PAPER GIRLS: BOOK ONE by Brian K. Vaughan

After falling in love with his Saga series, I wanted to branch out to other projects written by Brian K. Vaughan, and that led me here! The Paper Girls are Erin, Tiffany, Mackenzie, and KJ, pre-teen kids living in 1988 Cleveland, who meet on their respective newspaper routes early in the morning after Halloween, and find themselves dropped into an epic fantasy adventure.

This adventure of the Stranger Things/Goonies variety happens to be a bit of a mind-wreck filled with parallel timelines, multi-verses, dinosaurs, giant maggots, and futuristic soldiers.

Oh who am I kidding, it might not be about that stuff at all; I would be lying if I said I understood everything that was happening here! The comic lets it's secrets out on its own terms and it can get a little frenetic and confusing but the interesting thing is that I didn't really care. I enjoyed the characters and their budding relationships so much that I could watch them do anything. Plus, I'm a sucker for time travel so I'm down to being patient and seeing where it all goes! The second volume in particular is a rollercoaster of crazy-ass ideas that are sometimes hard to follow, but I'll be holding on for the ride.

The two volume included here in this deluxe edition are also available in cheaper single editions.

GRADE: B

ALL-NEW X-MEN VOL. 1: YESTERDAY'S X-MEN by Brian Michael Bendis

The X-Men comics were my favorites when I was younger, and I wanted to jump back into reading them with a more contemporary story. The X-Men have been around for a while, embedded in our zeitgeist with many different iterations, and sometimes it feels like they've told every story they could. Not only that but one big critique that many people have is that the universe has gotten too big, with too many characters, and it can get a bit overwhelming. That's why I think that this story arc in the debut volume of All-New X-Men is so cool. Bendis not only was able to find a fresh, clever idea, but with this idea, he was able to bring the focus back to the basics: a core, familiar group of mutants, the original five!

Because the X-Men can't figure out how to handle Cyclops, who recently broke bad and is now modeling himself as a mutant revolutionary with Magneto and the White Queen at his side, Beast has the dumbass genius idea to go back in time, gather up the original five teenage students of Xavier (Cyclops, Jean Grey, Iceman, Angel, and Beast himself), and bring them back to the future to see if they can talk some sense into mean Cyclops and show him how far he's fallen. What could possibly go wrong?

So this first volume isn't exactly jam-packed with mutant action but focuses more on fleshing out the cool concept and it's ramifications. How would the act of bringing the past versions of the X-men to this time affect the time/space continuum? How would the younger versions feel with seeing what their future lives entail? How would today's Cyclops react after seeing a younger version of himself and Jean Grey, the wife he's lost? And speaking of the young Jean Grey, she's the real star of this show who provides the book's heart. She begins to develop her telepathic powers and it's not the easiest thing, especially under the circumstances. I'm excited to see what happens next, and I think it would be awesome if Bendis used this time travel incident and tied it into established X-canon. For example, it would be so interesting if, by going into the future and developing her abilities there, that's the way that the Phoenix Force was initially able to tap into Jean Grey, jump-starting the popular Phoenix Saga? So many possibilities...

GRADE: B+

THE DAY I WORE PURPLE by Jake Vander Ark

I don't think I've ever read anything quite like this one. Not only is it a tender love story and grand family drama, it's also an epic of speculative science fiction that spans a trillion years, examines the creation of our universe, and takes a look at what it would be like to live forever and the effect that would have on society. But above all it's a portrait of a complex woman trying to find meaning in eternal life. Not only does the book defy genre, but the synopsis on Amazon barely cracks the surface of what readers are in for.
 
I read this is as an advance prereader in exchange for constructive notes, of which I gave a ton. So the edition of the book that was released today might be different. But it's most likely even better than the version I read. Vander Ark is a writer of great talent and deserves to be discovered by more readers. Get on the train early! While The Day I Wore Purple isn't as tightly wound and smoothly crafted as his previous novels like The Accidental Siren and The Brandywine Prophet, it's Vander Ark at his rawest; the book is undeniably his most ambitious, and in some ways, the most impressive. The closest I can get to describing my reaction after finishing it was the same way I felt about finishing Christopher Nolan's film Interstellar. After the end, not only did I have to put my brain back together again , but I knew that I'd seen something unique, something that wrestled with ideas beyond what everyone else is tackling in stories. But because of  it's size and ambition, like Interstellar, it's almost impossible for the book to be perfect. It can get a bit long-winded at times and it sometimes stumbles on it's tightrope balance of character development, exposition and sci-fi ideas. But even with its rough edges, you can sense Vander Ark pouring his all into this story, writing as if it's the last time he'll ever get to sit at a keyboard.

Some might love it, some might be confused, some might even think it's a mess, but I'm 100% positive that everyone who finishes it will think of it for a long time afterwards. Everyone should experience it!

GRADE: A-

Favorite Novels by Stephen King

My Top 10 Favorite Novels by Stephen King

*excludes novellas, short stories, and collections*

1. The Stand

2. The Green Mile

3. The Long Walk

4. The Dead Zone

5. 11/22/63

6. Pet Sematary

7. Under The Dome

8. 'Salem's Lot

9. Misery

10. The Dark Tower Saga

KINDRED by Octavia Butler

GRADE: A-

Great science fiction does more than just entertain. Sometimes, it's used to explore important and difficult material and ideas about society, past experiences, as well as speculate on where we are headed in the future. Octavia Butler was one of the queens of sci-fi and Kindred is considered by many to be her masterpiece. It is one of the examples of great science fiction that goes beyond pure entertainment. It shines a light on what is possibly the most difficult and taboo topics in American history: slavery in the U.S.

Dana, a black woman living in 70's Los Angeles, is inexplicably snatched through time on her 26th birthday, and sent to a Southern plantation during the 1800's. She realizes that she will be brought back repeatedly to save the life of the young troubled son of the plantation owner, who she realizes is her ancestor. So to keep him safe and secure her existence in the modern day, she must endure existing in a time when her skin color makes her property.

"I lost an arm on my last trip home."

Whoa. What an opening line! It's so simple in its construction, but packs a big wallop, and locked my interest in for at least the following 100 pages. After that, not only is it a searing look at life on a slave plantation in the antebellum American South, but also an interesting, speculative character study on how a young black woman from the 1970's would react to having to submit herself to the reality and culture of the times back then. The most intriguing aspect was the way it affected her relationship with her white husband, who ends up traveling along with her through time to protect her. She is so used to acting a certain way with him, a way that is completely not acceptable during these times. Seeing the two of them get "comfortable" in their roles on the plantation and seeing the strain that it put on their relationship over time was fascinating. And Butler's simple and concise style helps to make this harsh story one that can be universally relatable and appreciated.

11/22/63 by Stephen King

GRADE: A

High school teacher Jake Epping is about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime. An old former night-school student is on his death-bed and confides in Jake that he has discovered in the pantry of his diner, a portal back in time to 1958. He then enlists Jake to travel back and prevent the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Who could resist that?!

Stephen King takes an already familiar and popular science-fiction concept and turns it into one of his best novels, a wonderful story that transcends the genre. It's at the same time an irresistibly exciting time-travel adventure, a nostalgic look back at the Sixties, and a beautiful love story. When King is firing on all cylinders like this and hits the mark, he hits it hard, proving that he's among the very best.