I spend most of my time reading Japanese manga, which I really love, but this time I checked out a couple of American graphic novels that I stumbled across. Both are geared towards teenage girls and are stand-alone stories that are worth reading.
The first one I looked at is Burnout by Rebecca Donner, Illustrated by Inaki Miranda, Published by Minx (the short-lived division of DC Comics focused on publishing graphic novels for teen girls).This is a story about a teen, Danni, who is trying to cope with her father’s abandonment, her mother’s alcoholic fiancé and the crush she has for her soon-to be brother-in-law. She must decide how far she is willing to go for the one she loves. The story takes place in Pacific North-West and is set against the background of echo-terrorism. This story has some interesting plot twists and good graphics although it is a little light on character development.
Although the story stands alone, Black is for Beginnings is book five of the Blue is for Nightmares series by Faria Stolarz and is only one done in a graphic novel format. I have not read the other books in this series.The story is about a student, Stacey, who has nightmares; the trouble is that when she has nightmares they tend to come true.Stacey has to learn how to cope with a pair of tragedies in her past in order to allow her to move forward with her relationship.The book has a serious and supernatural plot, however it is splattered with humour making it a fun read.
Black is for Beginnings is by Laurie Faria Stolarz, adaptation by Barbara Randall Kesel and Artwork by Janina Gorrissen, published by Flux.