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Princess Decompsia and Count Spatula by Andi Watson + A Special Bonus Comic!

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I never quite realized how much I enjoy a graphic novel where food plays a central part in the story.

Or maybe I did — I love Sara Varon’s Bake Sale and Lucy Knisley’s Relish and I dug Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Seconds — and I never quite put all of the pieces together that stories revolving around food or cooking done in a visual format tick all of my boxes.

Although Andi Watson’s latest Princess Decomposia and Count Spatula won’t go down on my all-time favorites list, this is a weirdly charming and enjoyable read, perfect for middle grade readers through adults. “Weirdly charming” is a compliment, not a criticism.

Princess Decomposia is a busy and overworked princess of the underworld. She’s constantly being called on to take care of tasks, as her father, the king, is weak and ill. He’s not just weak and ill; he’s also particular and picky. When he decides it’s time to fire the chef, he puts it upon Princess Decomposia to hire a replacement. And, of course, this replacement has to be good. Or at least, the replacement has to be good enough to make Qwik Soup, which is the meals served to the king each day. He’s a health nut, following the latest fads, but he doesn’t seem to eat anything except that soup.

That is clue number one something is strange about this guy.

After a round of interviews and taste tests, Princess Decomposia hires Count Spatula to be the kingdom’s chef. He’s well versed in all manner of cooking, though he has a fondness and particular strength for baking sweets. That makes perfect sense for a vampire, of course. Where he hopes he showcase his talents, he’s met with resistance from Clove, one of the assistants; she tells him regularly that he doesn’t need to be doing more than making soup since the king doesn’t want anything more than that. Count Spatula doesn’t listen, though, and instead, he continues to tinker with ideas in the kitchen. He’s even brought out his special baking talents at important dinners.

This isn’t a story about his cooking, though. This is instead a story about the relationship that develops between Count Spatula and Princess Decomposia. She’s extremely overworked and over-pressured, and as he watches her stress out and take on more than her fair share, Count Spatula begins to wonder why she’s working so hard. What’s in it for her? More, as he watches the closeness of Clove and her family — depicted in extremely sweet images — Count begins to pry into Princess Decomposia’s life. Is she happy? Why does she feel like she has to take on all of this work, especially as her father isn’t keeping a close eye on her? As the princess and count grow closer, she begins to see the value in taking time for herself and exploring the passions she has.

In fact, she may even try to do something on her very own for herself and no one else. Perhaps she’ll even do a little delegation of responsibility.

It’s not going to be that easy though, and that’s because the king isn’t as sick as he’s making himself out to be. When he gets a whiff of what his daughter is talking about with Count Spatula and when he begins to suspect that things aren’t being done according to his orders, suddenly, there’s a very different king around. One who isn’t sick. One who wants to bring his daughter back under his total and complete control.

Princess Decomposia and Count Spatula does contain romance, and it’s done in a sweet way. I did stop and pause for a moment at the end of the book, wondering what the ages of these characters were, despite the fact they’re not rendered as humans. Decomposia feels very young, while Count Spatula feels much older — he is a chef, after all. But in the end, this budding romance didn’t run into any ick factors at all and since this is a graphic novel perfectly appropriate for younger readers, it’ll feel like a nice payoff, rather than a plot element shoe horned in to give the book more strength. There’s enough relationship development as is, and the romance itself doesn’t become apparent for a long time. Instead, it’s a sweet connection that circles the themes of growing up and understanding what independence and choice really are. There’s also a thought-provoking and rarely-explored look at the importance of not taking on too much work and using delegation skills to manage your time and energy. I can’t name a graphic novel that’s done that before nor done it in a way that doesn’t feel over-the-top or overwhelming. It’s not didactic at all. Parents don’t always know best, and Watson scratches at that topic while offering a why — however good it is — behind the king’s behavior and actions.

It’s the descriptions and depictions of food in this graphic novel that were the most enjoyable for me. The sweets are rendered as things bigger than what they are — the mud cake is depicted as a Mud Monster Cake, and Princess and her dinner guests have to “attack” it to enjoy. These creations are fun and silly, which enhances the story’s charm. The storytelling outshines the illustrations for me in this book, except in the food department. That’s where Watson’s creativity shines, with the story and the illustrations marrying together nicely.

Pass along Princess Decomposia and Count Spatula to readers who like off-beat stories, brimming with fun, eccentric characters. This is a very British comic, so be prepared to encounter some less-familiar food and language choices. Readers who have been charmed by Sara Varon’s work in the past will find this to be a good next read.

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As part of the blog tour for Andi Watson’s Princess Decomposia and Count Spatula, he created a series of brand-new, never-before-shared illustrations. We’re really excited to share this one, which is perfectly representative of the strengths of this graphic novel. You can see exactly what I mean by the creative spin on dessert creation and how these foods come alive on the page and in the story. (I won’t lie — the hipster joke is my favorite part). 
Enjoy! Make sure you check out all of the stops for this tour to see even more of Watson’s delicious comics. 

This Week in Reading: Volume 12

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It’s been more than one or two weeks since I did a round-up of recently-received books and links I’ve been reading and thinking about around the web.

This is only part of what I could remember showing up since the last round-up, and I know I’m missing a few things. Links go to Goodreads.

I Love, I Hate, I Miss My Sister by Amelie Sarn: This had been on my radar but I kind of forgot about it. Someone on Goodreads recommended it to me based on my tastes, and I’m excited to read it. It’s surprisingly short. 

From Where I Watch You by Shannon Grognan (August 4): Shannon and I are part of a critique group and I read this book as a manuscript in a few different forms. Now it’s in ARC form and I can’t wait to see where it is. It’s a mystery and there’s loads of baking involved (the sweets it’ll make you crave!).

Whippoorwill by Joseph Monninger (November): A dog story for YA readers! 

Lying Out Loud by Kody Keplinger (April 28): This is a companion to The DUFF. 

NEED by Joelle Charbonneau (November 3)

Because You’ll Never Meet Me by Leah Thomas (June 2)

Kissing in America by Margo Rabb (May 26)

Sophomore Year is Greek to Me by Meredith Zeitlin (April 21)

Everybody Knows Your Name by Andrea Seigel and Brent Bradshaw (March 10)

I Am Her Revenge by Meredith Moore (April 7)

The Tenderness of Thieves by Donna Frietas (May 26): I’m really excited about a new Donna Frietas book! 

Kalahari by Jessica Khoury (February 24)

Immaculate by Katelyn Detweiler (May 26) & The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes (June 9): Both of these I’d picked up at ALA just days before. Both of which I’m really excited to read.

In the last couple of weeks, I’ve been tearing through books. I’ve read This Side of Home by Renee Watson, Challenger Deep by Neal Schusterman, El Deafo by Cece Bell, Razorhurst by Justine Larbalestier, and Read Between the Lines by Jo Knowles, among others. All of these were good reads, so they’re all worth putting on your radars. I’ll be reviewing many — but probably not all — of them in the next few weeks. 

Links Around the Web:

  • Leila talked about book reviews and criticism in a really great blog post this week. I’m going to talk more about this in the future, but her thoughts are outstanding and thoughtful. Once you read that post, go read part one and part two of Malinda Lo’s analysis of book reviews for diverse titles in professional trade journals. There is a lot of great food for thought among these three blog posts. 
  • I love everything about this interview between Faythe and Morris Award Winner Isabel Quintero. My favorite thing Isabel says comes near the end of the interview, about how she and Gabi are similar and different: “I wish that I had been less afraid to question the expectations that had been placed on me. That I had been brave enough to question the double standards and act on them-to not be afraid of boys. I was totally boy crazy in high school. I had a crush on so many boys but as soon as one showed interest I’d be scared shitless. I couldn’t believe that a boy would like Isabel, the fat girl. Why would he? It wasn’t until college that I realized it was okay to think about sex (I was normal!) or to like so many boys or that I was pretty awesome and guys were interested-for reals. So, to me it made sense to have a character who embodied this idea earlier on.”
  • This was announced a while ago, but if you missed it, here are the Edgar Award Finalists, which includes a nice selection of YA titles. 
  • Though this isn’t book or reading related, this essay spoke to me so powerfully that I can’t not include it. Sarah Hollowell wrote about being fat and getting laid. It’s outstanding. 

7 More 2015 YA Books with Diversity on the Cover

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Last fall, I did a really quick round-up of YA covers for books coming out this year that featured diversity right square on the front cover. It was not only great to look at them all together that way, but it was nice to find more books to add to my own to-read list. 

As more covers have been revealed or re-revealed in the last few months, I thought it would be worth revisiting that topic. Here’s a look at even more fabulously diverse YA covers for books coming out this year. Some of these are less front-facing than before, but they’re worth including because you know the character is a person of color. Like last time, I’ll include descriptions for the book, pulled from Goodreads, as well as the publication dates, so you can put them on your own reading and buying lists. 

If I’ve missed some, either on this post or the previous one, let me know in the comments. Let’s see more cover work like this. 

Hello, I Love You by Katie M. Stout (June 9): Grace Wilde is running—from the multi-million dollar mansion her record producer father bought, the famous older brother who’s topped the country music charts five years in a row, and the mother who blames her for her brother’s breakdown. Grace escapes to the farthest place from home she can think of, a boarding school in Korea, hoping for a fresh start.

She wants nothing to do with music, but when her roommate Sophie’s twin brother Jason turns out to be the newest Korean pop music superstar, Grace is thrust back into the world of fame. She can’t stand Jason, whose celebrity status is only outmatched by his oversized ego, but they form a tenuous alliance for the sake of her friendship with Sophie. As the months go by and Grace adjusts to her new life in Korea, even she can’t deny the sparks flying between her and the KPOP idol.

Soon, Grace realizes that her feelings for Jason threaten her promise to herself that she’ll leave behind the music industry that destroyed her family. But can Grace ignore her attraction to Jason and her undeniable pull of the music she was born to write? Sweet, fun, and romantic, this young adult novel explores what it means to experience first love and discover who you really are in the process. 

P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han (May 26, companion to To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before): Lara Jean didn’t expect to really fall for Peter.

She and Peter were just pretending. Except suddenly they weren’t. Now Lara Jean is more confused than ever.

When another boy from her past returns to her life, Lara Jean’s feelings for him return too. Can a girl be in love with two boys at once?

 
Most Likely to Succeed by Jennifer Echols (August 4, final book in the “Superlative” series): As vice president of Student Council, Kaye knows the importance of keeping order. Not only in school, but in her personal life. Which is why she and her boyfriend, Aidan, already have their lives mapped out: attend Columbia University together, pursue banking careers, and eventually get married. Everything Kaye has accomplished in high school—student government, cheerleading, stellar grades—has been in preparation for that future.


To his entire class, Sawyer is an irreverent bad boy. His antics on the field as school mascot and his love of partying have earned him total slacker status. But while he and Kaye appear to be opposites on every level, fate—and their friends—keep conspiring to throw them together. Perhaps the seniors see the simmering attraction Kaye and Sawyer are unwilling to acknowledge to themselves…

As the year unfolds, Kaye begins to realize her ideal life is not what she thought. And Sawyer decides it’s finally time to let down the facade and show everyone who he really is. Is a relationship between them most likely to succeed—or will it be their favorite mistake?

The Wrath & The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh (May 12): Every dawn brings horror to a different family in a land ruled by a killer. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, takes a new bride each night only to have her executed at sunrise. So it is a suspicious surprise when sixteen-year-old Shahrzad volunteers to marry Khalid. But she does so with a clever plan to stay alive and exact revenge on the Caliph for the murder of her best friend and countless other girls. Shazi’s wit and will, indeed, get her through to the dawn that no others have seen, but with a catch . . . she’s falling in love with the very boy who killed her dearest friend.

She discovers that the murderous boy-king is not all that he seems and neither are the deaths of so many girls. Shazi is determined to uncover the reason for the murders and to break the cycle once and for all.

 
Lying Out Loud by Kody Keplinger (April 28, companion to The DUFF): Sonny Ardmore is an excellent liar. She lies about her dad being in prison. She lies about her mom kicking her out. And she lies about sneaking into her best friend’s house every night because she has nowhere else to go.


Amy Rush might be the only person Sonny shares everything with — secrets, clothes, even a nemesis named Ryder Cross.

Ryder’s the new kid at Hamilton High and everything Sonny and Amy can’t stand — a prep-school snob. But Ryder has a weakness: Amy. So when Ryder emails Amy asking her out, the friends see it as a prank opportunity not to be missed.

But without meaning to, Sonny ends up talking to Ryder all night online. And to her horror, she realizes that she might actually like him. Only there’s one small catch: he thinks he’s been talking to Amy. So Sonny comes up with an elaborate scheme to help Ryder realize that she’s the girl he’s really wanted all along. Can Sonny lie her way to the truth, or will all her lies end up costing her both Ryder and Amy?

Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine (August 4, sequel to Of Metal and Wishes): In the year since the collapse of the slaughterhouse where Wen worked as her father’s medical assistant, she’s held all her secrets close. She works in the clinic at the weapons factory and sneaks away to nurse Bo, once the Ghost, now a boy determined to transform himself into a living machine. Their strange, fragile friendship soothes some of the ache of missing Melik, the strong-willed Noor who walked away from Wen all those months ago—but it can’t quell her fears for him.

The Noor are waging a rebellion in the west. When she overhears plans to crush Melik’s people with the powerful war machines created at the factory, Wen makes the painful decision to leave behind all she has known—including Bo—to warn them. But the farther she journeys into the warzone, the more confusing things become. A year of brutality seems to have changed Melik, and Wen has a decision to make about him and his people: How much is she willing to sacrifice to save them from complete annihilation?

Hold Tight, Don’t Let Go by Laura Rose Wagner (available now): Hold Tight, Don’t Let Go follows the vivid story of two teenage cousins, raised as sisters, who survive the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti. After losing the woman who raised them in the tragedy, Magdalie and Nadine must fend for themselves in the aftermath of the quake. The girls are inseparable, making the best of their new circumstances in a refugee camp with an affectionate, lively camaraderie, until Nadine, whose father lives in Miami, sends for her but not Magdalie. As she leaves, Nadine makes a promise she cannot keep: to bring Magdalie to Miami, too. Resourceful Magdalie focuses her efforts on a reunion with Nadine until she realizes her life is in Haiti, and that she must embrace its possibilities for love, friendship, and a future.

Get Genrefied: YA Urban Fantasy

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Introduction

Urban fantasy is one of the easiest (sub)genres to define: it’s fantasy in an urban setting. While it has other common features, the setting is what makes the genre what it is. Some might say that the urban setting must be one from our own world, thus distinguishing it from high fantasy, but I hesitate to even put that restriction on it. I think it’s entirely possible to write an urban fantasy novel set in a fictional city in a made-up world, and it would have a lot of the same appeal to readers as a book set in our own. That said, most urban fantasy is set in our own world in our own time in a recognizable city – just with the major addition of a little magic.

Urban fantasy has a lot of crossover with paranormal fantasy, since urban fantasy often involves magical creatures like werewolves, fairies, vampires, angels, and so on. Often, there is no distinction between urban fantasy and paranormal fantasy. Author Jeannie Holmes does make a distinction between urban fantasy and paranormal romance, however, which I think is interesting to consider. This is a bit of a hot topic among uberfans of both genres. Megan McArdle at Genrify has a fantastic chart that depicts 100 popular series (mostly adult) on a spectrum, showing the fluidity of the definitions. The two genres are not mutually exclusive, though it’s important to consider whether the reader you’re talking to will want a book heavy or light on romance (or if they don’t care!). Like many of the other genres we cover, a book can be urban fantasy and historical fiction and a mystery and a romance.

While not a requirement, urban fantasy is often grittier than other fantasy novels, much like what you’d find in general urban fiction. It features teens on their own a lot, navigating more adult situations than they would in non-urban fantasy. It can also be more accessible than other fantasy, since the setting is usually something most readers will already recognize; there won’t be a lot of world-building to absorb and get lost in.

Resources

On the Web:

Popular Authors:

  • Kelley Armstrong
  • Holly Black
  • Rachel Caine
  • Cassandra Clare
  • Michael Grant
  • Sherrilyn Kenyon
  • Melissa Marr
  • Richelle Mead
  • Cynthia Leitich Smith
  • LJ Smith

Books

Below are a few books published within the last five years, a few forthcoming titles, and a few that are a bit older but still circulate well among teens. Descriptions are from WorldCat and links lead to our reviews when applicable. Any we missed? Any diverse titles in particular to add to the list? Let us know in the comments.

The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
After fifteen-year-old Chloe starts seeing ghosts and is sent to Lyle
House, a mysterious group home for mentally disturbed teenagers, she
soon discovers that neither Lyle House nor its inhabitants are exactly
what they seem, and that she and her new friends are in danger. | Sequels: The Awakening, The Reckoning

Manifest by Artist Arthur
Krystal Bentley is an outsider at her new high school in a small
Connecticut town since she hears the voice in her head of a dead teenage
boy who becomes her confidant, so she joins two other teens with
unusual powers to solve his killing. | Sequels: Mystify, Mutiny, Mayhem, Mesmerize

Tithe by Holly Black
After returning home from a tour with her mother’s rock band,
sixteen-year-old Kaye, who has been visited by faeries since childhood,
discovers that she herself is a magical faerie creature with a special
destiny. | Sequels: Valiant, Ironside

White Cat by Holly Black
When Cassel Sharpe discovers that his older brothers have used him to
carry out their criminal schemes and then stolen his memories, he
figures out a way to turn their evil machinations against them. | Sequels: Red Glove, Black Heart

The Demon’s Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan
Sixteen-year-old Nick and his family have battled magicians and demons
for most of his life, but when his brother, Alan, is marked for death
while helping new friends Jamie and Mae, Nick’s determination to save
Alan leads him to uncover a devastating secret. | Sequels: The Demon’s Covenant, The Demon’s Surrender

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
When 15-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New
York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder — much less a murder
committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and
brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air.
It’s hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to
everyone else and when there is nothing — not even a smear of blood —
to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy? | Sequels: City of Ashes, City of Glass, City of Fallen Angels, City of Lost Souls, City of Heavenly Fire

Angelfall by Susan Ee
It’s been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish
the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition
rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little
girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her
back. Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel. | Sequels: World After, End of Days (forthcoming)

Gone by Michael Grant
In the blink of an eye, everyone disappears. Gone. Except for the young.
There are teens, but not one single adult. Just as suddenly, there are
no phones, no internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to
figure out what’s happened. Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister
creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are
changing, developing new talents — unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers — that grow stronger by the day. | Sequels: Hunger, Lies, Plague, Fear, Light

Tyger Tyger by Kersten Hamilton
Soon after the mysterious and alluring Finn arrives at her family’s
home, sixteen-year-old Teagan Wylltson and her disabled brother are
drawn into the battle Finn’s family has fought since the thirteenth
century, when Fionn MacCumhaill angered the goblin king. | Sequels: In the Forests of the Night, When the Stars Threw Down Their Spears

Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey
Eighteen-year-old New Zealand boarding school student Ellie Spencer must
use her rusty tae kwon do skills and new-found magic to try to stop a
fairy-like race of creatures from Maori myth and legend that is plotting
to kill millions of humans in order to regain their lost immortality.

The Chaos by Nalo Hopkinson
Toronto sixteen-year-old Scotch may have to acknowledge her own
limitations and come to terms with her mixed Jamaican, white, and black
heritage if she is to stop the Chaos that has claimed her brother and
made much of the world crazy.

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
Seventeen-year-old Aislinn, who has the rare ability to see faeries, is
drawn against her will into a centuries-old battle between the Summer
King and the Winter Queen, and the survival of her life, her love, and
summer all hang in the balance. | Sequels:

Shadowshaper by Daniel Jose Older (June 30)
When the murals painted on the walls of her Brooklyn neighborhood start
to change and fade in front of her, Sierra Santiago realizes that
something strange is going on–then she discovers her Puerto Rican
family are shadowshapers and finds herself in a battle with an evil
anthropologist for the lives of her family and friends.

Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce
After a Fenris, or werewolf, killed their grandmother and almost killed
them, sisters Scarlett and Rosie March devote themselves to hunting and
killing the beasts that prey on teenaged girls, learning how to lure
them with red cloaks and occasionally using the help of their old
friend, Silas, the woodsman’s son.

Slice of Cherry by Dia Reeves
Portero, Texas, teens Kit and Fancy Cordelle share their infamous
father’s fascination with killing, and despite their tendency to shun
others they bring two boys with similar tendencies to a world of endless
possibilities they have discovered behind a mysterious door.

Misfit by Jon Skovron
Seattle sixteen-year-old Jael must negotiate normal life in Catholic
school while learning to control the abilities she inherited from her
mother, a demon, and protect those she loves from Belial, the Duke of
Hell.

Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith
When multiple murders in Austin, Texas, threaten the grand re-opening of
her family’s vampire-themed restaurant, seventeen-year-old, orphaned
Quincie worries that her best friend-turned-love interest, Kieren, a
werewolf-in-training, may be the prime suspect. | Sequels: Eternal, Blessed, Diabolical

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
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. | Sequels: Days of Blood and Starlight, Dreams of Gods and Monsters

The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent (June 9)
In a world ruled by the brutally puritanical Church and its army of
black-robed exorcists, sixteen-year-old Nina tries to save her pregnant
younger sister from the Church’s wrath and discovers that not only is
the Church run by demons but that Nina herself is one of the very few
who can genuinely exorcise them.