I finished up the graphic novels for superhero class as I was teaching them during the first couple weeks of July (I got assigned the class late and didn't get to pick the books--not that I've read many graphic novels before). I definitely learned a lot about graphic novels! Fortunately, I seemed to know more than most of the kids who, like me, primarily knew about superheroes via Marvel and DC movies. I saw Thor: Love and Thunder after the session wrapped, but I can picture exactly how much my students enjoyed it!
Books Read This Month
1. Herobear and the Kid, Vol. 1 The Inheritance by Mike Kunkel--graphic novel for class; the librarians had fun taking out all my notes when I returned it! It was difficult to get since it wasn't recently published, the most conventional of the books we read (which was good for teaching archetypes, tropes, and the Hero's Journey), but I would really only recommend this for kids/American Christian kids (not to spoil too much but there's a Christmas angle that did not charm me as a class choice).
2. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson--graphic novel for class; I was excited to read because it's by the same person who created the 2018 She-Ra and the Princesses of Power series for Netflix. I used an episode of She-Ra to illustrate or lessons on archetypes and the Hero's Journey--which backfired/escalated when the kids proceeded to ask for She-Ra again every single day (I let them watch 3 episodes the last day lol). We noted that, like She-Ra, Nimona plays with the concepts of good and evil, and we had fun deciding who fit which archetype--I was pretty impressed--we did a vote at the end, and they decided on Ballister Blackheart as the hero and Nimona as the villain/shapeshifter, based on our understanding of archetypes and the Hero's Journey. (The Institute is also a villain, and Goldenloin is both a villain and a hero). Definitely fun, but for teaching purposes, should be paired with a more straightforward book for sure.
3. Morningside Heights by Joshua Henkin--Book club read. I wouldn't have chosen this, and the book club agreed that it has a somewhat detached writing style, and the shifts in time and viewpoint character seem to be written for cinematic purposes, and don't make as much sense in a book. Definitely can be affecting and acutely observing of living Jewishly and living with Alzheimer's, so some people may enjoy it. I'm just not into realistic fiction for the most part; it was never my favorite and has shifted more and more down the list.
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