Description: In volume 5 of Olympians, author/artist George O'Connor turns the spotlight on that most mysterious and misunderstood of the Greek gods, Poseidon: Earth Shaker. Thrill to such famous stories as Theseus and the Minotaur, Odysseus and Polyphemos, and the founding of Athens—and learn how the tempestuous Poseidon became the King of the Seas.

Review: Poseidon is one of the few Greek gods who doesn't have a physical presence in mythology. We usually hear of him by the raging waters or his monstrous children, but never the actual god himself. The narrative style of his graphic novel follows this same train of thought.
 Instead of an overarching theme which was featured in the previous Olympian graphic novels that I read, Poseidon reads more episodic. He begins his story of how he came to rule the sea after the war of the Titans. There is palpable resentment and tension as Poseidon keeps a tally of the wrongs done by his siblings, particularly Athena who favored Odysseus rather than her brother (uncle?). He tells the gory stories of how the clever Odysseus injured Polyphemus and Theseus managing to survive the Minatour. While he may appear to receive the shorter end of the stick, Poseidon knows he can cause significant amount of damage and does so in several tales.
  Unlike the other Greek deities that O'Connor drew, I didn't like how Poseidon was drawn. He looks like a mash up between Kung Fu master with his long, wispy mustache and Conan the Barbarian on steroids. I didn't picture him to be like that in my mind.
  While the plot jumps from story to story, it is easy to follow in the crisply drawn sequential panels. I do like how O'Connor makes his subject relatable by today's standard's of action heroes. While this may not be my favorite book in the Olympians series, I did find it enjoyable.
 
Rating: 3.5 stars

Words of Caution: There is strong, bloody violence on the PG-13 scale. Recommended for Grades 7 and up.

If you like this book try: The Odyssey by Gareth Hinds, Theseus Battles the Minator by Gary Jeffrey




Description: In volume six of Olympians, graphic novel author/artist George O'Connor turns the spotlight on Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Look for the same thoroughly researched and wonderfully accessible comics storytelling as O'Connor tackles the story of the Aphrodite from her dramatic birth (emerging from sea-foam) to her role in the Trojan War.

Review: I was really curious to see how O'Connor would spotlights the goddess of beauty and love in a kid friendly graphic novel. I thought he made a clever decision in emphasizing on power instead of sexuality in this solid addition to his Olympians series. Aphrodite's three attendants, the Charites, narrate a recap of the origin of the Titans and Olympians, leading up to the goddess's birth and highlighting that Aphrodite is essentially Eros embodied. After a series of shorter myths, various affairs and the introduction of Aphrodite's capricious son (Eros aka Cupid), the graphic novel concentrates on the beauty contest of the goddesses Aphrodite, Hera and Athena, judged by the mortal Paris. It was really cool to see how he problematic female stereotypes be pointed out by the goddesses themselves. They find the contest "beneath" them and "debasing" even while participating and re-frame the contest as one of power instead of beauty- each offering Paris either wealth, being a hero, or a chance to have one of the most beautiful women in the world. While there might not be a lot of action in this volume of the Olympians, there is a lot more tongue in cheek humor and great one-liners sprinkled in the story. This graphic novel shows Aphrodite's power in femininity and sexuality without being overt and crude.

Rating: 4 stars


Words of Caution: There are sexual situations alluded to in the book that happen off the page which older children make understand. There is also some crude humor in the graphic novel as well. Recommended for Grades 7 and up.

If you like this book try: Aphrodite: Goddess of Love and Beauty by Teri Temple

 Today I'm happy to participate in the Megan Tayte's Darkly, Deeply, Beautifully Release Party. Darkly, Deeply, Beautifully is the fifth and final book in the Cerulean's series. If you enjoy reading YA paranormal romances, be sure to check this series out!

 In addition to the working on library duties such as teaching information literacy skills, ordering and cataloging books for my library's collection all of which I enjoy, I also get to embrace my creativity skills and demonstrate my love for reading by creating book displays in the library. My most successful book display so far has been Blind Date with a Book.
  The Blind Date with a Book concept is not something I made up on my own. I have seen it done at other libraries and even bookstores, but I wanted to do this display to encourage readers and non-readers alike to pick up a book and read for fun. The objective of the book display is to get readers to think beyond the book cover and give a book a chance. You can create this display at any time of the year, but I usually do it in the month of February for Valentines Day. I thought it would be a good idea to a blog post on some tips on how to this display in case anyone else wants to do it at their school, library, or even as a blogging event (i.e. blog hop/giveaway). So let's get started!


TIPS:

• Give yourself plenty of prep time when you are creating this display. I usually start thinking about what books I want to highlight around the last two weeks of January.

• Browse your shelves for books that you feel have appeal to your readers (in my case, students) that might get overlooked because of the cover, boring book blurb, format (i.e. paperbacks vs. hardcovers, graphic novels, short stories, nonfiction), etc. 

• Get a variety of book genres for this display. Remember your objective is to broaden your reader's taste. For my display, I had books from these popular book genres: realistic fiction, romance, fantasy, dystopian, science fiction, mystery, paranormal/supernatural.

• Do not use popular books or books by popular authors because they don't need help circulating. Do use readalikes for popular books to help guide you which books to use for this display. Remember your goal is to put less circulated items in front of your readers. 

• Decide whether or not you want to write a "dating profile" for each book or put keywords of the book description. 

• If you decide to write a profile: keep it pithy and eye catching without giving the plot of the book away. I found my students drifted toward short yet teasing profiles. The most checked out blind date book was Blackbird by Anna Carey because of its profile. Here is what I wrote: You wake up on the train tracks in L.A. with no memory of who you are. A backpack is at your feet. Inside is a fresh set of clothes, one thousand dollars in cash, a phone number, and the instructions: Do not call the police. Who are you? How did you get here? What does that tattoo on your wrist of a blackbird and the code FNV02198 mean? Why are people trying to kill you? 

• If you decide to do bullet points or words: keep it simple without giving the plot away.  Here is an example of what I did with I am the Weapon aka Boy Nobody by Alex Zadoff:

• As you can see with the sample above, I focused on the main character's characteristics as well as the book's pace, topics. Use book reviews, the shelf labels from readers on Goodreads, or a library's database called Novelist to come up with your keywords and/or your profiles. 

• Decide how you want to wrap your books. Do you want to make a sleeve for your book and just wrap the book cover or do you want to wrap the entire book like a present? What colors would you use? Last year, my coworkers and I created sleeves for the books which looked nice on our display case, but once students unveiled their "dates" most of them were bored and turned their books in right away. I wanted to keep the mystery a little longer and decided to wrap the entire book this year. I also wanted a neutral color so that boys would not be embarrassed looking at the display and carrying around their books. There are a variety of different styles of Blind Date book covers that I found on Pintrest, but after discussing it with my coworkers, we decided to use the Aussie bookstore, Blind Date with a Book, as our inspiration board to create our books.  We ordered brown butcher paper type roll, festive baker's twine to give it some color, and tags from Amazon. 

• Lastly, decide how you are going to check the book out to your patrons. Some libraries write down the entire barcode on the back of their dates. Others cut out the paper so the barcode shows. I didn't like either option so I took the long route and photocopied the barcodes of the books, making sure they scanned in our library software. Then I cut out the barcodes and pasted them on the back of the book. Though it took a few more minutes for me, we are able to check the books out right away!

• You might want to consider adding an incentive to the display. We are doing a raffle for a prize to every student who reads a blind date (1 entry per student). The prize hasn't been decided yet but we are thinking of doing a gift card to a local eatery.

• As for marketing: we created signs about the display around the school and also put in the school announcements. Honestly, I think your display will speak for itself especially if you place it in an area that gets a lot of foot traffic such as near the copier/printer. I've gotten several glowing complements on the display both from students and staff. :)

The Final Product

 Things I might consider next year:

• Creating a bookmark inside the blind dates and that ask students to rank their reading experience.
• Find teen appealing nonfiction titles for the display
• Create a similar display for staff that would include eAudiobooks, eBooks, and print books.
• Do a Blind Date with a Book Banned Book edition for Banned Books Week.

  If you are in the mood for a light and uplifting read full of friendship, love, and food definitely check out Jenny Colgan's Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe. This is a perfect read when you want to escape into a book just for a little while.

Description: Having grown up in an apartment above her Grandpa Joe's little bakery, Issy Randal has always known how to make something sweet. She's much better at baking than she is at filing, so when she's laid off from her desk job, Issy decides to open up her own little caf . But she soon learns that her piece-of-cake plan will take all her courage and confectionary talent to avert disaster.

Review:  Issy works for a property development company and has a clandestine romance with her hot and ambitious boss, Graeme. Though she likes her job, she doesn't find it fulfilling and when rumors spread that the company is down sizing, Issy feels at ease that at least Graeme will help her in securing her job. The rug is ripped under Issy's feet when she gets laid off and Graeme breaks up with her.
   Issy, understandably wallows in her bad luck, but with the nagging from her feisty roommate, she finally musters the courage to move on in her life. She remembers that her fondest memories are of those helping her grandfather in his bakery in northern England. He always told her that bread was life and baking was love, and each chapter opens with one of his recipes. Feeling inspired, Issy finds her dream in opening a bakery/cafe. We follow Issy as she becomes her own boss and establish herself on her own two feet.
  I loved the humor of this book, especially with the clueless Issy who has no idea about what it means to run a business. Issy wins people over with her warmth and sincerity, which can also be found in her baked goods. There are a wide variety of positive relationships, both of friendship and those of business, that are examined. Even the secondary characters of a single mom trying to make ends meet as well as another woman going through a hard breakup with her child's father that come to life in the story.
  Along with following her dreams, Issy also gets a second chance at love with Austin, the adorable bank manager who also has his own hands full. I loved watching Issy and Austin together, their hilarious miscommunication always made me smile. Though they are bumps in their romance, I loved how they came together. I just wished their romance wasn't rushed too quickly in the end. I would have loved to see them resolve and talk about their issues.
  Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe will have you smiling, laughing, and craving for pastries. While it may not stick with you long after you read it, you will enjoy it while reading it. It definitely hit my spot of wanting a fun and light read. Just be sure not to read this book on an empty stomach because it will most definitely make you hungry.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: There is some language and sexual situations of the PG-13 variety. Recommended for teens and adults.

If you like this book try: Chocolat by Joanne Harris, Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel, The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine! This week I'm eagerly awaiting the release of two books: Blood Passage by Heather Demetrios and Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs. Both of these books will be published next month so the wait isn't too terrible. 



Blood Passage by Heather Demetrios 
Publish date: March 1, 2016
Publisher: Balzer + Bray 


 Exquisite Captive was my favorite YA paranormal romance that I read in 2014. It has been a long time since I read a book that completely sucked me in right from the start. I hope to find out more about Nalia's world along with her dangerous quest along with Malek's past. I am, however, disappointed that the publisher changed the book cover. Maybe they wanted to get away from the exotic stigma?

A jinni who's lost everything.

A master with nothing to lose.

A revolutionary with everything to gain.

When Nalia arrives in Morocco to fulfill Malek's third and final wish she's not expecting it to be easy. Though Nalia is free from the shackles that once bound her to Malek as his slave, she's in more danger than ever before.

Meanwhile, Malek's past returns with a vengeance as he confronts the darkness within himself, and Raif must decide what's more important: his love for Nalia, or his devotion to the cause of Arjinnan freedom.

Set upon by powerful forces that threaten to break her, Nalia encounters unexpected allies and discovers that her survival depends on the very things she thought made her weak.




Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs 
Publish date: March 8, 2016
Publisher: Ace

 The Mercy Thompson series is an auto-read urban fantasy series for me. I loved watching Mercy grow as a character as well as immersing myself in the world that Patricia Briggs created. With the potential war with the fae seems to be just around the corner, I'm sure Fire Touched will be filled with non-stop action and political intrigue.

Tensions between the fae and humans are coming to a head. And when coyote shapeshifter Mercy and her Alpha werewolf mate, Adam, are called upon to stop a rampaging troll, they find themselves with something that could be used to make the fae back down and forestall out-and-out war: a human child stolen long ago by the fae.

Defying the most powerful werewolf in the country, the humans, and the fae, Mercy, Adam, and their pack choose to protect the boy no matter what the cost. But who will protect them from a boy who is fire touched?