Deogratis

Deogratias: A Tale of Rwanda
Stassen
978-1596431034

To sum: Takes place after the Rwanda genocide, with flashbacks to what life was like before and during the genocide, and the effect the genocide had on Deogratias, who was a young teenage boy when the genocide happened. Personally, I remember being aware of what was going on, but this book does a good job of explaining how it came to be that way. The translator wrote an introduction explaining the history of the region, which added a lot to the story.

What to watch out for: Well, it deals with genocide, and there's a lot of how the "inferiour" class of Tutsi were treated. During the genocide of the Tutsi in the town where Deogratias lives, the Tutsi women are raped, killed, and the bodies just thrown into piles where the dogs roam free. Deogratias exacts revenge on those he feels killed the girl he liked.

Where to shelve: I have it in the adult collection, however could also see it in a high school library as well. I would say it's more appropriate for 16+, but could also see this being used in school to teach about an almost forgotten part of history.

If they liked: MAUS, recommend this to them. Also, it's a good tie in for Hotel Rwanda

Interesting to note:

http://maslifblog.wordpress.com/2009/08/06/book-challenge-formal/

Other reviews:

http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9781596431034-3
http://www.firstsecondbooks.com/deogratias.html
http://www.curledup.com/deograti.htm
http://us.macmillan.com/deogratiasataleofrwanda
http://www.grovel.org.uk/reviews/deogratias-01/deogratias-01.htm
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/greatgraphicnovelsforteens/07ggnt.cfm
http://yzocaet.blogspot.com/2007/02/deogratias-tale-of-rwanda.html

Also found in The Reader's Advisory to Great Graphic Novels, pg 64

In The Flesh - complete review

I already started a post about In The Flesh, however, that was before I read it. Here's the full write-up.




In The Flesh
Koren Shadmi
ISBN: 978-0345508713

To Sum: A collection of short stories that deals with relationships, love, lust, and passion and the different sides of those things. A very trippy collection. Some of the stories are much more "normal" with a twist - a boy loves a girl and it's slowly killing him because she's radioactive - while others are creepy - a Grandfather with a camera (old fashion film Minolta) for a head. Some of these stories have stayed with me for several days as I work through them - like how the Grandpa Minolta one puts a twist on real life situations.

What to Watch Out For: Well, it deals with love, lust, passion, and does it with pictures. Some have called it erotica, but I don't think it ever goes THAT far. However, it does show states of disrobe, it talks about sexual situations, and it does show people is those situations. It will show everything leading up to, but not the actual event. Just flipping through this book, I was worried that I had ordered something that violated library policy. Taken out of context, yes, those scenes are shocking. However, when read with the story, it works. These are not for children, nor teens. This is something for adults who have had to deal with relationships that don't work, one night stands and more.

Where to shelve: Without question, this is an adult graphic novel. The intended audience is adults, the situations are things most adults can relate to, and the content is adult. That being said, I do think it's a good addition to a library as it does explore some themes, and it does have a lot of thought into it.

How I heard of it: This one came highly recommended through a spotlight on graphic novels issue of a catalog/journal.

Other reviews:

http://www.bigshinyrobot.com/reviews/archives/3707
http://www.anthemmagazine.com/story/1318
http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780345508713
http://pageandstage.blogspot.com/2009/04/koren-shadmis-in-flesh.html
http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/32/5/32_5_zf_graphic_artist.html
http://www.powells.com/biblio/9780345508713?&PID=32442
http://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2009/02/spotlight-graphic-novels-of-february.html

Dead, She Said

And I'm back...



Dead, She Said
Steve Niles, Bernie Wrightson
978-1600105746

To Sum: Detective Coogan doesn't remember what happened last night. Which is understandable, as he died. Now, he's a walking corpse and is tracking down who killed him and why. Collects #1-3 of the comic, with extra sketches and a black and white short story in the back. It was a quick, fun read. We don't get a lot of short but fun graphic novels like this in the adult section.

Things to Watch Out For: Well, there's a bit of gore. Guts hanging out, the scene at the morgue. The idea of being embalmed while a member of the living dead is ... and interesting idea. Overall, it's a noir story with horror/scifi twists. Not much in the way of sexual content, except comments about grabbing a women's tush. (Okay, they used the harsher word.) And the final scene wasn't horrid, but not what I would want to wake up to in the morning. The extra bits were interesting, but not something someone's going to have to worry about.

Where to Shelve: It is a visual horror, but if the kids have seen and horror flicks, they've seen worse. (Okay, and slasher flicks.) School Journal rated it for grade 10+, which isn't bad. I would say most high schoolers would be fine reading it, but we have it shelved in the adult section. Why? Because I ordered it. Actually, depending on your library, I could see it in both, but would err on the side of Adult. Not because the kids can't handle it, but probably because their parents wouldn't be able to. ;)

How I heard about it: It was in a journal or catalog. Was well reviewed, and it sounded humourous.

Other Reviews:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/1600105742/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2765374/graphic_novel_review_dead_she_said.html

http://blog.oregonlive.com/steveduin/2008/12/graphic_novel_review_dead_she.html

http://www.mania.com/comic-review-dead-she-said-1_article_58585.html

Will resume updates on Monday

Life has calmed down a bit (dangerous thing to say when "Uncle Murphey" - the guy who created those rule - likes you).

I have a pile of graphic novels checked out and ready to go. Now to find the time to read them... ;)

Update

An update will happen later this week. Let me recover from that past few weeks of life for a few days, and catch up on work stuff.