I’ve been feeling graphic novels lately so I went in search of a few I had yet to read. And as I’m also participating in the Let Us Read Middle Grade Reading Challenge, I figured why not find a few middle grade graphic novels to read. I like to read graphic novels when I’m in the mood for something quick and generally brightly coloured.
The Amazing World Of Gumball vol. 1 by Frank Gibson
This is incredibly humorous. My favourite story by far is The Black Out, closely followed by Cool.
In The Black Out, janitor and bus driver Rocky feels underappreciated for all that he does and demands that everyone in the school swaps jobs so they can get a little taster of what each person does. This sets in motion a series of incidents culminating in a city wide black out. If you can only read one chapter from this book, this one is it.
Click by Kayla Miller
Olive is a girl who fits in everywhere and nowhere. She has a lot of friends in various social groups around school and the neighbourhood, but is never a part of any one group in particular. Not a single best friend in the bunch. With the class talent show coming up at school, Olive feels lonely as all of her friends break off into acts that don’t seem to include her. With help from her family, Olive finds a place she can fit.
Click is a lovely tale about navigating friendships and staying true to yourself. I read this one with my daughter, and we both enjoyed it. She felt bad for Olive, but was happy for her when she overcame the challenges. Olive is such an engaging character, which makes her easy to like.
The illustrations are stunning, though some of them were over too quickly, they could have taken up a whole page just to show more of the story.
Big Nate: In A Class By Himself by Lincoln Peirce
I remember reading some of the Big Nate books with my younger brother a few years ago. I love the style of how this book is written. It’s styled like a journal with illustrations throughout. It makes for a easy, fast paced read. I have mixed feelings about Nate. On one hand, I find him and his thoughts mildly entertaining. On the other, I’m not sure that I actually like him very much. Nate is mean to his best friend, and rude to every adult in the book. But I guess I can see the appeal there.
In A Class By Himself, Nate gets a message in a fortune cookie telling him that “today you will surpass all others”. Nate then sets out to figure out a way to become the greatest in numerous aspects of school, leading to a full day of shenanigans.
Big Nate Flips Out by Lincoln Peirce
I had some mixed feelings about Big Nate In A Class Of His Own, but I liked Big Nate Flips Out a lot better. I felt that the plot in this one had a bit more substance, something more to sink my teeth into. I’m still not the biggest fan of Nate, but I can see his appeal to a younger audience. Big Nate Flips Out involves yearbook photos, a missing camera, hypnosis, and several mishaps.
I enjoy the way these books are written, the way the illustrations are used to add side notes and bonus information.
Bone: Out From Boneville by Jeff Smith
I didn’t like this one very much, can’t even quite put my finger on why I didn’t like it. Just not for me I guess. I didn’t find any of the characters particularly engaging, and the stories bored me. I did enjoy the artwork, I found the pictures to be stunning, but the rest of the book just did not appeal to me.
Lumberjanes Vol. 1 : Beware Of The Kitten Holy by Noelle Stevenson
I loved this one. The characters are sassy, the colours are vibrant, the plot is action-packed and full of adventure, and the book is filled with cool, feisty female protagonists. The story follows the adventures of five scouts from Roanoke cabin. The girls are all likeable with individual personalities that work well together as a team. From start to finish, I just couldn’t put this one down.
Have you read any of these books? Any you think I should check out? Let me know!
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Bookish Yarn 