Depressingly timely. I liked the way the author illustrated different ways in which older men tend to manipulate young women. It added a degree of nuance and extra claustrophobia to the environment. I get that it was trying for a slow build of tightness and fear, but think its length detracted from the acceleration a little.

I had a lot of trouble getting into this one. Both busy and long. Interesting though confusing magic system. Nice to see different types of friend and family relationships. Seems like often the main siblings are brother and sister, so two quite different sisters was a good dynamic.

It's very cute. Follows the age old younger sibling frustrated with older siblings story, but I think it's timeless because so many kids can identify with it. (Heck I can still totally identify with the mean cousin, even if mine was younger...) I think a lot of kids will also identify both the with excitement and frustrations of traditions and family visits. Talking with her neighbor is a transparent but still clever way to sound out and explain words for readers who haven't run into them before. (Also partial to her habit of making collages since that's what one of my last videos was on and I'm hoping to revisit a different aspect in awhile.)

Really good, it flips quickly between funny and heartbreaking. Took me awhile to get used to the art, but then moved at an amazing pace. A glimpse at a history and point of view I know embarrassingly little about. (read for the graphic memoir component)

Graphic format is good for this, but I think given how slim the story framework was I think a straight up comic with more visuals on the concepts and not bothering with the comic book inspiration parts might have worked better. (Also should I worry that I don't really get subatomic physics even when it's in a comic format and aimed at teens?)

I'd recommend MC Beaton's books for Lillian Jackson Braun fans, someone looking for a cozy mystery with a bit of bite on a rainy day, or those fond of British Mysteries. (Also for fans of the show Midsomer Murders.) It's a murder mystery, but hardly bloody. The murder is almost lost in the setting-small town pettiness, gossip, and pubs!

Attractive enough, but so vague as to be nearly useless. More a stilted but dreamy picture book than anything actually informative. (And as much as I like the idea of nods to the artists style, seriously, can we have some actual examples of his art, more than two small photos in the end material?! I'm really not digging this narrative nonfiction trend where bios of artists don't actually include much of the artists work.)

3.5 rounding up. It was awfully cute, I liked that everything about the diversity was casual-even when the grandmothers messed up pronoun usage it was just part of the flow and immediately fixed (though I would have adored more than a reference to a sukkah, I'm so desperate to see some non Holocaust Jewish representation...) and I generally liked the art style. It just felt a little like catching the second movie of a trilogy, or starting a new series a few episodes in. Media res works sometimes, but here it felt a little too far in and made the relationship feel like a wham insta-love kind of deal. I would have really loved more about the demon-how did it become one since it wasn't one to start? (All I could think of was princess mononoke with the spirits becoming demons.) And the stepdad-mom thing. And the ghost parents. It's like there wasn't quite enough world to hold up all the story.

I loved this book. It manages to be engaging while teaching the differences between facts and opinons. And tests and repeats the information without getting didactic. So even if it doesn't sink in right away, at least they're vaguely familiar concepts now. *Plus, he shows the whole sometimes we need to wait for additional information to make the call if something is fact or opinion.

I listened to the audiobook version of this memoir by Michael McCreary, a 22-year old stand-up comedian who is on the autism spectrum. The book was written in 2019, so it gives recent information on Autism Spectrum Disorders and supplemental graphs and pictures are provided at https://www.annickpress.com/Books/F/Funny-You-Don-t-Look-Autistic. The author tells his own story of growing up autistic, what behaviors led to his diagnosis as a child and how humor and comedy became a positive outlet for him. The audiobook is 3 hours and 37 minutes and covers a variety of aspects of autism, including the spectrum of developmental disorders, reactions from neurotypical people, social struggles in school and suggestions on how to better communicate and understand some on the autism spectrum. The book is appropriate for anyone age 12 or older and the publisher offers a lesson plan with the option for the book to be taught in a classroom. The lesson plan covers aspects of writing a memoir, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and the role of comedy in a person’s life. Parents, family, and friends of an autistic person will find the book offers some insight into what their loved one is experiencing.