Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2023) Featured Review of Pixels of You by Ananth Hirsh, Yuko Ota, and J.R. Doyle

Pixels of You by Ananth Hirsh, Yuko Ota and J.R. Doyle
Amulet Books
Publication Date: February 8, 2022
ISBN-13: 9781419749575

Pixels of You is a futuristic story about two photographers completing an internship at an art gallery. Indira, a human girl with a cybernetically augmented eye, and Fawn, an AI who appears human, don’t get along when they first meet. When their conflict leads to a public argument, their mentor assigns their final project to be a cooperative gallery show. Forced to work together on their photography, this is a short but sweet enemies-to-lovers story.

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Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2023) Featured Review of When I Grow Up: The Lost Autobiographies of Six Yiddish Teenagers by Ken Krimstein

When I Grow Up: The Lost Autobiographies of Six Yiddish Teenagers by Ken Krimstein
Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication Date: November 16, 2021
ISBN-13: 9781635573701

When hundreds of autobiographical essays of Yiddish teenagers written just before the start of WWII were discovered hidden in a Lithuanian church in 2017, author and illustrator Ken Krimstein selected six to highlight in this nonfiction graphic novel. With a somewhat chaotic and unfinished illustration style that emphasizes the unknown future these anonymous teenagers face, Krimstein uses the original text of the essays to portray the struggles and triumphs of the universal teenage experience.

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Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2023) Featured Review of The High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere by James Spooner

The High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere by James Spooner
Mariner Books / HarperCollins
Publication Date: May 17, 2022
ISBN-13: 9780358659112

“Punk rock is Black music.”


James Spooner’s coming-of-age graphic memoir shows him navigating life as a biracial teen in 1990’s rural California. Here he grapples with figuring out who he is, not who people — his clueless white mother, his absent Black father, and his mostly prejudiced classmates, teachers, and community members — think he should be. Finding punk music and other Black punks helps him get closer to his true self. Set against a backdrop of an isolated desert community, The High Desert shows a Black teen wrestling with identity, racism, young love, and finding your voice through an alternative community.

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Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2022) Nominations Round-Up, Winter

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Each quarter, the Selected Lists teams compile the titles that have been officially nominated to date. These books have been suggested by the team or through the title suggestion form, read by multiple members of the team, and received approval to be designated an official nomination. At the end of the year, the final list of nominations and each Selected List’s Top Ten will be chosen from these titles.

The Apothecary Diaries, v.2. By Natsu Hyuuga. Art by Nekokurage. Square Enix Manga, $10.99 (9781646090716). 

Maomao’s adventures as the official royal test taster continue! In this volume, Maomao faces the intrigues of the royal court while dealing with poisoning attempts against the Emperor’s wives.

Asadora! v.4. By Naoki Urasawa. VIZ Media / VIZ Signature, $14.99 (9781974722969). 

A lighthouse has been attacked by something resembling a giant creature, and Asa is called in by the government to find the monster before the Tokyo Olympics. With the monster’s reappearance, Asa continues the search for her family.

Blue Flag, v.8. By KAITO. VIZ Media, $12.99 (9781974720941). 

The conclusion of Blue Flag sees almost everyone’s secrets revealed and concludes the main characters’ romantic arcs.

Blue Giant Omnibus, v.1-2. By Shinichi Ishizuka. 2020. Seven Seas Entertainment, $19.99 (9781645058649). 

Dai is graduating soon, and while his friends are all cramming for exams, he spends every day playing his sax. Dai is going to be the world’s greatest jazz musician, and to be the best, he will need more than just passion.

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Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2022) Featured Review of Heaven’s Design Team, v. 1–4 by Hebi-zou, Tsuta Suzuki, and Tarako

Heaven’s Design Team, v. 1–4 by Hebi-zou, Tsuta Suzuki, and Tarako
Kodansha Comics / Kodansha USA
Publication Date: October 20, 2020; December 9, 2020; February 23, 2021; March
30, 2021
ISBN: 9781645611136, 9781646511297, 9781646511303, 9781646511310

Instead of creating every individual animal, God decided to outsource the work to a design team. The team of angels consists of six designers, an engineer who tests if the animals will function in the real world, and two liaisons who act as project managers. Volume one opens on new liaison Shimoda’s first day, and we follow along as he meets the team and learns how the designers work to create animals that fit God’s often vague specifications. Each chapter closes with a few short encyclopedia entries on the real animals that are featured.

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