Gaiman,
Neil. 2008. THE GRAVEYARD BOOK. New York: Harper
Collins Publisher. Audio Book: Narrated by: Neil Gaiman. Audio Book Released: Sept.
30, 2008.
Plot Summary: This fantasy story starts with a baby, almost
two years old, that escapes the murderer who kills his parents and sister. The baby manages to escape to a graveyard
where his mother’s ghost asks the graveyard inhabitants to keep her boy
safe. Two ghosts who never had children
in the living world decide to adopt him along with a guardian and other ghosts
who watch over the boy. They name him Nobody Owens and call him Bod. As Bod grows up learning the ins and outs of
graveyard living, he encounters a living friend, Scarlett, a witch, and other
friends who passed away long ago. As Bod
awaits the chance to live outside in the living world, he must figure out how
to escape the man called Jack who killed his family and is still on a mission
to find the boy and kill him. In a surprise
ending, Gaiman gives the reader hope that Bod will get to live a full life
outside of the graveyard after ending the life of his family’s murderer.
Critical Analysis: It’s no wonder this story won a Newbery
Medal. Every chapter in the story keeps
the reader engaged and wanting to know what happens next. You’re not just invested in what will happen
to Bod and whether he will find the murderer of his family, but you also want
to know more about the people who take care of him in the graveyard. As much as a reader wouldn’t believe that
ghosts could take care of a living boy, every event in the plot is consistent
with the themes in the book. Gaiman also describes the setting of the graveyard
so vividly that the reader is transported there.
I highly
recommend listening to the audio version of this book as it is narrated by the
author himself. Gaiman’s voice walks you
through each event with different voices for some of the characters where you
feel like you are walking next to the characters in the graveyard. It seems to be better when the author narrates
the audio version because he or she knows the characters and the characters’
intentions better than anyone and can portray the story to the reader in the
best way.
The only
concern that might arise from this story is the detailed description of the
family murders at the beginning of the story. Depending on the maturity of the
reader, a parent might want to read the book first to be sure it is suitable.
Review Excerpts:
Kirkus Starred Review: “Childhood fears take
solid shape in the nursery-rhyme–inspired villains, while heroism is its own,
often bitter, reward.”
Publisher’s Weekly Starred Review: “When the chilling
moments do come, they are as genuinely frightening as only Gaiman can make
them, and redeem any shortcomings.”
Connections: Themes in this story that include friendship, learning
about one’s family, and finding one’s place in the world will appeal to the
young adult readers of today. Paired
with a ghost story, which is very popular for the intended reading age, young
readers will be more apt to dive into themes and concerns that they are encountering
in their teen years.
Students
might also enjoy doing some research on local or historical graveyards. Students could research how headstones are
created, different kinds of headstones, and even learn how famous people
throughout history have been commemorated at their gravesites.
Law,
Ingrid. 2008. SAVVY. New York: Puffin Books. ISBN 9780329756529
Plot Summary: Mississippi
(Mibs for short) is born into a family that has magical powers. When each family member turns 13, he or she
receives their magical power or “savvy.”
Right before Mibs turns 13, her father is in a terrible car accident. Mibs wakes up on her 13th birthday
and embarks on an adventure to get to her father in the hospital. She hops on the bus of a Bible salesman and
discovers the bus is going in the wrong direction. As Mibs travels to reach her father, she
thinks her gift is waking people up, which is what she hopes to accomplish to
save her father. As the story continues,
Mibs discovers her actual savvy is she can hear people through ink on their
skin. This can be done through a tattoo or any writing on one’s skin. Mibs is able to reach her father in time all while
learning more about her gift the power of pushing through when life gets
difficult.
Critical Analysis: Another Newbery Honor, Savvy gives
young readers a story in which they can relate despite the magical powers
presented. Even though it would classified
as a Low Fantasy book, young readers will enjoy the unexplainable powers of
each family member intertwined with themes of friendship and finding out
yourself. Law offers characters that are
lighthearted, entertaining, and easily relatable for a young adult audience. I also found it to be a very easy read and understandable.
Savvy offers an experience
for an older audience as well. As Mibs
battles through a tragic time in her life that she never thought she would
encounter, she discovers she can push through the pain. This appeals to a reader like myself who can
recall how I handled and reacted to heartbreaking events in the past. It led me to dig a little deeper to break
apart how I handled those situations.
Review Excerpts:
Kirkus Starred Review: “There are no serious
villains here, only challenges to be met, friendships to be made and some
growing up to do on the road to a two-hanky climax.”
The Children’s Book
Review: “Ingrid Law’s first novel, Savvy, has many wonderfully colorful
characters who collaborate on an unexpected and heartfelt journey.”
Connections: I think young adults will enjoy the characters
and the plot in this story that they will want to know more. Readers get to continue the story of Beaumont
family in Law’s sequel Scumble.
Since the story is set in the Nebraska/Kansas area of the country,
this could be a point of research for a lot of students. This might be an unknown area of the country
that students could research and complete a project on.
Telgemeier,
Raina. 2010. SMILE. New York: Scholastic. ISBN: 9781338740264
Plot Summary: Smile is a graphic novel based on a
personal experience of the author. Raina
has a fall when she is in middle school that results in the loss of her two
front teeth. She then encounters a four-year long journey of braces, fake
teeth, retainers, headgear, and teeth pulling all to fix her smile and make it
as close to normal as possible. Along the
way, Raina shares her experiences as a coming-of-age teenager who has crushes
on multiple boys, embarrassment due to the way she looks, and friends who don’t
treat her as true friends. In the end,
Raina enters high school and finds friends who respect her and love her for who
she truly is and begins to enjoy her true passions of art and singing.
Critical Analysis: As much as I haven’t been a fan of
graphic novels, I really enjoyed reading Smile. In a simple form of
cartoon drawings and fun speech bubbles, the reader is pulled into Raina’s
world where you are immediately sympathetic to what she is going through as a
teenager. Telgemeier relates to her young
adult readers with realistic events such as braces, acne, crushes, and friends
making fun of her. I think the young adult
readers will be a little surprised, and hopefully inspired, by Raina finally
standing up for herself when her friends pull down her skirt in front of the
whole school. Raina realizes a hard
lesson that valuable friendship involves respect and love for the person; not a
“friendship” where one is trying to change the other person and using their insecurities
as jokes.
The
drawings are very simple, colorful, and eye-catching to the reader. Each event was easy to follow as you read
through the story. There were also lots
of details to enjoy if you pay close attention or read back through a second
time like the faded yellow pages when Raina was sharing a memory and pointing
out the price tag on a Valentine’s Day gift Raina receives.
Review Excerpts:
Kirkus: “Irresistible, funny and touching—a must read for all
teenage girls, whether en-braced or not.”
School Library Journal: “Telgemeier’s book is an
excellent addition to middle school literature.”
Connections: Readers will not only enjoy this graphic novel,
but will love Guts, Sisters, and Drama all written and
illustrated by Telgemeier. These graphic
novels give young adult readers an outlet when navigating adolescent issues.
The teenage
issues presented in this graphic novel are very similar to Judy Blume
stories. Engaging in these graphic novels
could be a first step to reluctant readers being introduced to another level of
books that address real-life concerns like Frecklejuice or Tales of a
Fourth Grade Nothing.
Hale,
Nathan. 2021. NATHAN HALE’S HAZARDOUS TALES: COLD WAR CORRESPONDENT. New York: Amulet Books. ISBN: 9781419749513
Plot Summary: Enjoy a graphic novel that walks the reader through
the eyes of Marguerite Higgins who was a reporter for the New York Herald
Tribune in 1950. After WWII, there
was a split between the North and the South in Korea and things were tense on
the borders. Marguerite was present when
a significant capture happened, which led her to flee with some other
refugees. She ends up risking her life
all to make her newspaper story more interesting. Along the way, she battles being told that
women are not allowed on the frontline and she was ordered to leave Korea. She meets General Douglas MacArthur who lifts
the rule of no women on the frontline. Thanks to MacArthur, Marguerite can
report on many major events in the Korean War.
Critical Analysis: I’m still learning to understand and even
like graphic novels, but I’m starting to appreciate them when it comes to young
readers. Comics are generally filled
with action i.e. Superman and Batman saving the city from an evil villain. This graphic novel not only has action
involved due to the nature of the Korean War, but it shares accurate history in
a way that young readers can enjoy. This
story also brings to light an issue that has arisen recently, which involves women’s
rights. Young adults have been introduced
to women making a difference in our country and this graphic novel is a great
way to share some history of how a woman wanted to continue making an impact
even though she wasn’t allowed to at first.
The
illustrations were created in black and white, which gives the reader a sense of
being transported back to the historical events. This story might take the reader a little
longer to read due to the smaller pictures and smaller speech bubbles attached
to each frame, but the comic book feel will still attract a lot of readers.
Review Excerpts:
Kirkus: “Beyond Higgins’ personal,
gripping story, Hale coherently and accurately conveys the factors that led to
the Korean War, the political gambling by the U.S. and the Soviet Union, and
battle strategies.”
Youth Services: “Those wishing to have intricate details, albeit an overview,
of the Korean War, who wish to have a first-hand account of the life of a war
correspondent, particularly one of the very few women, this is the book for you.”
Goodreads: “Nathan
Hale’s Hazardous Tales are graphic novels that tell the thrilling, shocking,
gruesome, and TRUE stories of American history. Read them all—if you dare!”
Connections: This book is a great start to learning about the
Korean War. The fact that this is
written from the perspective of not only an American, but a female American,
adds more value to the young adult reader.
Scholars could not complete a research project on Higgins and her life
story, but scholars could also learn about other events during the Korean War.
Students who
loved learning about history through this graphic novel will enjoy the rest of
the Hazardous Tales Series including the Alamo All Stars, The
Underground Abductor, and Big Bad Ironclad.
