Books Read in April

Paper/E-Books

1. The Royal Nanny (own) by Karen Harper. Interesting historical fiction that’s been kicking around on my Kindle for a while. I think I meant to review the galley 3 years ago. Whoops!
2. *The Whydah: A Pirate Ship Feared, Wrecked and Found (Library) by Martin W. Sandler. I love it when the Hub Challenge puts books like this on my radar. I might not have found this on my own, and I really enjoyed it.
3. *The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora (own) by Pablo Cartaya. A sweet, coming-of-age story for a young teen boy. Really wish the Zamoras’ restaurant existed. Because I want to eat there.
4. As You Wish (owned) by Chelsea Sedoti. YA with a weird premise: a small town where everyone gets a wish that comes true on their 18th birthday. Like a somewhat friendlier Night Vale. I spotted the ending a few chapters in.
5. The Fifth Elephant (own) by Terry Pratchett. I realized I hadn’t read this yet.

Graphic Novels

1. Sisters by Raina Telgemeier because it’s popular with my young patrons.
2. Invincible Iron Man: Iron Heart, Vol. 1. by Brian Michael Bendis. I really like this storyline, with Tony Stark as an AI, coaching a young, tech-savvy woman who’s just as stubborn as he is.
3. Princeless: Raven the Pirate Princess Book 1. by Jeremy Whitley I didn’t think I could like a storyline better than i like Princeless, but here we are.
4. Princeless, Vol 6.: Make Yourself by Jeremy Whitley. The original storyline is still pretty good, though.
5. Phoebe and Her Unicorn: Unicorn of Many Hats by Dana Simpson. Still loving this series, and eager to read more.
6. Lighter than My Shadow by Katie Green. Autobiographical graphic novel about dealing with anorexia. It was a tough read, but an important one. I don’t know what reading this would be like for someone who had experience with an eating disorder… but I can say that the graphic representation of anxiety and depression and fighting with your own mind… was one of the best I’ve seen.
7. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl Vol 7: I’ve Been Waiting For a Squirrel Like You by Ryan North. Weirdly, I did not love this as much as previous volumes, though parts were certainly fun.
8. The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang. Lovely and adorable, and I’m going to have fun recommending this to anyone who loves a dreamy fairy tale.

Okay, 13’s pretty respectable! I think it’s my cruising altitude. I cracked 50 this month. And I read 2 for the hub challenge, as well as churning through three books I own. I’m not going to keep my copy of As You Wish, though I might hold onto The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora.

Sobering thought: Book Expo is coming up at the end of May and I still have a TBR pile from past years that’s easily taller than me, to say nothing of library books. Whee.