It's Olay to Not Be Super!

 

Batman: Not Super by 

Stuart Gibbs, Berat Pekmezci (Artist), Taylor Esposito (Letterer)

My Rating: 4.25 out of 5.0 stars

My Review on Goodreads

This was a very fun, cute and age-appropriate introduction to Bruce Wayne, who grows up to become Batman. While it takes some liberties with the storyline in service to the story, it works. Bruce gets into a school for supers (although he has no powers) because his parents endowed the school. All the usual suspects from Gotham (and Batman's gallery of rogues) and Superman as well, attend the school, and they use their powers for their own benefit instead of for the good of others.

Bruce has decided to fight to protect others in the memory of his parents, who were murdered. He isn't sure how to go about it, but he's on the path to figuring it out.

It's so cute to see Bruce as a young boy and not in a super dark way like on the Gotham show (although I enjoyed the show). This story allows for levity and a sense of hope that is often missing in the Bruce Wayne/Batman origin story. It was refreshing to see Bruce as an awkward boy. While I am a Batman/Bruce Wayne superfan, he is often shown as unfallible and someone who doesn't make mistakes. Logically, we know that Bruce had to become Batman and that took a lot of very focused training, educating and evolution. One of the things I love about Bruce is that he is a self-made hero. His super power is that he doesn't give up. I saw this in the young version of Bruce in this story. He has some hijinks that play well for physical comedy in the panels.

I also enjoyed seeing the young characters from the DC verse with their unique quirks, heroes and villains. There were a few characters that I didn't catch, but most I did. I chuckled at them all going to the same school.

The art was really good. Berat Pekmezci is an illustrator to watch for and I would like to check out more of his work. I'm not sure if this is an ongoing series, but I'd definitely keep reading it. I'd loved to see one for Selina Kyle (Catwoman).

I read this pretty fast (while recovering from a bad illness) and it made me smile and kept my spirits up.

Overall Rating: 4.25/5.0 stars.

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The Agony House by Cherie Priest

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

Coming home to New Orleans has not been the grand welcome that Denise, her mother Sally and stepfather Mike would hope for. They have purchased a broken down house with the goal of refurbishing it and turning it into a bed and breakfast with the meager funds they are getting through a small business loan. Denise is less than happy to be leaving her friends behind, starting at a new school, and living in a funky, dirty, falling down house. Add on to the fact that it's haunted by two presences: a small woman and a big man. While the woman seems benevolent, the man is far from it. She finds a comic book in the attic from an artist and author who was quite popular in the 1950s, one that may unlock the mysteries of the house, which seems to fall apart quicker than they can fix it.

This was such an entertaining read. I listened to the audiobook, and I loved how there was actually a dramatic reenactment of the comic book with different actors. That was my favorite part of the book. I enjoyed the twist of the ongoing series in which its lead is the intrepid young woman who constantly has to save her boyfriend, who constantly is the one in danger. A nice turnaround from the typical scenario. Careful attention to this plot device will reveal much of the underlying themes and mystery in the book.

Along with the ghost story and mystery of the house, there's a good story about a young teen finding her feet in a new place and making friends. There is also some great commentary about Hurricane Katrina and the upheaval that the city has not fully recovered from. Additionally, the story explores themes of gentrification and racial profiling, but in a very organic manner. I do think some of that was simplified, but that's understandable as this is appealing to a younger audience.

I loved the characters, from Denise to her parents (both kind and caring with good sense of humor), to the friends she makes, her nosy neighbor Terry (an aspiring ghost hunter), Norman (a hunky young man who had about eight thousand jobs and is a potential love interest, and Dominique (who starts out as an abrasive potential enemy but becomes a friend in the end). I thought the ghostly presences were well down, and how things seem to escalate as the story unfolds.

Despite this being a ghost story with some dark themes, there's a lot of light here as the focus on family, connection and community prevails over the very present evil that the characters face. It wasn't exactly scary, but it was nicely spooky and a very good read for October spooky season.

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