The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation

Jacobson, Sid and Ernie Colón. The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation. 2006. 133p. ISBN 978-0-8090-5739-9. Available at 973.931 JAC on the library shelves.

September 11, 2001 was a failure of imagination on the part of the government. The very idea that people would hurl plans into buildings had never been entertained. Though there were many instances where the hijackers could have been thwarted, the various intelligence and law enforcement organizations did not share their information and therefore did not connect the dots in time. In the following months and years, new agencies were created, laws were passed, and a commission was created to investigate what had happened.

This book turns the 9/11 Commission's Report into a graphic novel. It relates the history that led to the terrorist attacks. It reviews what was known before September 11, who knew it, and how the dots could have been connected. The principal protagonists are presented, and the reaction of the United States in the months after the World Trade Center Towers fell. Fans of history will appreciate the details the illustrators used to recreate an otherwise dry government report, and will gain a new understanding of why 9/11 remains important in the nation's psyche.

Hoot

Hiaasen, Carl. Hoot. 2003. 292p. 385 mins. ISBN 9780440421702. Available both at FIC HIA on the shelves of the library and as audiobook on Overdrive.

Roy Edberhart and his family move often. His father works for the Department of Justice, and every year or so they join a new community. Roy really liked the last place, Montana, and they actually spent more than two years there. He loved the mountains, the wildlife, and the empty spaces. Now, Roy finds himself in Florida where it is hot, everything is crowded, and there are no mountains. His middle school is okay, but he's bullied on the school bus by Dana Matherson, a kid who is dumb enough not to know when to stop.

On one of these occasion, Roy's face gets smooshed against the bus window, and he notices a barefoot kid about the same age he is running away from the school bus. Suddenly Roy is intrigued. He's never seen this kid before, and there are no other schools he could be going to. He looks for him in town and at school, but can't find him. Looking to solve this mystery, Roy decides to follow the boy the next opportunity he has.

Meanwhile, construction equipment sits idle at the site of the future Mother Paula's Pancake House. The site has suffered vandalism, and the foreman has had enough and files a police complaint. When the police car itself is vandalized while parked on site, the foreman decides to escalate his protection measures.

These two stories gradually intertwine and tie together. A protected species, burrowing owls, live on the property but the company is ignoring its environmental assessment and plans to proceed with construction. As Roy investigates the shoeless boy, he becomes drafted in saving the owls, making new friends, and becoming part of his new community.

Black Hawk and the War of 1832: Removal in the North

Bowes, John P. Black Hawk and the War of 1832: Removal in the North. Part of the Landmark Events in Native American History. 2007. 131p. ISBN 978-0-7910-9681-9. Available at 973.5 BOW on the library shelves.

When we think of Black Hawk, we may have a combat helicopter in mind. Or a hockey team from Chicago. Or a series of landmarks such as hotels and parks. But Black Hawk was a real person who lived on the east side of the Mississippi at a time when the frontier of the United States didn't stretch past Ohio. A member of the Sauk nation, Black Hawk was not considered to be a chief of the tribe, but he nevertheless inspired many to follow him.

In the 1800s, following the War of 1812, peace had been restored between the British in Canada and the Americans, but the various Native tribes that populated the frontier had been left to their own devices. Some accepted American rules, others actively resisted. All, however, saw the steady arrival of migrants from the Eastern seaboard. These new arrivals were looking for cheap land they could settle on and create new communities. Natives attempted various stratagems to retain control of their lands and traditional territories, but in the end were forced by the U.S. government to give up their claims of ownership and move further west.

Black Hawk refused to leave, and returned to his ancestral home with a large party intent on re-settling it again. However the settlers in what was then the Illinois territory grew concerned at what they perceived as Native aggression. The irreconcilable differences between the two groups led to the last Native war in the Northwest frontier and to the defeat of Black Hawk and his tribesmen.

 Black Hawk and the War of 1832 presents information about Black Hawk and the cause of the War of 1832. It explores how the crisis emerged as more and more settlers moved west, how Black Hawk and his British Band were instrumental in attempting to return to their ancestral lands, and how American militiamen and military units confronted and defeated them. The impact of this defeat on the surviving Native tribes is also discussed, as well as the legacy Black Hawk left behind. Fans of history will appreciate the thoroughness of the author and the inclusion of various images and primary sources, and will gain a new perspective on a little known event in the history of the United States.

It Came From the Sky

Sedoti, Chelsea. It Came From the Sky. 2020. 512p. ISBN 978-1-4926-7302-6. Available at FIC SOD on the library shelves.

Gideon Hofstadt lives in Lansburg, Pennsylvania. A true science geek, this high school junior loves space, aims to get into MIT, and then work for NASA as an engineer. Problem is, he doesn’t really like people. Gideon only has one best friend, Cassie, and he barely tolerates Arden, the third wheel in this trio. He happens to be in love with Owen, who reciprocates the feeling, but it’s complicated.

Ishmael, Gideon’s older brother and a senior, participates in one of Gideon’s experiments and causes an explosion so powerful it digs a giant crater near their farmhouse. Suddenly the greatest hoax Lansburg has ever seen is born. Ishmael recounts how aliens came from the sky, while Gideon studies the townsfolk' reaction to the appearance of UFOs among them, hoping to write a sociological study that will impress MIT. As they push the envelope with more rumors and events, things threaten to spiral out of their control, and Gideon soon discovers that a hoax can change a whole town. Gideon is a complicated character.

Though never identified as autistic, he displays several characteristics, among them a love for certainty and the inability to read people. His family dynamics will be instantly recognized by anyone who never quite fitted in. The supporting characters are very realistic, and though the story moves along quickly the reader is always looking forward to Gideon’s next antics. The romantic interest involves only light kissing, making this book appropriate for all ages.

This fake visit from outer space combines into a brilliantly crafted and hilarious tale about the means justifying the end, until they don’t. Fans of humorous stories and of Sedoti's previous novel, The Hundred Lies of Lizzy Lovett, will be clamoring for more of Gideon.

Catalyst

Richardson, Tracy. Catalyst. 2020. 256p. ISBN 978-1-61254-445-8.

For years, Marcie has accompanied her archeologist mother to her various field operations. Now 17, she joins the site not as her mother's child, but as a bone fide member of the dig crew of Angel Mounds, in Indiana, once a thriving center of Native American culture. Marcie is introduced to Zeke and Lorraine, graduate students who lead her small group. She also meets Leo, a college student who holds strong views on the benefits of fracking.

Zeke and Lorraine begin to reveal to Marcie and her friends that humans are part of the Universal Energy Field, where energy comes from thoughts, and that they must help save the Earth from its inhabitants’ bad habits. Powerful corporate interests seek to develop fracking in Indiana and have a different message, however.

When Zeke and Lorraine reveal themselves to be aliens from another dimension, Marcie must decide if she will accept the burden of saving Earth from itself. Catalyst argues that pollution and human greed are slowly poisoning the Earth but that past inhabitants knew how to care for the planet.

Relationships, paranormal activities, climate change, and archeology all compete for attention. Marcie has strong opinions, but doesn’t know what to do. Leo, her romantic interest, possesses opposite views. They often talk over one another and are not really listening to the other side. The aliens guide Marcie, but she lacks agency and rarely exhibits doubts about the mission they foist on her. Leo undermines what Marcie is trying to accomplish, and yet she forgives him for mistakes that would have ended most relationships. The intriguing match of archeology and paranormal is not fully realized, but it remains an entertaining read. Readers who enjoy lightly sprinkled paranormal activities will appreciate this book.

Maybe This Time

West, Kasie. Maybe This Time. July 2019. 368p. ISBN 978-1-338-21008-8. Available at FIC WES on the library shelves.

 Sophie Evans cannot wait for the day she gets to leave her small Alabama town and head to New York, where she hopes to attend college for fashion design. Now a junior, Sophie works at Every Occasion, a floral business involved in all sorts of events, from the Valentine’s Day Retirement Home Dinner to New Year’s Eve celebration. Andrew Hart is from Manhattan, but he doesn’t live in the same place for long. His famous father, Chef Jett Hart, now spends a year working with a small business owner/chef, helping them improve and expand. For the next year, Andrew and Sophie meet during these events, working for their respective employers.

Sophie finds Andrew entitled and infuriatingly aggravating. Andrew finds Sophie intriguing but unfriendly. Can they learn to deal with each other’s presence with all the guests around them? Told over nine major events, Sophie and Andrew’s hostile relationship slowly evolves into one of grudging respect and then love as they spend more time together. Each character starts as a stereotype, the girl from rural America who can’t wait to leave, and the sophisticated boy from the big city. They quickly grow into authentic individuals with dreams that are worth fighting for.

The blossoming of their relationship is slow and sweet and involves nothing more explicit than a series of kisses. The supporting cast is realistic, with Sophie and Andrew’s problematic relationship with their parents accurately portrayed. Fans of relationship novels and of West’s P.S. I Love You will devour this romantic read.

Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 19

Adachitoka. Noragami: Stray God, Vol. 19. 2018. 178p. ISBN 978-1-63236-439-5. Available in the Graphic Section of the library.

The trial by pledge requested by Tenjin cost him one of his shinkis, while the Heavens lost one of their treasured shinkis. Noragami, Vol. 18 ends on the cliffhanger of the third part of the trial by pledge, with a head rolling. Noragami, Vol. 19 begins with the revelation that the Heavens lost the third and final part of the trial by pledge, demonstrating that Yato has been deemed not guilty and is therefore to be freed. Yukiné is expulsed from his imprisonment in the box, and the whole group is reunited at Kofuku's place to celebrate.

With Yukiné's death date coming soon, Yato decides he will honor it in style by throwing a flash mob dance, so he gets the whole gang, including Takemikazuchi and his shinki Kiun. But not all things are back to normal. Kazuma, for once, has disappeared and is not attending to Bishamon's recovery. Everyone wonders where he went. And Yukiné himself stings Yato when he is reunited with the Stray and kisses her. Does he love her, or is she messing with her mind, furthering the Crafter's plans for his battle against the gods of Heaven?

The story continues in Noragami, Vol. 20.