Displacement: A Travelogue by Lucy Knisley - Fantagraphics - 161 pages - ISBN 9781606998106

Displacement is a graphic novel memoir about the cruise Lucy took with her elderly grandparents. She covers the emotional and physical difficulties of traveling with loved ones now living with dementia.

I love this book because it recapitulates my experience on an Alaska cruise with my grandmother, grandfather and his adult day care group comprised of adults living with Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease. I though had an easier time as it was only one grandparent suffering from dementia and I was young enough to not have many responsibilities in the care of my grandfather.

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Finding Someplace by Denise Lewis Patrick - Henry Holt and Company - 224 pages - ISBN 9780805047165

Finding Someplace by Denise Lewis Patrick is the story of a family divided and displaced by Hurricane Katrina. There are numerous Katrina stories out now, but this one hits home with the heartbreak anyone feels when displaced from their home especially if their home and neighborhood has been completely destroyed whether by nature or by war.

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The Fog Diver by Joel Ross - Harper Collins - 332 pages - ISBN 9780062352934

The Fog Diver by Joel Ross is a near future post apocalyptic tween adventure story involving treasure hunting, scavenging, and dirigibles. A man made fog has taken over the earth, forcing mankind in to the mountains and into airships. Chess, a boy unaffected by the fog, makes his living as a diver, going down by wire into the remains of society to find treasures he and his shipmates can sell.

I know I'd love it form the cover and title alone. The author lives in Santa Barbara, a place known for its fog (nicknamed the Fog Monster). Though Chess's world isn't specifically named, it has a familiar feel to it.

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Hamster Princess: Harriet the Invincible by Ursula Vernon - Dial Books - 256 pages - ISBN 9780803739833

Hamster Princess: Harriet the Invincible by Ursula Vernon is the start of a new tween fantasy style. It's a hybrid graphic novel, meaning it is mostly text but has some illustrations done in a comic book style similar to the Lunch Lady series. Harriet is a princess who doesn't want to swoon at the knowledge that she's been cursed. She wants to do something about it. And she does, brilliantly.

Harriet the Invincible is a clever retelling of the Sleeping Beauty story with the sort of strong female lead I wish more books had. I haven't heard anyone else talking about this book but it's the one I'm giving to every book lover I know (including donating copies to my local elementary school library).

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Little Robot by Ben Hatke - First Second - 144 pages - ISBN 9781626720800

Little Robot by Ben Hatke is the tale of a girl finding, fixing, and befriending a lost robot. Told as an almost wordless graphic novel, it's a possibly near future dystopia where mankind has been pushed aside by now sentient robots. The girl like every other human shown lives at the edge of a junkyard over run by trees. Farther away is an ultra clean factory run entirely by robots, producing more robots, for reasons unstated but decidedly nefarious.

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Nimona by Noelle Stevenson - Harper Teen - 266 pages - ISBN 9780062278234

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson has earned its way onto a bunch of lists and rightfully so. Originally published as a webcomic, it's now out in glorious hardback. Nimona, the eponymous character is a shapeshifting young woman who wants to be a super villain's sidekick. Her super-villain of choice, though, might not be as evil as she would like. In the meantime, the good guys probably aren't as good as they would like you to believe.

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Return to Augie Hobble by Lane Smith - Roaring Brook Press - 288 pages - ISBN 9781626720541

Return to Augie Hobble by Lane Smith is the illustrator's debut into writing tween fiction. It's set along an abandoned piece of US 66 in New Mexico at a struggling family run amusement park, done as a low budget Disneyland. When Augie's best friend dies due to his peanut allergy, Augie begins to see supernatural things at the amusement park.

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Rutabaga the Adventure Chef by Eric Colossal - Harry N. Abrams - 128 pages - ISBN 9781419713804

Rutabaga the Adventure Chef by Eric Colossal is the start of a tween graphic novel fantasy that should be getting more attention than it is. It's the story of a young chef who wants to travel the world to discover new ingredients and recipes. If that means cooking for adventurers, being a fry cook at an inn, or working for a king, than so be it. He'll cook for anyone and everyone and it will always taste good.

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Woundabout by Lev A.C. Rosen - Little, Brown Books for Young Readers - 288 pages - ISBN 9780316370783

Woundabout by Lev A.C. Rosen is a modern day Gothic mystery about a pair of orphans sent to a strange town to live with their aunt. They are the only children in the entire village and strange things are afoot. Woundabout seems stuck in routine and tradition, afraid to move forward. The twins' presence might be just what the town needs.

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You and Me by Susan Verde - Harry N Abrams - 32 pages - ISBN 9781419711978

You and Me by Susan Verde is the story of best friends and all the ways they could have missed meeting each other. For anyone in a long term relationship — whether a friendship or a romantic one, the what-ifs are big thing.

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