Module #10 Graphic Novel

Title: Rapunzel’s Revenge

Citation:

Shannon, H. (2008). Rapunzel’s revenge.  New York, NY: Bloomsbury.

Summary:

This is the story of how Rapunzel gets revenge on the woman who stole her from her mother and raised her as her own. The wicked, magical mother has enslaved Rapunzel’s mother and Rapunzel vows to rescue her real mother, but first she must escape the prison the wicked mother has put her in and face many trials and tests of courage.  Along the way she makes friends with a boy and his goose that supposedly lays golden eggs.

Review:

This graphic novel retelling of the fairy-tale classic, set in a swashbuckling Wild West, puts action first and features some serious girl power in its spunky and strong heroine. Young Rapunzel lives a lonely life, never knowing what lies beyond the high garden walls of her mother's royal villa until one day she climbs the wall to see what's on the other side. When she finds that the world outside is a dark place oppressed by her mother's greed for power and uncovers the real secret of her own birth, she is imprisoned in a magic tree tower. In her years of captivity, she learns a lot about self-reliance and care for her exceptionally long hair, and eventually she is able to escape, vowing to bring down her mother's cruel empire. Hale's art matches the story well, yielding expressive characters and lending a wonderful sense of place to the fantasy landscape. Rich with humor and excitement, this is an alternate version of a classic that will become a fast favorite of young readers. -- (Reviewed 09-01-2008) (Booklist, vol 105, number 1, p100)

Review Source:

Coleman, T. (2008, Sept 1). Rapunzel’s revenge. Booklist, 105(1), 100.

Impressions:

This was probably my least favorite book that I read this semester. I thought it was overdone and much too long. I’m sure that kids or readers who enjoy cartoons and stupid humor movies will find this book appealing.

Suggested Use(s):

            Use this book in a unit about fairy tales and folktales.

Compare and contrast the original story to this version.
Discuss how female heroes are treated differently than male heroes.

Additional Information:

Awards: ALA Notable Children's Books - Middle Readers Category: 2009

Amelia Bloomer Lists - Middle Graders Fiction: 2010

Surrey Schools' Book of the Year Award (British Columbia)

YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens: 2009

YALSA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults: Twists on the Tale (2010)

Young Reader's Choice Award (Pacific Northwest): Intermediate

Illustrator: Nathan Hale

Interest Level: 5 & up

Reading Level: 3.7

Lexile Measure: 500

Module #10 Graphic Novel

Title: Beowulf

Citation:

Hinds, G. (2007). Beowulf. Cambridge, Mass: Candlewick Press.

Summary:

Graphic Novel adaptation of the Old English epic poem.

Review:

Gr 10 Up –This epic tale is exceptionally well suited to the episodic telling necessary for a successful graphic novel, as the warrior-hero fights Grendel, Grendel's mother, and, ultimately, the dragon that claims his life, and (in true comic-book fashion) each challenge is significantly more difficult and violent than the one before. Although greatly abridged and edited, the text maintains a consistent rhythm and overall feel appropriate for the poetic nature of the story. Dialogue and narration are presented in identical text boxes, but astute readers will be able to decipher from the images which character is speaking. Each specific event is complemented by illustrations that effectively convey the atmosphere–historical details are paired with sketchy, ethereal drawings, the violent battle scenes are darkly tinted with red, and the end of Beowulf's life is indicated by gray, colorless imagery. Hinds's version will make this epic story available to a whole new group of readers. This book is likely to be especially popular when the Beowulf movie, directed by Robert Zemeckis, is released in November 2007.

Review Source:

Campbell, H. (2007, Nov.) Beowulf. School Library Journal 53 (5), 171.

Impressions:

This is not a book I would choose to read so I purposefully selected it because graphic novels are so popular. I was also interested to learn the basics of the Beowulf story. I am aware that there is much more to the story than Hinds includes in this book, but I enjoyed it. I appreciated the artistic quality of the book. Hinds does an amazing job of drawing the human form. The muscular details of Beowulf were great. I also appreciated that he didn’t make the blood and gore of the story the focus by using muted colors for the battle scenes. Instead he saved red to show the color of jewels.

Suggested Use(s):

Use in a unit about heroes & heroines

            What makes a hero?

            What does it mean to be courageous?

What other stories are students familiar with that have a hero as the main character?

Use in an art class to study the use of color and human anatomy

In a an English class students could compare/contrast a section of the original story to the

graphic novel.

            Use in a history course to learn about the Anglo-Saxon people.

Additional Information:

Awards: YALSA Best Books for Young Adults: 2008

YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens: 2008

Illustrator: Gareth Hinds

Interest Level: 4-12

Reading Level: 6.5

Module #9 Poetry

Title: All the Broken Pieces : A Novel in Verse

Citation:

Burg, A.E. (2009). All the broken pieces : a novel in verse.  New York, NY: Scholastic Press.

Summary:

Matt Penn is torn between two worlds when he is airlifted out of Vietnam in 1975. He can’t forget about the mother and brother he left behind when his mother pushed him onto a transport plane bound for the United States. He also can’t get over the guilt regarding his part in his brother’s devastating injuries. Did his mother send him away as punishment? Will his new adopted family send him away if they find out what he did? Matt’s insecurities eat him up until he confronts them at a meeting with a group of Vietnam vets.

Review:

Grades 6-10. Airlifted from Vietnam at the end of the war and adopted by a loving American family, Matt Pin, 12, is haunted by what he left behind, even as he bonds with his new little brother and becomes a star pitcher on the school baseball team. In rapid, simple free verse, the first-person narrative gradually reveals his secrets: his memories of mines, flames, screams, helicopters, bombs, and guns, as well as what the war did to his little brother (He followed me / everywhere, / he follows me still). But this stirring debut novel is about much more than therapy and survivor guilt. When his parents take Matt to a veterans’ meeting, he hears the soldiers’ stories of injury and rejection and begins to understand why the school bully calls him frogface (My brother died / Because of you). There is occasional contrivance as Matt eavesdrops on adults. But the haunting metaphors are never forced, and the intensity of the simple words, on the baseball field and in the war zone, will make readers want to rush to the end and then return to the beginning again to make connections between past and present, friends and enemies.

Review Source:

Rochman, H. (2009). All the broken pieces. Booklist, 105 (12), 180.

Impressions:

This was a gut-wrenching book. I could feel, hear and smell the horrors described in the book. The very simple, to the point verses really made an impression on me.  It made my stomach turn to think about the treatment of the vets and the prejudices that kids like Matt endured in the United States. It’s very powerful.

Suggested Use(s):

This book could be used in a US history course to discuss the effects of the Vietnam war on the people fighting on both sides as well as those caught in the cross fire.

Discussions could also cover the treatment of vets upon returning to the US with a comparison to the treatment of current vet treatment by the pubic and the government.

Additional Information:

Awards: Booklist Editors' Choice - Books for Youth - Older Readers Category: 2009

YALSA Best Books for Young Adults: 2010

Interest Level: 5th & older

Reading Level: 4.1

Lexile Measure: 680

Module #9 Poetry

Title: Split Image : A Story in Poems

Citation:

Glenn, M. (2000). Split image : A story in poems. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

Summary:

Split Image is the story of a Vietnamese high school girl who dreams of going to college is expected to stay home and care for her disabled older brother. The book is filled with the voices of the people who interact with her and their perceptions of her plus her own thoughts and those of here family. The disconnect between the various perceptions is very clear. Her anger and disappointment are so great that she begins to act out causing peoples perceptions of her to change. We don't know a lot of details about each speaker, but we understand enough to get a sense of who they are and what their lives are like.

Review:

“……Mel Glenn is another pioneer of this style of storytelling. He started his career writing poetry collections like Class Dismissed! (1982; o.p.), Back to Class (1988; o.p.), and My Friend's Got This Problem, Mr. Candler (1991, all Clarion), in which poems are connected by common settings or themes, but not closely enough to categorize them as novels. Who Killed Mr. Chippendale? A Mystery in Poems (1996) was the first of five novels in verse Glenn wrote that are set in or related to the fictitious Tower High School. Writing in free verse, Glenn uses an array of voices to tell the story of Robert Chippendale, a teacher shot to death at the beginning of the school day. Glenn followed that title with The Taking of Room 114: A Hostage Drama in Poems (1997), the suspenseful story of a teacher who holds his senior history class hostage at gunpoint. Jump Ball: A Basketball Season in Poems (1997, all Lodestar) tells the story of how the Tower High Tigers are having the best season ever when tragedy strikes. An interracial romance and murder are the subjects of Foreign Exchange: A Mystery in Poems (Morrow, 1999), an outstanding story about prejudice. In Glenn's most recent novel in verse, Split Image: A Story in Poems (HarperCollins, 2000), Tower High School student Laura Li commits suicide in the library, and the people who knew her try to understand why. The author's use of multiple perspectives to tell his stories would not work with prose. Verse gives authenticity and distinction to the individual voices.”

Review Source:

(Paragraph taken from  SLJ article)

Sullivan, E. (2003, August 1). Fiction or Poetry? School Library Journal.

Impressions:

The lack of too many words or details makes this a very powerful book. It cuts right to the heart of the matter without cluttering the story with too much character development.  The reader gets a glimpse into Laura Li’s life through the eyes of a variety of people she interacts with making this a very interesting book.

Suggested Use(s):

Additional Information:

Awards: YALSA Best Books for Young Adults: 2001

             Notable/Best Books (A.L.A.) 01/19/01

Interest Level: Gr 7-12/YA