Christmas Treasures

Are you looking for a good book to read this Christmas? As the weather gets colder it is the perfect time to stay inside and relax with a great book.   Remember not all holiday stories are sweet, some can be scary or mysterious and others hilarious. So as you prepare for the festivities take time to sit back, relax and enjoy a great Christmas story. 

New Romantic Fiction Novels
Christmas Bliss by Mary Kay Andrews
Dogs of Christmas by  W. Bruce Cameron
Simple Christmas Wish by Melody Carlson
Catered Christmas Cookie Exchange: A Mystery with Recipes By Isis Crawford
Merry Christmas Cowboy by Janet Dailey
Christmas at Harmony Hill by Ann H. Gabhart
Starry Night a Christmas Novel by Debbie Macomber
Christmas on 4th Street by Susan Mallery
Christmas Carol Murder by Leslie Meier
Christmas Hope: A Novel by Anne Perry
Songs of Christmas by Katherine Spencer
Nantucket Christmas: A Novel by Nancy Thayer
Candlelight Christmas by Susan Wiggs
Seaside Christmas by Sherryl Woods

Funny Holiday Christmas Tales
On Strike for Christmas by Sheila Roberts This entertaining novel is about women who are tired of doing all the work for the holidays. They go on strike which forces their husbands to do the party planning and decorating.

Skipping Christmas by John Grisham A hilarious story of a family that decides to forego the craziness of the holiday season.

Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris This is a wonderful collection of hilarious Christmas essays, which includes his popular of account of working as an elf at Macy's.

An Idiot Girl's Christmas: True Tales from the Top of the Naughty List by Laurie Notaro If the season has you stressed give this light hearted story a try.

 Christmas Classics
These are a few of my favorites, which my children and I read every year. Do you have others that you read?

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
A Christmas Story by Jean Shepherd
The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren Stern
Yes, Virginia There is a Santa Claus by Francis P. Church
The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore
The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans
How The Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
The Pine Tree Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs  I included this one because although it is not a classic, the story's message is beautiful. My family reads it every year. I hope yours will find it wonderful, too.

More Christmas Novels
The Christmas Train by David Baldacci
The Shepherd, The Angel and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry
This Year It Will Be Different by Maeve Binchy
Silent Night by Mary Higgins Clark
Sweet Revenge by Diane Mott Davidson
Christmas Letters by Debbie Macomber
Simple Gifts by Judith McNaught
The Spy Who Came For Christmas by David Morrell
Miracle on the 17th Green by James Patterson
A Christmas Visitor by Anne Perry
Silver Bells: A Holiday Tale by Luanne Rice
The Christmas Tree by Julie Salamon
Once Upon a Christmas by Lauraine Snelling
Family Games by Jean Stubbs
Christmas Jars by Jason F. Wright

If you have a favorite Christmas story that your family reads every year tell me about. Perhaps it will start a new family tradition for me or someone else.

The Silver Star

Though Half Broke Horses is technically Jeanette Walls’ first novel, it is based on the life of her grandmother. As the subtitle states, it is a “true-life novel”—something based in history and fact, but with creative license amply applied to fill in the blanks. In June, Walls released her second novel, The Silver Star, which was really her first. Make sense? I didn’t think so. This novel, though touching on themes that you might recognize from her other writings, was her first foray into storytelling without the story being attached to a life already lived.

The Silver Star chronicles the story of two sisters, Liz and Bean, as they make their way through life with a theatrical and sometimes unstable mother. The mother, originally hailing from Virginia, moves the girls around frequently and often leaves them to their own devices while she goes off to pursue her acting and music career. At one point, Bean accidentally divulges that she knows her mother is making up a boyfriend. Wow, is that a scary revelation. Their mother then disappears citing a necessary break to clear her head as the reason. When the girls realize that a local grocer has caught on to the fact that they are alone (and have been for a while), the sisters promptly jump on a bus to head to their mother’s hometown in Virginia to track down an uncle that they haven’t seen in years. That is only the beginning…

Though Walls claims this book is pure fiction, I get the sense that it still chronicles familiar parts of her childhood—as evidenced in The Glass Castle. I also feel like the adventurous edge with the unfortunate incidents, but discovery of unconditional love is something that Walls might have dreamed of when she was making her way through her childhood. The Silver Star is well-written, entertaining, and character driven. Essentially, it is the well executed storytelling we’ve come to expect from Walls. I, personally, look forward to anything and everything Walls has to offer. If you are not familiar with her writing, I strongly urge you to become familiar. The tragic beauty of her stories will stay with you.

Appalachian Fiction

Appalachia is a cultural region in the Eastern U. S. that stretches from Southern New York to Northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia.  The region includes 420 counties and eight cities in 13 states.  In Florida in 1528, the Spanish found a Native American village called "Apalchen" or "Apalachen".  It was altered to "Apalachee" and it referred to the tribe and the region.  Now spelled Appalachian, it is the fourth oldest surviving European place-name in the United States.

 

Some of Appalachia's best known writers include:

 

James Agee--A Death in the Family

 

Dorothy Allison--Bastard Out of Carolina

 

Lisa Alther--Washed in Blood

 

Wendell Berry--Hannah Coulter

 

Wayne Caldwell--Cataloochee: A Novel

Set in the mountains of North Carolina, this debut follows three families from the Civil War to the 1920s.

 

Pamela Duncan--Moon Women

 

William Faulkner--Light in August and Absalom Absalom!

 

Charles Frazier--Cold Mountain and Thirteen Moons

 

Patricia Harman--The Midwife of Hope River

During the Great Depression, Patience Murphy ekes out a living as a midwife in West Virginia.

 

Silas House--A Parchment of Leaves

In 1917, a young Cherokee woman leaves her family to marry an Irishman--making her an outcast in both her community and her husband's.

 

Sharyn McCrumb--The Ballad of Tom Dooley: A Ballad Novel

In 1866, ex-Confederate soldier Tom Dula is living in Wilkes County, North Carolina. Based on the events that inspired the popular American folk song, "Tom Dooley".

 

Robert Morgan--Gap Creek and The Road from Gap Creek (2013)

 

Jennifer Niven--Velva Jean Learns to Fly

Velva Jean is leaving her North Carolina hometown for Nashville when World War II breaks out. She discovers a love of flying and joins the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron. Start with Velva Jean Learns to Drive.

 

Ron Rash--Nothing Gold Can Stay (2013)

A new collection of stories set in Appalachia that spans the Civil War era to the present day.

 

Lee Smith--On Agate Hill

 

Jesse Stuart--Cradle of the Copperheads

 

Thomas Wolfe--Look Homeward Angel

 

 

More fiction on the Appalachian region.

 

 

"Appalachia is an exotic mix of ghosts and gold mines, Cherokees and Civil War legends, cougars and Child ballads, moonshine and white water."

Sharyn McCrumb

 

 

"Hang your head, Tom Dooley,
Hang your head and cry;
You killed poor Laurie Foster,
And you know you're bound to die.

"At this time tomorrow
Where do you reckon I'll be?
Away down yonder in the holler
Hangin' on a white oak tree".

Tom Dooley lyrics © EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

From the song Tom Dooley by Doc Watson

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October's Get In the Queue

This month's hot new releases are just waiting for you to pick them up! Don't forget if our copy is checked out, we may be able to get one for you through Search Ohio.

Our debut novel feature is The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion.

This is a read-out-loud funny debut novel that is wonderful from beginning to end. Picture a 39-year-old brilliant but emotionally challenged genetics professor with Asperger's. He has studied the statistics and realized a wife will solve all his problems.  So he did the obvious,...when looking for love one should always develop a wife questionnaire, right?  Hmm maybe not, but perhaps it will lead him to his true love. You will enjoy this thought provoking well plotted tale.  

What better way to begin October than with The Dogs of Christmas by Bruce Cameron. This is sure to be another best seller. This is a charming and heartwarming holiday tale that explores the power of love, trust and a basketful of puppies.

We conclude our Get in the Queue with Anne Rule's Practice to Deceive. This is a true crime thriller that will chill you to the bone. Russel Douglas was murdered on isolated Whidbey Island. This is an isolated island with minimal access. There's a bridge and a ferry but it's the holiday season so there are not many tourists and yet Russel Douglas is found the day after Christmas with a bullet shot between his eyes. Police suspect suicide, but there is no weapon. This can only mean that if it was not suicide than someone on the island committed the cold blooded murder. As Anne Rule unravels the mystery surrounding his death she uncovers enough drama, greed, sex and scandal for a tv mini-series. This is a tale not to be missed.

Doctor Sleep

 

Sabbatha hanti
Lodsam hanti
Cahanna risone hanti

They call themselves the True Knot, and they endure. They look normal enough, mostly like the retirees you might find reading the paper in your local library on any given morning, with a few younger ones sprinkled in for a bit of seasoning. They love to travel, and they roam the country in a caravan of motorhomes. Who knows, you may have even passed them on the highway, or seen them parked at a rest stop or campground. Good thing you didn't stop to say howdy-doo though, for when you're traveling through Stephen King country, looks are almost always deceiving. Yep, you guessed it: the True Knot are the Big Bads of King's latest novel, Doctor Sleep, and they are ruthless murderers who feed with vampire-like nastiness on what they call steam: the living essence emitted from children with the shining when they're being tortured.

If the word "shining" caught your eye, good, for Doctor Sleep
is a sequel of sorts to The Shining, which King wrote in 1977 and which introduced the world to Danny Torrance, a little boy with extraordinary psychic powers--the shining, if you will. Danny boy is all grown up now, and even though he's still wrestling with the tragic events that occurred during his stay at the Overlook Hotel when he was a kid, he seems to have achieved some sort of stability in his life thanks to Alcoholics Anonymous and a steady job at a New Hampshire hospice called the Helen Rivington House. Using his remaining powers, Dan has developed a knack with residents who are about to pass, a way of easing them into that good night, and this earns him the nickname "Doctor Sleep" and, for once, a sense of worth in his life.

So do Dan and the True Knot eventually cross swords? You better believe it, but it isn't Dan that they want. No, they've set their black eyes and bottomless appetites on a tastier morsel: Abra Stone, a twelve-year-old with tremendous psychic powers. Indeed, the shining is very strong with Abra, and the True Knot want to eat her alive. Easier said than done, though, for having befriended this extraordinary girl and knowing a bit about the devils she's up against, Dan promises to protect her, thus setting the stage for a truly epic paranormal showdown.
 
Doctor Sleep is Stephen King doing what he does best, and if you like that, you'll love this book. So get yourself comfy and let Uncle Steve tell you a nice bedtime story. I promise you won't have nightmares . . .


(fingers crossed).    

William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope by Ian Doescher

William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope by Ian Doescher

Being a self-admitted sci-fi nerd, bookish, and a librarian causes me to stumble across some very interesting and unique crossovers, parodies, and mashups. Most people are familiar with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and its other similar spin offs. I have also come across a slightly more puzzling crossover in the form of a graphic novel of Dr. Who teaming up with Cpt. Jean Luke Picard to stop a Borg/Cybermen alliance. But what has most recently caught my attention is Williams Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope by Ian Doescher. Now, initially I was torn between excitement and annoyance regarding this combination of two things I very much like and never thought to combine. However, Ian Doescher, did a spectacular job transferring Star Wars: A New Hope into the language and the style of the Bard himself. He stays true to much of the plot and even works in some more well-known lines from the movie. Doescher does add a few bits that you don’t find in the movie, such as Luke Skywalker’s “Alas poor, Stormtrooper” scene, a clever take on the “Alas, poor Yorick” done in Hamlet.    

Yet, there are a few downsides to this book. You might get odd looks from coworkers and family as you regale them with the St. Crispin’s Day from Henry V pastiche that occurs before the Death Star trench run. Also, was with most Shakespeare, it really does work best if read aloud. So, if you can find friends and relations that would enjoy this nerdy mix-up, I would highly recommend getting them together and giving this book a try.

The Best American Literature of 2013

If you are an avid fan of American literature you have got to try these books!The National Book Award Longlists have been released. These books were  written by United States citizens and published in the United States.

The National Book Award recognizes the best in quality writing. It all begins when book publishers submit their nominees and than a panel of five judges (per category) selects a 'longlist' of books they deem the best American literature of the year. There are four categories: fiction, nonfiction, poetry and young people's literature.

Previous winners of this prestigous award include, The Round House by Louise Erdhrich, Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward and Lord Of Misrule: A Novel By Jamy Gordon. You can find a complete list of award winners and finalists here.

If you have not read these great American titles now is the perfect time.

The National Book Award for Fiction Longlist

Pacific: A Novel Novel By Tom Drury
The End of the Point by Elizabeth Graver
The Flamethrowers by Rachel Kushner
The Lowland: A Novel by Jhumpa Lahiri
A Constellation of Vital Phenomena: A Novel by Anthony Marra
The Good Lord Bird by Jame McBride
Someone by Alice McDermott
Bleeding Edge by Thomas Pynchon
Fools by Joan Silber

The National Book Award for Nonfiction Longlist
Finding Florida by T. D. Allman
Facing the Wave a Journey in the Wake of the Tsunami by Gretel Ehrlich
The Wolf and the Watchman: A Father, a Son, and the CIA. by Scott C. Johnson
Book of Ages: The Life and Opinion of Jane Franklin by Jill LePore
Hitler's Furies: German Women in the Nazi Killing Fields by Wendy Lower
Freedom National: The Destruction of Slavery in the United States by James Oakes
The Unwinding: An Inner History of teh New America by George Packer
The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia 1772-1832 by Alan Taylor
Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington by Terry Teachout
Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood & the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright

The National Book Award for Poetry Longlist
Metaphysical Dog by Frank Bidart
Bury My Clothes by Roger Bonair-Agard
Stay, Illusion by Lucie Brock-Broido
So Recently Rent a World, New and Selected Poems: 1968-2012 by Andrei Codrescu
Seasonal Work with Letters on Fire By Brenda Hillman
The Big Smoke By Adrian Matejka
American Amnesiac By Diane Raptosh
Black Aperture By Matt Rasmussen
Transfer of Qualitites By Martha Ronk
Incarnadine: Poems By Mary Szybist

The National Book Award for Young People's Literature Longlist
The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp By Kathi Appelt
Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures By Kate DiCamillo
A Tangle of Knots By Lisa Graff
The Summer Prince  By Alaya Dawn Johnson
The Thing About Luck By Cynthia Kadohata
Two Boys Kissing By David Levithan
Far, Far Away By Tom McNeal
Picture Me Gone By Meg Rosoff
The Real Boy By Anne Ursu
Boxers & Saints By Gene Luen Yang

On the Come Up

Debut fiction can be tough. First novels can be so full of a writer’s efforts and emotions that the storyline suffers under the weight of the language or complex plot. Debut novels can also be amazing and beautiful because the story has been bottled up for so long that the writer is able to convey the story without too many words. To all of you reading this, I recommend you do not read a steady diet of debuts. Variety is the spice of reading life, too. Without mixing it up a bit, you stand to miss some amazing books. On the same note, don’t ignore debuts to wait for a writer to “prove themselves.” You’ll be missing out.

A recently released debut novel that reads like a 9^th or 10^th book of a seasoned author is On the Come Up by Hannah Weyer. Hannah Weyer is an award winning filmmaker, so she is no stranger to the written word. However, this is her first published novel. The story follows the life of AnnMarie Walker—a thirteen-year-old from Far Rockaway, Queens. AnnMarie is wise beyond her years and able to see the hold that the neighborhood (as well as drugs, violence, and government assistance) has on people. She dreams of being able to escape Far Rockaway and leave it behind her. Even with the struggles and violence that AnnMarie faces, she continues to stay strong and persevere. Four months before she’s due to give birth to her first child, AnnMarie attends a casting call for a movie on a whim. She lands the part and her life begins to change. However, after the movie and a trip to the Sundance Film Festival, AnnMarie finds herself back in New York. AnnMarie stays focused on her future, looking beyond just the day-to-day, to make sure her life is her own and will develop into something more.

Weyer based the novel on the true story of Anna Simpson. Weyer met Anna when Anna was filming the movie Our Song just after becoming a new mother at the age of sixteen. Weyer’s boyfriend at the time (now husband), Jim McKay, directed the movie. To this day, Hannah, Jim, and Anna are close. Just like AnnMarie/Anna, I can easily say that Hannah Weyer is on the come up in the world of literature. I can’t wait to read more.

2013 Best Mystery Awards!

 

 

The World Mystery Convention is a nonprofit, all-volunteer organization which holds an annual convention in honor of Anthony Boucher, the distinguished mystery fiction critic, editor and author. It is the world's premier event bringing together all parts of the mystery and crime fiction community, and is commonly referred to as Bouchercon.

Bouchercon 2013: A New York State of Mind was held in Albany, New York in September 2013.  Awards presented included The Anthony Awards, The Barry Awards, The Macavity Awards, and The Shamus Awards.

Please help congratulate the following winners by reading one of their great books.

 

The Beautiful Mystery - Louise Penny

Anthony Award Best Mystery Novel
Macavity Award Best Mystery Novel

When a peaceful monastery in Quebec is shattered by a murder, Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir are challenged to find the killer in a community that has taken a vow of silence.
  

   

The Expats - Chris Pavone

Anthony Award Best First Mystery

Along the cobble-stoned streets of Luxembourg, mother and expat Kate Moore suspect that another American couple are not who they claim to be. A first novel.
 

   

Big Maria - Johnny Shaw

Anthony Award Best Paperback Original

100 years ago a miner stashed gold in Arizona's Chocolate Mountains.  Harry's living on disability and getting beaten down. Frank's an old-timer battling cancer and a domineering daughter. And Ricky's a good kid in a bad spot, doing everything for family. Together they're staking what little they have left on a dangerous quest to the Big Maria Mine.
 

   

The Blackhouse - Peter May

Barry Award Best Novel

When a grisly murder occurs on a Scottish island, Edinburgh detective Fin Macleod must confront his past if he's ever going to discover if this killing has a connection to one that took place on the mainland.

 

A Killing in the Hills - Julia Keller

Barry Award Best First Novel

A first novel by a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist finds a prosecuting attorney and her estranged teenage daughter trying to protect their town and each other in the aftermath of a shocking triple murder. 

   

Mr. Churchill's Secretary - Susan Elia MacNeal 

Barry Award Best Paperback Original

After the Luftwaffe bomb London, Maggie Hope--trained in math and code breaking, but only able to find a job as a secretary--uses the unfettered access her position demands to try to unravel a plot to assassinate Churchill himself. A first novel.
 

   

The Fallen Angel - Daniel Silva

Barry Award Best Thriller

When the body of a woman is found beneath Michelangelo's dome, Gabriel Allon is summoned to secretly investigate this mysterious death that has been ruled a suicide.
 

   

Don't Ever Get Old - Daniel Friedman
 

Macavity Award Best First Mystery Novel

Learning that an old adversary may have escaped with a fortune in stolen gold, retired Memphis cop Buck Schatz teams up with his plugged-in, smart-alecky grandson in a vigilante investigation.
  

   

An Unmarked Grave - Charles Todd
 

Macavity Award - Sue Feder Historical Mystery Award

Battlefield nurse Bess Crawford, while contending with wounded soldiers, stumbles upon the body of an officer and family friend who has been murdered.
 

   

Taken - Robert Crais 

Shamus Award Best P. I. Novel

Hired along with Joe Pike to investigate the alleged kidnapping of a wealthy industrialist's son, Elvis Cole quickly disproves police theories and goes undercover to infiltrate a ring of professional kidnappers.
 

   

And She Was - Alison Gaylin

Shamus Award Best P. I. Paperback Original

When missing persons detective Brenna Spector, who has a rare disorder that enables her to recall every detail of her life, investigates the disappearance of a local woman, she uncovers some strange connections.
 

  

Black Fridays - Michael Sears

 

Shamus Award Best First P. I. Novel

Struggling to rebuild his life after prison, former Wall Street hotshot Jason Stafford is tapped to investigate a suspicious death, an assignment that is complicated by his efforts to reclaim his son from his unstable ex-wife.



For more information:

Anthony Awards

Barry Awards

Macavity Awards

Shamus Awards

 

 

 

Suspenseful Thrillers

If you enjoy fast paced novels that are filled with adventure and suspense then be prepared for a treat! I have listed below awesome suspense filled thrillers and I am attaching a link to NPR's top 100 Killer Thrillers. NPR's list was based on their audience picks. The NPR audience chose 600 novels and after 17,000 ballots were counted the top 100 are listed here.

Our library will soon have a Patron Picks section, which are titles our patrons have told us are ones they love!  So if you have a favorite novel (it does not have to be a thriller) tell me about it! I read a lot, but...some of the best books I've read have been ones that a patron recommended to me.

Here are my top picks for suspenseful thrillers.

 Before I Go To Sleep by S J Watson
Memories define us. So what if you lost your memory every time you went to sleep? Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love--all forgotten overnight. This is Christine's life and the one person she must trust may only be telling her half the truth.

 The Spy Who Came In From the Cold by John Le Carre
John Le Carre's third novel that won him international acclaim. He creates a suspense world unlike any other. 

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
A Multi layered thriller that is a spellbinding murder mystery, family saga, love story and a story of financial intrigue rolled into one amazing novel!

The Blue Nowhere by Jeffrey Deaver
His code name is Phate, a sadistic computer hacker who infiltrates people's computers, invades their lives and then lures them to their death.

The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
If you prefer reading about mind games rather than chase scenes, this one should not be missed!

The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen
A briskly paced suspenseful thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
A terrifying true life story of the murders of the Clutter family. There was no motive, no reason for the murders.

The Absent One by Jussi Adler-Olsen
A surprising plot filled with ruthless people who were seduced by violence and hidden by their power and wealth until a homeless woman begins delivering her brand of 'justice'.

The Affair by Lee Child
A novel of unrelenting suspense that tells the story of why Jack Reacher became a one man vigilante squad.

Spilled Blood by Brian Freeman
A taut thriller about a two Minnesota towns that are locked in a deadly feud and a teenage girl who gets caught in the crossfire. 

You Don't Want to Know  by Lisa Jackson
A mother's worst nightmare comes to life in this terrifying thriller that will keep you guessing and then leave you horrified. 

 

An Ode to Middle-Earth

You’ve read the books. Seen the movies. And maybe, if you’re a dork like me, you’ve even watched the Rankin-Bass animated films with the cheesy songs--"Where there's a whip, there's a way!" As a kid, I remember seeing the words Frodo Lives spray-painted on walls before I even knew who Frodo was. We weren't formally introduced until the summer of 1983, when I spent a week immersed in The Fellowship of the Ring, the first book of The Lord of the Rings (also known as The Greatest Fantasy Series Ever Written). By summer’s end, I’d devoured the entire trilogy and spent most of my spare time daydreaming about the goodness that was Middle-Earth. Of course, this led me to try my hand at creating my very own fantasy world. Using whatever paper I managed to swipe from school, I drew gigantic maps of make-believe countries and continents which I carefully pieced together and plastered all over my bedroom walls. I also began penning badly written stories and poems that were nothing more than thinly veiled knock-offs of Tolkien’s works. These I kept hidden away in an envelope beneath my pillow. They’ve since been lost, and thank goodness for that. But the madness didn’t end there. Yeah, you can probably guess where this is going: The Silmarillion. Boy, the why-in-the-world-do-you-want-to-read-this? look the librarian gave me when I checked that one out was priceless. Undeterred, I waded through The Silmarillion (which inspired me to create my own mythology), then proceeded to read Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle Earth. Yes,  J. R. R. Tolkien was my best friend that summer, and we certainly had some times. 

Admittedly, I have yet to go back and re-read these books, probably because there are so many other stories, written and unwritten, that require my attention. But someday I will. I imagine it’ll be just like visiting an old friend.

Saga, Volumes 1 & 2 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

Saga, Volumes 1 & 2 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

Graphic novels, by their nature and history, have a tendency to play with themes and concepts that are a bit odd even in science fiction novels. The story starts in the middle of a long, ongoing war between two races, one uses magic and the other technology. The conflict has gone on for so long that the two species have opted to outsource their battles to other planets in order to save their own from the devastation of war. Our main characters are star-crossed lovers, one from each of the feuding species. We come into the story as their child is being born and they learn that both of their species is hunting them and their child to put an end to all three.

The storytelling is remarkable; we learn small bits of the backstory and the unique universe that Vaughan has created. With little fragments, he brings a story of war and love, of life and cultures, machines and nature, so complex, so strange that even the participants of the story are never sure what to expect.

This graphic novel is not for everyone. There are liberal amounts of sex, nudity, violence, gore, language, and general weirdness. , But if such things do not bother you, then I would strongly recommend you read these graphic novels and experience for yourself. For every crass moment that Vaughan writes and Staples draws, there are equally poignant moments and it becomes clear how Saga won the Eisner Best New, Best Continuing, and Best Writer Awards for 2013.