The Art of War: The Classic Guide to Strategy: Essential Pocket Classics

author: Sun Tzu
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.12
book published: -400
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/30
date added: 2023/01/30
shelves: classics, non-fiction
review:
'The Art of War: The Classic Guide to Strategy: Essential Pocket Classics by Sun Tzu is translated here by Lionel Giles.

This classic work was written in the 5th century and is a brilliant guide to managing troops in battle. It is intelligent and insightful and practical.

I've read this book multiple times at different times in my life, for different reasons. This translation is clear and recommended.


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Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries, #2)

author: Martha Wells
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/30
date added: 2023/01/30
shelves:
review:
'Artificial Condition' by Martha Wells is the second installment in The Murderbot Diaries about a sentient security robot.

Murderbot's self-appointed name comes from a massacre that it only has vague memories of. In order to try to figure it out, Murderbot needs to go back to where it went rogue, and the best way to do that is undercover. With the help of a Research Transport named ART, Murderbot finds a job guarding some humans, but humans have a way of needing a helpful murderbot, even if they don't think they do.

This is my third Murderbot book, and it is a great series. There is humor and action. At the heart is a pretty interesting character.


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Welcome to the Future: Robot Friends, Fusion Energy, Pet Dinosaurs, and More!

author: Kathryn Hulick
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.30
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2023/01/30
date added: 2023/01/30
shelves: childrens, non-fiction
review:
'Welcome to the Future: Robot Friends, Fusion Energy, Pet Dinosaurs, and More!' by Kathryn Hulick with illustrations by Marcin Wolski is a non-fiction book about inventions we could see in the future.

This boook features 10 ways technology could change our lives. From food printers, to pet dinosaurs to personal robots. Each subject features the scientists that work in the associated fields, what the roadblocks are, and what we need to think about ethically about each item.

I loved this book of future-casting and open ended problems for young science readers. This is the kind of S.T.E.M. reading we need to spark young minds.


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The Pancake Problem (Weenie Featuring Frank and Beans Book #2)

author: Maureen Fergus
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.50
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/29
date added: 2023/01/29
shelves: childrens, graphic-novels
review:
'Weenie featuring Frank & Beans: The Pancake Problem' by Maureen Fergus with illustrations by Alexandra Bye is a graphic novel for younger readers featuring funny animals and breakfast foods.

When the pets wake up hungry, they decide to wake up Bob, their owner. Bob has rules about this, so Weenie decides to fire up his invention: the supersonic pancake maker. When the invention goes awry, the pets have to solve the problem before Bob wakes up.

This is a funny story with fun characters that young readers should like. The art is pretty great too.


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Zarathustra (1. The Lion that Carried the Flame)

author: Richard Marazano
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.18
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2023/01/29
date added: 2023/01/29
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Zarathustra Vol.1: The Lion that Carried the Flame' by Richard Marazano with art by Amad Mir is a graphic novel that takes place in ancient Iran.

A man arrives in the city of Gonur-Depe to start life as a merchant. He doesn't seem to know the rules of the city, but as we find out, that may not matter. The city is soon under siege and the mysterious man and a wealthy woman find themselves on the run.

It's only the first part of the story, and by the end, there is still a lot of murkiness to it. The art is pretty good, but oddly changes styles at times which felt a bit jarring to me.


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Escape from Yokai Land

author: Charles Stross
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/24
date added: 2023/01/24
shelves:
review:
'Escape from Yokai Land' by Charles Stross is a novella in the Laundry Files series that explains main character Bob Howard's absence from book 7.

Bob finds himself assigned to work with the Miyamoto Group in Tokyo to check wards to keep evil out. His hosts put him through a series of lower level tests fighting yokai. Bob puts up with this, then realizes there are bigger things afoot. Bob takes a trip to an amusement park and finds a gigantic yokai there, and now the fight is on.

I like this series and this side story was pretty fun. Bob is competent but always finds himself in situations that seem well out of his pay grade.


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A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe (The Salvagers, #1)

author: Alex White
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/24
date added: 2023/01/24
shelves:
review:



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Pusheen the Cat's Guide to Everything

author: Claire Belton
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/23
date added: 2023/01/23
shelves: childrens
review:
'Pusheen the Cat's Guide to Everything' by Claire Belton is a book full of comics about the popular cat and the rest of the family.

In the chapters of this book are comics about Pusheen, Stormy, Pip and others. There are stats about each character, the comics, the things they like to do, and food.

The comics are fun as are the cute illustrations. I knew of Pusheen, but didn't know about the other characters. It all reads a bit too quickly, in my opinion, but perhaps that makes it great for younger readers.


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Lady Mechanika, Vol. 5: La Belle Dame Sans Merci

author: Joe Benítez
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/21
date added: 2023/01/21
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Lady Mechanika, Vol. 5: La Belle Dame Sans Merci' by M.M. Chen, Joe Benitez, Martin Montiel and Beth Sotelo is a graphic novel about a steampunk android as she looks for clues to her origin.

Lady Mechanika gets a good lead on her origins when a mechanical arm turns up and it's identical to hers. This leads to some danger, which then gets sidelined when friend and inventor Mr. Lewis falls in love and may be in mortal danger.

I like the series, but this volume felt a bit weak. I liked the story that was developing, and then it got sidelined. I didn't mind the new story, but the interruption felt bad. The art, as always, is solid and the back of the book includes a cover gallery.


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Ghost Hog

author: Joey Weiser
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.54
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2023/01/21
date added: 2023/01/21
shelves: graphic-novels, childrens
review:
'Ghost Hog' with story and art by Joey Weiser is a graphic novel about the ghost of a boar who is out for revenge.

Truff haunts the forest scaring humans off. Claude and Stanley are forest spirits out to help, but they discover that Truff's parents have been kidnapped by mountain demon Mava. Maybe Truff's outbursts of anger can come in handy if Truff can get them under control.

I enjoyed this one as I have the other books by this author and artist. The story is illustrated well and should appeal to younger readers.


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Helen Keller

author: Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.24
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2022/11/16
date added: 2023/01/19
shelves: childrens, non-fiction
review:
'Helen Keller' by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara with illustrations by Sam Rudd is book 84 in the Little People, BIG DREAMS series.

Helen Keller was born seeing and hearing and a childhood illness left her blind and deaf. She found ways to connect to the people and world around her. With the right teachers, and a distant memory of the word 'water' she was able to unlock language.

This is another winner in the series and the illustrations are lively and colorful.


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Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide

author: Isabel Quintero
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2018/06/24
date added: 2023/01/19
shelves: graphic-novels, non-fiction
review:
'Photographic: The Life of Graciela Iturbide' by Isabel Quintero with art by Zeke Peña is a biographical graphic novel about a photographer from Mexico who has been featured in the Getty Museum.

Gabriela Iturbide was born in Mexico in 1942. She had a childhood that would seem to dictate a certain course in life. After her young marriage and the birth of two children, her life took a different course. She found herself inspired by black and white images and waiting for just the right shot. Some of these shots are reproduced in this book. They show a desert landscape with hundreds of birds in flight, or lambs going off the slaughter. She has gone to places like East L.A., India, and even Frida Kahlo's bathroom to get her pictures. Her style shows a poetic soul trying to capture the world around her.

I really liked this story. Gabriela Iturbide shoots in black and white, so the art is all black and white. The book is written with the artist in mind. The graphic novel finishes with a brief biography and a list of further reading. I loved that the artist's actual photos were included in this book.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Getty Publications and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.


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Draw Like an Artist: 100 Buildings and Architectural Forms: Step-by-Step Realistic Line Drawing - A Sourcebook for Aspiring Artists and Designers

author: David Drazil
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.83
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/17
date added: 2023/01/17
shelves: non-fiction
review:
'Draw Like an Artist: 100 Buildings and Architectural Forms: Step-by-Step Realistic Line Drawing' by David Drazil is an instructional art book on drawing structures.

The book starts with fundamental art and architectural concepts, like drawing straight lines without a ruler and shading features on drawings to bring focus. Then there are 600 sketches of all kinds of buildings, towers, bridges and landmarks.

It's a good sourcebook for drawing buildings, but I think in this case the readers should have at least a basic grasp of the art concepts. I really marveled at the drawings here.


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Took (Graphic Novel): A Ghost Story

author: Mary Downing Hahn
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.30
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2023/01/17
date added: 2023/01/17
shelves: childrens, graphic-novels
review:
'Took: A Ghost Story Graphic Novel' by Mary Downing Hahn with adaptation by Scott Peterson and art by Jen Vaughn is a scary story for middle school readers.

When Daniel and his family move to a new state and a run down house, he hears stories about a witch that lives in the woods nearby with her terrifying assistant. Daniel refuses to believe until his sister goes missing and a girl who has been missing for 50 years shows up, Daniel knows something is up. Now he is about the only one who can be courageous and rescue his sister.

I liked this fun, spooky story, but the parents were so checked out, it kind of kept taking me out of the story. The art is fine and younger readers should be scared by it.


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Blancaflor, the Hero with Secret Powers: A Folktale from Latin America: A Toon Graphic

author: Nadja Spiegelman
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/11
date added: 2023/01/11
shelves: childrens, graphic-novels
review:
'Blancaflor, the Hero with Secret Powers: A Folktale from Latin America' by Nadja Spiegelman with art by Sergio Garcia Sanchez is a graphic novel of a classic fairytale from Latin America.

Blancaflor has an ogre for a dad, so when a handsome prince challenges him, Blancaflor knows that her dad won't fight fair. The prince claims he has luck, but he is just lucky that he met Blancaflor.

Blancaflor's magic objects are the objects of women's work in indigenous cultures. I loved reading about her and the art is really fun. Recommended for young readers and older ones who still like fairytales (like me).


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Elric of Melniboné (The Elric Saga, #1)

author: Michael Moorcock
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1972
rating: 5
read at: 2023/01/10
date added: 2023/01/10
shelves: sword-and-laser
review:
'Elric of Melnibone' by Michael Moorcock was the December selection for my online book club. I had read this book in high school many years ago (along with Tolkien, Howard, etc.) and loved it then, but would it hold up after so many years?

I think it does!

The prose was what I was most worried about and it still shines with an ancient worldliness. This is a brooding Elric (with albino skin and red eyes), but not all he will be. He makes his missteps here but still shows more mercy than he needs to.


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Gretchen (Zombillenium #1)

author: Arthur de Pins
name: Wayne
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/09
date added: 2023/01/09
shelves: graphic-novels
review:
'Zombillenium 1: Gretchen' with story and art by Arthur de Pins is a graphic novel about an amusement park run by monsters.

When some monsters on a road trip accidentally kill a pedestrian, they bring him back with a bite, but can't decide if he's a werewolf or a vampire. What he is is far worse, and he's also now got a job working in a theme park. If he fails, the consequences are dire.

It's a darkly comic story with painted artwork that is pretty great. I like the premise and the characters.


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Little Elephant: A Day in the Life of a Elephant Calf

author: Anna Brett
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.64
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/09
date added: 2023/01/09
shelves: childrens, non-fiction
review:
'Little Elephant: A Day in the Life of an Elephant Calf' by Anna Brett with illustrations by Carmen Saldana is a picture book story of elephants.

In this nonfiction book, the reader will meet Little Elephant who is part of a big family led by her Mother. Things like food, bathing and danger are among the many things the reader will learn. There is also an activity section at the back of the book.

The information seems perfectly presented for children. The illustrations are adorable.


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Rescuing Titanic: A true story of quiet bravery in the North Atlantic

author: Flora Delargy
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.41
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2023/01/05
date added: 2023/01/05
shelves: childrens, non-fiction
review:
'Rescuing Titanic: A true story of quiet bravery in the North Atlantic' with story and art by Fora Delargy is a nonfiction picture book about a ship that rescued passengers from the Titanic.

The Carpathia was an oceangoing liner travelling from New York. Along with things like Morse Code and roles on the ship, the reader will see where the different classes of passengers dined, and how navigation was done at the time. When the RMS Titanic hit an iceberg and started sinking, the quick response by the crew of the Carpathia saved 705 lives.

Along with lots of really interesting facts, there are lovely illustrations that (to me) were reminiscent of the work of Virginia Lee Burton. I really enjoyed the story and I loved the artwork.


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Ninja Baseball Blast (Fuzzy Baseball, #2)

author: John Steven Gurney
name: Wayne
average rating: 2.50
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/05
date added: 2023/01/05
shelves: childrens, graphic-novels
review:
'Fuzzy Baseball Vol. 2: Ninja Baseball Blast' with story and art by John Steven Gurney is a graphic novel in a series about baseball playing animals.

The Fernwood Valley Fuzzies have heard strange tales about how baseball is played in the Manga Baseball League, so when the Sashimi City Ninjas baseball team invites them to play a game, they get to see it firsthand. Will they Fuzzies be too wowed by fancy tricks or will they remember that baseball is baseball?

I like this fun series for younger readers and wasn't sure after the last book where it would go, but this was a good direction. The art is pretty good quality too.


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Magical History Tour #8: Vikings

author: Fabrice Erre
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/04
date added: 2023/01/04
shelves: childrens, non-fiction, graphic-novels
review:
'Magical History Tour #8: Vikings' by Fabrice Erre with illustrations by Sylvain Savoia is a graphic novel for young readers telling the history of the Vikings.

Annie and Nico like to learn and this time around it's the seafaring, land conquering Vikings. The text separates out fact from fiction and shows that most European descendants have some Viking ancestry.

This is good for middle school readers and is informative and has great art.


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Shakespeare's Tales: A Midsummer Night's Dream

author: Samantha Newman
name: Wayne
average rating: 4.75
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/04
date added: 2023/01/04
shelves: classics, childrens
review:
'Shakespeare's Tales: A Midsummer Night's Dream' by Samantha Newman with illustrations by Ceej Rowland is an adaptation of the William Shakespeare play for younger readers.

The complications of love get more confused and comical when four young people head to the woods and have an encounter with the Theseus, Hippolyta, and impish Puck. A wayward love spell makes a mixup of everything until Theseus sets it all straight.

It's a great adaptation for younger readers. The illustrations work well and the chapters are divided by Acts in the play.


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