I found myself making a lot more time for reading in 2015. In full disclosure, a large percentage of these books were graphic novels, but in my defence I'm an English teacher and we teach that literacy is multi-modal and beyond notions of high and low culture - so it's all reading, baby.
Here's the BIG LIST of 81 books.
Is History Fiction? by Ann Curthoys and John Docker
I read this on recommendation from my principal, Lisette Gorick, as I was teaching History Extension for the first time about a year ago. It turned out to be a brilliant way into historiography for my students, with an accessible overview of many of the controversies that pepper the discipline of History.
Sex Criminals (Volume 1) by Matt Fraction and Chip Zadarsky
Rocket Girl (Volume 1) by Brandon Montclare and Amy Reeder
Dragon in the Land of Snows by Tsering Shakya
Little White Duck by Na Liu and Andrew Vera Martinez
This relatively short graphic novel is both memoir and history lesson, giving a child's perspective of China's Cultural Revolution in the 1960s and '70s. We've used extracts from it at my school for both Year 10 History and Senior Standard English. I think the text in its entirety would make a great Asian Perspective study for either Stage 4 or 5 English.
The Aztec Empire by Shannon, Beevor and Miles
Saga (Volume 1) by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
Saga (Volume 2) by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
The Conquest of Mexico by Hugh Thomas
Another text I read in preparation for teaching History Extension. This massive 700+ page chronicle gives an exhaustive and lively account of the conquistador Cortes' devastating campaign through 16th Century Mexico. I read a few history books about the conquest/colonisation/disovery of Mexico after this but Thomas' version probably remains my go-to narrative about what happened in the New World when Cortes met the Aztecs. A very readable history book.
Saga (Volume 3) by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
The Conquistadors by Innes Hammond
A Brief History of Mexico by Lynn V. Foster
V For Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd
Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey
Billed as the 'Australian To Kill a Mockingbird', Craig Silvey's tour de force young adult novel encapsulates so much about Australian identity and its more problematic nuances that it's hard not to consider it even more relevant that Harper Lee's iconic work. I read this so I could teach it to Year 10 in 2015, and it turned out to be a really engaging choice of class text, with lots of discussion from the students.
Tenochtitlan by Samuel Willard Crompton
Empire of the Aztecs by Barbara A. Sommerville
A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies by Bartoleme de las Casas
Doctor Who: The Hunters of the Burning Stone by Tom Spilsbury and Scott Gray
Safari Honeymoon by Jesse Jacobs
I loved this little graphic novel immensely. It's written and illustrated by one of the animators behind Adventure Time but is (unbelievably) even more twisted and surreal than the cult TV series.
Batman: The Man Who Laughs by Ed Brubaker and Doug Mahnke
Pachyderme by Frederick Peeters
Saga (Volume 4) by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
Chew (Volume 1) by John Layman and Rob Guillory
Lots of people talk DC vs. Marvel when it comes to comics but I found myself increasingly drawn to the Image branding in 2015 with more askew and self-contained titles like Chew. This police procedural action-comedy follows the investigations of Tony Chu, a Cibopath (someone who can tell the personal history of something by eating it) who works for the Food and Drug Administration. Fun and tasty.
Gifted and Talented by Gary A. Davis and Sylvia B. Rimm
Y The Last Man (Volume 1) by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra
Awkward and Definition by Ariel Schrag
In Real Life by Cory Doctorow and Jen Wan
Sex Criminals (Volume 2) by Matt Fraction and Chip Zadarsky
Chew (Volume 2) by John Layman and Rob Guillory
A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
Yep, I finally gave in and started reading the books. And they're really good. So there you go.
Y The Last Man (Volume 2) by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra
Potential by Ariel Schrag
Y The Last Man (Volume 3) by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra
Doctor Who: The Cruel Sea by Scott Gray and Gareth Roberts
A Body Beneath by Michael DeForge
Aama (Volume 1) by Frederick Peeters
I fell in love with this ambitious French sci-fi comic almost immediately. The imagery is arresting and slightly disturbing, and there's something unmistakenly European about it that I can't quite put my finger on.
Assessment of Giftedness by Julie Lamb Milligen
Maus by Art Spielgelman
Aama (Volume 2) by Frederick Peeters
Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin
Beautiful Darkness by Fabien Vehlmann
The title is very apt. I avoided this graphic novel for a while because I'm kind of over all of that bubblegum-gothic fairy-tale stuff that Tim Burton has spun into millions of dollars, but I shouldn't have been so discriminatory. This comic is fantastically cute and dark without falling prey to cliche or bland familiarity.
Y The Last Man (Volume 4) by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra
Chew (Volume 3) by John Layman and Rob Guillory
Daytripper by Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Superfreakonomics by Stephen J. Dubner and Steven D. Levitt
I love this stuff. Fascinating use of economic theory and statistical analysis to shine a light on just about everything.
Looking for Alaska by John Green
A Storm of Swords: Steel and Snow by George R. R. Martin
Aama (Volume 3) by Frederick Peeters
Revival (Volume 1) by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton
Rural noir meets the undead in this tightly-plotted small town horror-drama. Vivid imagery and memorably complex characters. I read the first 5 volumes in quick succession and can't wait to read the rest.
The Madness of Cambyses by Herodotus
Blue by Pat Grant
The Rainbow Orchid by Garen Ewing
Insurgent by Veronica Roth
Blankets by Craig Thompson
I'm late to the party on this one but I couldn't immerse myself in the world of comics in 2015 without looking at some of the 'canon' titles. A lot has been written about Blankets over the years so there's not much I can really say that hasn't already been said other than that I found it startlingly beautiful and affecting.
Seconds by Bryan Lee O'Malley
A Storm of Swords: Blood and Gold by George R. R. Martin
Allegiant by Veronica Roth
Sex (Volume 1) by Joe Casey
Tibet, Tibet by Patrick French
I read this while researching a Modern History unit on Tibet and found it really interesting. Journalist Patrick French smuggled himself into Tibet to get closer to the country's troubled history and manages to expose some of China's more outrageous and shocking Tibetan policies.
Mao and the Chinese Revolution by Yves Chevrier
The Pearl by John Steinbeck
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Heminway
Y The Last Man (Volume 5) by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra
Building Stories by Chris Ware
If I had to pick a 'best' read of the last year I would, without a doubt, pick this genre and medium-defying 'comic' Building Stories. It's broken up into many parts in several different formats, which are kept in a box and can be read in any order. I interpreted the guide on the back of the box as instructions that indicated where in the house each part should be read (EG. This part in the lounge room, this one while standing at your kitchen bench, etc). As a result, it was a unique reading experience. It also helped that I found the narrative to be thought-provoking, compelling and emotionally gutting. Really worth checking out!
A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin
Saga (Volume 5) by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
Chew (Volume 5) by John Layman and Rob Guillory
Revival (Volume 2) by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton
Revival (Volume 3) by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton
Is Everybody Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
Kaling was hilarious in The Office, and has managed to defy several of the more despicable and conservative conventions of the American sitcom in her own show, The Mindy Project. Like her TV work, this memoir is equal parts hilarious and intelligent.
The Bolshevik Revolution (Volume 2) by E. H. Carr
Likewise by Ariel Schrag
Revival (Volume 4) by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
Stalin and Kruschew: The USSR, 1924-64 by Michael Lynch
The Gigantic Beard That Was Evil by Stephen Collins
A brilliantly unique, one-of-a-kind fable about modern life and conformity. This graphic novel would be a great English text for a number of modes and grades.
Doctor Who: The Blood of Azrael by Scott Gray and Mike CollinsThe Killing of History by Keith Windschuttle
Revival (Volume 5) by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton
Chew (Volume 5) by John Layman and Rob Guillory
And that's it. Phew! 'Twas a good year. Roll on 2016.
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