This week, my literary journey took an unexpected detour. While I didn't crack open a single book, I immersed myself in a different reading material – the festive and heartwarming world of Christmas cards. So, in the spirit of the season, I present my whimsical, satirical, yet endearing review of the holiday cards that graced my mailbox.

Barry's story is marked by a brutal honesty that lays bare the realities of his new life. From the initial shock and confusion in the aftermath of his accident to the painstaking process of rehabilitation, Barry's narrative is both heart-wrenching and inspiring. His background as an engineer is evident in his methodical approach to recovery, blending analytical precision with deep emotional introspection.

Radio World goes beyond the pages, fostering a vibrant marketplace by connecting technology buyers and sellers. Its multiplatform approach ensures that information is accessible in various formats, accommodating the preferences of its diverse readership.

What sets this book apart is its inclusivity and compassionate storytelling. Friendships form naturally as more kids join the cardboard adventures, and the narrative tackles severe topics with sensitivity. The representation of diverse characters and experiences adds depth, making it relatable to young and adult readers.

This past week I read Ben Hatke’s ‘Mighty Jack and Zita the Spacegirl’ I first started reading Ben’s work with ‘Mighty Jack’ but never read any of his Zita stories.  I must say, as someone who only knew half of the characters in this book, Ben did a fantastic job not getting the reader lost in the story. 

It takes a specific storytelling skill to start a book halfway through a character’s developmental story arc and not make a first-time reader get lost, and Ben did a great job with that.

The late Dirk Zimmer’s artwork gave me great nostalgia. The illustrations provided an outstanding balance of horror and innocent accessibility so that my 8-year-old self was haunted by the images but not terrified by them.

This is a great children’s book and has a great message for kids, and that is all about following your dreams, and being kind can make you feel good. Amy Baron also found an amazing illustrator for ‘The Gentle Bulldozer’ with Rogerio Coelho. His friendly and accessible style is a perfect companion to Baron’s story.

I got on interlibrary loan the 1984 children’s book, “Trouble for Trumpets.” The book has never been reprinted and is incredibly hard to find. When I do find it on Amazon or eBay, it usually runs for around $800.

Huygen created an academic guidebook for the reader which is imaginative and engaging. Rien Poortvliet’s detailed illustrations also give the reader the hope and expectation that anyone could run into gnomes while enjoying the wilderness and it would be completely normal.

This past week I read the graphic novel, ‘Cardboard’ by Doug TenNapel with my 6-year-old. We had a great time reading this book about a boy who received a magical cardboard box. It was so imaginative and relatable to any child or adult that plays with empty cardboard boxes.

This past week I read Eddie Pittman’s “Red’s Planet” Volume 2. Despite that I never read part one, Pittman did a really good job easing the reader into the story by alluding to what happened in part one while still making part 2 its own stand-alone story.

A few years ago I had the great opportunity to meet the more famous Barney Smith while I was at a conference in San Antonio Texas. I spent the entire afternoon with him and I had a great time learning about his work making art on toilet seat covers.

This past week I was also fortunate enough to get my hands of Lords of the Cosmos issues one , two, and three. I am reading them so I can send in a letter for the letters section of issue 4. I really enjoyed how Jason Lenox designed the universe and the wide and diverse cast of characters has made it really enjoyable as well

This week I finally got in the mail the last issues I needed so I could read Part 12 – 22 of the X-men event “Ten of Swords”. Since I am only a year or so back into reading comics, I got the strong impression that this event has set up some significant story seeds for the future.

This past week I read Nathan Hale’s educational graphic novel, ‘Big Bad Ironclad’ which is part of his ‘Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales’ series.

The format of the book is really good. I loved how Hale utilized the page formats and frames to help tell the story. Almost every page was a master class in graphic design.

I read Jeffery Brown’s ‘Lucy and Andy Neanderthal’. It’s a kid’s graphic novel book that was educational in nature that taught the reader about Neanderthal life 40,000 years ago. It was a fun and quick read and he did a very good job understanding who his audience is for the book.

This past week I read the miniseries, “Crucible”. It was from Impact Comics and meant to wrap up the publishing line by bringing an end to original heroes storylines while attempting to relaunch the line.

As a fan of The Comet, I was sad to see his story end, but how it ended was such a beautiful Shakespearean tragedy, his return in Crucible completely extinguished a beautifully tragic end to a hero by bringing him back as a one-dimensional villain.

This past week I read Geof Darrow’s ‘Shaolin Cowboy’. I love his illustration style he adds so much tiny detail. He reminds me of an adult-themed version of ‘Where’s Waldo’ Martin Handford. As a reader, I can easily tell that Darrow absolutely has a love and passion for wide frame images, and the graphic novel read like a spaghetti western.

I have always been a fan of Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland world, and seeing a story about the Walrus and the Carpenter was pretty fun. Landridge was able to keep the spirit of Carroll alive with the tertiary characters and sprinkling in poetry as narration.

This past week I read the trade paperback of the Marvel Comics event from 2006 and 2007. Even over 10 years later, the storyline is still relevant; where we can see that conflict does not need to be good versus evil, wrong versus right, but competing ideologies. Now that I’ve read this again after I’ve watched the MCU version of this storyline via ‘Captain America 3’;