The Resurrectionist (2008) - Jack O’Connell
Highly recommended by many in the weird fiction community, The Resurrectionist did not disappoint. My favorite novels seem to mix the ordinary world (a pharmacist who's seeking treatment for his comatose son) with the extraordinary (a band of comic book circus freaks). I was instantly reminded of the Stephen King/Peter Straub collaboration The Talisman, only this book is about 500 pages shorter. Highly recommended for those who enjoy weirdness.
Hound (2009) - Vincent McCaffrey
Hound is one of those rare books that you read and after only a few pages, realize that “The author wrote this just for me.” If you love books and don't mind a leisurely paced murder mystery, this one's for you, too.
Awake in the Dark: The Best of Roger Ebert (NF 2006) - Roger Ebert
Awake in the Dark covers 40 years of Ebert’s reviews and essays, all of which are written with the clear prose of someone who wants to communicate his love of film with you, the viewer. I appreciate that. Reading Ebert is a lot like talking to a good friend about a movie you agree on or disagree on. But also, like a good friend you frequently converse with, he repeats himself. Yet with all that we've seen lately of Ebert's unfortunate demise (he lost his lower jaw to thyroid cancer, I believe), it give me great pleasure to "hear" him through his writing.
Global Frequency: Planet Ablaze (GN 2004) - Warren Ellis, various artists
Global Frequency has been called the Mission: Impossible for the 21st Century. The Global Frequency is made up of 1001 special agents who fight unusual threats to public safety. Quite interesting; I plan to read more.
100 Bullets: First Shot, Last Call (GN 1999) - Brian Azzarello, Eduardo Risso
What if you could take revenge on those who wronged you without worrying about the consequences? What if you were given a gun with 100 bullets, all of it untraceable? Great concept, but too violent for me.
Ex Machina, Vol. 1: The First Hundred Days (GN 2005) - Brian K. Vaughan, Tony Harris
Not only is Mitchell Hundred the Mayor of New York, he can also talk to (and command) machines, any kind of machines. Much better than I'm making it sound.
Daredevil: Born Again (GN 1986) - Frank Miller, David Mazzucchelli
I am discovering in my graphic novel journey that the superhero genre is most definitely not what it was when I was growing up. Daredevil’s identity has been compromised by former girlfriend Karen Page. She offered this information to The Kingpin in exchange for a heroin fix. Reprints a run of Daredevil comics from 1986. Still potent.
Batman: Hush (GN 2002, 2003) - Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee
I think the story covers too many bases, but the atmosphere of darkness (it's always raining) and artwork are incredible.
Everlost (YA 2006) - Neal Shusterman
Shusterman is never short on ideas or philosophy. There's plenty of both in Everlost, the story of kids who die and are trapped in a sort of limbo between life and death, a world with rules all its own. Seems to be written for a younger audience than one of his other books I read last year, Unwind.
The Ultimate Teen Book Guide (NF 2006) - Daniel Hahn, Leonie Flynn, eds.
A great resource for teen reads. It's a British publication, so it leans a little heavily in that direction, but still a very valuable resource with plenty of tangential recommendations beyond the main ones. Definitely worth a look.
The Silver Surfer: Rebirth of Thanos (GN 1990/2006) - Jim Starlin, Ron Lim
Thoughts here.
Y: The Last Man - Unmanned (GN 2002) - Brian K. Vaughan, Pia Guerra, Jose Marzan, Jr.
Yorick, an escape artist, wakes up to find himself the last man on Earth. So why are all these women (gun-toting Republican wives, guerilla Amazons, militant Israeli women, and even his sister) trying to kill him? Lots of humor mixed with violence and some rough language, yet a very engaging graphic novel, the first in a series of ten.
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