Last month's challenges were:
- Read a non-superhero comic that debuted in the last three years
- Read a book that was adapted into a movie, then watch the movie. Debate which was better.
How did we do?
Karen: The September challenge had me stumped. I don't dislike comics per se, but like most of these months, they aren't a genre I typically turn to for my reading pleasure. So I tried two different comics with two different outcomes. First I started with Marble Season by Gilbert Hernandez. It's a semi-autobiographical novel by the creator of Love and Rockets New Stories 8. I think I would have liked Marble Season better if I had read and/or enjoyed Love and Rockets first. However, I didn't. Marble Season was a collection of random vignettes of neighborhood shenanigans set in California in the 1960s. I know I should have given it more of a chance, but really it did nothing for me.
I did want to give a comic a chance, so I also picked up Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson and I'm so glad that I did. This was a lovely coming-of-age story of Astrid, a girl in Portland just starting to move away from her best friend and discover new interests and friends. Astrid is introduced to Roller Derby by her mom and realizes she can learn new skills, meet new friends and become a better friend, rise to the challenge, stand up to bullies, learn how to handle disappointment, and be a lot stronger than she thought. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to suggesting it to any preteen girls that are looking for a good read (well, adults too).
I thought the novel made into a movie would be easy, but I realized I've actually watched and read most of the titles we had available. And I've tried really hard not to cheat on this challenge, and not have one book cover two challenges, or use something I had already read before. I figured since I had never read any Jane Austen before (heavens forfend, a librarian who hasn't read Jane Austen) now would be the time to pick up Sense and Sensibility. I can understand why lots of folks are fans, but the style really wasn't my cup of tea (pardon the pun). I get the comedy of manners and all that - I've seen my share of Merchant Ivory films over the years, but reading it didn't really work for me. I do have the film checked out and although I do enjoy Emma Thompson and Alan Rickman, I haven't quite worked up the gumption to devote a couple hours of watching. I will, I will.
That leaves me without really fulfilling this month's challenge until my coworker suggested I watch The Help. I did miss the movie while it was in theaters and while I did have issues with the book itself, I did want to see what all of the fuss was about. There were some great moments in the film that gave me goosebumps and made me cry. There was a deleted scene included as a special feature on the DVD that they cut because it was too depressing and didn't fit with the uplifting ending they wanted for the film. Even though it was both more true to life and true to the book. Sigh. I could spend pages going into the racial dynamic of a white author and white filmmaker and white main character making tons of money (or in the story getting a great new job) off the story of the black workers. I won't do that. But I will say there is great acting in this film, it is definitely a strong depiction of a time period in our country's history that is important for people to know about. And yes, I did like the film better than the book, which doesn't happen very often for me.
William: I'm just having a rough time of it in selecting books the last couple of months for this challenge. I bow to Karen's picks and writing for this, because I'm afraid I didn't quite finish everything in time. I read a comic as per the guidelines. I don't read a lot of comics or graphic novels anymore, though I do enjoy them usually when I try one.
Let me start with one of two comics I read. I really, really REALLY cannot say enough good things about this one and I finished it in one hour or so, I literally couldn't put it down: Ghosts This is a children's book but any adult will love it, and probably teens too. This is such a heart warming story and not scary despite the title. The family in this story includes two daughters, Cat, who is our main center piece, and her little sister Maya, who suffers from fibromyalgia and must receive special medication and later, oxygen to keep her lungs in shape. The family has moved to a coastal town in California famed for its Day of the Dead celebrations, and for good reason: the ghosts are real.
Cat is not too excited about the ghosts despite the joy of Maya, who delights in meeting them. A local boy named Carlos acts as a guide to presenting the legends and the ghosts to the sisters, and although the ghosts are harmless, Maya does suffer from her health problems as an indirect result of meeting them. "Ghosts" is an amazing story which deals with the topics of death, and the very real possibility that Maya may not have a long life and how her family copes with this and the bravery and joy Maya exhibits is infectious to the reader. Among the other issues the family and characters face include coping with the loss of grandma and honoring her at Día de Los Muertos, and the struggles of relocating and losing and making friends and learning responsibility. Cat is a meaning but grudging sister who adores Maya, but has her own problems to deal with. Raina Telgemeier is the acclaimed author and illustrator (with beautiful illustrations) of Ghosts, and I have heard nothing but outstanding reviews of her other works.
As a bonus, the other comic I read is Injection and I have no idea what I read. I mean literally I cannot tell you the plot. I looked up reviews and plot synopses in an idea to try to formulate something, but everyone else says the same thing: "What is this?" Reviews are either love it or hate it. Warren Ellis paints a vision of the future that is dark, weird, and full of philosophy and meandering. It was confusing and all over the place. I enjoyed Ellis's apocalyptic "Transmetropolitan" graphic novels which combined the world of Blade Runner with Hunter S. Thompson a lot. I've heard reading the second volume of this helps so I may pick that up at some point and revisit because I really do like Warren Ellis's style.
I'm currently reading my book-to-movie pick and got off to a late start, but I'm enjoying it tremendously and can't wait to see the DVD. I never thought I'd enjoy reading a viewpoint of lesser known women of the bible, but the writing and storytelling is fascinating. We own both in the library and I'll just mention them here and review it next month. Here is the book The Red Tent and here is the DVD The Red Tent
Stay tuned for our next post, where we'll discuss what we read for the next challenges: nonfiction about feminism/feminist themes, and a book about religion (fiction or nonfiction -- which will we each pick?)!