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.)

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 guess it's a case of not bad but not much there? More of an opener than a complete story? Namesless city is a much cooler title than the city everyone calls something different... I do like the nod to names and how they work in terms of control. The visuals are great, as someone who always has issues with perspective no matter how much I sketch out vanishing points and angles, serious respect. That's a lot of tiles and bricks and shadowing to have on point. And the pacing of the racing scenes really does ramp up nicely. (I'm always iffy on the nabbing Eastern settings and clothing styles and naming conventions without plot tie in. Not sure where the line is on what's okay and what's not. Especially in a graphic novel that seems to be leading to questioning conquest and colonialism?)

Good read, short but lots of information. A nice mix of more and less well known ladies. I like their summaries of other women they wanted to include in the back, and that they do have a research and resources page, though I really wish it had a bibliography. (And better art, I really don't like the art style.)

Just finished the Seashells more than a Home book. I kind of wish she defined mollusk at the beginning of the book since she uses the word throughout, but it's a beautiful book. It gives solid and easy to understand examples, the main font is clearly differentiated from the notes, but both are large and legible. It's also always fun to get to learn new things from a picture book. I have an abalone shell, but never knew what the holes were for! Or why cockle shells are so fragile looking. And there's a partial bibliography both for the author and the illustrator, huzzah!

It's wonderfully illustrated, but not much of a biography. I'm not keen on biographies that make statements about the subject's interior life, or on books about artists that never show examples of the artists work. (Or in general, on books that compare women to animals, even though I get it's meant to be a positive bridge.)

I thought it was awfully cute. The pace is a little off, sometimes slow and sometimes galloping, but overall it's charming with a nice message of being yourself with a dash of reclaiming and acknowledging the brokenness of the past. The mayor's heel turn from basically one panel to the next was sudden, I mean, closure is good, but still could have used a bit more there. (I also kind of wish there'd be some kind of acknowledgement of the role of patriarchy in the prosecution of witches beyond the obvious of it being male descendants, but yeah...)

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.

Torn on this one. It's very sweet, but despite being based on her life, I feel like it really shouldn't be in non-fiction. Even in kid's books I'm not big on non-fiction books putting specific thoughts in people's heads unless those people have written or spoken along those lines. So I'm suuuuper not big on non-fiction books showing animals thinking like people. I'm also iffy on how she turned herself into a tween/teen and glossed entirely over her injuries. It's lovely to have a thoughtful and positive portrayal, and first hand, view, I just wish it had emphasized more on the training and working together and less on an imaginary dog's POV and a quasi-fictional view on her. Two separate books-maybe a more real non-fiction and then a picture book might have been more appropriate here?

There's nothing exactly wrong with it, just wasn't thrilled either. Another white boy savior of the world fantasy with backup characters from 19th century vaguely 'exotic' localities and spellings. Somehow extraordinary long but also very rushed feeling. I do like the introduction of possible interplay between science and magic, wish that'd been more than a last nod. (If you know the cultural refs-Star Wars, Harry Potter, the MCU, you're going to know exactly what's going to happen blow by blow for the ending.)