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books

  • STACKED
  • About Us
  • Categories
    • Audiobooks
    • Book Lists
      • Debut YA Novels
      • Get Genrefied
      • On The Radar
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The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle

August 20, 2013 |

Wren Gray has always lived to please her parents. She’s a good girl. She got good grades, she didn’t do crazy things while in school, and she’s set up on a great path for college and a career thereafter. Everything seems pretty much picture book perfect and there’s no question that Wren’s privileged in having this.

Except, she’s not happy.

This isn’t what she really wants.

The Infinite Moment of Us is a story set over the summer between high school and college that follows as Wren chooses to diverge from the path that looked so straight before her. Because Wren isn’t happy — everything up until this moment has been about pleasing her parents and following through with what they expected of her. Rather than go to college, Wren has asked for a deferment and wants instead to spend a year in Guatemala doing volunteer service. She wants to do this not only because it’s a cause she’s interested in (I’d hesitate to say it’s a cause she’s passionate about because the truth is Wren doesn’t know her passions) and because it’ll give her an entire year to sort out what it is she wants from her life. Now that she’s 18, out of high school, and able to make her own life choices for herself, Wren is ready to stand up and do just those things.

If she can tell her parents of her plan, that is. Because as of now, they’re still thinking she’s going to Emory in the fall.

Enter Charlie. He’s always been a guy on Wren’s mind — just a little — but she’s never pursued relationships before seriously. She had other things she had to do, and she always had it in the back of her mind that a serious romance would mar the image her parents held of her. He’s kind of a mystery, but this summer, Wren finally has the chance to get to know Charlie. He’s not what he appears on the outside at all. Sure, he’s sweet and charming, but he’s got a much deeper personal life than Wren ever expected. He’s a foster child, and his brother Dev is disabled. Charlie also has a friend named Starrla who he cares deeply about — they had been in a relationship before — and she’s regularly needing his time and attention.

Over the course of the summer, Wren and Charlie become very close. Their relationship is one of compassion, care, and intimacy. In fact, it’s easiest to maybe suggest this book’s theme is that of intimacy: what does it mean to know someone, both in an emotionally raw manner and in a physically raw manner? We know Wren’s course of action from the start is she wants a change. She wants to take complete ownership of her life and follow through on things that she wants to do, without regard to what her parents want for her. Charlie fears he’s stuck in his situation because of his background. As much as the two of them fall for one another, Wren regularly holds back, and she regularly reassess who she is in relation to Charlie. Can someone with the privilege and future she has before her possibly have a reason to complain to Charlie, who is helping take care of his brother? Who hasn’t had a charmed child or teen hood like she has?

This is where Lauren Myracle gets fantastic.

Of course Wren has the right to do this, and Charlie encourages and supports Wren through her deeply internal struggles. Where her “problems” are about wanting to separate her own desires from those her parents have hoisted upon her, Charlie reminds her that her problems aren’t silly. That just because his situation is different from hers doesn’t mean that her situation isn’t problematic or challenging or doesn’t merit the sort of time and consideration she’s given to it. Where she wants to regularly “rise above” her problems, Charlie reminds her that it’s okay not to. That it’s okay to feel as she does and that she is, in fact, making changes, even if it doesn’t necessarily feel or seem like it to her.

The Infinite Moment of Us deals with female sexuality — with teen sexuality more broadly — in a very straight-forward, honest manner. This book doesn’t pull punches. Wren and Charlie are intimate, and it doesn’t black out on the page. Myracle instead offers readers truth about what happens between two people who engage in sex, and she’s forthright in expressing what happens to a female body when arousal happens. But what puts this book squarely in the camp of empowering female sexuality (which I’ve written in detail about before) is how unashamed Wren is about what happens to her body. It’s not gross. It’s not embarrassing. It’s just what it is — “Heat spread up her body. Her nipples hardened and her breathing changed, and when she imagined not just his eyes on her, but his hands, his mouth, she grew suddenly, undeniably wet. It embarrassed her, but she didn’t want to be embarrassed. Should she be embarrassed? No. She should be . . . She should be excited, which she was, and thrilled and aroused. Her body’s response to the boy she loved was a good thing. It was bodies being bodies.”

Not only was this reflective of what happens during physical intimacy, but it mirrored precisely what Wren experienced internally about her future, too. It was hers. She could do with it what she wanted. She could be embarrassed about it, or she could react with excitement and thrill and understand she had ownership of it for herself.

As much as there’s physical intimacy, there is emotional intimacy as well. That’s reflected in how Wren takes the things in her life and considers them, but more so, it’s reflected in how she considers her relationship with Charlie. In one moment, when she’s feeling the need to talk out her thoughts and problems with him (of course, a moment where she feels she’s being silly and that her problems are microscopic and “first world”), Charlie tells her that he is always here for her. She notes that that single line was one of the most intimate things a person can say to another person — and it’s also proof to her that she has the right to feel what it is she does and share it how she needs to.

This book isn’t perfect, though. As much as it’s powerful in what it portrays in terms of intimacy, sexuality, independence, and the right to pursue one’s dreams on one’s own, the secondary characters are fairly flat. Wren’s best friend is good for sex advice for Charlie (and I loved her for that and I loved Charlie for thinking to talk to Tessa in the first place) but beyond that, she’s more prop than full character. More problematic, though, was the Starrla storyline. We know she and Charlie had a challenging relationship and that he still holds her well-being high on his list of cares. But when she tracks him down and pulls out all the stops to regain his attention, I found myself more annoyed than anything. I get that that was the point — and it’s the point Wren walks away with, too, since Starrla is what creates a rift and change in dynamics in her relationship with Charlie — but I think it needed to be pushed a little further elsewhere in the book to have really made the impact it could have made.

I also took issue with the end of the story. Because it’s spoiler, I won’t share what happened, but I’ll say I felt it was the easy way out of the story for both Charlie and Wren. Many readers will find it satisfying and I totally get that.

By now you’ve figured out this book deals with sex and is not shy about that. This isn’t a book for your younger teens — unless they’re ready for it (and many will be). There is an author’s note at the beginning of the book detailing why the choices were made to be forthright in depicting teen sex in the novel, and I think it’s as important a read as the book itself. Teens have sex. These two teens in particular have discovered the power and value of intimacy and they are unashamed in expressing and sharing that with one another. This isn’t about titillation, though it would be naive to say that teens who read this might not find it to be so — and you know, I think that’s okay. It’s presented in a very safe manner, and while the goal from the story perspective certainly isn’t about that (and as an adult I can read the story through that lens and not find it sexy at all), it’s impossible to project how teens will read it. In other words, it’s clear the sex isn’t in there to be sexy; it’s in there because it’s true to Charlie and Wren.

Myracle’s book is empowering and feminist. I’d go so far as to say that it’s this generation’s update of Judy Blume’s classic Forever. As I read the book, I couldn’t help thinking that this is the kind of book I wish I’d had during my high school years. I would have felt less alone in some of the things I was thinking and feeling, and I know I certainly would have appreciated the honesty with which Myracle portrayed sexuality and what is a completely normal function of a body. Charlie is easy to like, but he’s not without flaws. Wren is the same way — though she may be a little tougher to like from the start than Charlie, she’s real and dynamic as a result. Myracle’s story is written in third person, distancing readers from the intimacy while managing to bring the intimacy even closer to the reader. This is a fast-paced read and one that will linger.

Pass The Infinite Moment of Us along to readers who want a strong romantic storyline, compelling characters, and who crave emotional rawness to their books. Give it to teen readers who enjoy feminist stories or who are skeptical of how YA authors treat their readers — Myracle respects them as complex, intellectual people who can make choices for themselves, and there is never a doubt about that in the story.

This is one of my favorite reads this year. And please don’t call it “new adult” just because it’s set in the summer after high school or deals with sexuality. The Infinite Moment of Us is a YA novel through and through.

Review copy received from the publisher. The Infinite Moment of Us is available August 27. 

Filed Under: Reviews, Uncategorized, Young Adult

& Titled: Ampersands in YA Fiction

August 19, 2013 |

The ampersand is my favorite punctuation mark. I love it because it’s so versatile, and I love the history behind the mark (if you look at ampersands from the past, it began as a way to write the Latin word “et,” and it eventually moved from being “et” to standing up and looking like it does now as “&”). 

Over the last few years, more and more YA titles have featured the ampersand. And while I love how it looks aesthetically, it’s sometimes hard to search for book titles in a library catalog that feature an ampersand. The search operators can sometimes get caught up on it; often, though, a simple switch to a search by the author’s name or using “and” in place of the ampersand can solve the problem. 

Because I love ampersands and because I think it’s become a trendy title punctuation in the last few years, here’s a look at YA titles featuring them. All of these are books published between 2010 and now, with a couple of books that will be out in 2014. I’d love other traditionally published YA titles featuring ampersands, and I’m totally open to older titles. I’ve limited it to one book per series, as well as one book per author. Also excluded are short story anthologies — a number of the ones out in the last year or two especially use ampersands. 

All descriptions come from WorldCat.

Catch & Release by Blythe Woolston Eighteen-year-old Polly and impulsive, seventeen-year-old Odd survive a deadly outbreak of flesh-eating bacteria, but resulting wounds have destroyed their plans for the future and with little but their unlikely friendship and a shared affection for trout fishing, they set out on a road trip through the West.

Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan: Told in the alternating voices of Dash and Lily, two sixteen-year-olds carry on a wintry scavenger hunt at Christmas-time in New York, neither knowing quite what–or who–they will find.

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry (the entire series carries on the ampersand titling): In a post-apocalyptic world where fences and border patrols guard the few people left from the zombies that have overtaken civilization, fifteen-year-old Benny Imura is finally convinced that he must follow in his older brother’s footsteps and become a bounty hunter.

Cinders & Sapphires by Leila Rasheed: The intertwined lives of the prominent Averley family and the servants of Somerton Court are forever changed when an old secret comes to light.

Sharks & Boys by Kristen Tracy: Feeling betrayed, fifteen-year-old Enid follows her boyfriend, Wick, from Vermont to Maryland where he and six others they know from twin studies rent a yacht, but after she sneaks aboard a storm sets them adrift without food or water, fighting for survival.

Charm & Strange by Stephanie Kuehn: A lonely teenager exiled to a remote Vermont boarding school in the wake of a family tragedy must either surrender his sanity to the wild wolves inside his mind or learn that surviving means more than not dying. 

A & L Do Summer by Jan Blazanin: In Iowa farm country, sixteen-year-old Aspen and her friend Laurel plan to get noticed the summer before their senior year and are unwittingly aided by pig triplets, a skunk, a chicken, bullies, a rookie policeman, and potential boyfriends.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed misfits–smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try”.

Flicker & Burn by T M Goeglein (second book in the “Cold Fury” series): Sara Jane Rispoli continues searching for her missing mafia family, now running from mysterious creatures.  

17 & Gone by Nova Ren Suma: Seventeen-year-old Lauren has visions of girls her own age who are gone without a trace, but while she tries to understand why they are speaking to her and whether she is next, Lauren has a brush with death and a shocking truth emerges, changing everything.

Blink & Caution by Tim Wynne-Jones: Two teenagers who are living on the streets and barely getting by become involved in a complicated criminal plot, and make an unexpected connection with each other.

The Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor (all three books in the series carry out the ampersand in the title): Seventeen-year-old Karou, a lovely, enigmatic art student in a Prague boarding school, carries a sketchbook of hideous, frightening monsters–the chimaerae who form the only family she has ever known.

Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger (all books in this series so far follow this pattern): In an alternate England of 1851, spirited fourteen-year-old Sophronia is enrolled in a finishing school where, she is suprised to learn, lessons include not only the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but also diversion, deceit, and espionage.

Extraordinary Secrets of April, May & June by Robin Benway: After their parents’ divorce, teenaged sisters April, May, and June recover special powers from childhood and use them to cope with moving to a new home and high school, but wonder if the gifts have a greater purpose.

Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin: Smart, occasionally insecure, and ambitious Brooklyn fourteen-year-old Kelsey Finkelstein embarks on her freshman year of high school in Manhattan with the intention of “rebranding” herself, but unfortunately everything she tries to do is a total disaster.

Between You & Me by Marisa Calin: Phyre, sixteen, narrates her life as if it were a film, capturing her crush on Mia, a student teacher of theater and film studies, as well as her fast friendship with a classmate referred to only as “you.”

Sex & Violence by Carrie Mesrobian: Sex has always come without consequences for Evan. Until the night when all the consequences land at once, leaving him scarred inside and out.

Tumble & Fall by Alexandra Coutts: With an asteroid set to strike Earth in just one week, three teens on an island off the Atlantic Coast wrestle with love, friendship, family, and regret as they decide how to live their final days.

And coming in 2014 are at least two more books featuring the ampersand title:

House of Ivy & Sorrow by Natalie Whipple: Seventeen-year-old Josephine Hemlock has spent her life hiding the fact that she’s a witch–but when the mysterious Curse that killed her mother returns, she might not be able to keep her magical and normal lives separate. 

Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott: Tella’s brother Cody is sick and getting worse, so when she finds instructions on how to become a contender in the dangerous Brimstone Bleed race where she can win a cure for him, she jumps at the chance–but there is no guarantee that she will win, or even survive.

Filed Under: aesthetics, ampersands, cover designs, title trends, Uncategorized, Young Adult

“Inside the Industry” Guest Post and Quick Survey

August 17, 2013 |

Sara from the blog The Page Sage is running a really neat series she’s calling “inside the industry,” featuring interviews with people within the book world. She was kind enough to invite me to take part, and you can read my interview about librarianship, how to get into the field, the highs and lows of the job, and more over here. 
This was a really fun interview to do, and I hope you enjoy reading it and learning a little bit more about on-the-ground librarianship.
***

Sara’s series got me thinking about our own series posts at STACKED. I’ve been asked to do another contemporary week by more than one person, and I’d love to work something out again this fall to make that happen. But I’d love some input, if you’re willing to give it — so here is a short, four-question survey of what you’d like to see in a contemporary YA week series this fall. If you could help out that would be great, even if it’s spreading the word to others who might be interested. (And to answer a question about my questions, I do mean 2014 and not 2013. I’d like to do a preview into the new year sort of post like I did for last year’s contemp week — that’s not a typo).

And as a teaser, I’ll say that Kimberly and I do have 2 other features planned for the fall — our usual spotlight on horror in October, as well as a week-long series dedicated to reader’s advisory which includes some really excellent guest posters (who I am so excited to hear from).

Filed Under: Links, Uncategorized

Audio Review: A Matter of Days by Amber Kizer

August 16, 2013 |

The BluStar pandemic has killed most of the Earth’s population. Nadia and her little brother Rabbit (nickname for Robert) managed to survive thanks to an injection given to them by their Uncle Bean, who somehow knew what was going to happen and had a vaccine available. Their mother, though, never got the shot, and after Nadia and Rabbit watch her die, they pack up the family’s Jeep and head out east, intending to travel to their Pappy’s home, where Uncle Bean mentioned he’d meet them when he saw them last.

They know it’s not going to be an easy trip, but their father – a military man who died a few years ago – taught them how to “be the cockroach” and “survive the effects.” They know how to shoot a gun, how to forage for food and supplies, how to survive without electricity. Rabbit actually read up on survival guides while Nadia was taking care of their dying mother, so he neatly avoids embodying the annoying younger sibling trope. He’s a kid, sure, but he’s also helpful.

The story is very episodic: Nadia and Rabbit travel for a bit, make a stop, run into some trouble (with wildlife, unsavory people, or the environment), survive it, then move on. They’re alone for much of the story, though they do pick up some strays along the way (a dog, a bird, a teenage boy, and a little girl).

The narration, done by Alex McKenna, is a failure. She voices Rabbit like a 60-year-old with a lifetime smoking habit. Nadia doesn’t fare much better, but the problem with her voice (which is the primary one, since this is a first-person story) is where McKenna chooses to place emphasis. More often than not, she’ll overemphasize entire sentences that should have been read neutrally or matter-of-fact. When sentences should be emphasized, the words she chooses to emphasize are strange and don’t carry the meaning she intends. It often made me wrinkle my brow in confusion and brought me out of the story.

Still, the book wasn’t a complete loss. Despite its episodic nature, I found myself fairly engaged, in a “If I miss a bit of this because I’m not fully focused on it, it’s not a big deal” way (great for driving!). There’s no complicated overarching storyline that the listener needs to puzzle out – just a girl and a boy traveling across the country, meeting and overcoming a series of obstacles.

In a way, this reads like a younger version of Ashfall, except with a pandemic instead of a supervolcano. But where Ashfall was frequently harrowing, A Matter of Days is not nearly so dark or filled with tension. There is certainly danger, but it’s not felt very strongly. Most of the story involves the fairly mundane aspects of survival: finding food and fuel, coping with poor hygiene, navigating roads full of stalled vehicles. For the most part, I thought it was nice to read a book without having to constantly worry if a beloved character would be violently murdered (or eaten).

That’s not to say there is no threat of violence. There is, but much of it occurred in the past. Nadia and Rabbit stumble upon a lot of dead bodies, and not all from BluStar. Nadia does have occasion to use her gun, and they run into some people who wish them harm. Where other end-of-the-world survival stories tend to emphasize the violence, though, A Matter of Days tries instead to emphasize the kids’ loss and the other non-violent horrors. Nadia and Rabbit are now orphans, and they’re not even sure Pappy and Uncle Bean will still be alive when they reach their destination. There’s a genuinely heartbreaking moment during a flashback as Nadia cares for her mother on her deathbed. There’s also a lovely moment when Nadia is hiding from a group of violent raiders in a room with a decomposing body and she mentions she tries to swallow her own vomit. Early on in the book, Nadia and Rabbit rescue a dog and have to pick glass out of its paws. There’s not a lot of blood, but there are a lot of moments like these.

This will probably appeal to fans of Ashfall, though hardcore post-apocalyptic readers will likely find it a bit tame for their tastes. (And I’d recommend picking it up in print.) If you’d like to listen to a bit of the book and see if you agree with me about the narration, Random House has an excerpt on their website.

Finished copy received from the publisher. A Matter of Days is available now.

Filed Under: audio review, audiobooks, Reviews, Uncategorized, Young Adult

Graphic Memoirs & “New Adult” Books

August 15, 2013 |

The topic of “new adult” has been talked about left and right. I even talked about it earlier this week. 

As a take-away for the conversation starter than Sophie Brookover, Liz Burns, and myself gave at ALA in June, we developed a fairly thorough resource list, with links to not only the articles, blog posts, and discussions surrounding the newly-emerging idea of “new adult” books, but it included a lengthy reading list of books that have been published as “new adult,” as well as books that weren’t published as “new adult” but which explored the themes we teased out as hallmarks to this category of books.

What is “new adult,” if it’s a thing at all? One of the definitions that keeps coming back around is that “new adult” explores the themes and challenges of being on your own for the first time — whatever that may mean. It could mean what happens when you go away to college. It could mean what happens when you move into your first apartment by yourself or when you’re moving back home with your parents after four years away at school. It could mean discovering how to navigate new relationships and new careers outside the safety net of high school or parental supervision. Roughly, these are books that explore the tricky things that happen in your life as a “new adult,” or when you’re somewhere between the ages of 18 and 26. 

Of course, this is a slightly problematic definition in matching up what has been published as “new adult,” since nearly every book published in this category has been a contemporary (and steamy) romance. It doesn’t include those who marry young or those who don’t necessarily attend college but choose a trade to go into (or choose a gap year or choose not to do go into a traditional career path at all). Likewise, the differences in experiences of those actually attending college and those just out of college are so different it’s tough to wrap them all into a singular category and point to one media as an example of good “new adult.” In other words, saying that Girls is a prime example of the category points to “new adult” being something wholly different than pointing to a book about a girl’s first year in college being “new adult.” 

I’m not sold on this being a category. I’m still solidly in the camp that rather than try to define a type of book that’s always been on the market as adult (or as YA, as the case may be for some of the books being lumped into the “new adult” category), we should look more closely at the importance of crossover appeal in books. The 18-26 age range is all about crossing over: you’re walking the bridge between adolescence to true independence and adulthood. Whatever that looks like depends upon the individual. There aren’t specific milestones to make because, unlike adolescence which is marked with somewhat shared milestones — think learning to drive, graduating high school, and so forth — adulthood is about defining your own milestones. Whether that’s choosing to rent an apartment for the first time, choosing to attend college, or choosing to pursue marriage/children/a career or all of the above in tandem.

To that effect, it seems to make more sense to pull from those books already being published within the traditional category definitions of Young Adult and Adult. These books exist and these books can fit into the reading interests and needs of those interested in the so-called “new adult” realm. I’ve mentioned before that by exploding the definition outward and reconsidering these books as crossovers rather than as “new adult,” then we’re opening the doors to the possibility that emerging adulthood is a much broader, richer experience than what we’re seeing played out right now as contemporary romance. The opportunity for change is here, but it seems like we offer more value and service to these books and their readers by building from what’s already here than trying to start fresh and limit ourselves to a singular idea of “new adult.” 

As was mentioned during our panel in June and something I’ve been thinking about a LOT is that as it stands now, “new adult” is very white, very middle class, and very sexy. There is nothing inherently wrong with the books published as “new adult” being this way, but there is a problem if that’s the only experience being mirrored. Someone in the audience mentioned that perhaps if the definition of what a good “new adult” book is is what I’ve listed above — about the experiences of maturation and learning to make choices independently about one’s life and being able to do so without the constraints of adolescence — perhaps urban fiction offers a wealth of “new adult” books, as well, since they tread these themes and have been for quite a while. 

Since the talk about “new adult” began, I’ve put considerable thought into the role that alternative formats may play in the discussion about the category and about the value they have in crossover appeal. 

I’ve been a huge fan of graphic memoirs for quite a while now. I’ve read most of what’s been traditionally published in the last few years. I’ve talked before about my love for Julia Wertz’s graphic memoirs before. And in thinking about why it is I love these books, in conjunction with why I really like the show Girls, I’ve come to the idea that the reason why I like all of these things is because they hit upon the very ideas that books considered “new adult” hit upon. They’re about learning to separate from the comfort and security afforded to the narrator (generally the author, but not always) and come to understand one’s own place and roles as a new grown up. It’s not pretty, and in fact, much of the appeal for me in these books is that they are downright ugly because they’re true. Being an adult isn’t always about the pretty romance. Often, it’s about the baggage and the backstory and how those things inform the character and his or her choices. The character doesn’t always make the right choices, either. Sometimes those choices are downright dumb. 

But it’s okay because they’re still new at this. They’re still learning when they can revert to the behaviors of their teenhood and when they need to put on grownup lenses to proceed. They’re walking the bridge and making choices. 

They are crossing over. 

I think any discussion of “new adult” without exploration of graphic novels — and graphic memoirs in particular — is one that overlooks an entire category of books with tremendous crossover appeal for the readers looking for these themes (and character ages) in story. With that in mind, I thought I’d offer up a reading list of some strong graphic memoirs that definitely fall into what we’re thinking about as “new adult.” These books have great crossover appeal to them: teen readers looking for stories about being a young adult will find something here, as will adults who are looking for books that either they relate to because they’re of the age the main character is or to adults who are looking for books that explore those tough times of emerging adulthood. 

This is a format and genre I turn to when I’m looking for something “different,” and I find that I’m rarely disappointed. I love the way the art interacts with the narrative, and I love the narratives themselves which are compelling and often quite relatable (I’m not too far removed from the age range that many consider “new adult”). I love that sometimes these stories take place at the end of high school and sometimes they take place when the main character is in his or her mid-20s. Sometimes the story is told entirely through reflection and isn’t from a current perspective at all — in other words, it’s looking back at this time and age, rather than living through it. 

My list isn’t exhaustive, and I’d love to know of additional graphic memoirs that might fit the bill. I’m especially interested in the male or diverse experience — I was going to include Persepolis in this list, as well, and perhaps I could since it fits a nice crossover niche as well. Are there historical graphic memoirs worth looking at, too?

All descriptions are from WorldCat. 

Calling Dr. Laura by Nicole J. Georges: When Nicole Georges was two years old, her family told her that her father was dead. When she was twenty-three, a psychic told her he was alive. Her sister, saddled with guilt, admits that the psychic is right and that the whole family has conspired to keep him a secret. Sent into a tailspin about her identity, Nicole turns to radio talk-show host Dr. Laura Schlessinger for advice– Calling Dr. Laura tells the story of what happens to you when you are raised in a family of secrets, and what happens to your brain (and heart) when you learn the truth from an unlikely source. 

Kiss & Tell: A Romantic Resume Ages 0 to 22 by MariNaomi: Recounts the author’s romantic experiences, from first love to heartbreak.

Life with Mr. Dangerous by Paul Hornschemeier (not technically a graphic memoir but it’s so close to the storytelling in the otherwise listed memoirs that I’m including it): Somewhere in the Midwest, Amy Breis is going nowhere. Amy has a job she hates, a creep boyfriend she’s just dumped, and a best friend she can’t reach on the phone. But at least her (often painfully passive-aggressive) mother bought her a pink unicorn sweatshirt for her birthday. Pink. Unicorn. For her twenty-sixth birthday. Gliding through the daydreams and realities of a young woman searching for definition. 

Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me by Ellen Forney:  Shortly before her thirtieth birthday, Ellen Forney was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Flagrantly manic but terrified that medications would cause her to lose her creativity and livelihood, she began a years-long struggle to find mental stability without losing herself or her passion. Searching to make sense of the popular concept of the “crazy artist,” Ellen found inspiration from the lives and work of other artist and writers who suffered from mood disorders, including Vincent van Gogh, Georgia O’Keeffe, William Styron, and Sylvia Plath.

Are You My Mother? by Alison Bechdel: Graphic memoir about Bechdel’s troubled relationship with her distant, unhappy mother and her experiences with psychoanalysis, with particular reference to the work of Donald Winnicott.

Fun Home by Alison Bechdel: This book takes its place alongside the unnerving, memorable, darkly funny family memoirs of Augusten Burroughs and Mary Karr. It’s a father-daughter tale perfectly suited to the graphic memoir form. Meet Alison’s father, a historic preservation expert and obsessive restorer of the family’s Victorian house, a third-generation funeral home director, a high school English teacher, an icily distant parent, and a closeted homosexual who, as it turns out, is involved with male students and a family babysitter. Through narrative that is alternately heartbreaking and fiercely funny, we are drawn into a daughter’s complex yearning for her father. And yet, apart from assigned stints dusting caskets at the family-owned ‘fun home, ‘ as Alison and her brothers call it, the relationship achieves its most intimate expression through the shared code of books. When Alison comes out as homosexual herself in late adolescence, the denouement is swift, graphic, and redemptive.

Little Fish by Ramsey Beyer (September 3, with a little more emphasis on prose than art): Told through real-life journals, collages, lists, and drawings, this coming-of-age story illustrates the transformation of an 18-year-old girl from a small-town teenager into an independent city-dwelling college student. Written in an autobiographical style with beautiful artwork, Little Fish shows the challenges of being a young person facing the world on her own for the very first time and the unease—as well as excitement—that comes along with that challenge. Description via Goodreads. 

My Friend Dahmer by Derf Backderf: You only think you know this story. In 1991, Jeffrey Dahmer, the most notorious serial killer since Jack the Ripper, seared himself into the American consciousness. To the public, Dahmer was a monster who committed unthinkable atrocities. To Derf Backderf, ‘Jeff’ was a much more complex figure: a high school friend with whom he had shared classrooms, hallways, and car rides. In [this story], a haunting and original graphic novel, writer-artist Backderf creates a surprisingly sympathetic portrait of a disturbed young man struggling against the morbid urges emanating from the deep recesses of his psyche– a shy kid, a teenage alcoholic, and a goofball who never quite fit in with his classmates. With profound insight, what emerges is a Jeffrey Dahmer that few ever really knew, and one readers will never forget.

French Milk by Lucy Knisley: A lighthearted travelogue–rendered in the form of a graphic novel–about a mother and daughter’s life-changing six-week trip to Paris is comprised of the graphic artist daughter’s illustrations of the sights and scenes they visited while each was facing a milestone birthday.

Relish by Lucy Knisley: Lucy Knisley loves food. The daughter of a chef and a gourmet, this talented young cartoonist comes by her obsession honestly. In her forthright, thoughtful, and funny memoir, Lucy traces key episodes in her life thus far, framed by what she was eating at the time and lessons learned about food, cooking, and life. Each chapter is bookended with an illustrated recipe– many of them treasured family dishes, and a few of them Lucy’s original inventions. 

*Between the two, I think that French Milk falls more into the “new adult” category, as it explores more of the college experience than does Relish. Both both are excellent. 

The Infinite Wait and Other Stories by Julia Wertz: These are comics filled with the sometimes messy, heartbreaking and hilarious moments that make up a life. (What’s particularly good about this one is that it explores what happens when the career you thought was in your back pocket ends up not being so — and all when you’re young).

Filed Under: book lists, Graphic Novels, new adult, Uncategorized

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