June 2018 – Commons Comics

An earlier version of this essay ran in the “Elkhart Truth” in September 2014. The “Luke on the Loose” storyline is a good fit for Father’s Day. Thanks to Better World Books, 215 S. Main St. in Goshen, for providing me with books to review. You can find all of these books at the store.

As a comics devotee, I spend a lot of energy trying to convince people that comics aren’t just for kids—but of course many, many comics are intended for kids in the first place, even when adults enjoy them too. When done well, kids’ comics can strengthen young readers’ tools for interpreting both words and images, and help them develop reading and critical thinking skills crucial to navigating our visually complex society.

I usually review publications less than a year old, but in celebration of the recent creation of TOON Graphics, a new division of TOON books, I’m reviewing two of my preschool-age sons’ favorite books from TOON—practically their favorite books, period—“Luke On the Loose” (2008) and “Benjamin Bear in Fuzzy Thinking” (2011). Continue reading “Comics for the Common Core: TOON Books Encourage Kids to Read”

This review was first published by the Elkhart Truth in October 2014. Thanks to Better World Books, 215 S. Main St. in Goshen, for providing me with books to review. You can find all of these books at the store.

A book is a technology that doesn’t often come with instructions. The instructions for “The Joyners in 3D,” by R.J. Ryan and David Marquez, are mostly tongue in cheek, recommending that readers take “snack breaks” from their 3D glasses to avoid “lightheadedness, memory loss, or heartache.” Give yourself enough light as you read, the authors explain, and the glasses included in a pocket at the back of the book will grant you the “simple but irresistible illusion of depth.”

Continue reading “The Future in Retro: “The Joyners” by R. J. Ryan and David Marquez”