"The King's Dragon" - Scott Chantler

If you're looking for a funny, clean, full-of-adventure graphic novel...This is it! It's got everything from knights to pirates to kings to thieves, and even more impressive, an actually compelling plot with twists and turns.

This is #4 in the "Three Thieves" series. It's the backstory, told in parallel with the current story, of the knight hunting the thieves. He's got a personal vendetta for seeking them out. Also learn where the story REALLY started...

Read Also:

Jeff Smith's "Bone" series.

An "easy reader" lead up to The Chronicles of Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander.

"The Messy Book" - Maudie Powell-Tuck

"HEAVE!" the take-away word from this book. Love, Love, LOVE books that break the 4th wall. This isn't so obvious about it.

Read this to my 2-yr-old nephew over the holidays and he learned a new word: heave! "Cat." "Dog." "Heave! *laugh*" It was adorable and awesome to listen to him crack himself up.

There's a big mess. Dog wants to clean it up, Cat doesn't. (With a slight environmental message) consider all the options Cat comes up with to dispose of the mess, anything to avoid cleaning.

Read Also:

A Perfectly Messed-Up Story by Patrick McDonnell.

Mr. Messy by Roger Hargreaves.

The Curious Garden by Peter Brown.

"Little Red Gliding Hood" - Tara Lazar

Oh my goodness! Artwork has the 2-D papercut look, works wonderfully. Look for all the fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters. And I appreciate the transition of these stories into a winter setting. Love it!

This may have just become a book I need to own...

Red loves to skate, all the way to Grandma's house, but her skates are old. So when a pairs figure skating competition is held in the Enchanted Forest, and the prize is new skates, Red sets out to find a partner.

Read Also:

Ninja Red Riding Hood by Cory Rosen Schwartz.

Little Red Hot by Eric Kimmel.

Any of Oliver Chin's "Tales of the Zodiac" series.

"Contemporary Crochet" - Sys Fredens

There! 30 days worth of books. Haven't done that since 2013.

I haven't quite gotten up the nerve to crochet clothing yet... But I want to! I look through these books whenever I come across one. Some day...

Read Also:

Vintage Modern Crochet by Robyn Chacuhla.

Crochet Chic by Francine Toukou.

Colorful Crochet Lace by Mary Jane Hall.

"The Night Dance" - Suzanne Weyn

Found a library with the last two books of the series! This and The Rose Bride by Nancy Holder finish off the "Once Upon a Time" YA novels.

With a mixture of "Twelve Dancing Princesses" and the Arthurian legends, Rowena and her 11 sisters go in search of their mother, the Lady of the Lake. What they find is enchantment meant to distract them, provided by Morgan Le Fey. Only the power of Excaliber and the love of a soldier bent on solving the mystery of worn out shoes can save everyone.

Read Also:

Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George.

Diane Zahler's The Thirteenth Princess.

Check out the "Faerie Tale Theatre" by Shelley Duvall (it's very 80's, don't get your expectations up) but they're fun retellings of fairy tales.

"Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need" - Dave Barry

As always, a true laugh out loud read! I particularly enjoyed the list of states and what makes them "dynamic" since I would like to visit all 50 states someday.

Hoover Dam is the place to leave your kids while you go shoot craps. Disneyland costs a second mortgage to wait in line. Luggage is a scam. See Europe by bus so you don't miss a single ruin. All the wonderful tips to keep you informed.

Read Also:

The "Welcome to the U.S.A." series by Ann Heinrichs is quite cute and humorous.

How the States got their Shapes by Mark Stein.

Foxtrot's Say Hello to Cactus Flats by Bill Amend.

"The Book of Alma" - The Book of Mormon

One of the books in The Book of Mormon, the book of Alma is about the Nephites and Lamanites doing battle. So much about governments, war strategies, faith in God, and accountability.

It was well timed to be reading this during the election season. I learned so much about how a government could, and should, be run, how the people should vote, how to address problems and dissenters in one's nation. It was amazing how this book written between 91 BC to 53 BC has so many similarities to today!

Read Also: 

The Bible's "Book of Joshua."

Thomas Paines' Common Sense.

The United States Constitution: a graphic adaption by Jonathan Hennessey

"The Devil's Banker" - Christopher Reich

I really don't read a lot in this genre: adult thriller. I picked this out because it was about a forensic accountant (my husband's dream job) and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

A financial accountant has left his high-paying job, partner status, to join an espionage team routing out terrorists through their money trial. It's quite fascinating! Like a modern-day Sherlock Holmes bank teller.

Read Also:

Roger Hobbs' Ghostman.

I haven't read the following (I read almost ALL of my recommendations):

The Last Trade by James Conway.

Stephen W. Frey's The Chairman.

"Detectives in Togas" - Henry Winterfeld

A fairly simple mystery but a lot of fun picking out all the historical elements mentioned throughout.

Seven sons of highly ranked Romans attend a prestigious school. When a classmate goes too far with a prank, he gets expelled. His revenge on the teacher gets out of hand causing a series of events putting him in jail. Now his classmates must find the real guilty party before their fellow student is shipped off on a slave galley.

Read Also:

David Grimstone's "Gladiator Boy" series.

The Terror Trail by Stewart Ross.

Reads a lot like "The Hardy Boys" by Franklin W. Dixon.

"The Truth about Sacajawea" - Kenneth Thomasma

I learned so many things that I never knew about Sacajawea. I appreciated the detail, clarity, and use of primary sources by the author. He used Lewis and Clark's journals, added his own comments, and then filled in details known about the time and the expedition.

Sacajawea (the Shoshoni spelling of her name) was one of two wives of a Frenchman, a teenager herself. She was skilled at food gathering, cool under fire, and a hard worker. The admiration of Lewis and Clark for Sacajawea comes through in their journal writings.

Read Also:

Apache Agent by Woodworth Clum about his father, John Philip Clum, is a hopeful and respectful account of White and Native American interactions.



A novel about the time period, The Holy Warrior by Gilbert Morris.

"Echo, Echo: reverso poems about Greek myths" - Marilyn Singer

I did not realize that the author had invented this style of poetry writing until I read the bio on the back flap. I've read her other two collections of poems and they are fascinating, fun, and clever!

A reverso poem is a poem told twice. After reading the first poem through, you read it again starting with the last line and ending with the first, giving it a different meaning and/or point-of-view.

Hear Ariadne's opinion of Athena about their competition! What does Atalanta think of Hippomenes? Even Galatea gets her say.

Read Also:

Sam Ita's pop-up book of The Odyssey. Because ancient history can be fun...

Ovid's The Metamorphoses.

Fun!
Such
amazing poetry!
Read
back and forth,
to and fro
and try to follow along.
Who'd have thought
poetry could be exciting?

Poetry could  be exciting!
Who'd have thought?
And try to follow along
to and fro,
back and forth.
Read
amazing poetry!
Such
fun!

"One Crazy Summer" - Rita Williams-Garcia

I was totally on board with this book - social change in California in the '60's, Civil Rights movement, mother-daughter relationships, coming-of-age - all that stuff... until page 212 (there are only 215 pages) when one sister betrayed another sister out of pride and bitterness. That was when I decided I didn't like the book.

Three sisters, Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern, travel to Oakland to visit their mother who abandoned them when Fern was a few weeks old. It's the 1960's and Oakland is rife with civil unrest. As the girls come to know their mother and her world, they begin to analyze their own lives in New York. They also come to think about what they will do for the love of a mother who doesn't want them.

Read Also:

The Penderwicks by Jane Birdsall, all about a family of sisters and their relationships.

Lynne Reid Bank's Maura's Angel is about two "sisters" during the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

Gennifer Choldenko's Chasing Secrets follows a girl and her two friends as they live through the summer of 1906 in San Francisco.

"America, But Better: the Canada Party Manifesto"

Considering this past election, I might have voted for the Canada Party! A little too practical, a little too honest, this book is a humorous way to see how others view the United States. It works especially well because of the many things the US shares with Canada (language, border, workforce, entertainment personalities, etc.)

Since we clearly can't govern ourselves anymore, the Canada Party has written this "document" to help get us back on track. But don't worry, "this isn't an invasion - it's an intervention." -back cover.

Read Also:

Anne of Green Gables vs. G.I. Joe: friendly fire between Canada and the US by Allan Gould is a hysterical portrait of the differences (and similarities) between these neighbors who share the longest unprotected border in the world.

Steve Sheinkin's Two Miserable Presidents: everything your schoolbooks didn't tell you about the Civil War is a humorous look at anecdotes not often known about our government.

"Atlas of Lost Cities" - Aude De Tocqueville

I picked this up expecting it to have a chapter about Atlantis: speculations, theories, fun CGI pictures of what it might have looked like... However, this book is about real cities. It's a fascinating mixture of storytelling and history. The cities are all over the world, including North America, and the author visited the ruins of each one.

Ever think about where Babylon would be today? What is Hiroshima like today? Pompeii? Want to see a modern-day ghost town? Did you know... "The ghost town in [the Bond film] Skyfall really does exist - off the coast of Japan." pg.84.

Read Also:

Masada by Neil Waldman. (The city of Masada is included in the book.)

Christina Balit's Atlantis: the legend of a lost city. (Atlantis is not in the book.)

Simon Garfield's On the Map: a mind-expanding exploration of the way the world looks.

"Giddy-Up, Daddy!" - Troy Cummings

Okay. Did not see that ending coming. Such a cute book! So much so that my husband is now exercising to strengthen his back to give our children horsey rides!

Daddy gives the best horsey rides!... And what a ride! Follow daddy as he whinnies and bucks and trots all over and into every event in which a horse is used. It's pretty thrilling! (And here's hoping for the sequel: mommy gives the best plane rides!)

Read Also:

Cows to the Rescue by John Himmelman.

My Dad Thinks He's Funny by Katrina Germein

The "SkippyJon Jones" series in which a cat goes through his closet door into different imaginary worlds and adventures.

"Jedi Academy" - Jeffrey Brown

All the inside jokes of Star Wars with all the understanding of a middle schooler's experience. Too funny and enjoyable!

Roan wants to be a space pilot like his dad and brother! But his acceptance letter comes not from Pilot Academy, but Jedi Academy. (at least he doesn't have to go to plant school on Tatooine). Follow Roan's first year of middle school through his journal entries, doodles, comics, and lists. And "do or do not, there is no try" -ing to understand Master Yoda!

Read Also:

Frank Cammuso's series Knights of the Lunch Table is the story of King Arthur enduring middle school. Loved it!

Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon Hale.

Stickman Odyssey by Christopher Ford is The Odyssey in stick figures and doodles. The series wasn't for me, but it is funny.

"Somewhere in the Ocean" - Jennifer Ward & T.J. Marsh

Gorgeous artwork of sea creatures, up close, beautiful coloring. It has a simple 4-line rhyme on each page, but it was easy to get lost in the pictures. Also a counting and look-and-find book.

Count from 1 to 10, find each number on the page, sing the stanzas, and enjoy all the sea creatures in their natural habitats. Includes fact sheet at the end and sheet music for the tune.

Read Also:

Have You Seen My Dragon? by Steve Light is black and white sketches with monochromatic items to count on each page.

Andrew Zuckerman's Creature Numbers.

Kim Krans' 123 Dream.

"I Really Like Slop!" - Mo Willems

Mo Willems is really good for having a deep underlying lesson to his stories while keeping the actual story and text very simple. In this one, the lesson is to not judge another culture by what is deemed "normal" in one's own culture. What I appreciated was the ending where we don't have to like everything about a culture, but if we've given it a chance, at least we can give an informed opinion, without insulting the other culture.

Piggie wants Gerald, the elephant, to try his slop. Gerald thinks it smells awful and is sickened by the flies buzzing around it. But Piggie REALLY loves his slop and wants Gerald to try it. Because they're friends, Gerald does. Gerald still doesn't like it but he's glad he tried it because of Piggie..

Read Also:

Same, Same but Different by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw is about 2 boys living in America and India and how their lives are similar but different.

A classic, Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss.

And for the connoisseur in your life, Tales for Very Picky Eater by Josh Schneider.

"Half Upon a Time" - Riley

Sorry, sucker for a retold fairy tale. But this one's funny! Modern-day girl literally drops into the world of fairy tales. I especially liked it because the guy wasn't an idiot. There are many times throughout the book when he knows more than the girl.

Every once in a while, I just want a book where the girl isn't a know-it-all and the guy isn't stupid.

Jack doesn't want to go on a quest, doesn't want to rescue a princess, much less marry one, and doesn't want to hear again why it's important to do both these things. Enter May, [drop center stage] granddaughter to Snow White! Is clearly labeled a Princess from Punk! Hasn't two clues how magic works. Together, they'll save granny. Until they find granny...

Read Also:

Gail Carson Levine's Princess series including The Fairy's Mistake, Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep, and For Biddle's Sake.

Fractured Fairy Tales compilation by A. J. Jacobs. The HISHE of fairy tales!

Politically Correct Bedtime Stories by James Finn Garner

The TV show "Once Upon a Time" is the adult version of this children's book!

"Our Bodies, Our Shelves: a collection of library humor" - Roz Warren

So...the first 5 chapters were hysterical. Then she gets on a little bit of a soapbox. And then finishes up with more hysterical anecdotes.

If you've ever worked in a library, then you'll understand and agree with the author's perception that the library provides a never-ending wealth of material for humor. What I laughed at was I've had patrons exactly like those she describes! They are universal.

Read Also:

The Unshelved comic book series by Bill Barnes & Gene Ambaum. Love. them.

Please Bury Me in the Library by J. Patrick Lewis is a collection of poems.

Matthew Battle's Library: an unquiet history is a trifle dry but digs up all the good stories.