Swim Team

 

Swim Team

By Johnnie Christmas

Maryland Black Eyed Susan Nominee 2023-24

A great example of how far graphic novels have come! This is such a good story of a young girl facing her fears and finding herself and as you read that story you also touch on a older neighbor who needs to make amends and a Dad who works too much, but also has a slight weakness. 

Bree and her Dad are moving from Brooklyn, New York to Florida. When Bree registers for her classes, all of the ones she wants are filled and she's stuck taking swimming. Bree doesn't know how to swim. An older lady in Bree's apartment complex used to be a competitive swimmer and takes Bree under her wing and coaches her. Bree winds up on the swim team and finds out that sports teams are not just teammates, but family. By pulling together, Bree and her "swim sisters" do some amazing things for not only themselves, but for their coach too. Together they learn the value of friendship, sportsmanship and forgiveness. 

Let's Talk About Graphic Novels

 

Oh yes! Let's talk about graphic novels! 

Everyone is familiar with comic books and graphics novels, but what are the differences and why are they so wildly popular?

The term "graphic novel" was first coined in1964 by Richard Kyle. Published in 1978, "A Contract With God" became the first work to actually use the term in its branding. Graphic novels separate themselves from comics mainly by their length and design. Graphic novels are longer than comics and are one story in its entirety. There is a beginning, a middle and an end. Comics are usually one piece of a much larger story. There's usually a continuation at the end...in the next issue you'll meet... Graphic novels can be about super heroes, they can retell a chapter book, they can be nonfiction and they can just be good stories. 

Graphic novels are the middle child in literature. The comics community thinks they are comic books with a super big ego and novel readers see graphics as a lazy man book. The good side is that graphics are getting kids to read and does it really matter WHAT they are reading (come on! within reason)...as long as they are reading. The down side is that the illustrations take away a little of the imagination. Kids don't need to visualize what the characters look like or expressions. It's all right there in front of them.

Either way, graphic novel sales were up 62% in 2021 so someone must be loving them! There are graphics for everyone...young, middle, teens and adults! Even me! I think I have finally excepted them as just another form of literature and have read some really good stories! 

So if your kid comes home slinging one of these little fountains of surprise entertainment under their arm let them go. Be thankful they are reading. AND maybe ask to borrow it.

Seasons of the Storm by Elle Cosimano

Seasons of the Storm by Elle Cosimano
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received this book as an ARC from a giveaway Elle Cosimano was doing on her website a LONG time ago. I am a HORRIBLY slow reader and many life challenges presented themselves as well these past 3 years. I finished though and I am SO glad I did!! WOW! What an adventure!
I think the storyline about humanizing the seasons is crazy cool and I often think about this book as the seasons change. One season hunting down the next season is a very original and creative way of looking at seasonal change. Pulling in the aspect of Gaia and Chronus as well just adds more depth to the story. And don't forget the love story...the tragic story that just makes your soul cry. You can read the book's summary so I won't go into much detail.
The cover is beautiful. The characters were believable and you found yourself rooting for Jack and Fleur and Chill and Poppy too! There is so much to love about this book that I highly recommend it to everyone. The drawback...the print. The print was very small which made reading it a little challenging. As with all of Elle Cosimano's books, well written...well thought out...each one is this amazing journey!

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Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

 

Happy Birthday to Dr. Seuss!

I don’t care how politically incorrect it may be…Dr. Seuss is awesome! Kids love him! Librarians love to read his books out loud! His books are iconic and have lasted through generations!

Happy Birthday

Dr. Seuss!

❤️

Thank You Anne

 

I woke up this morning to news that Anne Rice had died at the age of 80. A gasp caught in my throat and I uttered the words "Oh no.". Anne is one of my favorite authors and I loved reading through her Facebook page because she was so interactive with folks on there. More than once, she responded to my Facebook comment which sent me into instant book geek mode. 

Anne's words were so hauntingly beautiful and poetic. It was an experience to read one of her books. Her vampires opened up the door for other vampires for us to fall in love with - Twilight, Vampire Diaries, House of Night...where would they be without Anne? Where would we be without them? Their stories would not be told and what a shame that would be! What would my heart be without Edward Cullen! Anne was a pioneer that pushed literary limits and led us into an amazing world filled with dark love, foreboding and star-crossed lovers.

My favorite work of Anne Rice was Cry To Heaven. It's a stand alone novel and a very interesting subject that will pluck at your soul. The emotion that the book pulls, for lack of a stronger word, is intense. It is an emotional journey into a life of pain and emotional sorrow, but it's raw and it's real and it will make you feel. Like I said above, her words were like poetry. The only other author that I have read that I can think of at the moment with that similar eloquence is Kate DiCamillo. No, she is no where close to Anne's genre, but her words beg to be read out loud. They are beautiful. Read The Incredible Journey of Edward Tulane or The Tale of Despareaux and you may agree.

I can't even say goodbye. That is just too final and you, Anne, will never be gone. Your words and books will live forever and I thank you for sharing them all with the world. Love and blessings to your family and your beloved Christopher. Thank you.

Dorothy Must Die By Danielle Paige

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

My ALL TIME favorite movie. It terrified the HELL out of me as a child, but it's iconic and I fell in love with it! Just watching the movie brings me back to my childhood which wasn't idyllic, but makes me smile just the same. So naturally I grabbed this book when I saw it.

I was terrified once again.

So Dorothy has gone psycho and power hungry and has thrown Emerald City into complete chaotic turmoil, the Tin Man has got some twisted love obsession for Dorothy, the Lion has become this crazed, violent bodyguard and the Scarecrow does bizarre and sick things in his secret laboratory. It's not the Wizard of Oz that I remember from my childhood. All the same though, I was drawn. Really from the moment I started the book I was drawn into the story about the "other girl from Kansas" who arrives via tornado to Oz and was told Dorothy must die and you're going to kill her.

Definitely not a book for youngsters! I would recommend high school and older. This is the first book in the series.
Book 1 - Dorothy Must Die
Book 2 - The Wicked Will Rise
Book 3 - Yellow Brick War
Book 4 - The End of Oz

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Current Read...Hopefully!

 

So I was looking through Twitter last year when I saw my favorite author post that she had copies of her newest book available. I quickly replied that I would love a copy! She said to email her my address in two minutes and it's mine. You bet I did! Sadly, I have NOT read ANYTHING in quite a while. I still haven't read this. With the craziness of the world, my moods have been up and down and shifting all over the place and time has not been my friend either. I'm working on it though and have started the journey into 

"Seasons of the Storm" by Elle Cosimano

I have to hurry because book 2 - "Seasons of Chaos" comes out 8 June!