Genre- Graphic Novels

Title: Comic Adventures of Boots

Author: Satoshi Kitamura

Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux

Date: 2002

Age Level: Elementary(3-4)

Summary: This book is about Boots the cat. It has short stories that tell the adventures of boots in comic strip format.

Strengths: I enjoyed reading about Boots. I thought that if kids were struggling to read this might be a great book to introduce to them because it is easy and fun to read. If a teacher was doing a unit on graphic novels this might be a great book to show them to start off with.

Concerns: This book really has no point. It might be too much for some students, there is a lot going on and it might be hard for some to keep up.

Classroom Use: I would recommend having this book in the classroom for students to read during free time. It is a good book to get students interested in graphic novels.

Genre- Graphic Novels

Title: Kampung Boy

Author: Lat

Publisher: Roaring Book Press

Date: 1979

Age Level: Upper(5-6)

Summary: “Realates the life experiences, from birth to beginning boarding school, of a boy growing up on a rubber plantation in rual Malaysia.

Strengths: I thought this was a great story about a mans life from birth to adult. I loved the illustrations. I especially liked that the text is hand written. I think this makes a stronger connection between the author and this book. I thought the author did a good job relating his Muslim culture to all different kinds of readers. I thought he made in a way that every reader would enjoy, not just Muslim students.

Concerns: The book has some hard language to understand and some difficult words. This might turn off students from the beginning. There are some parts of the book that may be inappropriate for students. I thought the circumcision part was humorous, but grade school students may not be mature enough to handle it.

Classroom Use: This just might be a great book to have in the classroom available to students, especially those students who love graphic novels.

Genre- Graphic Novels

Title: Thoreau at Walden

Author: John Porcellino

Publisher: Hyperion Books

Date: 2008

Age Level: Upper(5-6)

Summary: Porcellino write about Thoreau’s time at Waldern Pond. he uses Thoreau’s writings to tell the story in a comic stip format.

Strengths: The color scheme  works really well for the book. I thought the idea of this man leaving society to live in the nature was interesting, especially when he comes back and is put in jail for not paying taxes. I enjoyed this graphic novel is easy to follow along and read. There is not too much happening on each page that would distract the reader. After reading the book, I think it makes you want to go out and find out more about Thoreau.

Concerns: I think for some readers this book may be to advanced to understand. There is a lot of philosophy in this book that made it even harded for me to follow along.

Classroom Use: May be good to have in the classroom, especially for the advanced readers that enjoy graphic novels. This also may be a good book to recommend to a student for a project or paper on Thoreau.

Genre- Graphic Novels

Title: Middle School is Worse than Meatloaf

Author: Jennifer L. Holm

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Date: 2007

Age Level: Upper (5-6)

Summary: This book tells the story of Ginny beginning her first year of Middle School. Everything that could possibly go wrong, goes wrong for Ginny. This story isn’t told in the ordinary text, it is told with all her stuff (receipts, notes, IM screen messages).

Strengths: This book shows a unique way of telling a story. I think it is something that all middle schoolers can relate to. It is also tells some deeper issues that some students may be going through and can find comfort in this book.

Concerns: I thought that some areas of the book were inappropriate for students. There was some reference to alcohol.

Classroom Use: This book would be nice to have in the classroom. If a teacher wanted to do an activity with this book, I think it would be cool if the teacher read the story to the students or show them (it may be difficult to read). After that, the teacher could assign the students to write a short story using there stuff instead of text.

Genre- Graphic Novels

Title: You Can’t Take a Balloon Into The Metropolitan Museum

Author: Jacqueline Preiss Weitzman and Robin Preiss Glasser

Publisher: Dial Books for young readers

Date: 1998

Age Level: Primary(K-2) or Elementary (3-4)

Summary: “In this wordless story a young girl and her grandmother view works inside The Metropolitan Museum of Art, while the balloon she has been forced to leave outside floats around New York City causing a series of mishops that mirror scences in the museum’s artwork.

Strengths: I thought this book was so amusing. I loved all the illustrations and how the things going on outside the museum correlated with the items in the museum. I especially liked how they highlited those things by making them the only things in color. I thought it was interesting too how the guy who works at the museum takes it open himself to keep the balloon safe for the little girl when she comes out.

Concerns: Some younger students not familar with graphic novels may not know how to read them, in this case follow the pictures. The concept of things going on outside the museum correlating with items in the museum may not be understaood by younger students.

Classroom Use: This is a great book to have in the classroom for students to view during free time. I think this book could also be incorporated in a social studies lesson about museums.