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Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2023) Featured Review of Seven Secrets, Vol. 2 by Tom Taylor

Seven Secrets, Vol. 2 by Tom Taylor
Boom! Studios
Publication Date: November 2, 2021
ISBN: 9781684157396

Picking right up after the events of volume one, the members of The Order now find themselves surrounded by the chaos and destruction unleashed by the First Secret. The Keepers and Holders are forced to go into hiding in the Faerie realm, where Casper gets a chance to discover a hidden aspect of his complicated origins, and new leadership is chosen. With the change in command comes the further unraveling of The Order’s secrets and a new objective for the remaining members.

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.