Castellucci, C., & N. Powell. The Year of the Beasts.

Castellucci, Cecil, and Nate Powell.  The Year of the Beasts.     Macmillan/ Roaring Brook Press      175p  $16.99      978-1-59643-686-2           ms/hs E-BN  Graphic novel   

Tessa has a crush on Charlie, and she and her best friend are planning a double date, but at the last minute Tessa’s mother tells her she must take her sister Lulu.  Then the unthinkable happens -- Charlie falls for Lulu -- and although Tessa tries to be happy for her sister, this betrayal hurts too much. 

Tessa and her sister were finally old enough to go to the carnival by themselves. Tessa had invited her best friend to go with them.  They were going to meet Charlie and his friend at the carnival.  When they get there, somehow Charlie and Lulu are paired up for one of the rides.  Tessa is not sure what has happened, but by the end of the night she knows that she has lost Charlie to her sister.

Jealousy rears its ugly head as Tessa must deal with the fact that she is the odd man out, while everyone around her is paired up, and, in addition, her best friend Cecil has become very good friends with Lulu.  She is not sure how it all happened, but she is overcome by rage at being left out and is finding it hard to be friends with her own sister, who she feels betrayed her.

Through all of this turmoil we see a graphic novel developing between the chapters that brings the ugliness of the whole situation out into the open while it festers in Tessa’s heart.  The summer ends tragically, and the loss is overwhelming for everyone, making the teen romance almost a fond memory of the past.

The novel includes great art work! The story interlaces itself throughout the book creating an eerie feeling of dread. This is a must-read book!         

Graphic novels, Romance-Fiction, Suspense-Fiction           --Magna Diaz

Powell, Martin. The Elves and the Shoemaker (Grimm Graphic Novel).

Powell, Martin.    The Elves and the Shoemaker (Grimm Graphic Novel).     

Stone Archsee Capstone      2011  32p   17.99 978-1-4342-2553-5 

elem      Graphic novel       E-BNe 

This is an adaptation of a Grimm’s fairy tale that shows generosity

of the shoemaker is important. This act of generosity is rewarded by help from

magical elves.        

This text is crisply written and fully illustrated with a

low reading level accompanied by sepia colored comic-like illustrations. The

inclusion of discussion questions, writing prompts,  and a glossary make this a

useful classroom tool.

     After the importance of an informative text, the most supportive factor of

this book is visual appeal to young readers.  The layout of the various pages is

diversified and well balanced between text and sepia colored comic-like

illustrations so that concepts are grouped together.  The flow and balance of

both the text and visuals are integrated to present a very stimulating book for

both young and reluctant readers.

      This book is one in the  _Grimm Brothers Graphic Novels(Capstone)series. 

The series consists of __4_ books at this time. The general theme of the series

is __Grimm’s fairy tales _.      McNeil, Linda