Tag Archive | art

R is RAISED BY GHOSTS, she drifts through school and life, by Briana Loewinsohn (YA Graphic Novel) #AtoZ

Apr21
Book cover of Raised by Ghosts, graphic novel by Briana Loewinsohn. Shows girl with long brown hair seated at a desk, looking down at her sketches which rise into the air as white outlines of images on a dark stream.

Pencil and paper,
imagination and image,
better than reality…

In middle school, the other kids “seem to understand how to be in the world in a way that I do not,” notes Briana (pg. 5) during the mid 1990s.

Mum absolutely unpredictable, Dad completely predictable, distant from one another in the same house, distant from only child Briana, too… as they skirt the edges of being poor, is anyone the parent here?

At her Berkeley high school, Briana has a hard time concentrating in classes… is there a point?

Notes to friends, sketching on homework pages, notes from friends, making mixtapes instead of doing homework, repeat, repeat, repeat.

She literally draws herself into a dark place of loneliness, then draws herself back out into the real world again.

This graphic novel memoir chronicles the artist’s school years in muted tones, often sadly somber, yet ending with hope as she continues to draw: “Dear paper, dear pencil, you are saving my life…” (pg. 200). She shares three ways to fold a note and her favorite mixtape playlist, too.

What notes and messages from friends would you save forever?
**kmm

Book info: Raised by Ghosts / Briana Loewinsohn. Fantagraphics, 2025. [author site https://www.instagram.com/brianabreaks/] [publisher site https://www.fantagraphics.com/products/raised-by-ghosts] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

O is THE OBSERVOLOGIST on very small scientific expeditions, by Giselle Clarkson (kids’ nonfiction) #AtoZ

Apr17
Book cover of The Observologist: a Handbook for Mounting Very Small Scientific Expeditions, by Giselle Clarkson. Shows a small red-striped caterpillar hanging from title words with speech bubble containing subtitle, above a very large, detailed drawing of a green-fly with long legs.

Observology?
It’s the study of looking,
looking very closely at what’s around you.

As an observologist who enjoys looking and learning, you can discover interesting creatures and objects anywhere and everywhere!

First, learn some basic observology principles – be curious, patient, don’t touch unfamiliar things – and gather your equipment – magnifying glass, small mirror, camera, flashlight, sketchbook.

Then you can mount an observological expedition to places like:

– a damp corner of ground, where you may spot fungi, snails, and things that hide in plain sight.

– on the pavement, prime location for ants, lichen, and birdwatching without birds.

– in a weedy patch, where you might spy wasps, caterpillars, and various types of seeds and leaves.

– indoors, peeking behind the curtains to see and hear what insects may be there and learning the difference between moths and butterflies.

Filled with detailed sketches and information, this intriguing book from New Zealand publisher Gecko Press for observologists of all ages also includes useful skills like how to get a fly to go outdoors, how to help an exhausted bee, and how to save a worm that’s in danger of getting stomped on.

When you look down at the ground outside, what’s the smallest thing that you can observe?
**kmm

Book info: The Observologist: A Handbook for Mounting Very Small Scientific Expeditions / Giselle Clarkson. Gecko Press, 2024. [author site https://www.giselledraws.com/portfolio/] [publisher site https://geckopress.com/bookshop/the-observologist/] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher via Publisher Spotlight.

N is for THE NIGHT ANIMALS, leading Nora to help and understanding, by Sarah Ann Juckes (MG fiction) #AtoZ

Apr16
Book cover of The Night Animals, by Sarah Ann Juckes. Shows dark silhouette of girl sitting on a tree branch in front of a large full moon, next to a rainbow-colored fox who is looking at her intently.

Alone at school,
home is too quiet,
but in the dark – ghost animals!

Mum has more bad days than good as her PTSD worsens, unable to get out of bed or fix dinner for Nora. Dad left them in England years ago and works at a wildlife rescue far away in India. Sigh…

What’s that on the middle-schooler’s bed? A ghostly fox, shimmering edges like rainbows!

At school, the fox leads her to artistic Kwame who’s also bullied by Joel. Kwame and his brothers are on Nora’s street often to help with their granddad whose memory is failing.

Now a ghost hare appears, running zigzags, away from the bully, then back to attack when Joel mocks her mother’s illness – flight?fight! The school office calls in their parents…

Oh, no! Kwame’s granddad needs help! Mum’s paramedic training calms them all.

Ghost ravens? What are they trying to tell Nora?

As Nora And Kwame race to follow the raven, she spies a ghost otter in the canal, swimming toward the harbor!
Train, docks, boat, stormy skies – should they follow the otter to the island?

Nora and Mum insist that “everything’s fine, we’re fine, no help needed” but perhaps not…

How have you coped with the mental health concerns of others?
**kmm

Book info: The Night Animals / Sarah Ann Juckes; illustrated by Sharon King-Chai. Kane Miller/EDC, 2024. [author site https://www.sarahannjuckes.com/the-night-animals] [publisher site https://www.kanemiller.com/the-night-animals.html] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

L is for the Statue of LIBERTY – inspiration, symbol, promise! by Julian Voloj and Jorg Hartmann (YA graphic novel) #A2Z

Apr14
Book cover of Liberty, written by Julian Voloj, art by Jorg Hartmann. Image of top-hatted sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi on platform of Statue of Liberty's upraised lit torch in French workshop during construction.

Lady Liberty welcomes all,
her light held high above the harbor –
a symbol that almost didn’t arrive!

You probably know that the Statue of Liberty in New York was a gift from the people of France to the people of the United States and is now a national monument (https://www.nps.gov/stli/index.htm).

But what about the backstory of this American icon as its creator struggled for years to get it financed, built, and installed?

Displaced by war in Europe, renowned French sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bertholdi sojourned in America during the 1870s. He traveled from coast to coast by train and envisioned his dream of a monument celebrating the historic connections between both countries.

Where? Philadelphia for the 1876 Centennial? Ah, Bertholdi’s extensive search finds Bedloe’s Island in New York harbor, confirmed by the U.S. Congress as the statue’s future home.

Now, back to France, so the sculptor can build “Liberty Enlightening the World” with money from rich donors and many thousands of everyday French citizens.

The arm and torch were ready in time to exhibit at the Centennial! Americans flocked to see it and climb inside, learning that it’s part of a larger statue to come.

Oh, the cost of shipping and installing Liberty is quite high! How will the money be raised for that?

Deeply researched and intricately illustrated, this graphic novel brings us the statue’s inspiring history, as well as its enduring symbolism of welcome for all.

Have you visited the Statue of Liberty?
**kmm

Book info: Liberty / words by Julian Voloj, art by Jorg Hartmann. Nobrow/Flying Eye Books, 2024. [illustrator site https://www.instagram.com/joerg_hartmann/] [publisher site https://nobrow.net/book/liberty/] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

J is for journeying, SMACK DAB IN THE MIDDLE OF MAYBE, by Jo Watson Hackl (MG fiction) #A2Z

Apr11
Book cover of Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe, by Jo Watson Hackl; shows title words on signpost signs pointing in different directions, placed in a field with cricket jumping. In background, a girl sits on treehouse porch at sunset watching birds.

A grieving girl,
a ghost town in the woods,
where is the secret painted room?

Every time Cricket’s artist mother stopped taking her anxiety medicine and disappeared, the twelve year old and her Daddy coped and hoped, but now that he’s in the cemetery with Grandma…

Oh, no! The tween overhears that she’ll soon be sent away to another state! How will Mama know where to find her?

Time to find the art-filled “Bird Room” that Mama saw once and searched for every after – surely, that will make Mama stay, whenever she comes home again!

Cricket journeys through the nearby woods to a ghost town from South Carolina’s lumber days, using all the survival skills that Daddy taught her.

Emergency! Need help! HELP!

Miss V. takes Cricket in, agreeing that the runaway can stay a few days, but no snooping!

Can Cricket contain her curiosity?
Will Miss V. help her follow clues that she finds?
Will Mama ever come home?

Cricket won’t give up!
Are you as persistent at chasing what’s important?
**kmm

Book info: Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe / Jo Watson Hackl. Yearling/Random House, 2018. [author site https://johackl.com/about-smack-dab-middle-maybe/] [publisher site https://www.rhcbooks.com/books/543975/smack-dab-in-the-middle-of-maybe-by-jo-watson-hackl] Personal copy; cover image courtesy of the publisher.

D is for Dan: MONUMENT MAKER: DANIEL CHESTER FINCH AND THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL, by Linda Booth Sweeney & Shawn Fields (MG non-fiction) AtoZ

Apr4
book cover of Monument Maker: Daniel Chester Finch and the Lincoln Memorial, by Linda Booth Sweeney; illustrated by Shawn Fields; shows detailed ink sketch of the sculptor on a platform watching workers use ropes & pulleys to lift the left arm of Lincoln's seated marble statue in Washington DC's Lincoln Memorial.

Imposing, inspiring Lincoln Memorial anchors the great public spaces of Washington, D.C., but do you know who made it?

Dan Finch was just 14 when Lincoln was assassinated; fifty years later, the noted sculptor was asked by architect Henry Bacon to create a colossal statue of the beloved president for the newly commissioned Lincoln Memorial, saying “It must seem to have a soul.” (pg. 35)

Before the first bit of clay was carved, Finch researched Lincoln’s life, talked to Robert Todd Lincoln (the president’s son), and looked at plaster castings of Lincoln’s hands that had been made while the president was alive.

From a small clay “sketch” model to a larger working model to a 7 foot high model, the sculpture of Lincoln became more detailed and life-like as Finch worked in his Massachusetts studio over many months.

After the famed Piccirilli brothers enlarged that final model to carve Lincoln’s seated image from 28 huge blocks of marble, the Lincoln Memorial was officially dedicated in May 1922, seven years (and a world war) after Bacon offered Finch the opportunity to create a statue that would unite all Americans.

This wide illustrated non-fiction book turns the reader sideways for its tall double-page spreads of Finch’s famous Minuteman sculpture and the sculptor’s own awe-struck visit to the completed Lincoln Memorial, all sketched in great detail with pen-and-ink.

The extensive back matter includes a detailed timeline of Finch’s life, artistic training, and sculptures, plus notes from the author and a resources list, as befits a book jointly published by the Concord Museum of his hometown.

Have you ever visited the Lincoln Memorial?
**kmm

Book info: Monument Maker: Daniel Chester Finch and the Lincoln Memorial / Linda Booth Sweeney; illustrated by Shawn Fields. Tilbury House Publisher in association with the Concord Museum, 2019. [author site https://lindaboothsweeney.com/monument-maker/] [illustrator site https://www.shawnfields.com/] [publisher site https://www.tilburyhouse.com/product-page/monument-maker] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher via Publisher Spotlight.

C is THE CARTOONISTS CLUB at middle school – hooray! by Raina Telgemeier & Scott McCloud (MG Graphic Novel) #AtoZ

Apr3
book cover of The Cartoonists Club, by Raina Telgemeier and Scott McCloud; shows 4 tweens of different genders and races - drawing, jumping, laughing, and clutching a notebook tightly

Welcome to the Cartoonists Club!

Makayla imagines so many characters, but she wonders how to make a story with them.

Howard draws such funny characters, but he can’t figure out what should they do next.

Art loves to make all kinds of things, and they want to try every creative medium – all of them!

Lynda’s sketches are realistic, but she worries about making mistakes and how personal her story is.

With help from Ms. Fatima, their middle school librarian who also loves comics and graphic novels, the tweens learn how sequential storytelling works, how to make a zine from a single sheet of paper, the role of the reader’s imagination, and so much more.

A local comics convention?!
Can the Cartoonists Club go?
Can they have a table and sell their zines to everyone?

Just published this week, by the authors of Smile (Raina) and How to Understand Comics (Scott).

Visit the book’s website https://kids.scholastic.com/content/kids64/en/books/books-by-raina.html to download a free activity booklet, bookmark, and certificate.

Grab your copy today for a great friendship story, cool sequential art, and lots of insider info on how comics are created.

What’s your favorite comic/graphic novel?
**kmm

Book info: The Cartoonists Club / art & story by Raina Telgemeier & Scott McCloud; inking by Ray Baehr; color by Beniam C. Hollman; lettering by Jesse Post. Scholastic/Graphix, 2025. [Raina’s site https://goraina.com/] [Scott’s site https://kids.scholastic.com/content/kids64/en/books/books-by-raina.html ] [publisher site https://kids.scholastic.com/content/kids64/en/books/books-by-raina.html] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

They search to see WINGS IN THE WILD – wings of hope? by Margarita Engle (YA book review)

May8
Standing brown girl paints mural of tropical birds while seated brown boy serenades her with guitar - book cover of Wings In the Wild, by Margarita Engle

Creative people caged like birds,
our overheating planet –
where is justice?

Fleeing Cuba when their massive wood sculptures protesting the imprisonment of artists are revealed by a hurricane in 2018, Soleida is separated from her parents – the sixteen year old animal rescuer must continue out into the world, alone.

Yet another wildfire consumes his parents’ California mansion and the forest where Dariel serenades animals with Cuban love songs. Better to leave their elite expectations and go with Abuelo to help interview Cuban refugees stranded in Costa Rica, experience its natural wonders before climate change destroys them, too.

In spring 2019, Soleida and Dariel meet among the sea of refugee tents – her hopes of freedom shredded to the bone, his anger at these injustices burning hot.

What will she think of the tropical animals and birds that move in closer and closer to hear his songs and guitar?
What will he think of her journey-story, surviving fear and flood and hunger, leaving her parents behind?

Together, they find her artist cousin nearby in the cloud forest.
Together, can they let the world know about her parents, trapped in Cuba?
Together…can they have any future together?

Watching incredible birds, painting them, singing them near, pondering what could be – this novel-in-verse traverses difficult situations and wonder-filled landscapes.

Readers will recognize Soleida’s neighbors Liana and Amado from Your Heart, My Sky (recommended here), much like the interwoven stories of people who have left Cuba connect with those remaining there. Just released in paperback on April 23, 2024.

How far would you go to be free?
**kmm

Book info: Wings in the Wild / Margarita Engle. Atheneum, hardcover 2023, paperback 2024. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

X for excitement – THE WOLVES OF GREYCOAT HALL have arrived! by Lucinda Gifford. (MG book review) #A2Z

Apr27
Tartan-clad wolf mom, wolf dad & wolf cub who holds large book on cover of The Wolves of Greycoat Hall, by Lucinda Gifford.

Where to go on vacation?

Aha! Once his father reads “Wolves to be reintroduced to Scotland” in the newspaper, Boris knows that’s where his wolf family will go!

The young cub reads about the Greycoats’ Scottish heritage on their interesting train and ferry journey to Portlessie, near the long-lost McLupus castle, Wolfemina Hall.

Folks stare at first, then welcome the Greycoats – except for dreadful Mr. Vorslad who wants to tear down Drommuir Castle to build a luxury resort (no one in town but the real estate agent wants that).

Such a lovely place and what wonderful food! If only they could outbid Mr. Vorslad and buy Drommuir as a vacation home in the Highlands, as a tribute to Wolfemina Hall…

Meeting historic battle re-enactors with swords – exciting!
Sketching birds at the beach and making sandcastles with new friends – very good.
Vorslad starting to destroy the beach and forest before the property sale is final – terrible!!

Can one young wolf save the castle and forest and beach, before it’s too late?

The author’s clever sketches add greatly to readers’ enjoyment – Mr. and Mrs. Greycoat in kilts, Boris sketching as they sightsee, paintings of their McLupus ancestors, and pages from A Guide to Morovia, their current wolfly homeland.

Followed by Boris in Switzerland at boarding school with snowboarding and a grand mystery. Find both books today, Independent Bookstore Day, and every day through the finder site for a store near you or online at bookshop.org.

What do you know of wolves that live in your region?
**kmm

Book info: The Wolves of Greycoat Hall (Wolves of Greycoat Hall, book 1) / Lucinda Gifford. Kane Miller/EDC, 2023. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.

U is THE UMBRELLA HOUSE and the stories it could tell! by Colleen Nelson (MG book review) #A2Z

Apr24
Two kids and dog entering an apartment building whose fire escapes hold many colorful umbrellas - book cover of The Umbrella House, by Colleen Nelson; Pajama Press

Young Voices video contest!
At Veracity News!
She just needs the right story to tell…

Growing up in Umbrella House with her grandmother, 12-year-old Roxy knows all about its origins as an abandoned building brought back to life by creative people who fought for the right to live there.

She and her best friend Scout love to show off the neighborhood on their EaVillKids video channel, from their umbrella-covered co-op to unique shops and restaurants to the 3-story high murals defiantly created by the mysterious Midnight Muralist some years ago. Surely Roxy’s contest entry will convince Veracity News to make a documentary about it!

Researching East Village history, Roxy finds out more about her late father (didn’t know he was such a talented artist!) and fellow residents, plus articles and photos about the murals and Umbrella House’s early days – who exactly was the Midnight Muralist?

Oh, no! A fancy real estate developer is buying up nearby properties – could he convince the city to change its rules and force the co-op owners to sell it?

Scout is being evasive about his photography portfolio – will he still have time to video and edit Roxy’s contest entry? Just three weeks till the deadline!

A tense meeting with the City Council, the whole neighborhood working together to save Umbrella House – if only the Midnight Muralist could help!

Although the secret Muralist is fictional, this book is based on the real Umbrella House‘s journey to legalizing the building as low-income co-op housing in 2010.

What stories could your home tell?
**kmm

Book info: The Umbrella House / Colleen Nelson. Pajama Press, hardcover 2023, paperback 2024. [author site] [publisher site] Review copy and cover image courtesy of the publisher.