Graphic Lit (Weekly Geeks #1)

I first became aware of the term "graphic novel" a few years ago. I thought it meant novels that are, well, graphic in the sense of violence or sex. (I'm a little slow on the uptake sometimes!) My first introduction to a graphic novel/memoir was Alison Bechdel's Fun Home. (Some of you may know her as the amazing author of Dykes to Watch Out For in all its iterations.) I was enthralled with Fun Home's story, the illustrations, the form. Since then I've read several more graphic memoirs and some graphic novels. A particular favorite author is Shaun Tan, author of The Arrival, Tales from Outer Suburbia and others.

Do you read graphic novels or memoirs? Who are your favorite authors? Which books do you recommend?

If you haven't read any, why not?

Some people have the impression that graphic novels are glorified comic books, are unsophisticated or don't qualify as "serious" literature. What do you think? If you track your book numbers, do you count a graphic novel as a book read?

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I think I read a fair amount of graphic novels (and manga, though they seem more like a guilty pleasure, for some reason...), though not as much as the librarian (and my boss) at work - it's probably his favourite thing!  I'm not so keen on the Marvel/DC popular characters (i.e. Batman, Superman, X-Men, etc.) and all their various incarnations, though I will read them and there are some that have been really good (the one where Superman was Russian instead of American - can't think of the title at the moment, of course! - turned everything on its head). 

Recent reads (and re-reads) include Revelations by Paul Jenkins and Humbero Ramos, Shannon Hale's Rapunzel's revenge, the "Fables" series, and the manga adaptation of Sherrilyn Kenyon's "Dark-Hunter" series. 

Revelations was good (though the artwork took a bit getting used to - the (good) characters looked slightly demonic), though it was a little unsettling and didn't really end with an end (if you know what I mean...).  If you're Catholic (which I'm not), you may be offended by it, but if you liked the Da Vinci Code, you'd probably like this one. 

Shannon Hale's version of Rapunzel's revenge was also good - it was a fun example of the fractured fairy-tale... and I can't wait to read Calamity Jack! 

The "Fables" series by Bill Willingham (though I have yet to read the spin-off about Jack) is really good - again, it's an example of the fractured fairy-tale, though this one is definitely for mature audiences (get your head out of the gutter - I'm talking themes, not content...though there is a bit of that, as well!). 

And the Sherrilyn Kenyon cross-over manga?  Don't bother.  (Yes, I understand manga is a completely different art style.  But really, it ruined one of my favourite characters (Tabitha).  Grrr.)

Memoirs, not so much.  For some reason, I'm not that nosy - though I'm nosy enough with other things!

I definitely count graphic novels as a book read - and some of them can be very sophisticated.  There's one that just came in to the library that I've had my eye on: Pride of Baghdad by Brian Vaughan.  It's about the American bombing of Baghdad in 2003 - and the pride of lions that escaped from the zoo at that time.  It deserves careful reading, but I have waaaay too much on my plate at the moment, unfortunately.

What's your take on graphic novels?  Do you have any favourites that you always recommend?

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