As Christmas bears down upon us, the window of time we have before the shelves are picked clean of respectable gifts keeps narrowing and narrowing— which is why online shopping might be your best bet going forward (Amazon is a life-saver). Buying books will score you brownie points with the bookworms in your life, and now that comics and graphic novels are more mainstream, you might as well expand your buying horizons (either for yourself or someone else).
For the casual reader: My Boyfriend is a Bear by Pamela Ribon and Cat Farris
This was my very first NovelTEA column and I still absolutely love this book. If you want the condensed version: 28-year-old Nora, who works at a dead end call center that scams the elderly, falls in love with an American black bear (just called The Bear). It sounds all sorts of strange… Like, am I really shipping a girl and an actual bear? The answer is yes, and now I have to reexamine my childhood love for Beauty and the Beast. But it’s actually adorable and smart and fun. Once you get past the whole interspecies relationship thing, this graphic novel will make you laugh your socks off.
For fans of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: Ultimate Spider-Man by Brian Michael Bendis
Into the Spider-Verse is, unexpectedly, my favourite movie of this year. There are a whole swath of Spider-People, but undeniably, the main character is Miles Morales. I’m one of those comic book readers that wants to know everything about the characters I’m interested in, and if you’re new to comics but love the stuffing out of Miles, his origin story comes courtesy of Brian Michael Bendis. There’s a ton of Peter Parker stories before Miles makes his debut, but I love the fact that Bendis fleshed out the universe and made it his own.
For the Stan Lee fans: Amazing Fantastic Incredible by Stan Lee, Peter David, and Colleen Doran
Stan Lee’s work and philosophies have touched all of us in some way, and his legacy is truly the stuff of heroes. If you’re shopping for a Stan Lee fan, try his graphic memoir. It’s a fun, emotional, warm take on the life and times of the man, the legend, behind the public perception. It’s a memoir, so I’m not going to speak on it too much. But as someone who doesn’t read memoirs very often, I absolutely, emphatically recommend this one. Not only is it a beautiful book, but it’s telling a beautiful story.
For the mature reader: The Boys by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson
The Boys is a gore spattered, sexually explicit, action-packed series that pulls no punches and takes no breaks. Following a CIA-backed black-ops team that goes after superheroes (“Supes”) when they become too dangerous. In The Boys, superheroes are mere figureheads— ineffectual, and oftentimes sleazy predators rather than good-hearted saviours— they don’t care about the people they hurt, they just want to have fun. The group that takes them down when they get unruly— Butcher, Mother’s Milk, The Frenchman, The Female, and Wee Hughie— is smart, stealth, and ready to kill (or bite off body parts). The Boys is not for everyone, but it sure is a helluva ride.
For the young (at heart): Reindeer Boy by Cassandra Jean
Nothing beats curling up in front of the fireplace with a cozy book for Christmas. Cassandra Jean’s Reindeer Boy is the perfect fit for young
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