Katie by Michael McDowell

 

Prospects aren't exactly cheery for Philo Drax, the daughter of a small-town seamstress in 1871, until a letter arrives from her estranged grandfather. His farm and well-being are being (mis)managed by the villainous Slapes, and he fears for his life. 

Hoping for reconciliation (and potentially an inheritance), she disguises herself as a housemaid and rushes off to rescue her grandfather. But alas, the Slapes have already sunk their grimy claws in too deep and Philo is unable to save him from a horrible death. The Slapes leave with his money and a newfound enemy in Philo.  

Philo's story is an absorbing melodrama but Michael McDowell (who wrote the screenplay for Beetlejuice as well as several novels -- including the incredible Blackwater saga) balances the weight of her story with his depiction of the Slapes. They are stupid, brutal, and scary, none more so than the titular Katie, a psycho psychic with a flair for blunt force trauma. But there is also something undeniably funny in the way he writes their dialogue (truncated and simple, like their minds) and I could not resist being charmed by their simple pleasures (though murderous thieves, they don't splurge on anything but theater).  

Katie shares a bloodline with Victorian penny dreadfuls. This is evidenced by its bloody, sensational plot and evocative historical setting. I particularly enjoyed the depiction of a boarding house that reminded me of the 1937 film Stage Door. It's a setting that is quippy and fun but also sobering in its depiction of what it is like to be a single young woman in New York City in the late 19th century. 

There's also a Pride and Prejudice sort of romance, rather swoony, and one of the saddest murder scenes I've ever read. What I'm trying to say is Katie has just about everything I could want in my entertainment: drama, suspense, romance, gore, humor. Check it out! 

Blessings by Chukwuebuka Ibeh

Family, friendship, love, and secrets… Ibeh brings us a story deeply unwrapping what it means to love, even when everything around you tells you that the love you feel is wrong.

The story revolves around Obiefuna and his journey of self discovery as he grows from a child into a young adult. His life is not without its obstacles, as he discovers quickly he is gay and that his mannerisms are seen as weak and feminine. In Nigeria, these qualities are frowned upon, the roots of their hate deeply ingrained in homophobia. Obiefuna does what any of us would do to survive: he hides these parts of himself.

But one can only hide for so long. His father eventually sends him to a (very rough) boarding school, and it is there where we see many of the books’ events take place. We see Obiefuna’s destruction and evolution, his death and rebirth. There is nothing else to do but adapt when you are thrown to the wolves.

While the story is primarily about Obiefuna, through alternating chapters, we also follow the perspective of his mother, Uzoamaka. We see her deepest inner thoughts as she watches her son change. It is through her that we start to see a different type of love, one that transcends what Obiefuna has always thought he understood. 

Told in third person perspective, the book has an elegantly straightforward voice with a serious tone that still allows for laughs and smiles. It draws us into an attachment for the flawed Obiefuna as his understanding of love is consistently challenged. If you’re anything like me, it’ll also pull out some tears.

It's probably my favorite one so far out of the books I read in 2024, so please check out this book. It's a very beautiful example of how sometimes, the very places that challenge us the most can be the very same places that show us the truest possibilities of what love can be.

- Leo H

Time Before Time by Declan Shalvey and Rory McConville

Tatsuo works for the time traveling smuggling business  known as The Syndicate. He and Nadia, an FBI agent, are now on the run from the The Syndicate after stealing one of their time machines. Thus begins the graphic novel series Time Before Time (you can read the first issue here). 

At first glance it looks like just another time travel book, but a couple of things set it apart:

In the usual time-travel thriller you will see one company or group in charge of all time travel but here they incorporate many different moving parts that make it feel real. In addition to the smuggling Syndicate there is the robot-fearing Arcola Institute and the hypocritical company the Union.  

In most time travel, even with all the tech, they still annoyingly stay in the general same time period. In Time Before Time, they actually use this ability for more than just escaping from people or chasing them, and, even better, they aren't safe even when they do escape one spot because other people have time travel, too, and the writers emphasize that.

The art is stylized, yet still gritty. Character drawings are lanky and action-oriented. They are wildly different from almost every other comic or graphic novel out there.

This, with all the other reasons (which I will not get into detail about due to them being spoilers), make Time Before Time a must-read for all sci-fi fans out there.

- Guest Review by Juvenile Patron Seth B.