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Graphic Novels and Comics December 2017
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Hello there! My name is Patrick Holt, and I'm a librarian at Southwest Regional Library and a lifelong reader of comics and graphic novels. Check out the contents of this month's newsletter in the box to the left, and get access to past editions in the archive at the bottom of the page. I hope you find these recommendations worthwhile, and please email me at pdholt@dconc.gov if you have any thoughts or questions. Header image from Berlin by Jason Lutes, depicting an excerpt from Story Without Words by Frans Masereel
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My Brother's Husband
by Gengoroh Tagame
From the publisher: "Yaichi is a work-at-home suburban dad in contemporary Tokyo; formerly married to Natsuki, father to their young daughter, Kana. Their lives suddenly change with the arrival at their doorstep of a hulking, affable Canadian named Mike Flanagan, who declares himself the widower of Yaichi’s estranged gay twin, Ryoji. Mike is on a quest to explore Ryoji’s past, and the family reluctantly but dutifully takes him in. What follows is an unprecedented and heartbreaking look at the state of a largely still-closeted Japanese gay culture: how it’s been affected by the West, and how the next generation can change the preconceptions about it and prejudices against it."
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By Chance or Providence
by Becky Cloonan
From the publisher: "By Chance or Providence collects Becky Cloonan's award-winning trilogy: "Wolves", "The Mire" and "Demeter", with lush colors by Lee Loughridge and a sketchbook/illustration section. These stories cast a spell of hypnotic melancholy, weaving their way through medieval landscapes of ancient curses and terrible truths that will haunt you long after you've set them down."
Highly recommended!
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The Walking Dead: Here's Negan!
by Robert Kirkman and co.
From the publisher: "Who is Negan? Since his debut in The Walking Dead #100, the charismatic psychopath has antagonized Rick Grimes, murdered his friend with a baseball bat wrapped in barb wire (which he calls "Lucille"), and led the Saviors into war against Alexandria and the neighboring communities. But who was he before society broke down? That question will be answered here, collecting the 'HERE'S NEGAN!' story originally serialized in IMAGE+ magazine."
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William Gibson's Archangel
by William Gibson and Michael St. John Smith
From the publisher: "The political leaders of 2016 have destroyed the world. Now they want a bright new reality to corrupt. To do it, they'll abuse the power of humanity's last hope: the Splitter, a colossal machine that will allow them to travel back into the past to entrench their hold on the future. With his characteristic grim sarcasm and militaristic pragmatism, Gibson leads us from the toxic environs of the present to war-torn 1945 Berlin, where RAF officer Naomi Givens will persevere against inconceivable, ruthless future forces, with the fates of epochs at stake."
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Flex Mentallo: Man of Muscle Mystery
by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely
From the publisher: "Once he was Hero of the Beach...and of the Doom Patrol. Now Flex Mentallo, the Man of Muscle Mystery, returns to investigate the sinister dealings of his former comrade, The Fact, and a mysterious rock star whose connection to Flex may holding the key to saving them both. This fast-paced tale twists super-hero tropes, introducing one mind-boggling concept after another!" FOR ADULT READERS!
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Wimbledon Green: The Greatest Comic Book Collector in the World
by Seth
From the publisher: "Meet Wimbledon Green, the self-proclaimed world's greatest comic-book collector who brokered the world's best comic-book deal in the history of collecting. Comic-book retailers, auctioneers, and conventioneers from around North America, as well as Green's collecting rivals, weigh in on the man and his vast collection of comic books. Are Green's intentions honorable? Does he truly love comics or is he driven by the need to conquer? Lastly, is he really even Wimbledon Green?
"A charming and amusing caper where comic-book collecting is a world of intrigue and high finance. Part riotous chase, part whimsical character sketch, Wimbledon Green looks at the need to collect and the need to reinvent oneself."
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Marvel 1985
by Mark Millar and Tommy Lee Edwards
"The most powerful super-villains in the Marvel Universe gather their might to wreak havoc on the one place they've never before set foot - YOUR WORLD! As mankind's enemies cut a swath of destruction with unprecedented ferocity and ruthlessness, the fate of the planet rests in the hands of one person: Toby, a 13-year-old boy who holds the key to uniting his comic-book idols, the Marvel Heroes!"
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Breakdowns
by Art Spiegelman
From the publisher: "The creator of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Maus explores the comics form...and how it formed him!
"This book opens with Portrait of the Artist as a Young %@&*!, creating vignettes of the people, events, and comics that shaped Art Spiegelman. [...] The second part presents a facsimile of Breakdowns, the long-sought after collection of the artist's comics of the 1970s, the book that triggers these memories. Breakdowns established the mode of formally sophisticated comics that transformed the medium, and includes the prototype of Maus, cubist experiments, an essay on humor, and the definitive genre-twisting pulp story 'Ace Hole-Midget Detective.' [...] Pulling all this together is an illustrated essay that looks back at the sixties as the artist pushes sixty, and explains the obsessions that brought these works into being."
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Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen
by Dylan Horrocks
From the publisher: "Cartoonist Sam Zabel hasn’t drawn a comic in years. Stuck in a nightmare of creative block and despair, Sam spends his days writing superhero stories for a large American comics publisher and staring at a blank piece of paper, unable to draw a single line. Then one day he finds a mysterious old comic book set on Mars and is suddenly thrown headlong into a wild, fantastic journey through centuries of comics, stories, and imaginary worlds. Accompanied by a young webcomic creator named Alice and an enigmatic schoolgirl with rocket boots and a bag full of comics, Sam goes in search of the Magic Pen, encountering sex-crazed aliens, medieval monks, pirates, pixies and ― of course ― cartoonists. Funny, erotic, and thoughtful, Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen explores the pleasures, dangers, and moral consequences of fantasy."
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Saturday, Nov. 18, 2 p.m. Southwest Regional Library, 3605 Shannon Rd. Questions? Call John Davis at 919-560-0125 Join our MeetUp group at meetup.com/graphic-book-club Enjoy comic books or graphic novels? Join us for the monthly meeting of Main Library's Graphic Book Club. This month we're reading WHATEVER YOU WANT! Because it's a free choice month.
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Ultimate Ladies Book ClubThursday, Dec. 7, 7:30 p.m. Ultimate Comics Raleigh,1301 Buck Jones Rd, RaleighThe first Thursday of each month the Ultimate Ladies Alliance meets to discuss a different comic or graphic novel. Join the Ultimate Ladies’ Alliance on Facebook for more info and to vote on your top picks for the next month’s meeting, plus suggest books for future discussion and share your favorites. This month's title is Nimona by Noelle Stevenson.
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Durham Comics Project: Drink & DrawWednesday, Dec. 20, 7-9 p.m.This monthly meetup is for those new to comics and seasoned vets alike. The hardest part of making comics is often making the time to draw, so let’s make that time together! We'll have an exercise or two (often collaborative), but you're welcome to just come to work on your own thing.
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Color of Fandom Book Club Friday, Dec. 1 Meets every month, alternating between comics and prose written by and/or featuring main characters who are people of color. This month's title is Descender vol. 1 and 2.
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For personalized reading recommendations from Durham County librarians, try My Next 5! Simply complete an online form to tell us a little about what genres, books, and authors you like (or dislike). A DCL librarian will review your submission and reply with a list of the next five books you should read -- all ages of readers welcome!
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Want to keep up-to-date on new books at the library? on everything from Horror to Home & Garden!
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NoveList Plus is a comprehensive database of fiction and nonfiction titles for all ages, including recommendations, articles, and lists for your fiction and nonfiction needs. DCL cardholders can access NoveList Plus from any computer.
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Check out the library's top ten checkouts! Lists include top tens for adult fiction and nonfiction, movies, young adults fiction, picture books and kids' fiction.
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Links to newsletters from the past year: Image from Incidents in the Night by David B.
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If you are having trouble unsubscribing to this newsletter, please contact the Durham County Library at
919-560-0100, Administration Building, 101 E. Morgan St., Durham, NC 27701
librarywebmaster@durhamcountync.gov
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