msjamgochian'sinfinitebooklist

Craving a little sci-fi with your we all die alone ennui? I.N.J Culbard's intense depiction of the human condition post-event (although we're not certain that said event actually happened, or what said event may have been) is just the thing. Culbard tells his tale in three parallel narratives, featuring three lonely people: a young girl living with albinism in London, a Japanese comic artist on the brink of taking his own life, and an uptight man stuck in LA gridlock who has just received a mysterious interrupted phone call concerning his wife. The story itself is interesting enough, but what sets Celeste apart is Culbard's phenomenal, one might even say stellar, artwork: a mix of masterful single, multiple, and otherwise mixed-up panels that provide depth for his characters in a way that words never do. While some readers might find the open ending frustrating, I was delighted by the ambiguity and appreciated the opportunity for imaginative interpretation throughout the w...

Voila: my 2016 librarian picks - although there was much to be sad about in 2016, it was an exceptionally good year for reading. At the top of the list this year is Paul Beatty's latest, The Sellout, which made me laugh while I cried and made history as the first novel written by an American author to win the Booker prize; Ashley Hope Perez's Out of Darkness and Martha Brockenbrough's The Game of Love and Death were singular stand-outs in the YA Lit poignantly-contemporary-even-though-it's-historical fiction arena; Louise Erdrich's heartwrenching yet surprisingly uplifting LaRose was the sleeper hit of the year; Mat Jonson's ABA winner, Loving Day, tackled love, race and ghosts; Adrian Tomine returned to his special brand of wry observation with Killing and Dying; and finally, two stunning prize-winning poetry collections from American Book Award winner Laura Da' and Whiting Award winner Ocean Vuong rounded out my end-of-the-year recommendations wit...

A graphic biography of The Man in Black, from his cotton-farm beginnings to his peaceful end. Click here for Michel Faber's full review . Grade 8+

Remember the golden era of Canadian comics? When cartoonists were the toast of the town? Seth has crafted a lovely, detailed world peopled with eccentric artists who make up the Great Northern Brotherhood of Canadian Cartoonists in what was originally thought of as a sketch book (which also serves as a companion book to Wimbledon Green). In his introduction to the work, Seth states that the book should be filed under the category of an indulgence, and at times, it does wander, but anyone who has enjoyed his previous work will enjoy TGNBCC. Click here for a full review and don't miss this wonderful little documentary on Seth .

Mix High School Musical with Sweet Valley High then add a dash of Strawberry Shortcake and you'll have something that approximates this little graphic novel full of masochistic mean girl friendships and stereotypical characters. That isn't to say that plenty of young ladies won't thoroughly enjoy watching popular-girl-with-an-arty-side Zoe mourn her love hate relationship with bitchy-glam-boyfriend-stealing Mackenzie. They will. But they should read Paige by Paige instead. Grade 6+

Ludovic Debeurme's deceptively simple art will draw you in (no pun intended). Click here for a full review of this first installment of a multipart ongoing graphic novel about two misfits who find each other. Grade 9+

Just as good the second time around.

"I'm always afraid, all the time. All the time." Inspired by the true events experienced by the author and set in Havana in 1959, C:MR tells the story of 17-year-old Fidel supporter Sonya and her transformation from revolutionary to torture victim to expatriate. Daniel Haspiel's art turns an interesting story into a compelling narrative that effectively depicts the pain of psychological and physical abuse. C:MR would provide authentic ancillary support for anyone studying or interested in the Cuban revolution. Click here to listen to PRI's interview with Ms. Lockpez.Grade 10+

Craig Thompson's long-awaited graphic novel is a stunning, gorgeous, epic, masterfully crafted work of art. Set in a futuristic undefined Middle East, the story travels back and forth through time, spanning the lives and relationship of two orphans, Dodola and Zam, who are beset by misfortune. I appreciated the book as an objet d'art much more than I enjoyed the storyline, which at times felt like a ruse. Did Mr. Thompson simply want to draw Dodola naked? Over and over again in a variety of compromised positions? Click here for the Guardian review. Grade 11+

If you were born in the 70s and grew up in the Pacific Northwest, you know about the Green River Killer . Gary Ridgway murdered dozens of women in the Puget Sound region, dumping most of their bodies near or in the Green River. He wasn't captured for twenty years; detective Tom Jensen spent most of his career dedicated to the case. When Ridgway was finally hauled in after a breakthrough in DNA testing, Jensen spent 180 days interviewing the suspect, locating undiscovered bodies and eventually making a plea bargain with the killer, who received a life sentence without possibility of parole. Jeff Jensen, the son of detective Ton Jensen, tells the story of his father's lifelong dedication to providing closure for the survivors of Ridgway's victims without turning the grisly details of the killings into a sideshow. This isn't Gary Ridgway's story, it is Detective Jensen's. Jonathan Case's art is flawless and on par with the work of Adrian Tomine and Craig Thomps...

Harvey Pekar 's American Splendor got me through many hot, smelly, ill days during the two years I lived in Delhi. Each morning I would relish a couple of pages in order to gain perspective as I set out on my endlessly entertaining ten-minute morning promenade to work. Reading about other peoples' ordinary everyday existences somehow soothingly balanced out the exotic strange that surrounded me at the time. HWV, one of Pekar's last works, collects four stories centered around his trip to a book fair in Huntington, West Virginia. All of the art is provided by Summer McClinton and the illustrations don't add much to the work. If you're already a Pekar fan, you'll enjoy HWV anyway, but if you haven't read him before you should start with his piece de resistance, American Splendor, which is illustrated by a bevy of talented artists, and required reading for anyone who enjoys comics. Grade 10+

Life with Mr. Dangerous from Paul Hornschemeier on Vimeo . Even better than I expected! When Amy's friend Michael moves to San Francisco, she breaks up with her creep of a boyfriend Eric, celebrates her birthday with her yawn-inducing yet tragic mother, has a series of encounters with less than desirable men, encounters unhappy hostile customers at her retail job, and ultimately realizes where she wants to be. Sprinkled throughout the narrative are pages of 'Amy Breis Theatre,' in which snippets of Amy's past are tragically-yet-comically provided. Paul Hornschemeier's illustrations exquisitely capture just-turned-twenty-six Amy's ennui and his creative use of color adds to the action. A supporting cast made up of Amy's overweight cat and her favorite television show (Life with Mr. Dangerous) nicely flesh out the book. Pair this with Jason Shiga's Empire State for a study of 'just friendship' between men and women in their early twenties. A pe...

If you know me, you know I have been addicted to comics, graphic novels, visual stories, whatever you want to call them, since I was a kid. Most of the time I'm aware of what is wonderful out there in graphic land, but occasionally a surprise gem falls into my lap when I visit Terminal Entertainment, our local comic shop. Empire State was just such a find, and honestly, I don't know how I missed Jason Shiga all this time (he won an Eisner Award in 2003 for Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition). Jimmy is a nerd: he works at the library and his mom still gives him an allowance. His best friend Sara can't wait to get out of Oakland - she's moving to NYC and interning at a publishing house. After she leaves, Jimmy realizes he wants her for more than a friend, and sends her a letter asking her to meet him at the top of the Empire State building (a la Sleepless in Seattle and An Affair to Remember). Of course, Sara isn't there at the appointed time (she claims she hasn...

Adam Kepler interviews Charles Burns.

Click here for a full review from Existential Ennui.

It's finally here and well worth the wait. Click here for a full review .