We’ve probably said this before, but it bears repeating: we LOVE comics and graphic novels, and we love seeing them get due consideration in awards predictions.
So far, Medal on My Mind has covered Cardboard Kingdom, Check, Please! Vol. 1: #Hockey, Moonstruck, Vol. 1, and A Quick and Easy Guide to They/Them Pronouns, and we have a post about The Prince and the Dressmaker still to come.
Here are a handful of others we think are worth keeping an eye on:
Our guest blogger today is Angela Ocana. Angela (she/her) is a fierce queer Latina, not to mention a saucy and sassy Teen Services Supervisor for Eugene Public Library.
Check, Please! Vol 1: #Hockey by Ngozi Ukazu
First Second, Sept 2018
Plot Summary: Samwell College’s newest freshman, Eric ‘Bitty’ Bittle, has handed in his figure skates for a hockey a stick in Ngozi Ukazu’s webcomic turned graphic novel, Check, Please!. As the newest member of the Samwell hockey team, Bitty finds himself in a strange world of straight men, steeped in ‘bro’ culture. It is hilarious how disgusting and gross college boy can be, and better yet, how Bitty deals with it. For the most part he spends his college days posting on his baking blog, fretting about the team, and learning to take a hit on the ice. Indeed, as the title implies, Bitty struggles with taking a check—or, for those of us who do not understand hockey, a hard hit delivered to block out an opponent. You fall in love with Bitty during his pie baking monologues and watching him sing his heart out to Beyoncé. As the book draws to a close, we discover the fate of the Samwell hockey team’s championship aspirations, and maybe more intriguing, Bitty opens up about his crush on fellow teammate and captain, Jack Zimmerman.
Our guest blogger today is Nicole T. Cunha. Nicole (they/she) is a librarian, traveler, and avid bookworm. You can find them on Twitter at NicoleTCunha, discussing disability rights, libraries, and anything they feel like fangeeking over.
I Felt A Funeral in My Brain by Will Walton
Push, June 2018
Reviewed from hardcover, library binding
Plot Summary: As summer starts, Avery Fowell and his mother are delivering cakes and BOOM. The car crash sets in motion a narrative of a young man’s coming to terms with the good news and bad news. Avery Fowell writes poetry so he can understand all that is going on in his life. Moving from past to present, we follow transitions between Avery’s inner and outer dialogue through changes in tense and form. Stream of consciousness and poetic form intertwine as the protagonist processes multigenerational alcohol addiction, self- and family parenting, loss of a grandparent, personal injury, and feelings for his best friend.
It’s December, which means that the ALA Youth Media Awards announcement on Monday, January 28 is practically just around the corner. Are you as excited as we are?
According to the CCBC’s Diversity Statistics, 136 children’s and young adult books with queer content were published last year in 2017. Our (less formal) spreadsheet of this year’s titles counts 162—a 26 book increase! Because of the growth in the market, it gets harder and harder to pick the best of the best each year. We think that’s a good thing.
The call is out! ALA’s GLBT Round Table is accepting applications to volunteer for the Stonewall Book Award and Book List committees until Friday, December 7.
What’s it actually like serving on the Stonewall committee? How does it differ from other award processes? Guest blogger Amanda Foulk provides insight based on her experience as a 2018 committee alum.
My year on the Stonewall Book Award Children’s & Young Adult Committee was eye-opening. I’m proud of the outcome of our deliberations – I think we selected two exceptional winners of the Mike Morgan and Larry Romans Children’s & Young Adult Literature Award and two excellent honor books. What I felt qualified me to serve on the committee was previous experience evaluating children’s books based on set criteria, and a willingness to thoughtfully and passionately discuss those books in a way that built consensus. What I didn’t realize going in was how different the process would be from my previous experiences.
Our guest blogger today is Angela Ocana. Angela (she/her) is a fierce queer Latina, not to mention a saucy and sassy Teen Services Supervisor for Eugene Public Library.
Moonstruck Vol. 1: Magic to Brew by Grace Ellis, Shae Beagle, and Kate Leth
Image Comics, March 2018
Plot Summary: Curvy, queer, bi-racial werewolf Julie would love nothing more than to go on her date with fellow werewolf Selena and not ‘wolf out’. Unfortunately, when her centaur bestie Chet tags along on her date, everything goes haywire, including the transformation of Chet into a human! With a crazed magician on the loose and a horse rump to find, the gang is thrown into a magical mystery that Julie’s new love life might not survive.
Shae Beagle’s dreamy art style perfectly captures a variety of body shapes and multiracial characters. The color work is gorgeous and sets the tone for a story that’s love-cute meets the supernatural.
Per Savin-Williams and Diamond, the age at which people realize their LGBTQ identity tends to fall between eight and ten. This research was published in 2000. Yet, the (small) proliferation of queer-themed middle grade novels is still a relatively new phenomenon. Since Tim Federle’s Better Nate Than Ever (2013) and Alex Gino’s George (2015), we’ve seen a steady rise in the number of queer-themed middle grade novels being published.
Our guest blogger today is Dr. Rob Bittner. Rob (he/him) is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the iSchool of the University of British Columbia, working with LGBTQ books for youth and children.
Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts) by L.C. Rosen
Little, Brown, October 2018
Reviewed from ARC
Plot Summary: Jack is a very sexual young man. He’s certainly not afraid to “get it on” and try new things. But when school gossip about his sex life starts to get out of hand, Jack’s friend Jenna suggests he try to use his experiences to educate his classmates through a new sex advice column in the school newspaper. Though a bit hesitant at first, Jack eventually embraces the opportunity, and in the process manages to catch the attention of a secret admirer and get the administration after him for disrupting the status quo.
Our guest blogger today is Dr. Rob Bittner. Rob (he/him) is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the iSchool of the University of British Columbia, working with LGBTQ books for youth and children.
Black Wings Beating by Alex London
Farrar, Straus & Giroux, September 2018
Reviewed from ARC
Plot Summary: Uztar is a land full of people who revere birds of prey, holding those with the skill for falconry in high esteem. Brysen wants nothing more than to become one of these highly respected falconers, and it frustrates him that his sister has a gift for it that she doesn’t want to embrace. The twins also need money, and their abusive father is certainly not paying the bills. Kylee can’t wait to get out of town, out of the whole business and away from her home, but Brysen puts the two in a precarious position just as the shadows of war are descending. The two end up embarking on an epic quest to find the elusive ghost eagle and hopefully turn the tide of the impending battle. Continue reading
Before Medal on My Mind begins looking at Stonewall Award contenders, here’s an overview of what the authors of previous winner and honor books have coming out for the 2019 award cycle. There are a few here we’ll definitely be writing about. Do you think any of these have a good shot?
Medal on My Mind 