Simon & Schuster Canada

Currently Reading: Lumberjanes

Lumberjanes 22, out January 20, 2016 (Cover by Rosemary Valero-O'Connell (I’m almost positive?) and variant by Eva Cabrera)

TODAY!!!!

YAY! Check out everything Lumberjanes here!

#Wickedreads with my wicked red nails 💅🏾 | @buttermybooks love this tag! 😘

This page is from Through The Woods. It is definitely chilling. All the lights are on in my room. 👻

10 Compelling Graphic Memoirs that Will Make You a Devoted Fan of the Genre 

[via Off the Shelf]

For years and years, I labored under the assumption that comic books were only read by nerdy guys with a childish penchant for superheroes. But after seeing Marjane Satrapi’s harrowing and exuberant film, Persepolis, I was shocked to find that it was adapted from a graphic memoir. I had to read it—and I’ve been hooked on the genre ever since. Heart wrenching and intimate, vivacious and funny, these graphic memoirs will turn anyone into a true believer.

Comics & Graphic Novels: A Reading List

We’ve talked about the benefits of bringing comics and graphic novels into the classroom, and now we’d like to recommend some of our favourite titles!

Galactic Hotdogs: Cosmoe’s Getaway Wiener Cosmoe was an adventure-seeking 13-year-old orphan back on Earth, until the strange night he was yanked into space. Now he’s got all the adventure he craved and more aboard the Neon Wiener–part spaceship, part food truck–selling their trademarked dish of ‘Galactic Hot Dogs’. 

Miles Taylor and the Golden Cape: Attack of the Alien Horde What if superheroes were real—and you had to become one? A boy is suddenly thrust into the role of a real-life superhero and tasked with saving Earth from an alien invasion. Miles’ story is told through a unique hybrid of prose and graphic paneling.

Through the Woods Discover a terrifying and stunningly visual world in the woods in this collection of five hauntingly beautiful graphic stories from award-winning comic creator Emily Carroll.

Phoebe and Her Unicorn It all started when Phoebe skipped a rock across a pond and accidentally hit a unicorn in the face. Improbably, this led to Phoebe being granted one wish, and she used it to make the unicorn, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils, her obligational best friend.

Alien Invasion in my Backyard Stuart Tennemeier and his friend start the EMU Club (Exploration-Mystery-Unbelievable Club) to solve everyday mysteries and possibly save the world.

Zebrafish Vita and the members of her rock band Zebrafish raise money to help the children’s hospital where one band member is receiving cancer treatments.

To Dance: a Ballerina’s graphic novel A young dancer tells about her passion for ballet from her first dreams at the age of six through all her years of dance lessons.

Teaching with Comics and Graphic Novels in the Classroom

There is great educational potential in comics and graphic novels. They can help with building complex reading skills and act as a “point of reference” to bridge what students already know with what they have yet to learn. For example, comics and graphic novels can teach about making inferences, since readers must rely on pictures and just a small amount of text. They can also help to teach literary terms. Many of today’s comics rely heavily on allusion, satire, irony, and parody to make a point. By helping students transfer these skills, teachers can lessen the challenge of a new book. 

“Lurking beneath the literal meaning of strips like ‘Shoe,’ ‘Calvin and Hobbes,’ and even ‘Zits’ is the chance to capture the curiosity of a student who might never have otherwise given a term like existentialism a glance. We need to take advantage of every learning opportunity to engage our students in a way that acknowledges the visual world in which they live.” - Sharon F. Webster, English department chairperson and literacy coach at Narragansett High School

Definitions:

Comic Strips — Short form sequential art, often humorous and typically found in newspapers or as online “web comics.” 

Comic Books — Sequential art in pamphlet or magazine format. 

Graphic Novels — Long-form sequential art akin to a novel in length and narrative complexity. The term is applied to works of both fiction and nonfiction. 

Illustrated Novels — A hybrid of sequential art and prose. Differ from picture books in that the images and text are wholly interdependent rather than merely complementary. 

Discover teaching guides for our comic books here.

Through the Woods by Emily Carroll, preview at Comics&Cola.

Emily is the very talented artist who will be illustrating the graphic novel version of SPEAK. Enjoy and support her work!

You just have no idea how excited we are to work on this book.

You can now add it to your "want to read" Goodreads shelf!