I’ve been swimming on the fringes of that pool ever since.
4. What inspired such an original premise as Confessions of a Slightly Neurotic Hitwoman?A couple of things. First, I was sitting in a café with my friend Cyndi (who at the time was my critique partner) and made some snarky comment about something I saw and she said, “THAT’S the voice you should be using in your writing.”
Then I saw a story on the news about a hitman and asked my dog, “Why aren’t there any stories about Hitwomen?)
Combine that with the fact that one of my favorite plays of all time is “Noises Off” (which is perfectly executed humorous mayhem)and I had all the elements to spin Maggie Lee into some “whack-y” adventures!
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Author Highlight: Min Jin Lee
You might be noticing the trend of notable authors having generation sprawling sagas. What can I say, I like the subgenre. As such I enjoyed Pachinko a bit more than Free Food but both are well-written tomes exploring themes of immigration, class, and family.
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Pretty Little Liars: Toxic Review
All things seemed to have settle down in Rosewood but as only the Liars know, A is still out there. And even though Helper A has been put away in jail, Ali still has minions. Specifically a following of Ali Cats who like many groupies of socios and murderers believe Ali is a misunderstood hero and would love to help her in any way they can.
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Pretty Little Liars: Deadly Review
Remember when I said the last book brought the verve back into the series, this one brings the blam. Ali actually lets the ax fall and leaks all the girls’ secrets as well as a forged videotape framing them for Tabitha’s murder in Jaimaca.
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Rachel Reads & Reviews 