Dan in Green Gables: A Graphic Novel: A Modern Reimagining of Anne of Green Gables
June 3, 2025 by Penguin Workshop
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
In about 1993 (based on a movie being shown in theaters), Dan and his mother drive into Tennessee, but sadly not to visit Dollywood. Dan is a big fan of Dolly Parton. Instead, his mother comes to the home of Dan's father's parents, Randy and Peg. His grandmother is thrilled to see him, but his grandfather seems angry about everything, especially Dan's cross earring and colorful silk shirts. Dan's mother, who seems to have a problem with alcohol, leaves him and disappears in the night. This means that Dan has to start a new school. He manages to befriend several girls who also have strong fashion expressions, and draws the ire of a bully. Having been the new kid many times before, Dan knows he needs to stand up to the bully or he will have a permanent target painted on himself, so he knees the bully in the groin and makes a public statement that he won't be picked on. This does not endear him to his grandfather, but his grandmother understands. Dan also questions things at church, where the message is strongly homophobic. He works very hard around the house, hoping to earn the respect of his grandfather, but instead, his grandfather complains that things like canning peaches are "women's work". Dan manages to find his place in the community, and even helps the church plan a fund raiser with a local Black church his friend Rudy attends. Kids at school tend to leave him alone, and he even makes a friend in Birdie, who originally calls him "carrot top" and gets a book thrown at him for his trouble. There is a lot of history for his grandparents to work through, since they were estranged from Dan's father, who died young, but they make progress, and Peg even manages to stand up to Randy on occasion. When Dan's mother comes back for him, will this upset his newfound, comfortable life?
June 3, 2025 by Penguin Workshop
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
In about 1993 (based on a movie being shown in theaters), Dan and his mother drive into Tennessee, but sadly not to visit Dollywood. Dan is a big fan of Dolly Parton. Instead, his mother comes to the home of Dan's father's parents, Randy and Peg. His grandmother is thrilled to see him, but his grandfather seems angry about everything, especially Dan's cross earring and colorful silk shirts. Dan's mother, who seems to have a problem with alcohol, leaves him and disappears in the night. This means that Dan has to start a new school. He manages to befriend several girls who also have strong fashion expressions, and draws the ire of a bully. Having been the new kid many times before, Dan knows he needs to stand up to the bully or he will have a permanent target painted on himself, so he knees the bully in the groin and makes a public statement that he won't be picked on. This does not endear him to his grandfather, but his grandmother understands. Dan also questions things at church, where the message is strongly homophobic. He works very hard around the house, hoping to earn the respect of his grandfather, but instead, his grandfather complains that things like canning peaches are "women's work". Dan manages to find his place in the community, and even helps the church plan a fund raiser with a local Black church his friend Rudy attends. Kids at school tend to leave him alone, and he even makes a friend in Birdie, who originally calls him "carrot top" and gets a book thrown at him for his trouble. There is a lot of history for his grandparents to work through, since they were estranged from Dan's father, who died young, but they make progress, and Peg even manages to stand up to Randy on occasion. When Dan's mother comes back for him, will this upset his newfound, comfortable life?
Strengths: The theme of found families tends to be a frequent component of LGBTQIA+ titles, for good reason, and Anne of Green Gables is a great example of that theme. The atmosphere surrounding race and sexual identity in the South in the 1990s was even more fraught than it is today, but readers will be glad that the grandmother is supportive, and there are people in Dan's life who care for him. Rey Terciero is a pen name for Rex Ogle, who also wrote Free Lunch and Four Eyes.
Weaknesses: Teen readers will not care about the original Anne of Green Gables, although these is a nice author's note about the importance of this book in his life. Jarrett Krosoczka also has fond memories of this title. This would have been just as good as a completely new tale, and doesn't really have as many parallels with the original as it should have to be a "reimagining".
Weaknesses: Teen readers will not care about the original Anne of Green Gables, although these is a nice author's note about the importance of this book in his life. Jarrett Krosoczka also has fond memories of this title. This would have been just as good as a completely new tale, and doesn't really have as many parallels with the original as it should have to be a "reimagining".
What I really think: This young adult title (there is more mature language and a trigger warning for homophobia and abuse at the beginning of the book) is a good choice for readers who enjoyed Weir and Hayne's Anne of West Philly (2022) or Curato's Flamer (2020).
I Witnessed: The Lizzie Borden Story
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
March 18, 2025 by HarperAlleyThis graphic novel follows the Lizzie Borden murders from the point of view of Charles Churchill, a young neighbor who starts to converse with Lizzie about the pigeons that she keeps. After these are killed by her father, Charles sees Lizzie trying to buy Prussian acid in the pharmacy, claiming she needs it to clean a cloak. The family mysteriously falls ill, and not long after, Charles sees (Rear Window style) activity in the Borden house. The parents are killed, local interested is ignited, and there is a sensational trial. Borden is, of course, acquitted.
There have been several explorations of the 1892 case, including Miller's 2016 The Borden Murders: Lizzie Borden and the Trial of the Century and Wallach's fictional 2023 Hatchet Girls, as well as other nonfiction titles. My students are interested in true crime information, but I'm not sure how much interest there is in a crime that happened before my grandmother was born. This was well done, and I normally love Kraatz's work, but I'm debating whether or not to purchase this.
No comments:
Post a Comment