Category: book review

The Fire-Breathing Duckling by Frank Cammuso. TOON, 2025. 9781662665332. (Easy-To-Read Comics Level Two) Cammuso (Max Hamm: Fairy Tale Detective, Otto’s Orange Day, Knights of the Lunch Table) has fun with an ugly duckling story about a “duckling” who is clearly […]
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Here are two visually striking Batman graphic novels that have great stories, too. Batman: City of Madness by Christian Ward. DC Black Label, 2024. 9781779527028. 160pp.  Contains #1 – #3. Publisher’s Rating: Ages 17+. Ward (Invisible Kingdom, ODY-C, Blood Stained […]
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Universe! by Albert Monteys. Image, 2021. 9781534318076. 196pp of story plus an afterward that includes sketches and other information on Monteys’ process, including one-panel gags. Contains Universe #1 – 5 originally published online at panelsyndicate.com where you can still name […]
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The Summer War by Naomi Novik. Del Rey, 2025. 9780593984703. 127pp. “Celia was twelve years old when she cursed her brother.” Great opening line! Celia’s brother, Argent, is the greatest knight and their father’s heir. On the day Argent renounces […]
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Drome by Jesse Lonergan. 23rd St., 2025. 978-1250386939. 320pp. Lonergan (Hedra, All-Star, Arca, Man’s Best, Planet Paradise) creates an epic, mythic graphic novel about gods, heroes, elementals, the desire for power, and the dawn of civilization. Blue is strong, tough, […]
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Cannon by Lee Lai. Drawn & Quarterly, 2025. 9781770468023. 304pp. Cannon is everyone’s rock. She works in a kitchen that’s insane (her boss is truly the worst), and she’s taking care of her ailing Gung Gung, whose caregiver just resigned. […]
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These picture books published by Transit were all translated from Spanish, and each defied my expectations. Ashimpa: The Mysterious Word by Catarina Sobral. Translated by Juliana Barbassa. Transit Children’s Editions, 2025. 9798893380026. I’m sure that any book that opens with […]
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Masters of the Nefarious: Mollusk Rampage by Pierre La Police. Translated by Luke Burns. New York Review Comics, 2024. 9781681378343. 176pp. An absurd, surreal graphic novel made of one-panel comics, one on each page. It begins with a tidal wave […]
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Dear Jackie by Jessixa Bagley, illustrated by Aaron Bagley. Simon & Schuster Books for Young People, 2025. 978-1534496576. 288pp. Jackie and Milo are nervous about starting middle school, and they’re so close that Jackie’s mother calls Milo Jackie’s “replacement brother.” […]
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Cat People: A Comic Collection by Hanna Hillam. Running Press, 2024. 9780762486033. 100pp. A human woman falls through a portal to a world where cats rule and humans are pets. And she arrives on Halloween. My favorite parts: visiting the […]
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