Teen Tuesday: Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass: the Graphic Novel adapted by Mel Valentine Vargas

Image: Candlewick Press

Yaqui DelGado Wants to Kick Your Ass: the Graphic Novel adapted by Mel Valentine Vargas. Adapted from the novel by Meg Medina. 288 p. Candlewick Press, September, 2023. 9781536224771. (Review of arc courtesy of publisher.)

Moving house is always tough on a kid, but moving in tenth grade and fitting in in a new high school has to be the toughest. While Piddy Sanchez is happy to be out of her old, unsafe apartment, she's not thrilled to be at a new school and is missing her bff, who recently moved to the suburbs. On the first day of school, she learns that Yaqui Delgado wants to kick her ass. Piddy has no idea who Yaqui is or why she's angry at Piddy. Piddy is a good student, but as the threats and bullying escalate, Piddy withdraws and becomes increasingly depressed. Her single mother is at wit's end trying to figure out what is happening to her daughter, but the two constantly clash and Piddy becomes angry about her missing father. 

This graphic novel adaptation perfectly depicts Piddy's anguish in a muted palette of blues and grey. It's a painful book to read because it's very realistic. Highly recommend!

Middle Grade Monday: Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: the Graphic Novel

Image: DisneyBooks

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: the Graphic Novel. Kwame Mbalia's novel adapted by Robert Venditti. Illustrated by Olivia Stephens. 128 p. Disney, April, 2022. 9781368075008. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Happy Monday! Middle Grade Monday features Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: the Graphic Novel. Robert Venditti adapted Kwame Mbwila's debut novel and Olivia Stephens illustrated. Seventh grader Tristan Strong is still grieving the loss of his best friend in a bus accident. He also feels guilty for being unable to save him. All he has left is Eddie's journal and that has been stolen by, a doll? He chases the sticky little thing and the two end up in a tug-of-war under the bottle tree. Tristan punches the tree and rips a hole where the two fall into MidPass, where its inhabitants, heroes from African American folklore and West African mythology are battling monsters. Tristan must help John Henry and Brer Rabbit find the trickster Anansi to help seal the hole.

The art in this graphic novel adaptation is absolutely glorious.

Waiting on Wednesday: Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: the Graphic Novel

Image: Author's Website

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: the Graphic Novel. Based on the novel by Kwame Mbalia. Adapted by Robert Venditti. Illustrated by Olivia Stephens. 128 p. Disney Press, August 9, 2022. 9781368075008.

Happy Wednesday! It's a sparkling morning by me! I hope you plan on getting outside for some fresh air and exercise! Boo's waiting at my feet for our long morning walk right now.

Waiting on Wednesday features Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: the Graphic Novel. Robert Venditti adapted Kwame Mbalia's debut novel and trilogy starter into a brilliant full-color graphic novel that is releasing on August 9. Older students might recall that I reviewed all three novels in the Tristan Strong trilogy on Middle Grade Monday over the years. These are the fast-paced adventures of Tristan Strong, a seventh grader who is grieving the death of his best friend, Eddie. Tristan feels guilty that he was unable to save Eddie and treasures Eddie's notebook filled with stories. He is sent to stay with his grandparents for the summer and, on the first night there, a little doll sneaks into Tristan's room and steals Eddie's notebook. Enraged, Tristan chases the doll and accidentally punches a portal into another universe peopled with gods from African mythology and African American folk heroes and legends. MidPass is under siege and the gods and legends are tired. Tristan needs to help them in order to get back to his world and his grandparents farm.

If you love fast-paced adventure filled with great characters and lots of humor, you will love the Tristan Strong trilogy. I am looking forward to reading the graphic novel adaptation! Happy reading!

Teen Tuesday: Graceling Graphic Novel by Kristin Cashore and adapted by Gareth Hinds

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Graceling Graphic Novel by Kristin Cashore, adapted and illustrated by Gareth Hinds. 272 p. Clarion Books/ HarperCollins Publishers, November, 2021. 9780358250470. (Review of finished copy borrowed from public library.)

Happy Tuesday, or trying to make it so. Today would've been my 37th anniversary, so it has been a hard one. Teen Tuesday features Graceling Graphic Novel by Kristin Cashore, adapted and illustrated by Gareth Hinds. Children with two different eye colors in the land of the seven kingdoms are said to be graced and they are observed carefully until their grace reveals itself. Sometimes it's harmless, maybe even useless; but sometimes it's powerful, maybe even deadly. Katsa was eight and living under the protection of her uncle, King Randa, when her grace revealed itself. A man in her uncle's court grabbed her, so she threw out her hand to protect herself and accidentally killed him. Killing was Katsa's grace and her uncle trained her to be his assassin/ enforcer. Katsa hated doing his bidding, but she was bound to him and so, she and her cousin and the king's spymaster formed a secret group to council to counteract injustice.

They are on a rescue mission to recover a kidnapped king when Katsa meets her match as a fighter. She has a lot of trouble besting him and is intrigued. He too has mismatched eyes and a secret.

Fans of this fantasy series starter (tune in on Thursday) will love this graphic novel adaptation. The art is absolutely gorgeous! Mr. Hinds has translated Ms. Cashore's world building vividly. The fight sequences hum with energy and the landscapes are breathtaking.

Middle Grade Monday: Spy School: the Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs

Image: Simon & Schuster

Spy School: the Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Anjan Sarker. Spy School GN #1. 296 p. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, February, 2022. 97811534455429. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! Middle Grade Monday features Spy School: the Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Anjan Sarker. The first book in the wildly popular, long running Spy School series has been adapted to the graphic novel format! Avid gamer Ben finds himself recruited for CIA training in a secret school. It's a dream come true for Ben. He may be a math genius, but cool under pressure, he is not. An attempt on his life is made and there's a mole in the school. The adults are inept, so it's up to Ben and Erica, the smartest, coolest, most beautiful girl in the school to investigate.

The fast-paced action translates well into the graphic novel format. The palette zings with energy and visual humor. Fans of the series will gobble this one up. Fans of graphic novels will as well and might just try out the series. More please!

Waiting on Wednesday: Spy School: the Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs

Image: Simon & Schuster

Spy School: the Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs. Illustrated by Anjan Sarkar. 296 p. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, February 1, 2022. 9781534455429.

Waiting on Wednesday features Spy School the Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs. While most of Stuart Gibbs' books are popular, this series is by far the most popular. I am eager to see how his fans respond as I have noted that many GN adaptations don't have the same appeal for some reason. Here's the publisher synopsis if you need it and if you click on the link to the image to visit the book's page on the publisher's website, there's a link to preview the art. I find it appealing. I'm psyched. 

Publisher synopsis: Can an undercover nerd become a superstar secret agent? The first book in Stuart Gibbs’s New York Times bestselling Spy School series is now a graphic novel!

Ben Ripley may only be in middle school, but he’s already pegged his dream job: CIA or bust. Unfortunately for him, his personality doesn’t exactly scream “secret agent.” In fact, Ben is so awkward, he can barely get to school and back without a mishap. Because of his innate nerdiness, Ben is not surprised when he is recruited for a magnet school with a focus on science—but he’s entirely shocked to discover that the school is actually a front for a junior CIA academy. Could the CIA really want him?

Actually, no. There’s been a case of mistaken identity—but that doesn’t stop Ben from trying to morph into a supercool undercover agent, the kind that always gets the girl. And through a series of hilarious misadventures, Ben realizes he might actually be a halfway decent spy…if he can survive all the attempts being made on his life! With action-packed, eye-catching art, join Ben Ripley as he survives his first year at the Academy of Espionage.

Middle Grade Monday: Turtle in Paradise: the Graphic Novel by Jennifer L. Holm

Image: Penguin Random House

Turtle in Paradise: the Graphic Novel by Jennifer L. Holm and illustrated by Savanna Ganucheau. 256 p. RH Graphic/ Random House Children's Books, June, 2021. 9780593126318. (Review of finished copy borrowed from public library.)

Middle Grade Monday features Turtle in Paradise: the Graphic Novel by Jennifer L. Holm and illustrated by Savanna Ganucheau. I had no idea this adaptation was even in the works, let alone out. Thanks to the children's librarian at my local library for displaying it! Sometimes, I can't keep up!

This graphic novel is adapted from Ms. Holm's 2010 Newbery Honor-winning novel of the same name. More on that in this Thursday's #tbt. It's June of 1935 and the country is in the middle of The Great Depression. Eleven-year-old Turtle has to travel to Key West, Florida to stay with an aunt and cousins she has never met because her mother got a job as a live-in housekeeper to a woman who "can't abide children." It seems Turtle arrived before her mother's letter and Aunt Minerva is none too pleased. Neither are her boy cousins, especially Beans, who has to give up his room for Turtle. Beans heads "The Diaper Gang" and no girls are allowed. They allow Turtle to tag along though and Turtle slowly comes out of her shell.

The art captures the Depression-Era Key West beautifully from the architecture through the clothing. The palette is decidedly beachy as well. Turtle in Paradise: the Graphic Novel should appeal to fans of Raina Telgemeier and Victoria Jamison, as well as fans of historical fiction and anyone who wants to fall in love with a girl with grit.

Middle Grade Monday: Logan Likes Mary Anne! Baby-Sitters Club Graphix #8

Happy Monday! The day promises to be brisk but sunny, so be sure to get out and active. If you missed the setting of the nearly full "Pink Moon" early this morning, check out the rising of the first supermoon of 2021 tonight around 7:30.

Image: Scholastic Inc.

Logan Likes Mary Anne by Ann M. Martin. Illustrated by Gale Galligan. The Baby-Sitters Club Graphix #8. 170 p. September, 2020. 9781338304541. (Review of finished paperback courtesy of publisher.)

Middle Grade Monday features Logan Likes Mary Anne, the graphic novel adaptation of Ann M. Martin's immensely popular Babysitters Club series illustrated by Gale Galligan. The members of the BSC are starting eighth grade and busier than ever. They may need to get more members. Mary Anne is worried about everything about eighth grade, but intrigued by Logan, a new student with an adorable southern accent who is awfully cute and loves to babysit. Might he be interested in joining the club?

This graphic novel adaptation of the series is quite popular at TMS. Logan Likes Mary Anne is #8. The art is bright and energetic and the stories of friendship and entrepreneurship is relatable and fun. The series really sells itself. I don't really have to read them, but I like them. Wholesome and relatable.

Middle Grade Monday: Two Graphic Novel Adaptations of Little Women

Happy Monday! My spring break is over and I'm heading back to school. A fair number of families travelled over break, so there will be a mix of in-person and virtual students due to their need to quarantine. My break wasn't as productive as I would've liked. I was feeling a bit punky for the first half and the weather wasn't great-cloudy, cold and raw, so not much gardening got done. Still, I managed to read about thirteen books, not bad considering one was Chain of Iron, which was twenty-three hours long! It was quite good!

Middle Grade Monday features not one, but two graphic novel adaptations of the classic, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, originally published in two volumes in 1868 and 1869. She later went on to write sequels. The story of the four March sisters was very autobiographical and featured Jo, a fiercely independent young woman who yearns to become a writer. Due to the prevailing limitations placed on women at the time, marriage was the only acceptable outcome and few occupations were open for women who chose not to marry. Ms. Alcott's publisher would not accept a story in which Jo did not marry. In real life, Louisa May Alcott never married and supported her family with her writing.

Fast forward to the twenty-first century. Girls play sports, thanks to the 1972 Title IX legislation, women work, often in professions that were previously closed to women and we have a female Vice President. Over the hundred and fifty plus years since the publication of Little Women, scholars have studied and written extensively about the work and the Alcott family.

Image: LBYR

In 2019, it was adapted as a graphic novel and modernized in Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy: a Graphic Novel by Rey Terciero. In this adaptation, the March family is a blended, bi-racial family trying to make ends meet in a New York City apartment and Mr. March is serving overseas. The bright palette and easy-to-follow panels will appeal to fans of Raina Telgemeier.

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

2020 saw the release of Jo: an Adaptation of Little Women (Sort of) by Kathleen Gros. This adaptation is set in the suburbs with Mrs. March working double-shifts as a nurse to help make ends meet while Mr. March is deployed overseas. Jo decides to join the school newspaper.

Both adaptations stay fairly faithful to the original. Laurie still moves in next door and befriends the sisters. Jo remains fiercely independent and slowly comes to a truth about herself.

Few middle school readers attempt to tackle the original Little Women. It's quite lengthy, but some have over the years. I didn't read it until high school, reread it for an American Lit class in college, then several times since then. These two adaptations are a perfect introduction for younger readers. Fans of the original will enjoy the way the two authors approached the classic. 

Teen Tuesday: Long Way Down: a graphic novel by Jason Reynolds

Image: Simon & Schuster

Long Way Down: a graphic novel by Jason Reynolds. Illustrated by Danica Novgorodoff. 208 pl Atheneum/ Caitlyn Dlouhy Books/ Simon & Schuster, October, 2020. 9781534444959. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Teen Tuesday features Long Way Down: a graphic novel by Jason Reynolds. Illustrated by Danica Novgorodoff. I didn't think that Mr. Reynolds' stunning novel in verse needed adaptation. The imagery painted by the poet's words is vivid. I was wrong. 

Ms. Novgoroff's watercolors are simply stunning. The palette veers toward blues and greys with judicious pops of color. I'm getting ahead of myself. 

Will's older brother, Shawn has been shot and killed. Will knows the rules though - no crying, no snitching and get revenge. So, even though he has never held a gun, he retrieves his brother's gun from its hiding place and takes the elevator down to the lobby of his building intent on finding the dude he "knows" killed his brother and killing him. Only the elevator stops at each floor and the impossible happens. 

The entire novel takes place in the time an elevator travels from the seventh floor to the first. This is a graphic novel that is not to be missed, even if you've already read the original. The panels and illustrations beg to be lingered over. Long Way Down: a graphic novel is an absolute first-purchase.

Teen Tuesday: Monster: a graphic novel by Walter Dean Myers and adapted by Guy A. Sims

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Monster: a graphic novel by Walter Dean Myers. Adapted by Guy A. Sims. Illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile. 160. p. October, 2015. 9780062275004. 

Happy Tuesday TMS Readers! Another dreary, rainy day but don't let it get you down! It's a perfect day to curl up with a hot cocoa and read when your school day is done.

Teen Tuesday features Monster: a graphic novel by Walter Dean Myers. Mr. Myers was a giant in the YA and children's literature world. This graphic novel adaptation of his ground-breaking, Printz Award-winning novel, Monster, adds a visual dimension to this complex exploration of perception and race. Budding high school film maker, Steve Harmon is in jail and awaiting trial in the murder of a shopkeeper in a robbery gone bad. He didn't pull the trigger. He wasn't even in the store. He drove the car. But that's not stopping the prosecutor from portraying him as a monster.

The dynamic black and white art draws the eye and effective use of shadow pulls the reader in and creates tension. Whether you're a fan of the book or of graphic novels, you won't be disappointed in this adaptation. I'm sorry the book got buried in my tbr pile. 

Middle Grade Monday: The Crossover: Graphic Novel by Kwame Alexander

Image: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

The Crossover: Graphic Novel by Kwame Alexander. Illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile. 224 p. September, 2019. 9781328960013. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

I've been of fan of Alexander's ever since the publication of The Crossover and was thrilled when it garnered the Newbery Medal. His books are usually checked out and on hold lists for most of the school year with good reason. They are great! They also appeal to a variety of readers. I'm so glad that The Crossover was adapted into the graphic novel format. 

My opinion in two words: Outstanding adaptation. 

I always thought the poetry popped in the verse novel; but the art makes the poetry poppier! The energetic art also pops with a black and white and basketball orange palette. The dynamic between the two appealing and athletic twin brothers is conveyed as well as the mounting tension between the two. I also just loved how the utter coolness of the boys' parents was translated into the art.

You will need multiple copies on your shelf to keep up with demand. An absolute first-purchase.

Arc Review: Stanislaw Lem's The Seventh Voyage illustrated by Jon J. Muth

Image: Scholastic

Stanislaw Lem's The Seventh Voyage illustrated by Jon J. Muth. Translated by Michael Kandel. unpd. Graphix/ Scholastic Inc., October 1, 2019. 9780545004626. (Review of arc courtesy of publisher at ALAAC19.)

Astronaut Ijon Tichy's (Ee-yon TEE-khee) solo space voyage goes horribly wrong when a teeny tiny asteroid pokes a hole in his space ship causing him to lose all maneuverability. He knows how to fix the problem, but the fix requires two people and, he is alone. 

Alone until he enters a vortex in which, it seems, the space-time continuum is altered. It seems he is trapped in a time loop. He is awakened by himself. Or, a version of his future self. He can't quite believe it and goes back to sleep. But his past and future selves keep replicating, arguing with him, assaulting him and eating his carefully planned rations. He cannot take advantage of these extra selves to fix his rudder because there is only one space suit. And so. And so, pandemonium and hilarity ensues until the space-time continuum spits out two of his younger selves. 

While I enjoy science fiction, I am, by no means, an expert. My English major husband recognized Stanislaw Lem's name when he spied my arc. An introduction and adaptor's note otherwise clues in the uninformed. 

The art in this graphic novel adaptation is absolutely sublime. Watery panels perfectly capture the contemplative, rather lonely mission Ijon is on. Careful reading is required here as the action is a bit mind-bending. But so much fun! I cannot wait for the finished product! I also cannot wait to share the title with my group of graphic novel loving rising sixth graders! 

The Seventh Voyage will be a hit with all your graphic novel fans, your sci-fi fans, as well as any thoughtful reader. 

Middle Grade Monday: The Giver: Graphic Novel by Lois Lowry

Image: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

The Giver: Graphic Novel by Lois Lowry. Illustrated by P. Craig Russell. 182 p. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, February, 2019. 9780544157880. (Review of purchased finished copy.)

Middle Grade Monday features The Giver: Graphic Novel by Lois Lowry. Illustrated by P. Craig Russell. Lowry’s 1994 Newbery winning dystopian was adapted into a brilliantly illustrated graphic novel that perfectly captures the essence of twelve-year-old Jonas’ story. He lives in a perfect family in a perfect community where there is no strife or pain and is anxiously awaiting his job assignment. He’s also worried about flashes of color he’s frequently seeing. 

If you loved The Giver or are a fan of graphic novels, you need to read this. This faithful adaptation is visually stunning. First purchase!