Horrible Little People
Mike let me read this during a meeting, and I just loved it. It’s another graphic novel of disaffected youth but that is aware of what it is and asks you what the hell you’re doing enjoying it. It reminded me of Apathy and Other Small Victories by Paul Neilan. Also, everyone is in funny animal costumes. Four stars.
Yotsuba&!. 8, Kiyohiko Azuma
You guys, why do I keep reading these? Yotsuba just seems to get more naughty (why is she allowed to hit people?). I did like that she went to the festival, so I got to see lots of stuff like I saw at Aki Matsuri. One star.
Neko ramen. [Volume 1,], Hey! Order up!
This is a gag-strip compilation rather than the episodic story-based manga (called Yonkoma, I learned), with some longer specials. It’s the story of a cat running a struggling ramen shop. He’s passionate about ramen and his restaurant, and doesn’t seem to see how being a cat may be hindering his success (he feels his sushi career was unsuccessful due to his warm hands, rather than the ample quantity of hair that ended up in the final product). I really liked it. The English adaptation was done by different people than the translation (and one of the adapters is a comedy writer and stand up comedian), so I wonder if that makes a difference. Four stars.
Saturn Apartments volume 1, Hisae Iwaoka
Not only is it a great SF premise (humanity is now living in a ring-shaped habitat in orbit around the earth) and great characters (people risking their lives cleaning the windows in thin atmosphere and low gravity), but the art and layout is really astoundingly good. Our hero is following in his dead father’s footsteps as a window cleaner and begins to see why his father risked so much to do his job. I’m looking forward to volume two. Five stars.
Scott Pilgrim Vol. 5, Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe, Bryan Lee O’Malley
So it turns out I hadn’t read volume 5 yet, and reading the books over the course of several years and out of order and then watching a movie with the same characters but a slightly different plot has CONFUSED me. I think I need to read the whole series over in one sitting. I still love the art, premise, and story. Four stars.
It’s a Book, Lane Smith
I’m a fan of Smith’s and liked that he posted some information about the process of making this book. While I enjoyed it, I’m not sure who I’d recommend it to other than fellow librarians following the ebook format wars. The central gag rests on comparing books and digital media, if not an old saw then at least a saw for the old. People who see the many possible text formats as an exhibition rather than a competition (please, no wagering) won’t get much out of it. Two stars.