kathyellendavis's reviews
77 reviews

Azula in the Spirit Temple by Adele Matera, Peter Wartman, Faith Erin Hicks

adventurous emotional informative mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Azula is a character for sure, so learning more of her story and seeing her insecurities come to light is always great. She's even emotionally vulnerable in this one for a bit, which is rare!

Suki, Alone by Faith Erin Hicks

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Loved this look at Suki during her time at Boiling Rock. It was great to get more of her story and let her personality shine through. It was awesome to hear about the community she created even before being a Kyoshi Warrior, and how she was trying to build community in the prison by helping others.

Toph Beifong's Metalbending Academy by Faith Erin Hicks

adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I loved reading this; it totally makes sense that Toph would feel threatened by routine. I loved that the secret tunnel band made an appearance, and that a new type of earth bending was unveiled. A quick and satisfying read.

Search for the Sparkle by Jason June

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

A sweet story of some underwater friends who all have a sparkle, or magic power, except Lucky, a mermicorn. She finds a treasure chest with magic shells, and one turns her invisible! Shenanigans ensue. I liked the friendships in this book, and the magic powers are cute. We can't wait to read the rest of the series.

The Search by Bryan Konietzko, Michael Dante DiMartino, Gene Luen Yang

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

This one. Read through it SO FAST. The mystery of Zuko's Mother was never resolved in the animated series and it's amazing to discover all of this in this story. They did a great job of making it sort if magical, sort of realistic, a good mystery. Excellent contrast between Zuko and Azusa as well, and meeting a new spirit. This definitely centers around Zuko and his thoughts around it, yet the whole group is together again.  Once again amazing illustrations and excellent writing. It feels like these stories fit seamlessly with the tv show, which makes them even more fun.

The Promise by Bryan Konietzko, Michael Dante DiMartino, Gene Luen Yang

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Love this series so much! This is a really interesting look at trying to return lands back to original nations, and how that's complicated when people from different nations have formed families and integrated into a city together. I love that these kids discuss the nuance behind everything too. It's a great way to think about problems that affect our world too. Beautiful illustrations and great writing too! 

Super Narwhal and Jelly Jolt by Ben Clanton

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

These friends are so sweet! Love the intro if a comic in this one, and them being superheroes. Everyone loves superheroes. My kids in school cannot get enough of these books!

The Grieving Brain: The Surprising Science of How We Learn from Love and Loss by Mary-Frances O'Connor

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

This is a great read to understand the science of grief. We all know we grieve in different ways, yet our brains work in similar ways through grief. At first our brains do not believe that someone is really and truly gone, so we are actually battling our brains to believe reality.  Lots of great studies and science explore the many ways our brains can help us through grief too. A great read for anyone who is grieving or supporting someone who is, so pretty much a great read for everyone.

Quit Buggin' Me! by Nancy Krulik

funny hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Another great Princess Pulverizer book! Her first time battling a knight, the team works together in an even better way, they meet some moles who have a funny dance, and one more good deed done. 

Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man) by Jesse Q. Sutanto

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Another great Vera book! This one had a lot more characters narrating chapters, which I found really engaging. The crimes revolve around a very serious and sad subject too. Through it all Vera is Vera-ing, feeding others, making them feel at home, and not resting until she gets to the bottom of the case. It seems like another book is coming from the last chapter. I simply love Vera and all the characters in these books. I could not put this book down! So good.