Contact Wellington City Libraries | Help | Site Index | Privacy statement

Wellington City Libraries

Te Matapihi Ki Te Ao Nui

Search options

Teen Blog

Reading, Wellington, and whatever else – teenblog@wcl.govt.nz

Category: science fiction Page 1 of 5

The Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide to… Dragon Ball

By

On Thursday, 21 March, 2024

In anime & manga, science fiction, stuff to read, the wellington comic lover's guide to...

Welcome to the Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide, where we take you through the Wellington City Libraries’ collection of a comic book character or series. This post is all about the adventures and battles of the greatest martials arts warriors on Earth, Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z!

Goku in the original Dragon Ball anime (GIF via GIPHY)


What is Dragon Ball?

Written and drawn by the late Akira Toriyama (1955-2024), Dragon Ball is one of the most popular and influential manga in the world. First serialized in the magazine Weekly Shonen Jump between 1984 and 1995, the story follows the adventures of Son Goku, a heroic monkey-tailed boy who goes an epic quest to collect the seven Dragon Balls, a set of artifacts that when gathered together summon a dragon that can grant wishes.

Beginning as an adventure story inspired by martial arts films and the Chinese epic novel Journey to the West, Dragon Ball initially followed Goku on his quest alongside explorer Bulma, former bandit Yamcha, rival martial artist Krillin, and the aged but powerful martial arts sensei Master Roshi.

Goku and his allies in Dragon Ball Z (GIF via GIPHY)

The series then skips ahead to Goku’s adult years (which the anime would rename Dragon Ball Z), where he learned of his alien heritage as a member of the Saiyan race. Here, Dragon Ball pivots to being a science-fiction action series, based around epic battles between powerful villains, such as the Saiyan prince Vegeta, the alien tyrant Frieza, and the child-like magical being Majin Buu.

(Note: The Dragon Ball manga series is split into Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z to be more familiar to anime viewers; the manga in its original form is considered one continuous series named Dragon Ball. As such, our Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z volumes overlap slightly between these two halves, which I will note below).


Dragon Ball

We have the entirety of the Dragon Ball series in 3-in-1 editions, covering chapters 1 to 194 of the original manga.

The first five volumes of Dragon Ball Z are also in these editions, beginning halfway through the sixth one.

Dragonball : 3-in-1 edition. 1 / Toriyama, Akira

Dragonball : 3-in-1 edition. 2 / Toriyama, Akira

Dragonball : 3-in-1 edition. 3 / Toriyama, Akira

Dragonball : 3-in-1 edition. 4 / Toriyama, Akira

Dragonball : 3-in-1 edition. 6 / Toriyama, Akira (Dragon Ball Z begins here)

Dragonball : 3-in-1 edition. 7 / Toriyama, Akira


Dragon Ball Z

Dragon Ball Z comprises chapters 195 to 519 of the Dragon Ball manga, beginning with the volume The World’s Greatest Team.

(If you read all of the above Dragonball volumes first, skip to Dragon Ball Z volume 2).

Dragon Ball Z [1] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [2] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [3] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [4] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [5] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [6] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [7] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [8] / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Z [9] / Toriyama, Akira


Dragon Ball Super

Published 20 years after the end of Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball Super picks up six months after the series’ climactic battle with Majin Buu. Here, Goku and his allies take part in the Tournament of Power, a contest between the most powerful warriors of eight universes.

Dragon Ball super. 1, Warriors from Universe 6 / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 2, The winning universe is decided / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 3, Zero mortal project / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 4, Last chance for hope / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 5, The decisive battle! Farewell, trunks / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 6, The super warriors gather / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 7, Universe survival! Tournament of Power begins! / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 8, Sign of son Goku’s awakening / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 9, Battle’s end and aftermath / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 10, Moro’s wish / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 11, Great escape / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 12, Merus’s true identity / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 13, Battles abound / Toriyama, Akira (also on Libby)

Dragon Ball super. 14, Son Goku, galactic patrol officer / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 15, Moro, consumer of worlds / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 16, The universe’s greatest warrior / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon ball super. 17, God of destruction power / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 18, Bardock, father of Goku / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 19, A people’s pride / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball super. 20, All-out bout / Toriyama, Akira

Dragon Ball Super 21 / Toriyama, Akira

Brooms, Break-Ups and Bizarre Murders: New Teen Books in the Collection

By

On Saturday, 24 February, 2024

In comics and graphic novels, dystopia, fantasy, mysteries & whodunnits, new stuff (ooh, shiny!), non-fiction, science fiction, stuff to read

It’s February and we’ve got another fine selection of new books in the Young Adult collection.  And what a diverse lot!  From alternative fiction about broom racing and bigotry, to help with finding your voice in a difficult and changing world, and a wild new story about a serial killer with a menstrual obsession, there’s a lot to explore.  Check out this selection of just some of the titles that have hit our shelves this month…

Comics

Brooms / Walls, Jasmine
“It’s 1930s Mississippi. Magic is permitted only in certain circumstances, and by certain people. Unsanctioned broom racing is banned. But for those who need the money, or the thrills… it’s there to be found. Brooms is a queer, witchy Fast and the Furious that shines light on history not often told – it’s everything you’d ever want to read in a graphic novel.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Guardians of the Galaxy. Vol. 1, Grootfall / Kelly, Collin
“One year ago, the Guardians of the Galaxy were torn apart – their optimistic future shattered by the betrayal of one of their own. Now they ride the space lanes of a lawless corner of the galaxy, trying to outrun their tragedy. Caught in the middle of a civil war, those who were once Guardians face a battle that was lost from the start. Because they’re about to find themselves face-to-face with their old ally Groot – and he’s not the friend they remember! Where Groot goes, Rocket won’t be far behind – but he’s not happy to see the Guardians!” (Adapted from Catalogue)

If you’ll have me / Eunnie
“Momo Gardner is the kind of friend who’s always ready to lend a helping hand. She’s introverted, sensitive, and maybe a little too trusting, but she likes to believe the best in people. PG, on the other hand, is a bit of a lone wolf, despite her reputation for being a flirt and a player. An unexpected meet-cute brings the two together, kicking off the beginning of an awkward yet endearing courtship–but with their drastically different personalities, Momo’s overprotective friend, and PG’s past coming back to haunt her, Momo and PG’s romance is put to the test.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Static : up all night / Giles, Lamar
“After Virgil Hawkins reveals his secret identity as Static to his girlfriend, Daisy, she breaks up with him, leaving him free to go to a big music festival with his best friend Richie Foley (also known as superhero Gear), but they soon run into girls who each have secret identities of their own.” (Catalogue)

Fiction

Thin air / Parker, Kellie M.
“Seventeen-year-old boarding school student Emily Walters is selected for an opportunity of a lifetime–she’ll compete abroad for a cash prize that will cover not only tuition to the college of her choice, but will lift her mother and her out of poverty. But almost from the moment she and 11 other contestants board a private jet to Europe, Emily realizes somebody is willing to do anything to win. As loyalties shift and secrets are revealed, Emily must figure out who to trust, and who’s trying to kill them all, before she becomes the next victim.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Murtagh / Paolini, Christopher
“The world is no longer safe for the Dragon Rider Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn. An evil king has been toppled, and they are left to face the consequences of the reluctant role they played in his reign of terror. Now they are hated and alone, exiled to the outskirts of society. So begins an epic journey into lands both familiar and untraveled, where Murtagh and Thorn must use every weapon in their arsenal, from brains to brawn, to find and outwit a mysterious witch. A witch who is much more than she seems.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Murder on a school night / Weston, Kate
“All Kerry wants to do is stay at home with her rom-coms and strict retainer schedule. Instead, her BFF Annie has roped her into going to their first sixth-form party to investigate who’s cyberbullying Heather, the most popular girl in school. On the cusp of kissing her dreamy crush, Scott, Kerry discovers the body of Heather’s second in command – suffocated with a menstrual cup. Within days, another student turns up dead, this time with a sanitary pad across the eyes. Now Annie and Kerry are officially on the case to stop the menstrual murderer… period.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Gwen & Art are not in love / Croucher, Lex
“Gwen, the quick-witted Princess of England, and Arthur, future lord and general gadabout, have been betrothed since birth. Unfortunately, the only thing they can agree on is that they hate each other. When Gwen catches Art kissing a boy and Art discovers where Gwen hides her diary (complete with racy entries about Bridget Leclair, the kingdom’s only female knight), they become reluctant allies. By pretending to fall for each other, their mutual protection will be assured. But how long can they keep up the ruse? With Gwen growing closer to Bridget, and Art becoming unaccountably fond of Gabriel, Gwen’s infuriatingly serious, bookish brother, the path to true love is looking far from straight” (Catalogue)

Non-Fiction

Louder! : a guide to finding your voice and changing the world / Asquith, Kate
“”If you want to use words to change the world, keep reading. This book is your guide to making a difference, explore the power (and pitfalls) of language, investigate media bias, spot fake news, and discover different types of activism.” (Catalogue)

Mental health and me / Maldonado, Salvador
“Mental Health and Me brings together seven stories of teenage struggles, from body image issues to drug abuse, as experienced by real-life teenagers. This book will help young people to better understand mental health issues, empathise with those who are struggling and possibly even see their own experiences reflected, making them feel more supported and less alone.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

What the fact / Yasmin, Seema
“Tracing the spread of misinformation and disinformation through our fast-moving media landscape, a journalist, scientist, medical professional, and professor gives readers the skills to identify and counter poorly sourced clickbait and misleading headlines.” (Catalogue)

Fever knights : role-playing game / Ellis, Adam
“You were once a normal, everyday teenager on the verge of adulthood. But after a mystical experience, you developed unusual powers and became something far greater—a protector of humanity and guardian against evil—a Fever Knight! Fever Knights Role-Playing Game transports you into a retro world that never was. This is a place where the 90’s vibes are still alive: from latchkey kids to Super Nintendo gaming, to cassette players and Saturday morning cartoons, and from urban legends to adventures in the woods. Designed for first-time and veteran gamers, this book contains a lightweight ruleset.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

For more new books in the collection, go to: What’s new / February 2024 (wcl.govt.nz)

The Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide to… Supergirl

By

On Tuesday, 20 February, 2024

In comics and graphic novels, science fiction, stuff to read, the wellington comic lover's guide to...

Welcome to the Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide, where we take you through the Wellington City Libraries’ collection of a comic book character or series. This post is all about the Girl of Steel from the planet Krypton, Supergirl!


Who is Supergirl?

Kara Zor-El is the older cousin of Superman, sent from Krypton as a teenager to look after the baby Kal-El once he landed on Earth. However, due to her ship landing decades later, she arrived when Superman was already an adult. Lacking a purpose, Kara struggles to adapt to a planet that is less technologically advanced than Krypton, but this in no way deters her from following Superman’s example as a hero. Gaining superpowers under Earth’s yellow sun, she now protects Metropolis while trying to find a place in her strange new home as Supergirl. 

Note: DC Comics are divided by publishing eras, determined by a point where they set the issue number (and sometimes, continuity) of a series back to #1. ‘Pre-Crisis’ is everything DC published prior to 1986, ‘Post-Crisis’ is everything from 1986-2011, the New 52 from 2011-2016, DC Rebirth from 2016-2021, and Infinite Frontier from 2021 to present.


Supergirl : Origins

The details of Supergirl’s origin have varied over DC’s publishing history, including her civilian identity, when she was discovered on Earth, and even whether she is Kryptonian or not. Her origins have been explored in the story Being Super and the recent World’s Finest series.

Supergirl : being super / Tamaki, Mariko

Batman/Superman : world’s finest. Vol. 2, Strange visitor / Waid, Mark

As for her origins on Krypton, the House of El graphic novel trilogy provides some context for Krypton’s history prior to its destruction.

House of El. Book one, The shadow threat / Gray, Claudia

House of El. Book two, The enemy delusion / Gray, Claudia

House of El. Book three, The treacherous hope / Gray, Claudia

And for stories about Supergirl’s more famous cousin, check out our WCL Guide to Superman!


Pre-Crisis

In the Pre-Crisis timeline, Kara Zor-El landed on Earth and was discovered by Superman, who learned that they were cousins and took her under his wing as Supergirl. In her headline series from this era, Kara moves to Chicago, enrolls in university, and soon gathers a rogues gallery, including her archnemesis, the nuclear-powered Reactron.

Pre-Crisis Supergirl appearances

Daring new adventures of Supergirl. Volume 1 / Kupperberg, Paul

Superman : whatever happened to the man of tomorrow / Moore, Alan


Post-Crisis

In the Post-Crisis era, a new editorial rule at DC meant that Superman had to be the only survivor from Krypton, which presented problems for introducing Supergirl. In this continuity, Supergirl is Linda Danvers, a human teenager who can transform into a superhero with powers similar to Superman.

Supergirl Linda Danvers appearances

Supergirl. Book one / David, Peter

Supergirl. Book two / David, Peter

Superman : Emperor Joker

Convergence : zero hour book 2 / Giffen, Keith


The Last Daughter of Krypton… At Last!

Eventually, Kara Zor-El was reintroduced to Post-Crisis continuity, with her spaceship being discovered at the bottom of the Gotham River. After meeting Superman, Supergirl travels to the future to join the Legion of Super-Heroes, fights a mysterious Superwoman, and sees the birth of a New Krypton and the resurrection of her parents.

Post-Crisis Supergirl appearances

Supergirl : the girl of steel / Loeb, Jeph

Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes : the quest for Cosmic Boy / Bedard, Tony

Supergirl : who is Superwoman / Gates, Sterling

Supergirl. Volume 4, Daughter of new Krypton / Gates, Sterling

Supergirl : friends & fugitives / Gates, Sterling

The hunt for Reactron / Gates, Sterling

Supergirl : Bizarrogirl / Gates, Sterling


The New 52

The New 52 reset the histories of most DC characters back to square one, and Supergirl was no exception. Here, Kara is a loner who only occasionally runs into Superman. In her journey to find a home and community, she briefly befriends Superman villain Silver Banshee, joins the rage-powered Red Lantern Corps, and attends the intergalactic Crucible academy.

New 52 Supergirl reading order

Supergirl. Volume 1, Last daughter of Krypton / Green, Michael (also on Libby)

Supergirl. Volume 2, Girl in the world / Green, Michael

Supergirl. Volume 3, Sanctuary / Johnson, Mike

Superman : H’el on Earth / Lobdell, Scott

Supergirl. Volume 4, Out of the past / Nelson, Michael Alan

Supergirl. Volume 5, Red daughter of Krypton / Bedard, Tony

Supergirl. Volume 6, Crucible / Perkins, K.


DC Rebirth

Taking inspiration from the Supergirl TV show, the DC Rebirth era has Supergirl move to Metropolis’ sister city National City, teaming up with the Department of Extranormal Operations to help stem the city’s various alien threats.

Supergirl Rebirth era reading order

Supergirl. Vol. 1, Reign of the cyborg supermen / Orlando, Steve

Supergirl. Vol. 2, Escape from the Phantom Zone / Orlando, Steve

Supergirl. Vol. 3, Girl of no tomorrow / Orlando, Steve

Supergirl. Vol. 4, Plain sight / Orlando, Steve


Supergirl meets the Killer of Krypton

During the reinvigoration of the Superman books by Brian Michael Bendis, Supergirl got a new series that saw Kara setting off on an intergalactic manhunt for the dreaded Rogol Zaar, a Kryptonian-hating alien mercenary with a mysterious connection to Kara’s uncle (and Superman’s father) Jor-El.

‘Bendis era’ Supergirl reading order

The Man of Steel / Bendis, Brian Michael

Supergirl. Vol. 1, The killers of Krypton / Andreyko, Marc

Supergirl. Vol. 2, Sins of the circle / Andreyko, Marc

Supergirl. Vol. 3, Infectious / Houser, Jody

Batman/Superman. Volume 1, Who are the Secret Six / Williamson, Joshua

Superman action comics. Vol. 5, The House of Kent / Bendis, Brian Michael


Infinite Frontier – The Woman of Tomorrow

Supergirl has had one miniseries in the Infinite Frontier era, the acclaimed Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, which is set to be adapted into a feature film starring Milly Alcock as Kara. Meanwhile, Kara has helped her cousin protect Earth during the Warworld Saga and the Lazarus Planet event.

Infinite Frontier Supergirl appearances

Supergirl : woman of tomorrow / King, Tom

Superman action comics. Volume one, Warworld rising / Johnson, Phillip Kennedy

Superman Action Comics. Volume three, Warworld revolution / Johnson, Phillip Kennedy

Superman : Kal-El returns / Johnson, Phillip Kennedy

Lazarus Planet


Based on the TV show

The long-running CW Supergirl show starring Melissa Benoist has also been adapted into its own comics, much like The Flash show before it.

Adventures of Supergirl [1] / Gates, Sterling

Crisis on infinite Earths : Paragons rising : the deluxe edition / Wolfman, Marv

Earth-Prime


Supergirl’s Teams

Supergirl has rarely been a team player outside of her immediate Super-Family, having only brief tenures on the Teen Titans, the Legion of Super-Heroes, and the Justice League. In a moment of pique, she was briefly inducted into the Red Lantern Corps, a crimson-themed version of the Green Lanterns who are powered by rage.

Supergirl in the Legion

Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes : the quest for Cosmic Boy / Bedard, Tony

Supergirl as a Teen Titan

Teen Titans : Titans of tomorrow

In the Justice League

Justice League United. Volume 1, Justice League Canada / Lemire, Jeff

Justice League United. Volume 2, The infinitus saga / Lemire, Jeff

As a Red Lantern

Red Lanterns. Volume 5, Atrocities / Soule, Charles

Supergirl. Volume 5, Red daughter of Krypton / Bedard, Tony

Team Supergirl

In order to save Superman from cosmic imprisonment in Superman/Batman : vengeance, Bizarro assembles a whole team of Supergirls from across time and space, including the modern Kara Zor-El, Pre-Crisis Kara Zor-El, Linda Danvers, Power Girl (see below), and Cir-El, Superman and Lois’ daughter from a potential future.


Power Girl

Kara Zor-L is Power Girl, the Supergirl from Earth-2 who wound up on the mainstream DC Universe (Earth-0) after the destruction of her Earth. Where Supergirl is eager to adapt to her adopted home, Power Girl bears a chip on her shoulder for having lost both Krypton and her original adopted Earth, manifesting in her brash, ‘punch first and ask questions later’ attitude.

Post-Crisis, Power Girl took on the secret identity of ‘Karen Starr’, and split her time between running a tech start-up and serving on the Justice Society of America.

Black Adam/JSA : black reign / Johns, Geoff

Infinite crisis / Johns, Geoff

Power Girl : power trip / Gray, Justin

Justice Society of America : thy kingdom come. Part two / Johns, Geoff

Justice Society of America : thy kingdom come. Part three / Johns, Geoff

Justice Society of America : Black Adam and Isis / Johns, Geoff

Justice Society of America : the bad seed / Willingham, Bill


Just a Girl in the Worlds’ Finest

In the New 52, a new Earth-2 is created with a new Kara Zor-L, who gets sent to Earth-0 along with Earth-2’s Robin (Helena Wayne, the daughter of Batman). The pair take on the new aliases of Power Girl and Huntress and try to find a way home to Earth-2 in the series Worlds’ Finest.

Worlds’ Finest. Volume 1, The lost daughters of Earth 2 / Levitz, Paul

Worlds’ Finest. Volume 2, Hunt and be hunted / Levitz, Paul

Worlds’ Finest. Volume 3, Control issues / Levitz, Paul

Worlds’ Finest. Volume 4, First contact / Levitz, Paul

Worlds’ finest. Volume 5, Homeward bound / Levitz, Paul

Upon returning to Earth-2, Kara must help her fellow heroes save the world from an invasion from Darkseid, and after the planet is regenerated (a literal ‘Earth 2’) she strikes up a romance with its new Superman, Val-Zod.

Earth 2 : world’s end. Volume 1 / Wilson, Daniel H.

Earth 2 : world’s end. Volume 2 / Wilson, Daniel H.

Earth 2 society. Volume 1, Planetfall / Wilson, Daniel H.

Earth 2 : society. Volume 2, Indivisible / Abnett, Dan

Earth 2 : society. Volume 3, A whole new world / Abnett, Dan


Power Girl Returns

The Post-Crisis Power Girl eventually returns in Infinite Frontier. After burning out of the corporate grindset as a member of an ‘Uber but for superheroes’ service in One-Star Squadron, she gains new telepathic powers in the Lazarus Planet event and befriends a fellow psychic, former Teen Titan Omen.

Infinite frontier / Williamson, Joshua

One-star squadron / Russell, Mark

Lazarus Planet

Power Girl returns / Williams, Leah


Supergirl Across The Multiverse

Power Girl isn’t the only alternate Supergirl out there in the infinite Multiverse of DC Comics.

Crime Syndicate / Schmidt, Andy – On Earth-3 where the roles of heroes and villains are reversed, a treacherous Ultragirl tries to take out her cousin, Ultraman. This world also has a Superwoman, although technically she is the evil equivalent of Wonder Woman.

Multiversity : teen justice / Cohen, Ivan – On the matriarchal world of Earth-11, Supergirl is the daughter of Superwoman and fights alongside the young super-team Teen Justice.

Kingdom come / Waid, Mark – In a possible future, an older Karen Starr (now Power Woman) joins a new Justice League, led by an older Superman trying to bring order to a world full of unruly metahumans.

Supergirl adventures : girl of steel – In the world of the DC Animated Universe, Supergirl is Kara In-Ze from Argo, a ‘sister planet’ to Krypton that was also devastated. Discovered in cryogenic stasis by Superman, Kara is brought to Earth, where she becomes gains powers similar to her ‘cousin’ and becomes Supergirl.

Injustice 2. Vol. 1 / Taylor, Tom – The Injustice universe’s version of Supergirl first appears in its sequel comic, where she arrives on Earth not knowing her cousin has taken over the world.

Ame-Comi Girls. Volume 3, Earth in crisis / Palmiotti, Jimmy – Both Supergirl and Power Girl appear on this manga-inspired world where only women gain superpowers.

DC Comics Bombshells : the deluxe edition, Book one / Bennett, Marguerite – Here, Kara’s ship lands in Soviet Russia instead of the USA. When she comes of age in the midst of World War II, she defects and joins a team of heroines determined to end the conflict.

Dark Knights of Steel. Vol. 1 / Taylor, Tom – Transporting the heroes of the DC Universe into a medieval world of knights and nobility, the Supergirl here is Zala Jor-El, the princess of the ruling family, the House of El.

Supergirl : cosmic adventures in the 8th grade / Walker, Landry Q. – In this cartoon-influenced series, a young Kryptonian named Linda Lee struggles to balance schoolwork with being Supergirl.

Pratchett, Patriarchy and the Past: New Teen Books in the Collection

By

On Wednesday, 7 February, 2024

In comics and graphic novels, horror and spooky stuff, mysteries & whodunnits, non-fiction, realistic fiction, science fiction, stuff to read

If you’re looking for something fresh and new to read right now, we have got you covered.  From historical fiction, murder mysteries and romance to feminist comics, ghost stories and putting your best foot forward online, and many, many more, there is sure to be something to pique your interest.

Fiction

I’ll tell you no lies / McCrina, Amanda
“New York, 1955. Shelby Blaine and her father, an Air Force intelligence officer, are wrenched away from their life in West Germany to New York’s Griffiss Air Force Base, where he has been summoned to lead the interrogation of an escaped Soviet pilot. A chance meeting with Maksym, the would-be defector, spirals into a deadly entanglement. The more Shelby learns of Maksym’s secrets, including his detention at Auschwitz during the war, the more she becomes willing to help him. But as the stakes become more dangerous, Shelby begins to question everything she has been told.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Let’s play murder / Lupo, Kesia
“Veronica wakes up trapped with four strangers in a sprawling manor house in a snow storm with a dead body, a mystery right out of an Agatha Christie novel. It feels so real but it isn’t. This is VR and this is THE Game; a rumoured Easter Egg hidden in other VR games that draws you into a competition for a prize beyond your wildest dreams. And there’s no escaping the VR world until the Game is won. It may not be a game Veronica wanted to play, but it’s one that she has to win or die trying.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

A thousand boy kisses : a novel / Cole, Tillie
“When seventeen-year-old Rune Kristiansen returns from his native Norway to the sleepy town of Blossom Grove, Georgia, where he befriended Poppy Litchfield as a child, he has just one thing on his mind. Why did the girl who was one half of his soul, who promised to wait faithfully for his return, cut him off without a word of explanation? Rune’s heart was broken two years ago when Poppy fell silent. But when he discovers the truth of her absence, he finds that the greatest heartache is yet to come.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

What happened on Hicks Road / Jayne, Hannah
“Lennox Oliver is loving her new life in California. For the first time, she feels normal. She has friends, and a maybe boyfriend and best of all no one knows the truth about her past and what happened to her mom. But everything changes the night after a party when a drive on the supposedly haunted Hicks Road turns deadly and Lennox hits something…or someone. Her friends say it was nothing, at worst, a deer in the road. But when a note saying FIND ME is slipped through her window, she fears that there was a girl she hit on Hicks Road that night …or she’s slipping deeper into the illness that took her mother.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Comics

Smash the patriarchy / Breen, Marta
“Patriarchy means ‘the rule of the father’ and describes a system where men are in control. At least since the time of Aristotle, loud-mouthed men have called women weak and inferior. The book is not afraid to examine some of the worst crimes – public shaming, medical examinations, and the widespread murder and jailing of feminists around the world – as it calls on readers to finally smash the patriarchy forever.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Festival of shadows : a Japanese ghost story / Atelier Sentō (Firm)
“Every summer, in an isolated Japanese village, a celebration known as the Festival of Shadows takes place. The villagers are entrusted to assist the troubled souls or “shadows” of those who died tragically, and to help them come to terms with their deaths and find eternal peace. Naoko, a young girl born in the village, is given a year to save the soul of a mysterious young man. Naoko puts her own life on the line to save the soul of this man she loves, in an exciting, moving and beautifully drawn story that takes the reader on a journey from the beautiful Japanese countryside to glamorous Tokyo art world.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Courage to dream : tales of hope in the Holocaust / Shusterman, Neal
“Courage to Dream plunges readers into the darkest time of human history – the Holocaust. This graphic novel explores one of the greatest atrocities in modern memory, delving into the core of what it means to face the extinction of everything and everyone you hold dear. Woven from Jewish folklore and cultural history, five interlocking narratives explore one common story – the tradition of resistance and uplift.” (Catalogue)

One in a million / Lordon, Claire
“Something is wrong with Claire, but she doesn’t know what. Nobody does, not even her doctors. All she wants is to return to her happy and athletic teenage self. But her accumulating symptoms – chronic fatigue, pounding headaches, weight gain – hint that there’s something not right inside Claire’s body. But even in her most difficult moments battling chronic illness, Claire manages to find solace in her family, her closest friends, and her art. A deeply personal and visually arresting memoir that draws on the author’s high school diaries and drawings, One in a Million is also a sophisticated portrayal of pain, depression, and fear that any teen or adult can relate to.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Non-Fiction

Tiffany Aching’s guide to being a witch / Pratchett, Rhianna
“An illustrated and practical guide to being a witch in Discworld, covering everything you’ve ever wanted to know from telling the bees to magical cheese, from working with other witches to dealing with elves, from tending flocks to fending off forces from other worlds. This beautiful and practical guide has been compiled by Tiffany Aching herself, including snippets of remembered wisdom from Granny Aching alongside notes from Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, Miss Tick, and Rob Anybody who offer their own unique perspectives on all things witchcraft.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Clicks : how to be your best self online / Devon, Natasha
“When young people step into the digital world and are bombarded with ‘hot takes’, calls to cancel ‘problematic’ individuals, trolls, fake news and celebrity sales pitches they’re likely to find it overwhelming and confusing. This book wants to change that. It will teach young people how to: – Understand the psychological effects of social media on their minds, including internet pornography – See and evaluate all sides of an argument – Spot fake news – Explain their ‘take’ persuasively – Use the internet to campaign for a fairer world – Get the most out of their online role models – Show allyship to marginalised groups.” (Catalogue)

For more new books in the collection, go to: What’s new / February 2024 (wcl.govt.nz)

The Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide to… Astro Boy and PLUTO

By

On Monday, 5 February, 2024

In anime & manga, science fiction, stuff to read, the wellington comic lover's guide to...

Welcome to the Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide, where we take you through the Wellington City Libraries’ collection of a comic book character. This post is all about Japan’s first manga sensation, the super-powered robot Astro Boy, and his recent adaptation, the science-fiction crime comic PLUTO.

Astro Boy Anime GIF - Astro Boy Anime Robot - Discover & Share GIFs

(Astro as seen in the 2003 anime – GIF via Tenor)

image

(Atom from the 2023 adaptation of PLUTO – GIF via Tumblr)


Who is Astro Boy?

Astro Boy (‘Tetsuwan Atomu‘ in Japanese) was created by Osamu Tezuka, one of Japan’s most prolific cartoonists, and published from 1952 to 1968 in his original run (then adapted into several anime and a feature film). While the series was drawn in a light-hearted style inspired by old Disney cartoons, Tezuka used Astro Boy to explore heady themes about environmentalism, war, prejudice, and the cost of technological advancement.

In a futuristic world where humans and robots co-exist, Astro was built by roboticist Dr Tenma as a replacement for his deceased son, Tobio. When Astro failed to live up to Tenma’s expectations, he sold Astro to a circus, where he was rescued by the kindly Dr Ochanomizu. Designed with ‘100K horsepower’ and an array of gadgets like jet boots and finger lasers, Astro’s greatest strength is his emotional intelligence, as he often finds himself acting as a mediator between robots and humans when they come into conflict.


How to read Astro Boy

We have the first eight collections of the original Astro Boy run by Tezuka on our eLibrary Libby, plus a graphic novel of the first collection.

Graphic novel

Astro Boy. 1 / Tezuka, Osamu

On eLibrary (Libby)

Astro Boy Volumes 1-2

Astro Boy Volume 3

Astro Boy Volume 4

Astro Boy Volume 5

Astro Boy Volume 6

Astro Boy Volume 7

Astro Boy Volume 8

We also have a spin-off of the original Astro Boy series by Tezuka, A-tomcat, in which a young boy becomes friends with a cat who has all of Astro Boy’s abilities.

A-tomcat / Tezuka, Osamu


What is PLUTO?

Astro Boy‘s most famous story arc is ‘The Greatest Robot on Earth’, in which a colossal, powerful robot named Pluto begins hunting down and destroying the seven most advanced robots in the world, including Astro (you can read it in Astro Boy Volume 3). It was one of Astro’s biggest challenges, requiring him not only to increase his power to match his new rival, but also learn to reason with Pluto, who turned out to be more sympathetic than initially believed. This storyline was adapted by artist Naoki Urasawa into PLUTO, a manga for mature readers (seinen) between 2003 and 2009, and later turned into an anime for Netflix in 2023.

In PLUTO, the seven most advanced robots are destroyed and have their bodies left with objects resembling horns sticking out of their heads. Not only that, each robot’s human creator is hunted down as well, with the crime scenes left in a way that indicates only a robot could have done the deed. There’s just one problem: it’s impossible for a robot to kill a human. Or is it?

While Astro (here called Atom) is still in the story, the main character of PLUTO is the detective robot Gesicht (pronounced GEH-sicked), who is tasked with investigating the case. As the plot unfolds, he learns the deaths of the robots and their inventor are tied to a vast conspiracy involving a recent controversial war, a secretive anti-robot hate group, and Atom’s original creator, Tenma.

Urasawa’s PLUTO is the ‘gritty adult version of a childhood property’ done right. It expands on Astro Boy‘s themes and setting to tell a new story with classic characters, who gain a far greater amount of depth than they were allowed in the original Tezuka story. PLUTO’s themes about prejudice being the likely human response to living with robots and the psychological harm from conflict has never been more relevant in an era of ongoing wars, political extremism, and the pressing fear of AI replacing human labour. Yet, due to the presence of Atom/Astro Boy, it contains an element of irrepressible hope for a better, kinder world where we can overcome hatred and difference.

With its recent pitch-perfect adaptation to anime, it’s never been a better time to read PLUTO, and it may only grow more prescient with time.


How to read PLUTO

The complete story of PLUTO is collected in eight tankoban volumes.

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka. 001 / Urasawa, Naoki

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka. 002 / Urasawa, Naoki

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka. 003 / Urasawa, Naoki

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka. 004 / Urasawa, Naoki

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka, 005 / Urasawa, Naoki

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka. 006 / Urasawa, Naoki

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka. 007 / Urasawa, Naoki

Pluto : Urasawa X Tezuka. 008 / Urasawa, Naoki

How do you do, fellow kids? – Books written by actual teenagers!

By

On Tuesday, 2 January, 2024

In classic novels and other old stuff, fantasy, mysteries & whodunnits, science fiction, stuff to read

Given that this is the Teen Blog, I am making the assumption that you, reading this, are a teenager. And I’m also making the assumption that you like books. This is a library blog after all. AND, third assumption here, I’m assuming that you will find it cool or interesting to find out about books that were written by people the same age as you!

Rather than, you know, someone who was a teenager last century writing about what they think you’ll like.
*sweats in millennial*

via GIPHY

Will this post act as inspiration for you to start/continue writing your masterwork? Perhaps. Will it give you a new and exciting list of books to go ahead and read (and of course log for the Summer Reading Adventure)? Hopefully. Will it at least be an enjoyable short read to take up a few minutes of your long summer’s day? Er, maybe?

So here, in no particular order, is my list of books that were written by people your age or thereabouts.

Eragon / Paolini, Christopher / eAudiobook / eBook /
The first manuscript for Eragon was written when Paolini was 15, and his family self-published the book when he was 17. THEN Random House sniffed him out and offered to publish Eragon, which they did when he was 19. And yes, he did create the maps and a WHOLE LANGUAGE, forge his own knives and swords, and make his own bow and arrows and chainmail as part of writing Eragon.
They even made a movie (of rather dubious quality) back in 2007.
A fifth book set in the world of the Inheritance Cycle has just been released this year. We have copies of Murtagh on order (in print and audiobook form!) so you can jump over to our catalogue and add yourself to the hold queue if you’re interested.

Solitaire / Oseman, Alice / eBook
Have you been avidly watching Heartstopper, or rapidly devouring Volume 5 that came out this year?
Solitaire is Oseman’s first book – written when they were 17 and published when they were 19. It’s a bit more serious than Heartstopper so Oseman does recommend checking out the content warnings on her site before reading. And yes, that is Charlie’s sister you’re following there in Solitaire. And no, you don’t have to read Heartstopper before you read this. Or read this before you read Heartstopper.

Cover image used with permission from Denika Mead.

The death-hunters / Mead, Denika
Denika Mead was 15 when this, her first book (which is full of world-hopping adventure and exhilaration), was published. That was in 2019, which means that as I write this, and given my maths is correct, she is still a teenager! Mead has already published five books in the Royal Orchid series and one in the Agents of TIME series. AND she runs writing workshops and writes for The Sapling and lives in Lower Hutt.
Mead is known for her faced-paced narratives, and for readers who devour her books due to their not-put-down-able nature.

Tūhono. a journal of poetry by Wellington teens 
Yes, of course I’m sneaking Tūhono in here. We’ve got to have some self-promotion, right? All the poets published in Tūhono are local Wellington writers and, well, that’s the only criteria! If you have a read-through, you may come across someone you know. Or you may not realise you’re reading something written by a friend since there are a few pseudonyms/pen-names used in there.

The extraordinary and unusual adventures of Horatio Lyle / Webb, Catherine
Webb wrote her first book, Mirror dreams, when she was 14 and it was published two years later. Unfortunately, we don’t have copies of any of her first four books in our libraries, but we do have a copy of her fifth book, which I actually like a whole lot better so it’s like the universe has aligned so that I can feature my preferred book. Think Sherlock Holmes, but more likeable and likely to accidentally blow things up, and also there are supernatural beings about.
This one was published when Webb was 19, which means that she had five books published before the age of 20! That is one less than local author Denika Mead though…

These violent delights / Gong, Chloe
This one was written when Gong was 19 while she was on a uni break (as in, she wrote the whole thing in a month!) but it wasn’t actually published till she was 21. It still fits into the scope of this post though, as she was a teenager while she was writing it. Gong was born in Shanghai but grew up in Auckland from the age of 2 (then did skedaddle off to the US for university) so we are DEFINITELY claiming her as an NZ writer.
These violent delights features 1920s Shanghai, rival gangs, mysterious deaths, was a hit on BookTok, and was also featured in a previous BookTok blog! Go us.

Echo / Kelly, Arlo
Were you keeping an eye out on the New Zealand Book Awards for children and Young Adults this year? Well, I’m sure you were and I’m sure you saw Echo, which was a finalist for the NZSA Best First Book Award. Arlo Kelly was the youngest finalist, at 16 years old! He lives over in the Kāpiti Coast and the inspiration for Echo came from a walk along Makorori Beach with his sister, which has led to this thoughtful and emotive story that centres around a whale and a boy with Low Vision. Another local and very talented writer!

Frankenstein or, the modern Prometheus / Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft / eAudiobook / eBook
I couldn’t not mention Frankenstein. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was 19 when she wrote this, the first example of science fiction. How many 19-year olds create a whole new genre? She had passed the double-decade milestone by the time it was published, but not by much!
Frankenstein has inspired many adaptations and reprints and editions. And it all came from this 19-year-old coming up with a ghost story to tell her husband and that Lord Byron guy!

If you’re getting to the end of this list feeling like you’re running out of time to produce your masterwork, please don’t despair! To change direction completely, here are a few FAMOUS authors who weren’t published, or didn’t even start writing, until much later in life. So you’ve still got plenty of time.

J.R.R. Tolkien, famous name, creator of Middle Earth and Elvish and Hobbits and the One Ring and all that, had his first work of fiction, The hobbit, published when he was 45. When his publisher requested a sequel, The fellowship of the ring followed a mere seventeen years later.

You must have read something by Dick King-Smith when you were younger. He wrote many many children’s books, including all those books about Sophie and also The sheep-pig (which became the film Babe). He was 54 when he sat down to write his first book, The fox busters, and he was 56 when it was published. And he still went on to write over a hundred books!

Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote all those Little house books that you can find spread across our libraries. Her first book, Little house in the big woods, was published in 1932 when she was 65! And her books are still in print today.

Love, Libraries and Lives Lost – New Teen Books in the Collection

By

On Friday, 29 December, 2023

In comics and graphic novels, dystopia, fantasy, horror and spooky stuff, new stuff (ooh, shiny!), non-fiction, realistic fiction, science fiction, stuff to read

Do you need something fresh to read over the school holidays?  We’ve got a great selection of new books rolling into our collection this month as always.  We’ve selected a handful below to get you started!

Comics

Mall Goth / Leth, Kate
“Liv Holme is not exactly thrilled to be moving to a new town with her mother. After all, high school can be brutal, even more so when you’re a fifteen-year-old, bisexual goth. But Liv is determined to be who she is, bullies or not. Thankfully, she’s found the perfect escape: the mall. Under its fluorescent lights, Liv feels far away from her parents’ strained marriage and the peers who don’t understand her. Amid the bright storefronts, food court smell, and anonymous shoppers, Liv is safely one of the crowd and can enjoy the feeling of calling the shots in her own life for once.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

The infinity particle / Xu, Wendy
“Clementine Chang moves from Earth to Mars for a new start and is lucky enough to land her dream job with Dr. Marcella Lin, an Artificial Intelligence pioneer. On her first day of work, Clem meets Dr. Lin’s assistant, a humanoid AI named Kye. Clem is no stranger to robots–she built herself a cute moth-shaped companion named SENA. Still, there’s something about Kye that feels almost too human. When Clem and Kye begin to collaborate, their chemistry sets off sparks. The only downside? Dr. Lin is enraged by Kye’s growing independence and won’t allow him more freedom. Plus, their relationship throws into question everything Clem thought she knew about AI. After all, if Kye is sentient enough to have feelings, shouldn’t he be able to control his own actions? Where is the line between AI and human?” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Yaqui Delgado wants to kick your ass : the graphic novel / Vargas, Mel Valentine
“It’s the beginning of sophomore year, and Piedad “Piddy” Sanchez is having a hard time adjusting to her new high school. Things don’t get any easier when Piddy learns that Yaqui Delgado hates her and wants to kick her ass. Is there any way for Piddy to survive without closing herself off from those who care about her – or running away? (Adapted from Catalogue)

Fiction

Divine rivals : a novel / Ross, Rebecca
“After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again… All eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow wants to do is hold her family together. With a brother on the frontline forced to fight on behalf of the Gods now missing from the frontline and a mother drowning her sorrows, Iris’s best bet is winning the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette. But when Iris’s letters to her brother fall into the wrong hands – that of the handsome but cold Roman Kitt, her rival at the paper – an unlikely magical connection forms. Expelled into the middle of a mystical war, magical typewriters in tow, can their bond withstand the fight for the fate of mankind and, most importantly, love?” (Catalogue)

Also available as an eAudiobook, and an eBook on both Libby and Borrowbox.

Ryan and Avery / Levithan, David
“When Ryan and Avery met at a queer prom, they felt an instant connection. This is the story of their first 10 dates: the tender hopes, the skittish fears, the difficulty of introducing someone into your pre-existing life. There is always the possibility of heartbreak– and the chance that maybe, just maybe, you’ve found the right person to love.” (Catalogue)

Where he can’t find you / Coates, Darcy
“Abby Ward lives in a town haunted by disappearances. People vanish, and when they’re found, their bodies have been dismembered and sewn back together in unnatural ways. But is it the work of a human killer . . . or something far darker? She and her younger sister live by a strict set of rules designed to keep them safe–which is why it’s such a shock when Hope is taken. With every hour precious, Abby and her friends are caught in a desperate game of cat and mouse. They have to get Hope back. Quickly. Before too much of her is cut away. And before everything they care about is swallowed up by the darkness waiting in the tunnels beneath the home they thought they knew.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

What stalks among us / Hollowell, Sarah
“The last thing they expect to come across is a giant, abandoned corn maze. But with a whole day of playing hooky unspooling before them, they make their second mistake. Or perhaps their third? Maybe even their fourth. Because Sadie and Logan have definitely entered this maze before. And again before that. They quickly realize they’ve not only entered this maze before, they’ve died in it too. A lot…” (Adapted from Catalogue)

The space between here & now / Suk, Sarah
“Seventeen-year-old Aimee Roh has Sensory Time Warp Syndrome, a rare condition that causes her to time travel to a moment in her life when she smells something linked to that memory. Her dad is convinced she’ll simply grow out of it if she tries hard enough, but Aimee’s fear of vanishing at random has kept her from living a normal life. Desperate for answers, Aimee travels to Korea, where she unravels the mystery of her memories, the truth about her mother, and the reason she keeps returning to certain moments in her life.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

The library of broken worlds / Johnson, Alaya Dawn
“In the winding underground tunnels of the Library, the great celestial peacekeeper of the three systems, a terrible secret lies buried. The daughter of a Library god, Freida has spent her whole life exploring the Library’s ever-changing tunnels and communing with the gods. When she meets Joshua, a mortal boy desperate to save his people, and Nergüi, a Disciple from a persecuted religious minority, Freida is compelled to break ranks with the gods and help them. To do so she will have to venture deeper into the Library– and she discovers the atrocities of the past, the truth of her origins, and the impossibility of her future.” (Catalogue)

Non-Fiction

Lads : a guide to respect and consent – step up, speak out and create positive change / Bissett, Alan
“In a world full of negative influences, LADS is a toolkit for teenage boys on respect and consent, helping them call out bad behaviour and giving them the confidence to be their best selves. Have you ever been in a situation where there’s a loud guy making dodgy comments, cracking jokes that only he thinks are funny or leering at the girls in the room? You can feel the tension, right? That Guy is the worst, but no one is saying anything, because the whole situation is intimidating and awkward. This toolkit will help you call out bad behaviour and understand the serious issues facing girls today. And it will make you feel confident navigating relationships, so that everyone feels happy, heard and respected, while being the best version of yourself.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

For more new books in the catalogue, go to: What’s new / December 2023 (wcl.govt.nz)

M is for Monster: New Young Adult Books in the Collection

By

On Monday, 14 August, 2023

In comedy, comics and graphic novels, dystopia, fantasy, mysteries & whodunnits, new stuff (ooh, shiny!), non-fiction, realistic fiction, science fiction, stuff to read

August is here and with it yet another bunch of awesome new books in the collection.  We’ve got comics based on Frankenstein and from the perspective of a survivor of a school shooting; novels with dark mystery and swoon-worthy romance; and even a fantastic cookbook for teens, and so much more.  Take a look at the titles below and then click on through to the rest of the new items to explore more.

Comics

M is for monster / Dutton, Talia
“When Doctor Frances Ai’s younger sister Maura died in a tragic accident six months ago, Frances swore she would bring her back to life. However, the creature that rises from the slab is clearly not Maura. This girl, who chooses the name M, doesn’t remember anything about Maura’s life and just wants to be her own person. However, Frances expects M to pursue the same path that Maura had been on – applying to college to become a scientist – and continue the plans she and Maura shared. In order to face the future, both Frances and M need to learn to listen and let go of Maura once and for all.” (Adapted fromCatalogue)

Welcome to St. Hell : my trans teen misadventure / Hancox, Lewis
“Lewis has a few things to say to his younger teen self. He knows she hates her body. He knows she’s confused about who to snog. He knows she’s really a he and will ultimately realize this. But she’s going to go through a whole lot of mess (some of it funny, some of it not funny at all) to get to that point. Lewis is trying to tell her this … but she can’t quite hear him yet.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Knee deep. Book one / Flood, Joe
“Two hundred years in the future, refugees from an environmental cataclysm have fled underground. They are sewerfolk, their home, the bowels of a utopian city that was never completed. Life is hard enough, but an overzealous mining company, PERCH wants to get their claws on this new underground frontier and they don’t mind bulldozing any sewerfolk that get in their way. Caught in the middle is a young girl, Cricket. She’s in a desperate search to find her family that fled underground.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Numb to this : memoir of a mass shooting / Neely, Kindra
“Kindra Neely never expected it to happen to her. No one does. Over the span of a few minutes, on October 1, 2015, eight students and a professor lost their lives. And suddenly, Kindra became a survivor. This empathetic and ultimately hopeful graphic memoir recounts Kindra’s journey forward from those few minutes that changed everything. It wasn’t easy. Every time Kindra took a step toward peace and wholeness, a new mass shooting devastated her again. Las Vegas. Parkland. She was hopeless at times, feeling as if no one was listening. Not even at the worldwide demonstration March for Our Lives. But finally, Kindra learned that – for her – the path toward hope wound through art, helping others, and sharing her story.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Family style : memories of an American from Vietnam / Pham, Thien
“Thien’s first memory isn’t a sight or a sound. It’s the sweetness of watermelon and the saltiness of fish. It’s the taste of the foods he ate while adrift at sea as his family fled Vietnam. After the Pham family arrives at a refugee camp in Thailand, they struggle to survive. Things don’t get much easier once they resettle in California. And through each chapter of their lives, food takes on a new meaning. And for Thien Pham, that story is about a search… for belonging, for happiness, for the American dream.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Fiction

Someone is always watching / Armstrong, Kelley
“When their friend Gabrielle is found covered in blood in front of their dead principal, with no recollection of what happened, Blythe, Tucker, and Tanya soon discover their lives are a lie as the walls built around their real memories come crashing down.” (Catalogue)

Girl, goddess, queen / Fitzgerald, Bea
“Thousands of years ago, the gods told a lie: how Persephone was a pawn in the politics of other gods. How Hades kidnapped Persephone to be his bride. How her mother, Demeter, was so distraught she caused the Earth to start dying. The real story is much more interesting. Persephone wasn’t taken to hell: she jumped. There was no way she was going to be married off to some smug god more in love with himself than her. Now all she has to do is convince the Underworld’s annoyingly sexy, arrogant and frankly rude ruler, Hades, to fall in line with her plan. A plan that will shake Mount Olympus to its very core. But consequences can be deadly, especially when you’re already in hell . . .” (Catalogue)

We Didn’t Think It Through / Lonesborough, Gary
“The justice system characterises Jamie Langton as a ‘danger to society’, but he’s just an Aboriginal kid, trying to find his way through adolescence. He spends his downtime hanging out with his mates, Dally and Lenny. Mark Cassidy and his white mates – the Footy Heads – take every opportunity they can to bully Jamie and his friends. On Lenny’s last night in town before moving to Sydney, after another episode of racist harassment, Jamie, Dally and Lenny decide to retaliate by vandalising Mark Cassidy’s car. And when they discover the keys are in the ignition… Dally changes the plan. But it’s a bad plan. And as a consequence, Jamie ends up in the youth justice system where he must find a way to mend his relationships with himself, his friends, his family and his future.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Painted devils / Owen, Margaret
“When misfortune strikes, the ‘reformed’ jewel thief Vanja manipulates a remote village for help and in turn, accidentally starts a cult around a Low God, the Scarlet Maiden. Soon after, her nemesis-turned-suitor Emeric and a supervising prefect arrive to investigate the claim of godhood, and she realizes how in over her head she must be. But the Scarlet Maiden does reveal herself…only to claim Emeric as her virgin sacrifice. With vengeful apparitions, supernatural fraud, and ravenous hellhounds, readers will not be able to put down this Bavarian-themed YA fantasy, the thrilling sequel to Little Thieves.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Lose you to find me / Brown, Erik J
“Tommy Dees is in the weeds–restaurant speak for beyond overwhelmed. He’s been working as a server at Sunset Estates retirement community to get the experience he needs to attend one of the best culinary schools in the world. And to make his application shine, he also needs a letter of recommendation from his sadistic manager. But in exchange for the letter, Tommy has to meet three conditions–including training the new hire. What he doesn’t expect is for the newbie to be an old crush: Gabe, with the dimples and kind heart, who Tommy fell for during summer camp at age ten and then never saw again.  The training proves distracting as old feelings resurface, and the universe seems to be conspiring against them. With the application deadline looming and Gabe on his mind, Tommy is determined to keep it all together–but what if life isn’t meant to follow a recipe?” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Non-Fiction

Fantastic vegan recipes for the teen cook : 60 incredible recipes you need to try for good health and a better planet / Skiadas, Elaine
“Elaine’s recipes help the modern teen cook be more environmentally-conscious and develop healthy habits while also proving that easy vegan cooking doesn’t need to be bland or boring. With just a few simple techniques and a handful of quality ingredients, it’s easy as can be to whip up a restaurant-quality meal for your family and friends.” (Catalogue)

For more new YA books in the collection, go to:  What’s new / August 2023 (wcl.govt.nz)

The Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide to… The Flash

By

On Tuesday, 4 July, 2023

In comics and graphic novels, science fiction, stuff to read, the wellington comic lover's guide to...

Welcome to the Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide, where we take you through the Wellington City Libraries’ collection of a comic book character. This post is about all the heroes who have held the title of the Fastest Man Alive… The Flash!

(via GIPHY)


Who is The Flash?

After being struck by lightning in a lab accident, police scientist Barry Allen discovers he has the ability to move at superhuman speeds and travel through time. Donning a friction-resistant red-and-yellow suit, Barry protects his home of Central City from the villainous Rogues and traverses time and space as The Flash.

Later, Barry’s nephew Wally West gains super-speed as well and becomes his sidekick Kid Flash, before graduating to becoming the Flash himself.

A Flash Fact about DC Comics history

DC Comics are divided into publishing eras, determined by a point where they set the issue number (and sometimes, continuity) of a series back to #1. These periods are referred to as:

  • ‘Pre-Crisis’ – everything published before 1986
  • ‘Post-Crisis’ – everything published from 1986-2011
  • The New 52 – 2011-2016
  • DC Rebirth – 2016-2021
  • Infinite Frontier – 2021 to present.

This is important to know because the events that define these publishing eras usually have something to do with The Flash; Barry Allen famously dies during the ‘Crisis’, and after being resurrected, he creates the timeline that came to define ‘The New 52’.

If you’d like to know more about DC Comic’s increasingly complicated internal chronology, I recommend checking out DC greatest events : stories that shook the multiverse.

Pre-Crisis

Barry is actually the second Flash: the first was scientist Jay Garrick, who resides on the parallel world of Earth-2. During one of his adventures, Barry travels to Earth-2 and teams up with Jay; this story ‘Flash of Two Worlds’ established the existence of the DC Multiverse, and subsequently the template for all other stories involving multiverses in other media. Barry and Jay would regularly partner up again along with their respective teams, the Justice League and the Justice Society.

Showcase presents The Flash. Volume 2 / Broome, John (includes ‘Flash of Two Worlds’)

The Justice League of America : the Silver Age. Volume three / Fox, Gardner F.

Showcase presents Justice League of America. Volume three / Fox, Gardner

Showcase presents Justice League of America. Volume four / Fox, Gardner


Post-Crisis

Post-Crisis refers to the point after the story Crisis on Infinite Earths, when the DC Multiverse collapses into one Earth with one shared history. Now the Flash became a succession story: Jay Garrick retires as the Flash after WWII, Barry is inspired by Jay, and after Barry’s death, Wally West takes up the mantle of the Flash.

Mark Waid run

Writer Mark Waid first established the idea that the Flashes get their powers from the ‘Speed Force’, an extradimensional energy that governs all motion across time and space, and can be manipulated to grant super-speed and other powers to its wielders, called ‘speedsters’.

The Flash by Mark Waid. Book one / Waid, Mark

The Flash by Mark Waid. Book four / Waid, Mark

The Flash by Mark Waid. Book five / Waid, Mark

The Flash : emergency stop / Morrison, Grant

The Flash : the human race / Morrison, Grant

(The Flash : emergency stop and The Flash : the human race are also collected together as The Flash / Morrison, Grant)

Geoff Johns run

Under Geoff Johns’ pen, Wally West fights new and old Rogues, starts a family, and learns the cost of being a hero with a public identity from Zoom, a villain who alters the flow of time to move at superhuman speed.

The Flash by Geoff Johns. Book two / Johns, Geoff

The Flash by Geoff Johns. Book three / Johns, Geoff

The Flash by Geoff Johns. Book five / Johns, Geoff


Flashpoint

During Final Crisis, Barry Allen is brought back to life and becomes the Flash again. Barry then attempts to rewrite history to prevent his mother’s death, inadvertently creating the ‘Flashpoint’ timeline, a world where Flash, Superman and other heroes never existed.

Absolute final crisis / Morrison, Grant

The Flash : rebirth / Johns, Geoff (also on Libby)

The Flash by Geoff Johns. Book six / Johns, Geoff

The Flash : the road to Flashpoint / Johns, Geoff

Flashpoint / Johns, Geoff


The New 52

Barry erases the Flashpoint timeline, but ends up creating The New 52, a simplified timeline which DC Comics used as a springboard to reboot their comics’ shared continuity. As a result of history being rewritten, Barry becomes the one and only Flash.

The Flash. Volume 1, Move forward / Manapul, Francis
(also on Libby)

The Flash. Volume 2, Rogues revolution / Manapul, Francis

The Flash. Volume 4, Reverse / Manapul, Francis

The Flash. Volume 5, History lessons / Buccellato, Brian

The Flash. Volume 6, Out of time / Venditti, Robert

The Flash. Volume 7, Savage world / Venditti, Robert

The Flash. Volume 8, Zoom / Venditti, Robert

The Flash. Volume 9, Full stop / Jensen, Van


DC Rebirth

During DC Rebirth, the timeline is once again altered, restoring characters and events that had been erased from the timeline by the New 52. These include Wally West, Zoom, and the Reverse-Flash, a stalker fan from the 25th century who wants to emulate his hero, Barry Allen.

The Flash. Vol. 2, Speed of darkness / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 3, Rogues reloaded / Williamson, Joshua

Batman/The Flash : the button : deluxe edition / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 4, Running scared / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 5, Negative / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 6, Cold day in hell / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 7, Perfect storm / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash [8] : Flash war / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Volume 9, Reckoning of the forces / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 10, Force Quest / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash : year one / Williamson, Joshua

Heroes in crisis : the price and other stories / Williamson, Joshua

Flash forward / Lobdell, Scott

The Flash. Vol. 11, The greatest trick of all / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 12, Death and the speed force / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 13, Rogues’ reign / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 14, The Flash age / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 15, Finish line / Williamson, Joshua

Dark nights : death metal : the darkest knight (includes ‘Speed Metal’, a team-up with every Flash in history).


Infinite Frontier

After Barry becomes lost in the once more infinite Multiverse, Wally West takes on the mantle of the Flash once more, fighting crime while balancing life as a husband and father.

Infinite frontier / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 16, Wally West returns / Shinick, Kevin

War for Earth-3 / Thompson, Robbie

The Flash. Vol. 17, Eclipsed / Adams, Jeremy

The Flash. Vol. 18, The search for Barry Allen / Adams, Jeremy

The Flash. Volume 19, The one-minute war / Adams, Jeremy

Aquaman & The Flash : Voidsong / Kelly, Collin


Based on the TV series

The (pardon the phrasing) long-running CW series of The Flash has also inspired a few comics of its own.

The Flash : season zero / Kreisberg, Andrew

Crisis on infinite Earths : Paragons rising : the deluxe edition / Wolfman, Marv

Earth-Prime


The Rogues

The Flash’s villains are collectively known as The Rogues, a team of science-powered criminals content to menace The Fastest Man Alive. Lead by ‘The Man Who Mastered Absolute Zero’ Captain Cold, the Rogues have included the pyromaniac Heat Wave, the deceptive Mirror Master, the mischievous Trickster, the blowhard Weather Wizard, the ethereal Golden Glider, and the telepathic criminal ape Gorilla Grodd.

Rogue-centric stories

The Flash by Geoff Johns. Book five / Johns, Geoff (includes the ‘Rogue War’ arc)

The Flash by Geoff Johns. Book six / Johns, Geoff (includes Final Crisis: Rogue’s Revenge miniseries)

Forever Evil [1] : Rogues rebellion / Buccellato, Brian

The Flash. Vol. 3, Rogues reloaded / Williamson, Joshua

The Flash. Vol. 13, Rogues’ reign / Williamson, Joshua

Rogues / Williamson, Joshua


Flash Across the Multiverse

The Flash. Volume 9, Reckoning of the forces / Williamson, Joshua – This volume features Barry meeting the Flashes of the Multiverse, including the cowboy Johnny Thunder of Earth-18, the robot Mercury-Flash of Earth-44, and the unnaturally swift turtle Fastback from the Zoo Crew of Earth-26.

Teen Titans : Earth one. Volume one and Volume two
Wally West hunts down the Teen Titans, here reimagined as teens given superpowers through a covert government experiment.

Earth 2. Volume 1, The gathering / Robinson, James Dale – A reboot of the original Earth-2, now home to a younger Jay Garrick protecting the world from an invasion by Darkseid.

Crime Syndicate / Schmidt, Andy – The Flash from the criminal world of Earth-3 is named Johnny Quick, a member of the nefarious Crime Syndicate.

Multiversity : teen justice / Cohen, Ivan – The matriarchal society of Earth-11 is home to Kid Quick, a genderfluid speedster for the sidekick team Teen Justice.

Justice League infinity / DeMatteis, J. M – A comic continuation of the TV show Justice League Unlimited, where most fans first encountered Wally West.

DC, the new frontier / Cooke, Darwyn – A young Barry Allen helps found the Justice League in the 1950s to battle the monstrous living island ‘The Centre’.

Kingdom come / Waid, Mark – In a future where heroes have rejected humanity, Wally West has fused with the Speed Force and become a human blur.

The Jurassic League / Gedeon, Juan – On the prehistoric Earth-27, the local Flash is a velociraptor (natch).

The Multiversity / Morrison, Grant – The multiversal team Justice League Incarnate includes Red Racer, a comic book fanboy with superspeed from Earth-36, a world protected by the Justice 9.

Justice League incarnate / Williamson, Joshua – After Red Racer’s disappearance, Avery Ho (the Flash of China from New Super-Man) takes over as Justice League Incarnate’s resident speedster.

Injustice : Gods among us : Volume 1 – When Superman takes over the world after a personal tragedy, Barry Allen reluctantly joins the Man of Steel’s Regime.

It’s Dino Time, Literally: Discover Dinosaurs During Dinosaur Day!

By

On Thursday, 1 June, 2023

In environment and cute animal frens, isn't that cool?, science fiction, silly holidays everyone cares about, stuff to read

Friends, family, acquaintances, we are all gathered here today, June 1st, to commemorate the passing of our beloved Dinosaurs. Truly they were the best of us, I mean, they were huge awesome bird-lizard things that were like super cool. Dinosaurs have been an inspiration for many of us, from becoming an obsession for us in our younger years, to never leaving that obsession, to those silly suits that people can buy that just make everything better. Unfortunately our beloved Dinosaurs were so cruelly taken away from us by some meteors, though that may have been for the best considering how squishy humans are and how big Dinosaurs were. The Dinosaurs’ legacy is continued by their descendants, birds, who are neat. I mean, have you seen geese? They put the “terrible” in “terrible lizard”.

Now, to say a few words is one of the T-Rex’s fierce relatives:

via GIPHY
Thank you for your wise words, Sir Cluckington.

But let us not be swamped in sadness, Dinosaurs wouldn’t have wanted us to live in sorrow for their loss. I mean, technically Dinosaurs probably wouldn’t have wanted anything besides food, but hey, let’s be poetic. Let us celebrate their lives, their radical coolness, rather than their deaths. For why focus on the fact they are dead and fossilised, but for the brightness they spark in our hearts.

So, in remembrance, this Dinosaur Day, June 1st, let us look at all the cool media about dinosaurs.

via GIPHY


Battlesaurus : rampage at Waterloo / Falkner, Brian
“In this alternate history, Napoleon wins at Waterloo by unleashing a secret battlefield weapon–a legion of giant, carnivorous dinosaurs imported from the wilds of the Americas–and only fifteen-year-old Willem Verheyen stands in the way of the emperor’s plan for world domination.” (Catalogue)


The extinction trials / Wilson, S. M.
“Stormchaser wants to escape her starved, grey life. Lincoln wants to save his dying sister. Their only chance is to join an expedition to a deadly country to steal the eggs of vicious dinosaurs. If they succeed, their reward is a new life filled with riches. But in a land full of monsters – both human and reptilian – only the ruthless will survive. Jurassic Park meets The Hunger Games in this epic new series.” (Catalogue)


Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur [1] : BFF / Montclare, Brandon
“Lunella Lafayette is an inhuman preteen genius who wants to change the world! THAT JOB would be a lot easier if she wasn’t living in mortal fear of her latent inhuman gene. There’s no telling what she’ll turn into — but Luna’s got a plan. All she needs is an Omni-Wave Projector. Easy, right? That is, until a red-scaled beast is teleported from the prehistoric past to a far-flung future we call … today!” (Adapted from Catalogue)


Reptil : brink of extinction / Blas, Terry
“Reptil — the dinosaur-powered graduate of Avengers Academy — is on the brink of extinction! In the wake of his grandfather’s worsening health, Humberto Lopez has taken a step back from crimefighting to focus on his family. Perhaps it’s a sign that he should give up on becoming a hero and finally come to terms with his parents’ mysterious disappearance… or perhaps not! When a mysterious figure ambushes Humberto, what unravels will shake the core of everything that Reptil thought he knew about his past. And it will either change the course of his future – or end it forever!” (Adapted from Catalogue)


Dinotopia : journey to Chandara / Gurney, James
“After many years of searching, artist James Gurney has discovered a never-before-seen journal by the nineteenth-century explorer Arthur Denison in a used bookstore. Denison’s previous travel accounts, published as Dinotopia: A land Apart from Time and Dinotopia: The World Beneath, introduced a lost island where dinosaurs and humans live together in peaceful interdependence. Now Professor Denison and his saurian companion, Bix, set out on a perilous journey to the long-forgotten empire of Chandara.” (Adapted from Catalogue)


Raptor Red / Bakker, Robert T
“A pair of fierce but beautiful eyes look out from the undergrowth of conifers. She is an intelligent killer. So begins one of the most extraordinary novels you will ever read. The time is 120 million years ago, the place is the plains of prehistoric Utah, and the eyes belong to an unforgettable heroine. Her name is Raptor Red, and she is a female Raptor dinosaur. The life of a lady dinosaur in the prehistoric swamps of Utah. When her mate is killed on a hunting expedition she teams up with her sister, a mother of three, and the novels follows their struggle to eat and survive in a dangerous world.” (Adapted from Catalogue)


Jurassic Park / Crichton, Michael
“Before seeing Jurassic World film this June read the original, multimillion copy number 1 bestselling thriller that inspired the first major motion picture Jurassic Park. On a remote jungle island, genetic engineers have created a dinosaur game park. An astonishing technique for recovering and cloning dinosaur DNA has been discovered. Now one of mankind’s most thrilling fantasies has come true and the first dinosaurs that the Earth has seen in the time of man emerge. But, as always, there is a dark side to the fantasy and after a catastrophe destroys the park’s defence systems, the scientists and tourists are left fighting for survival…” (Adapted from Catalogue)


The lost world / Doyle, Arthur Conan
“The Lost World is a novel released in 1912 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle concerning an expedition to a plateau in the Amazon basin of South America where prehistoric animals (dinosaurs and other extinct creatures) still survive.” (Catalogue)


Bermuda / Layman, John
“There’s a region in the Atlantic Ocean where planes disappear, ships are lost, and traveling souls go missing… never to be heard from again. And there’s an island within this place, mysterious and uncharted, untouched by time and civilization, where all who are lost end up. Bermuda lives here. She’s a normal, everyday 16-year-old girl, who just so happens to live in an otherworldly dimension swarming with dinosaurs and pirates! It’s made her scrappy, and a survivor, and it’s the only life she’s ever known… until today. Bermuda’s discovered something on her island that will either open a doorway between her world and ours… or destroy them both!” — page 4 of cover” (Catalogue)


Age of reptiles : tribal warfare / Delgado, Ricardo
“More real life’ adventures from the days of the dinosaurs. This series tracks the fortunes – and misfortunes – of a family of Ceratosaurs as they try to survive the rigors of the Jurassic era.'” (Catalogue)


The virtual realities trilogy / Carmichael, Claire
“Andy Tremain has a terrifying ability. Using virtual reality, he can create monsters from his unconscious mind. And he’s obsessed with dinosaurs. A psychiatrist in the United States promises a cure but when Andy and his brother and sister realise they are prisoners rather than guests in Dr Kaplan’s luxurious desert complex, Andy’s dream becomes a nightmare. When his powers change and reality itself begins to shift and tear, Andy is so dangerous that society clearly cannot afford to let him live. So the terror continues…” (Catalogue)

Beneath the Mainstream: Superpower Novels Beyond the Basics

By

On Monday, 22 May, 2023

In science fiction, stuff to read

It’s a bird

It’s a plane

No… It’s…

via GIPHY

Super cool awesome man….

Again? Really?  I saw him just last week, is there no end to his heroics? Oh and that silly bat-guy too, and some man spider thingy. Wow, how boring. You know, I love superhero media, I really do, but sometimes things just get too popular, too mainstream for old J’Shuall of Jackanapery. I prefer to be a hipster, have something literary enough for my esteemed taste. All you hear about nowadays are these Marvels and these DCs and honestly, sometimes it’s nice to have a change of pace.

Does that mean I hate Marvel and DC comics?

Ye-

Legal is telling me that the correct answer is no, which yeah, fine. There’s a bunch of gems in the comics, from inventive re-imaginings of beloved characters to straight bangers of classic stories. Our good friend The Wellington Comic Lover is the real expert in that field, guiding you through the weird and wonderful world of comics. Give some of those blogs a look if that’s your thing.

But that’s not what I’m here for. I’m here to show you all the interesting things the genre of superpowers, superheroes, and supervillains have to offer in novel form! Now you don’t have to worry about appearing uncivilised by looking at pictures, you can get your superpower goofiness from WORDS!

All without you having to read the billions of volumes about the s-squad, retaliators or good guy group™!


The infinite noise / Shippen, Lauren
“Caleb Michaels is a sixteen-year-old champion running back. Other than that his life is pretty normal. But when Caleb starts experiencing mood swings that are out of the ordinary for even a teenager, his life moves beyond “typical.” Caleb is an Atypical, an individual with enhanced abilities. Which sounds pretty cool except Caleb’s ability is extreme empathy-he feels the emotions of everyone around him. Being an empath in high school would be hard enough, but Caleb’s life becomes even more complicated when he keeps getting pulled into the emotional orbit of one of his classmates, Adam. Adam’s feelings are big and all-consuming, but they fit together with Caleb’s feelings in a way that he can’t quite understand. Caleb’s therapist, Dr. Bright, encourages Caleb to explore this connection by befriending Adam. As he and Adam grow closer, Caleb learns more about his ability, himself, his therapist-who seems to know a lot more than she lets on-and just how dangerous being an Atypical can be.” (Catalogue)

Steelheart / Sanderson, Brandon
“Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. But Epics are no friend of man. With incredible gifts came the desire to rule. And to rule man you must crush his will. Nobody fights the Epics…nobody but the Reckoners. A shadowy group of ordinary humans, they spend their lives studying Epics, finding their weaknesses, and then assassinating them. And David wants in. He wants Steelheart – the Epic who is said to be invincible. The Epic who killed David’s father. For years, David’s been studying, and planning, and he has something the Reckoners need. Not an object, but an experience. He’s seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants revenge.” (Catalogue)


Dreadnought / Daniels, April
“Danny Tozer has a problem: she just inherited the powers of Dreadnought, the world’s greatest superhero. Until Dreadnought fell out of the sky and dies right in front of her, Danny was trying to keep people from finding out she’s transgender. But before he expired, Dreadnought passed his mantel to her, and those secondhand superpowers transformed Danny’s body into what she’s always thought it should be. Now there’s no hiding that she’s a girl. It should be the happiest time of her life, but Danny’s first weeks finally living in a body that fits her are more difficult and complicated than she could have imagined. Between her father’s dangerous obsession with “curing” her girlhood, her best friend suddenly acting like he’s entitled to date her, and her fellow superheroes arguing over her place in the ranks, Danny feels like she’s in over her head. She doesn’t have time to adjust. Dreadnought’s murderer -a cyborg named Utopia- still haunts the streets of New Port City, threatening destruction. If Danny can’t sort through the confusion of coming out, master her powers, and stop Utopia in time, humanity faces extinction.” — Page 4 of cover.” (Catalogue)


Zeroes / Westerfeld, Scott
“Told from separate viewpoints, teens Scam, Crash, Flicker, Anonymous, Bellwether, and Kelsie, all born in the year 2000 and living in Cambria, California, have superhuman abilities that give them interesting but not heroic lives until they must work as a community to respond to a high stakes crisis.” (Catalogue)


The Extraordinaries / Klune, TJ
“If being the most popular fanfiction writer in the Extraordinaries fandom was a superpower, Nick Bell would be a hero. Instead he’s just a fanboy with ADHD, posting online. After a chance encounter with Shadow Star, Nova City’s mightiest hero (and Nick’s biggest crush), he sets out to make himself extraordinary. And he’ll do it with or without the reluctant help of Seth Gray, Nick’s best friend (and maybe the love of his life). — adapted from jacket and Amazon info” (Catalogue)


Not your sidekick / Lee, C. B.
“Welcome to Andover… where superpowers are common, but internships are complicated. Just ask high school nobody, Jessica Tran. Despite her heroic lineage, Jess is resigned to a life without superpowers and is merely looking to beef-up her college applications when she stumbles upon the perfect (paid!) internship-only it turns out to be for the town’s most heinous supervillain. On the upside, she gets to work with her longtime secret crush, Abby, who Jess thinks may have a secret of her own. Then there’s the budding attraction to her fellow intern, the mysterious “M,” who never seems to be in the same place as Abby. But what starts as a fun way to spite her superhero parents takes a sudden and dangerous turn when she uncovers a plot larger than heroes and villains altogether.” (Catalogue)


Illusive / Lloyd-Jones, Emily
“After a vaccine accidentally creates superpowers in a small percentage of the population, seventeen-year-old Ciere, an illusionist, teams up with a group of fellow high-class, super-powered thieves to steal the vaccine’s formula while staying one step ahead of mobsters and deadly government agents”– Provided by publisher.” (Catalogue)


The supervillain and me / Banas, Danielle
“Abby Hamilton’s older brother moonlights as a superhero, but she has no interest in following in his footsteps–until a “supervillain” called Iron Phantom saves her life and warns her that not everyone in the “hero” world is who they seem to be. Now, Abby’s the one who’ll need to leap into action and save the day.” (Catalogue)


Transparent / Whipple, Natalie
“Sixteen-year-old Fiona O’Connell is the world’s first invisible girl, which makes her the ideal weapon for her crime-lord father. But now, she and her mother have escaped and are hiding out in a small town where they’re determined to start a normal life.”– Provided by publisher.”(Catalogue)


Slide / Hathaway, Jill
“Vee Bell, able to slide into other people’s minds, sees someone standing over the body of her sister’s best friend, Sophie, holding a bloody knife but she is afraid that anyone she tells will think her crazy and so she must find a way to identify the killer herself, before he or she strikes again.” (Catalogue)


Gone / Grant, Michael
“In a small town on the coast of California, everyone over the age of fourteen suddenly disappears, setting up a battle between the remaining town residents and the students from a local private school, as well as those who have “The Power” and are able to perform supernatural feats and those who do not.” (Catalogue)

The Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide to… The Guardians of the Galaxy

By

On Sunday, 7 May, 2023

In new stuff (ooh, shiny!), science fiction, stuff to read, the wellington comic lover's guide to...

Welcome to the Wellington Comic Lover’s (WCL) Guide, where we take you through the Wellington City Libraries’ collection of a comic book character or team. This post is an Awesome Mix of all the comics we have about Marvel’s cosmic outlaw heroes, the Guardians of the Galaxy!

(via GIPHY)


Who are the Guardians of the Galaxy?

The legendary Star-Lord. Gamora, the deadliest woman in the galaxy. Drax the Destroyer. Rocket Raccoon. Groot, the Monster from Planet X. This rag-tag group of heroes and mercenaries team up to save the universe from certain annihilation as the Guardians of the Galaxy.


First Formation and Annihilation

The Guardians of the Galaxy first formed as a response to the Annihilation Wave, a horde of extra-dimensional insectoid aliens from the Negative Zone trying to conquer the universe. The team included Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Mantis, Nova, and Phyla-Vell, one of the many heroes to take on the name ‘Captain Marvel’.

Guardians of the Galaxy : road to annihiliation. Vol. 2 / Byrne, John

Annihilation : conquest. Book one

The Thanos imperative / Abnett, Dan

Annihilators : Earthfall / Abnett, Dan


Marvel NOW!

The Guardians of the Galaxy reform to protect the Earth and the rest of the galaxy from interstellar threats, with a team made up of Star-Lord, Gamora, Groot, Rocket, and Drax. During this period, the team would always be joined by one Earth-based hero; the rotation included Iron Man, Captain Marvel, Venom, Kitty Pryde, and The Thing from the Fantastic Four.

Guardians of the Galaxy [1] : Cosmic Avengers / Bendis, Brian Michael (also on Libby)

Guardians of the Galaxy [2] : Angela / Bendis, Brian Michael (also on Libby)

The trial of Jean Grey / Bendis, Brian Michael (crossover with The X-Men)

Guardians of the Galaxy [3] : Guardians disassembled / Bendis, Brian Michael (also on Libby)

Guardians of the Galaxy [4] : original sin / Bendis, Brian Michael

Guardians of the Galaxy [5] : through the looking glass / Bendis, Brian Michael

Guardians of Knowhere / Bendis, Brian Michael (Secret Wars miniseries)

Guardians of the Galaxy. Vol. 1, Emperor Quill / Bendis, Brian Michael (also on Libby)

Guardians of the Galaxy : new guard [2] : wanted / Bendis, Brian Michael (also on Libby)

Guardians of the Galaxy. Vol. 3, Civil War II / Bendis, Brian Michael (also on Libby)

Guardians of the Galaxy [4] : grounded / Bendis, Brian Michael


All-New Guardians

More heavily inspired by the movies, this run sees the Guardians trying to stop a villain named Requiem from gathering the Infinity Stones.

All-new Guardians of the Galaxy [1] : communication breakdown / Duggan, Gerry

All-new Guardians of the Galaxy. Volume 2, Riders in the sky / Duggan, Gerry

All-new Guardians of the Galaxy. Vol. 3, Infinity quest / Duggan, Gerry

Infinity Wars / Duggan, Gerry (also on Libby)


The Final Gauntlet

The Guardians face off against Thanos’ Black Order and a rival team of ‘Dark Guardians’ to prevent the resurrection of Thanos.

Guardians of the Galaxy. Vol. 1, The final gauntlet / Cates, Donny

Guardians of the Galaxy [2] : faithless / Cates, Donny

This run is also collected in one volume as Guardians of the Galaxy / Cates, Donny

Silver Surfer : black / Cates, Donny


“We’re Super Heroes”

The next series has the Guardians fight the Olympian gods, and later team up with the X-Men and Doctor Doom to fight ‘The Last Annihilation’. Guest members in this run include Hercules, Marvel Boy from the Young Avengers, and Power Prince, a dim-witted alien royal who accidentally swallowed the Power Stone of the Infinity Gauntlet.

Guardians of the Galaxy. 1, Then it’s us / Ewing, Al

The Guardians of the Galaxy [2] : “Here we make our stand” / Ewing, Al

The Guardians of the Galaxy [3] : “We’re super heroes” / Ewing, Al

Infinite destinies

The last annihilation / Ewing, Al

Read More

The Wellington Comic Lovers’ Guide to… Black Panther

By

On Tuesday, 15 November, 2022

In eLibrary, science fiction, stuff to read, the wellington comic lover's guide to...

Welcome to the Wellington Comic Lover’s (WCL) Guide, where we take you through the Wellington City Libraries’ collection of a comic book character. This post is about the king and protector of the unconquered city of Wakanda, the Black Panther!

(Via GIHPY)


Who is the Black Panther?

The Black Panther is a ceremonial title bestowed upon the head of the royal family line of Wakanda, a technologically advanced nation in central Africa that has remained uncolonized and is known for its store of the rare energy-absorbing metal Vibranium. After the death of King T’Chaka, the role falls to his son T’Challa, a stoic and studious young prince. Empowered by a suit of Vibranium and a heart-shaped herb that increases his strength and speed, T’Challa now defends his nation and the world as the Black Panther.


Classic Black Panther

In the years before Marvel NOW!, T’Challa married Storm of the X-Men, lead the Fantastic Four, and briefly became protector of Hell’s Kitchen in Daredevil’s absence.

Black Panther : who is the Black Panther / Hudlin, Reginald
(also on Libby)

Black Panther : bad mutha / Hudlin, Reginald

Black Panther : the bride / Hudlin, Reginald

Civil War: Black Panther (only on Libby)

Black Panther : little green men / Hudlin, Reginald

Black Panther : back to Africa / Hudlin, Reginald

Secret invasion : Black Panther / Aaron, Jason

Black Panther : power / Maberry, Jonathan

Black Panther : the man without fear! : the complete collection / Liss, David

Captain America/Black Panther. Flags of our fathers / Hudlin, Reginald


New Avengers – Working with the Enemy

T’Challa discovers that Incursions (universes colliding into each other) are slowly destroying the multiverse, and he gathers the Illuminati to find a way to prevent them. However, this means working with Namor, an enemy of Wakanda since he destroyed their capital city with a tidal wave in an act of war. Jonathan Hickman’s New Avengers series (and its finale Secret Wars) explores the enmity between the two kings and how far each is willing to go to protect their nations (and to spite each other).

New Avengers [1] : everything dies / Hickman, Jonathan (also on Libby)

New Avengers : Volume 2 – Infinity (only on Libby)

New Avengers [2] : other worlds / Hickman, Jonathan

New Avengers [4] : a perfect world / Hickman, Jonathan

Avengers : time runs out. Volume one / Hickman, Jonathan (also on Libby)

Avengers. Volume 2 / Time runs out / Hickman, Jonathan

Avengers : time runs out. Volume 3 / Hickman, Jonathan

Avengers : time runs out. Vol. 4 / Hickman, Jonathan

Secret wars / Hickman, Jonathan


The Ta-Nehisi Coates run

Taking place after Secret Wars, this long-running and critically acclaimed series was written by Ta-Nehisi Coates, former columnist for The Atlantic and author of Between the World and Me. Here, T’Challa faces a populist uprising in Wakanda, meets the old gods that he draws power from, and comes into conflict with a universe where Wakanda became a galaxy-spanning empire.

Black Panther : a nation under our feet. Book one / Coates, Ta-Nehisi (also on Libby)

Black Panther : a nation under our feet. Book two / Coates, Ta-Nehisi (also on Libby)

Black Panther : a nation under our feet. Book three / Coates, Ta-Nehisi (also on Libby)

Black Panther. Book 4, Avengers of the New World, part one / Coates, Ta-Nehisi
(also on Libby)

Black Panther [5] : Avengers of the new world. Part two / Coates, Ta-Nehisi
(also on Libby)

Black Panther [6] : the intergalactic empire of Wakanda. Part one, Many thousands gone / Coates, Ta-Nehisi
(also on Libby)

Black Panther [7] : the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda. Part two / Coates, Ta-Nehisi

Black Panther [8] : the intergalactic empire of Wakanda. Part three / Coates, Ta-Nehisi

Black Panther. Book 9, The intergalactic empire of Wakanda : part four / Coates, Ta-Nehisi


The World of Wakanda

Coates’ run had a number of spin-off series exploring the nation of Wakanda and its citizens and history, written by such famous Black writers as Roxane Gay, Yona Harvey, and Nnedi Okorafor.

Black Panther : world of Wakanda / Gay, Roxane

Rise of the Black Panther / Narcisse, Evan

Black Panther : long live the king / Okorafor, Nnedi

Black Panther : Killmonger [1] : by any means / Hill, Bryan Edward

Black Panther and the Agents of Wakanda. Vol. 1, Eye of the storm / Zubkavich, Jim

Marvel action : Black Panther : stormy weather / Baker, Kyle

Marvel action : Black Panther : rise together [2] / Ayala, Vita

Black Panther vs. Deadpool / Kibblesmith, Daniel

Black Panther adventures / Parker, Jeff


John Ridley run

Black Panther’s following series was written by John Ridley, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of 12 Years a Slave. In this series, T’Challa is hunted by his own espionage unit after a long-buried secret comes to light, and then is tasked with fighting a wandering space rancher called ‘The Colonialist’.

Black Panther. Vol. 1, The long shadow / Ridley, John

Black Panther [2] : range wars / Ridley, John

Black Panther. Vol. 3, All this and the world, too / Ridley, John

Wakanda (an anthology series highlighting Black Panther’s supporting cast, including M’Baku, Killmonger, Shuri, and Okoye)


Eve Ewing run

Ironheart writer Eve Ewing is the current writer of Black Panther, which sees T’Challa stripped of his royal title but still defending the streets of Wakanda from the shadows.

Black Panther [1] : reign at dusk / Ewing, Eve L.


Shuri

Shuri is T’Challa’s younger sister, and next in line for the Wakandan throne. A sorceress and an accomplished scientist, she occasionally has to take over for T’Challa as ruler of Wakanda in his absence. She even became the Black Panther for a time in the late 2000s.

Black Panther : the deadliest of the species / Hudlin, Reginald

Shuri [1] : the search for Black Panther, 1 / Okorafor, Nnedi (also on Libby)

Shuri [2] : 24/7 vibranium / Ayala, Vita

These two Shuri volumes are also collected as Shuri : Wakanda forever (also available on Libby).

Black Panther : the saga of Shuri & T’Challa

Into the heartlands / Brown, Roseanne A


Teams

Black Panther has been a member of the Avengers, the Ultimates, and briefly lead The Crew, a team of Black and indigenous heroes that fight systemic injustice.

Black Panther & the Crew : we are the streets / Coates, Ta-Nehisi

The Ultimates [1] : start with the impossible / Ewing, Al

The Ultimates [2] : Civil war II / Ewing, Al

The Ultimates 2 [1] : troubleshooters / Ewing, Al

The Ultimates 2. Vol. 2, Eternity War / Ewing, Al

Avengers by Jason Aaron. Vol. 1 / Aaron, Jason

The Avengers [1] : the Impossible City / MacKay, Jed

The Wellington Comic Lover’s Guide to… Shazam and Black Adam

By

On Wednesday, 26 October, 2022

In science fiction, stuff to read, the wellington comic lover's guide to...

Welcome to the Wellington Comic Lover’s (WCL) Guide, where we take you through the Wellington City Libraries’ collection of a comic book character. This post is about the two champions of the lightning, Shazam and Black Adam!

Black Adam GIF - Black Adam GIFs

(via GIPHY and Tenor)

Note: DC Comics are divided by publishing eras which are determined by a point where they set the issue number (and sometimes, the whole continuity) of a series back to #1. ‘Pre-Crisis’ is everything published before 1985; ‘Post-Crisis’ is everything from 1986-2011, the New 52 from 2011-2016, DC Rebirth from 2016-2021, and Infinite Frontier from 2021 onwards.


Who is SHAZAM?

Orphan teen Billy Batson descends into the subway one night and discovers a secret portal to the Rock of Eternity, a place of magic power where an ancient wizard resides. Seeing that Billy is courageous and pure of heart, the wizard grants Billy the power to transform into a superhero by saying his name “SHAZAM!”, giving him the attributes of six mythic figures:

  • The Wisdom of Solomon (a wise king from Jerusalem, mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament)
  • The Strength of Hercules (the legendarily strong Greek hero who completed the Twelve Labours)
  • The Stamina of Atlas (the Greek Titan punished to hold up the sky)
  • The Power of Zeus (the Greek god of thunder and king of the Olympians)
  • The Courage of Achilles (the hero of the Trojan War and protagonist of Homer’s Iliad)
  • The Speed of Mercury (fleet-footed herald of the Roman gods)

With these powers combined, Billy fights the good fight as the World’s Mightiest Mortal, Captain Marvel, later known as Shazam.

Billy would also grant his powers to others, including his foster sister Mary Bromfield, who became Mary Marvel, and his friend Freddy Freeman, who became Captain Marvel Jr.

Dc Comics GIF by Shazam! Fury of the Gods

(via GIPHY)

Wait, Captain Marvel? You mean Carol Danvers?

Not quite. See, when he was first created in 1940 by Fawcett Comics, Billy Batson’s superhero identity was Captain Marvel, and Shazam was just the name of the wizard who gave him his powers and whose name he spoke to transform. When the trademark lapsed and Marvel Comics created their own Captain Marvel, DC Comics (who had bought the rights to Fawcett’s characters) couldn’t publish any comics titled ‘Captain Marvel’, though they could still refer to him by that name in the comics. For a while, any comic starring Captain Marvel was titled as Shazam or some variation, but this changed in the New 52 era, where Billy Batson’s alias became known as Shazam from then on.


Pre-Crisis – Captain Marvel

We have a couple of collections of classic Shazam stories from the period where he was Captain Marvel, which introduces all the classic elements of his mythos, including Mary Marvel, Captain Marvel Jr, their talking tiger companion Tawky Tawny, and their enemies, the criminal scientist Dr. Sivana and the nefarious alien caterpillar Mr. Mind.

Shazam! : the greatest stories ever told

Shazam! : power of hope / Dini, Paul

Shazam! : the golden age of the world’s mightiest mortal / Kidd, Chip


Post-Crisis – The Legend of Shazam!

Starting in the Legends miniseries, Captain Marvel joined the Justice League, and later on, the Justice Society. In Formerly Known as the Justice League, Mary Marvel joins Maxwell Lord’s ‘Super Buddies’, a low-rent version of the Justice League made up of D-list heroes operating out of a mall. Since the Marvel Family are literally children turning into adult superheroes, the running joke throughout much of this time is their relative innocence and naivete in relation to their more experienced and jaded team-mates.

In The Trials of Shazam!, Billy is made to take the Wizard’s place at the Rock of Eternity. He appoints Freddy Freeman to take on the mantle of Captain Marvel, but first, Freddy has to gain a power from each individual hero or god that makes up the SHAZAM acronym by himself.

Legends : 30th anniversary edition / Ostrander, John

Superman/Shazam! : first thunder / Winick, Judd

Formerly known as the Justice League / Giffen, Keith

The trials of Shazam! : the complete series / Winick, Judd

In the 2000s, Captain Marvel appeared in a pair of young reader-aimed miniseries, authored by Jeff Smith (Bone) and Mike Kunkel (Herobear and the Kid).

Shazam! : the monster society of evil / Smith, Jeff

Billy Batson and the magic of Shazam! : family affair / Kunkel, Mike


New 52 and DC Rebirth – Captain Marvel no more

As of 2012, during DC’s New 52 reboot, Billy’s hero persona is now called Shazam (to avoid confusion with Marvel Comics’ Carol Danvers, who had been reintroduced as Captain Marvel earlier that year). Here, Billy is retooled as a cynical foster kid who the Wizard takes a chance on to grow a conscience. Through his adventures as the hero Shazam, Billy learns to embrace his foster family, and decides share his powers with them, making a new Shazam Family. Shazam then joins the Justice League, fighting alongside them in the Darkseid War, and has an adventure with his siblings in the Seven Magic Lands, of which Billy and his foster siblings are tasked with being the protectors.

Shazam! : origins / Johns, Geoff

Justice League. Volume 6, Injustice League / Johns, Geoff

Justice League. Volume 7, Darkseid war part 1 / Johns, Geoff

Justice League : Darkseid war : power of the gods

Justice League. Volume 8, Darkseid war / Johns, Geoff

Shazam! and the seven magic lands / Johns, Geoff


Infinite Frontier

In the Infinite Frontier era, Billy finds himself unable to share his power with his siblings and must venture to the underworld to restore the Rock of Eternity. He also joins the Teen Titans Academy, a school for young superheroes.

Shazam! : to hell and back / Sheridan, Tim

Teen Titans Academy. Vol. 1, X marks the spot / Sheridan, Tim

 


Captain Marvel/Shazam in the Multiverse

Before being integrated into the DC Universe proper, Captain Marvel lived on a parallel earth called Earth-S (which is now Earth-5 in the current Multiverse). Earth-5 and its version of Dr. Sivana play a pivotal role in the parallel world-spanning Multiversity, as the criminal scientist tries to take over the Rock of Eternity which sits at the centre of the Multiverse. In the successor series Convergence, where characters from different universes are forced to fight each other to save their respective worlds, the Marvel Family of Earth-S are pitted against a steam-punk version of Batman and his rogues gallery.

The Multiversity / Morrison, Grant

Convergence : infinite earths. Book two

Captain Marvel/Shazam is a favourite of artist Alex Ross, appearing in his and Paul Dini’s Justice League and the Justice maxi-series (alongside the rest of the Marvel Family, Black Adam, and Dr Sivana). Billy Batson also plays a significant part in Ross’ Kingdom Come, a possible future where the Justice League have retired and new superhumans without a sense of right and wrong have taken their place.

Justice. Volume 1 / Krueger, Jim

Justice League, the world’s greatest super-heroes / Dini, Paul

Kingdom come / Waid, Mark


Who is Black Adam?

In ancient times, Teth-Adam of Khandaq was granted divine powers by the wizard Shazam, giving him the attributes of six Egyptian gods:

  • The Stamina of Shu (the god of air who holds up the sky)
  • The Swiftness of Horus (the falcon-headed god of the sky)
  • The Strength of Amon (king of the Egyptian gods)
  • The Wisdom of Zehuti (another name for Thoth, the ibis-headed god of writing and wisdom)
  • The Power of Aten (the embodiment of the sun)
  • The Courage of Mehen (a snake-god who coils around the sun to create night)

After the death of his wife and sons, Teth-Adam sought vengeance and abused his powers, leading the Wizard to imprison him in a tomb forever. Awakened in the modern day, Teth-Adam comes into conflict with the current champion of Shazam, Billy Batson, and continues to carry out his eye-for-an-eye style of justice as Black Adam!


Post-Crisis

While he has been around since the earliest days of Shazam, Black Adam only started to gain prominence in the DCU in the mid-2000s as an morally ambivalent anti-hero. After a stint in the Justice Society, he defects, takes over the nation of Khandaq, and joins the Secret Society of Super-Villains. One of his biggest storylines is in the year-long weekly miniseries 52, where Adam creates his own ‘Black Marvel Family’ and declares war on the world.

Black Adam/JSA : black reign / Johns, Geoff

Secret Six. Volume 1, Villains united / Simone, Gail

52. Volume one

52. Volume two

52. Volume three

52. Volume four

The Black Adam-centric parts of 52 have been collected in their own volume, Black Adam : rise and fall of an empire.

Black Adam : the dark age / Tomasi, Peter

Justice Society of America : Black Adam and Isis / Johns, Geoff


New 52 

In the rebooted Shazam! series, Teth-Adam is a slave in ancient Khandaq who was given the power of Shazam, which he used to seek vengeance on all those who would enslave others. Returning in the modern day, he joins Lex Luthor’s freedom fighters during the invasion from Earth-3 in Forever Evil, striking up a friendship with Sinestro in the process.

Shazam! : origins / Johns, Geoff

Forever Evil / Johns, Geoff

Sinestro. Volume 3, Rising / Bunn, Cullen


DC Rebirth

Black Adam continues to pop up in the DCU during the Rebirth era; as a member of a council of immortals in Dark Nights, pursuing Billy and his family through the Seven Magic Lands, and having a major role in Doomsday Clock, when during a worldwide superhuman arms race, he opens Khandaq’s borders to any supervillain in need of sanctuary.

Dark nights : metal / Snyder, Scott

Shazam! and the seven magic lands / Johns, Geoff

Doomsday clock : the complete collection / Johns, Geoff


Infinite Frontier

During Infinite Frontier, Black Adam continues to gain prominence (which might have something to do with his recent movie), as his more heroic qualities begin to shine through. He joins the Justice League, actively tries to redeem himself, and appoints his descendant, Malik Adam White, as a successor.

Future state : Suicide Squad (contains the Future State: Black Adam miniseries)

Infinite frontier / Williamson, Joshua

Justice League : endless winter / Lanning, Andy

Black Adam. Vol. 1, Theogony / Priest, Christopher J.

Black Adam : the Justice Society files / Scott, Cavan (a tie-in to the Black Adam film)

Black Adam in the Justice League

Justice League. Vol. 1, Prisms / Bendis, Brian Michael

Justice League. Volume 2, United order / Bendis, Brian Michael

Justice League. Vol. 3, Leagues of chaos / Bendis, Brian Michael

Dark crisis on infinite Earths / Williamson, Joshua

World Space Week 2022

By

On Thursday, 29 September, 2022

In art and stuff, environment and cute animal frens, library news, science fiction, stuff to do, stuff to learn, wellington (you can't beat it etc. etc.)

This October school holidays, Wellington City Libraries is running events to celebrate World Space Week.

World Space Week Association (WSWA) has themed the October 2022 celebrations around “Space and Sustainability”! The theme is inspired by the ways that humans use space, and acknowledging how the orbital area surrounding Earth-itself is a finite resource. Read more here.

Did you know the Muppets TV show had a Star Wars Crossover? Learn more by clicking!

The World Space Week Association exists to strengthen the links between space and society! WSWA is working to expand and establish the UN-declared World Space Week “globally on the largest possible scale!” Check out their mission statement to learn more.

Holiday youth events

Event image

Experience VR ISS: International Space Station Star Stitching – we will use the library’s Oculus Quest 2s and Oculus Rifts at Miramar, Karori, and Te Awe to explore the international space station!
Star Stitching at Johnsonville Library

Embroider a constellation!

To celebrate Space Week 2022, we have premade constellation packs for Matariki & Southern Cross, and general instructions if you want to choose your own! Embroider your constellation and mount it on card!

Recommended for children (10+) accompanied by parents, or young adults (14+), but open to all.

Youth Night image

Youth Nights @ Karori and Johnsonville 

These after-hours events are for teens who are into gaming, books, making music, watching movies, debating the finer points of costume design on RuPaul’s Drag Race, eating pizza, and generally just hanging out.

Our Youth Nights are totally free (pizza included!) but you do need to be 14+ in order to come, so please come prepared to show your student ID. Once you’re in, our spaces are yours!


 

Home is not a country: new YA fiction

By

On Friday, 2 July, 2021

In fantasy, science fiction, stuff to read, troubled teens trying to put their past behind them

Nothing is better than the smell of new books in the morning, and we have new YA books coming to our libraries every day. We thought we’d share with you some of our favourite recent arrivals — there’s something here for everyone, so get placing those reserves and send ’em where you want ’em! Here they are, in no particular order (actually that’s a lie, of course we had to put it in alphabetical order by author surname) — we’ve got fantasy, sci-fi, adventures, rom coms, and a host of awesome diverse reads, featuring LGBTQ+ authors and titles as well as books from Sudanese, Bangladeshi, Asian-American, and British Jamaican authors.

Kate in waiting / Albertalli, Becky
“Best friends Kate Garfield and Anderson Walker share a love of theater and crushes on the same guys, but when one of their long-distance crushes shows up at their school, real feelings might end their friendship.” (Catalogue)

Counting down with you / Bhuiyan, Tashie
“Karina Ahmed’s parents have a lot of rules, and for her it is worth it to follow those rules instead of her dreams. With her parents in Bangladesh for a month, she expects to relax those rules a bit, but when the guy she’s tutoring says she’s his girlfriend to cover up the fact that he’s getting help with his schoolwork, that breaks a major rule in a major way that she’s sure will end in disaster. A strict deadline — twenty-eight days — and payment in dozens of books changes her mind about the farce, but can Ace Clyde’s bad-boy charm end up changing her heart?” (Catalogue)

Way of the Argosi / De Castell, Sebastien
“Ten year old Ferius Parfax has a simple plan: kill every last inhabitant of the spell-gifted nation that destroyed her people, starting with the man who murdered her parents. Killing mages is a difficult business, of course, so Ferius undertakes to study the ways of the Argosi: the loosely-knit tribe of tricksters known for getting the better of even the most powerful of spellcasters. But the Argosi have a price for their teachings, and by the time Ferius learns what it is, it may be too late.” (Catalogue)

Home is not a country / Elhillo, Safia
“Nima doesn’t feel understood. By her mother, who grew up far away in a different land. By her suburban town, which makes her feel too much like an outsider to fit in and not enough like an outsider to feel like that she belongs somewhere else. At least she has her childhood friend Haitham, with whom she can let her guard down and be herself. Until she doesn’t. As the ground is pulled out from under her, Nima must grapple with the phantom of a life not chosen, the name her parents didn’t give her at birth: Yasmeen. But that other name, that other girl, might just be more real than Nima knows. And more hungry. And the life Nima has, the one she keeps wishing were someone else’s…she might have to fight for it with a fierceness she never knew she had.” (Catalogue)

The ones we’re meant to find / He, Joan
“It’s been three years since Cee woke up on the shore of an abandoned island, with no memories of life prior, or how she got there. All she knows is she has a sister– and is determined to find her. A world away, STEM prodigy Kasey is looking to escape from an eco-city– meant to be a sanctuary but now populated by people willing to do anything for refuge. After a series of man-made disasters rock the planet, Kasey must decide if she trusts science to help humanity. (Catalogue)

Tokyo ever after / Jean, Emiko
“It isn’t easy being Japanese American in a small, mostly white, northern California town, being raised by a single mother. When Izumi Tanaka discover her father is the Crown Prince of Japan, it means irreverent Izzy is literally a princess. She travels to Japan to meet the father she never knew– and discovers being a princess isn’t all ball gowns and tiaras. There are conniving cousins, a hungry press, a scowling bodyguard, and thousands of years of tradition and customs to learn practically overnight. Back home she was never ‘American’ enough, here she must prove she is ‘Japanese’ enough.” (Catalogue)

The Block / Oliver, Ben
“In the second book of The Loop trilogy, Luka is trapped in a fate worse than death. In the Block, he must toggle between enduring an Energy Harvest for twelve hours of the day and surviving complete immobilization. The only semblance of relief is the Sane Zone, created to keep prisoners from going completely mad. In this virtual reality, the prisoners live out their fantasies of life outside. But for Luka, it’s different. Happy is determined to find out the location of his friends, who disappeared after the Battle of Midway Park. But can Luka battle the descent into madness long enough to stop Happy’s manipulation tactics and keep his friends’ location safe? Another prison break is the only chance to protect the Missing. And as reality becomes increasingly scrambled on the outside, it’ll take an army to stop Galen from carrying out his plans.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Infinity reaper / Silvera, Adam
“Emil and Brighton defied the odds. They beat the Blood Casters and escaped with their lives — or so they thought. When Brighton drank the Reaper’s Blood, he believed it would make him invincible, but instead the potion is killing him. In Emil’s race to find an antidote that will not only save his brother but also rid him of his own unwanted phoenix powers, he will have to dig deep into the very past lives he’s trying to outrun. ” (Adapted from Catalogue)

The outlaws Scarlett & Browne : being an account of their daring exploits and audacious crimes / Stroud, Jonathan
“England has been radically changed by a series of catastrophes, large cities have disappeared and London has been replaced by a lagoon. The surviving population exists in fortified towns where they cling to traditional ways, while strangely evolved beasts prowl the wilderness beyond. Conformity is rigidly enforced and those who fall foul of the rules are persecuted: some are killed, others are driven out into the wilds. Only a few fight back and two of these outlaws, Scarlett McCain and Albert Browne, display an audacity and talent that makes them legends.” (Catalogue)

Cane warriors / Wheatle, Alex
“Moa is fourteen. The only life he has ever known is toiling on the Frontier sugar cane plantation for endless hot days, fearing the vicious whips of the overseers. Then one night he learns of an uprising, led by the charismatic Tacky. Moa is to be a cane warrior, and fight for the freedom of all the enslaved people in the nearby plantations. But before they can escape, Moa and his friend Keverton must face their first great task: to kill their overseer, Misser Donaldson. Time is ticking, and the day of the uprising approaches.” (Catalogue)

Star Wars Day: A New Hope for us all?

By

On Monday, 3 May, 2021

In comics and graphic novels, movies (they're like books that move!), non-fiction, science fiction, stuff to do, stuff to learn

Attention all Jedi, Bounty Hunters and Rebels! Star Wars Day is happening again on May the Fourth, which is observed and celebrated by fans of the Star Wars franchise.  
image courtesy of starwarsnewsnet
This year, you can celebrate by visiting your local library, relive and check out fiction, (as well as non fiction, comics and movies) all related to anything and everything from the Star Wars universe!

Read the following fiction:

image courtesy of syndeticsForce collector.

“In this Journey to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker young adult novel set just before The Force Awakens, a restless teenager sets out to discover what connection his mysterious Force powers have to the fabled Jedi and what the Force has in store for him.” (Catalogue)

image courtesy of syndeticsLeia, Princess of Alderaan.

“The story of how Leia Organa comes to join the Rebellion. Sixteen-year-old Princess Leia has been taking rigorous survival courses, practicing politics, and spearheading relief missions to worlds under Imperial control so that she becomes formally named heir to the throne of Alderaan. When her parents begin acting strange, sixteen-year-old Princes Leia sets out to uncover their secrets, putting her in the path of the watchful Empire. She finds herself facing the choice of dedicating herself to the people of Alderaan, including the man she loves, or to the galaxy at large which is in desperate need of a rebel hero.” (Catalogue)

image courtesy of syndeticsAhsoka.

“Fans have long wondered what happened to Ahsoka after she left the Jedi Order near the end of the Clone Wars, and before she re-appeared as the mysterious Rebel operative Fulcrum in Rebels. Finally, her story will begin to be told. Following her experiences with the Jedi and the devastation of Order 66, Ahsoka is unsure she can be part of a larger whole ever again. But her desire to fight the evils of the Empire and protect those who need it will lead her right to Bail Organa, and the Rebel Alliance.” (Catalogue)


Read the following non fiction:

image courtesy of syndeticsHow Star Wars conquered the universe : the past, present, and future of a multibillion dollar franchise.

“Why do most people know what an Ewok is, even if they haven’t seen Return of the Jedi? How have Star Wars action figures come to outnumber human beings? How did ‘Jedi’ become an officially recognised religion? When did the films’ merchandising revenue manage to rival the GDP of a small country? Tracing the birth, death and rebirth of the epic universe built by George Lucas and hundreds of writers, artists, producers, and marketers, Chris Taylor jousts with modern-day Jedi, tinkers with droid builders, and gets inside Boba Fett’s helmet, all to find out how STAR WARS has attracted and inspired so many fans for so long.” (Catalogue)

image courtesy of syndeticsThe making of Star Wars : the definitive story behind the original film : based on the lost interviews from the official Lucasfilm archives.

“After the 1973 success of American Graffiti, filmmaker George Lucas made the fateful decision to pursue a longtime dream project: a space fantasy movie unlike any ever produced. Lucas envisioned a swashbuckling science fiction saga inspired by the Flash Gordon serials of the thirties, classic American westerns, the epic cinema of Japanese auteur Akira Kurosawa, and mythological heroes. Its original title: The Star Wars. The rest is history, and how it was made is a story as entertaining and exciting as the movie that has enthralled millions for thirty years – a story that has never been told as it was meant to be. Until now.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

image courtesy of syndeticsStar Wars encyclopedia.

“This comprehensive guide to the Star Wars series of films follows on from the re-release of the first three films. Everything from the smugglers’ spaceport on Abregado-Rae and technical explanations of the Millennium Falcon’s acceleration compensator is covered.” (Catalogue).

Watch the films: The nine-part Skywalker saga!

Original trilogy:

image courtesy of amazon.com.image courtesy of amazon.comimage courtesy of amazon.com

Star Wars [original trilogy]

Relive the exhilarating action, spectacular battles and ultimate triumph of good over evil that make Star Wars the greatest space fantasy adventure of all time – and the ultimate entertainment experience for every family. The Star Wars original trilogy episodes continue the saga with Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Han Solo leading the rebel Alliance to claim victory over the Empire and win freedom for the galaxy.

A New Hope: “In a galaxy far, far away, a psychopathic emperor and his most trusted servant – a former Jedi Knight known as Darth Vader – are ruling a universe with fear. They have built a horrifying weapon known as the Death Star, a giant battle station capable of annihilating a world in less than a second. When the Death Star’s master plans are captured by the fledgling Rebel Alliance, Vader starts a pursuit of the ship carrying them…”

The Empire Strikes Back: “Darth Vader is helping the Empire crush the rebellion determined to end the Empire’s domination of the universe. The rebels are based on Hoth, and when troops arrive to wipe them out, Han Solo and Princess Leia flee to Cloud City. Luke Skywalker, in a bid to strengthen his knowledge of the force, finds Yoda, one of the finest Jedis ever. Will they be able to get back together and halt the Empires progress?”

Return of the Jedi: “As the Emperor himself oversees the construction of the new Death Star by Lord Darth Vader and the evil Galactic Empire, smuggler Han Solo is rescued from the clutches of the vile gangster Jabba the Hutt by his friends, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Chewbacca. Leaving Skywalker Jedi training with Yoda, Solo returns to the Rebel Fleet to prepare for to complete his battle with the Empire itself. During the ensuing fighting the newly returned Skywalker is captured by Vader. Can the Rebels, and their new found friends, the Ewoks, help restore freedom to the Galaxy?” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Prequel trilogy:

image courtesy of amazon.com

Star Wars [prequel trilogy].

Relive the nonstop excitement, thrilling discoveries and ultimate triumph of good over evil that make Star Wars the greatest space fantasy adventure of all time – and the ultimate entertainment experience for every family. The Star Wars prequel trilogy episodes begin the saga with young Anakin Skywalker’s descent to the dark side as he transforms from child slave to Jedi apprentice to Darth Vader, the most feared villian in the galaxy!

Phantom Menace: “Set thirty years before the original Star Wars film, Episode I introduces Anakin Skywalker, a boy with special powers, unaware that the journey he is beginning will transform him into the evil Darth Vader.”

Attack of the Clones: “Set 10 years after the events of The phantom menace and the galaxy has undergone significant change, as have Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Padme.”

Revenge of the Sith: “Torn between loyalty to his mentor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and the seductive powers of the Sith, Anakin Skywalker ultimately turns his back on the Jedi, thus completing his journey to the dark side and his transformation into Darth Vader.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Sequel trilogy:

image courtesy of amazon.comThe Force Awakens:

“As Kylo Ren and the sinister First Order rise from the ashes of the Empire, Luke Skywalker is missing when the galaxy needs him most. It’s up to Rey, a desert scavenger, and Finn, a defecting stormtrooper, to join forces with Han Solo and Chewbacca in a desperate search for the one hope of restoring peace to the galaxy.” (Catalogue)


image courtesy of amazon.comThe Last Jedi.

“The Skywalker saga continues as the heroes of The Force Awakens join the galactic legends in an epic adventure. Having taken her first steps into the Jedi world, Rey joins Luke Skywalker on an adventure with Leia, Finn and Poe that unlocks mysteries of the Force and secrets of the past.” (Catalogue)


image courtesy of amazon.comThe Rise of Skywalker.

“When it’s discovered that the evil Emperor Palpatine did not die at the hands of Darth Vader, the rebels must race against the clock to find out his whereabouts. Finn and Poe lead the Resistance to put a stop to the First Order’s plans to form a new Empire, while Rey anticipates her inevitable confrontation with Kylo Ren.” (Catalogue)


Check out the official trailer for Star Wars: The Bad Batch, which arrives on the Disney channel on May 4th, as well as the trailer for popular Star Wars series, The Mandalorian, which  follows the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic.



Enjoy!… and May the Fourth be with you!

Introduction to Warhammer

By

On Thursday, 22 April, 2021

In isn't that cool?, science fiction, stuff to do

During the school holidays, we have all kinds of cool stuff going on under the banner of General Nerdery. Now, we would hardly be doing that title service if we ignored the kingpin of all things nerdy and wonderful: Warhammer 40K.

Ain't no party like a Warhammer party.

Warhammer is a miniature wargame set in the fantastical realms of a far future society in which human civilisation has stagnated and is beset on all sides by aliens, supernatural creatures, arcane powers, and Lovecraftian horrors. Since its inception in 1987, it has become the most popular miniature wargame in the world.

The excellent folk at Te Awe Library on Brandon Street are staging an Introduction to Warhammer event on Sunday May 2, 2-4pm, so you can learn all about the game, the hobby, the world and its characters, and receive a free figure to paint and take home, either to add to your army or start a new one. We are generously supported by the kind and dedicated bunch at Warhammer Wellington — your source for all your (other)worldly needs.

To register for this event or to find out more, email the team at Te Awe Library, or message us on Facebook or Instagram. To find out what else we have going on for the school holidays, visit our calendar or check out our blog.

New Books on a Shelf Near You!

By

On Friday, 22 May, 2020

In dystopia, exclusive academies for rich kids who form cliques, fantasy, lgbtqia+, new stuff (ooh, shiny!), poetry, realistic fiction, science fiction, stuff to read, troubled teens trying to put their past behind them

Now that some of our libraries are back open to the world, the new books are flowing back onto the shelves as our cataloguers, hidden away in the deepest recesses of the library, work their way through their backlog. Here are some of my favourite highlights among the recent additions to our YA collections:

19 love songs / Levithan, David
{LGBTQ+, romance, short stories, verse}
A collection of funny, warm and heartfelt stories exploring queer love and identity from award-winning YA author David Levithan. A resentful member of a high school Quiz Bowl team with an unrequited crush. A Valentine’s Day in the life of Every Day‘s protagonist “A.” A return to the characters of Two Boys Kissing. Born from Levithan’s tradition of writing a story for his friends each Valentine’s Day, this collection brings all of them to his readers for the first time. With fiction, nonfiction, and a story in verse, there’s something for every reader here. Witty, romantic, and honest, teens (and adults) will come to this collection not only on Valentine’s Day, but all year round. (Catalogue)

Beware the night / Fleck, Jessika
{dystopian, religion, politics, science fiction}
On the island of Bellona, they worship the sun. Seventeen-year-old Veda understands that keeping the sun content ensures plentiful crops, peace and harmony, and a thriving economy. But as a member of the Basso class, she never reaps those benefits. Life as a Basso is one fraught with back-breaking work and imposing rules. Her close friendship with Nico is Veda’s one saving grace in a cruel world where the division between her people and the ruling Dogio is as wide and winding as the canals that snake through their island. But when Veda’s grandfather is chosen as the next sacrificial offering to keep the sun’s favor, Veda is forced to see the injustice of her world. Turning away from the sun means she must join the night–and an underground revolution she’s been taught to fear all her life. (Catalogue)

The deceivers / Simmons, Kristen
{drama, intrigue, politics, school}
Welcome to Vale Hall, the school for aspiring con artists. When Brynn Hilder is recruited to Vale, it seems like the elite academy is her chance to start over, away from her mom’s loser boyfriend and her rundown neighborhood. But she soon learns that Vale chooses students not so much for their scholastic talent as for their extracurricular activities, such as her time spent conning rich North Shore kids out of their extravagant allowances. At first, Brynn jumps at the chance to help the school in its mission to rid the city of corrupt officials–because what could be better than giving entitled jerks what they deserve? But that’s before she meets her mark–a senator’s son–and before she discovers the school’s headmaster has secrets he’ll stop at nothing to protect. As the lines between right and wrong blur, Brynn begins to realize she’s in way over head. (Catalogue)

The electric heir / Lee, Victoria
{dystopian, LGBTQ+, pandemics, science fiction}
Six months after Noam Álvaro helped overthrow the despotic government of Carolinia, the Atlantians have gained citizenship, and Lehrer is chancellor. But despite Lehrer’s image as a progressive humanitarian leader, Noam has finally remembered the truth that Lehrer forced him to forget — that Lehrer is responsible for the deadly magic infection that ravaged Carolinia. Now that Noam remembers the full extent of Lehrer’s crimes, he’s determined to use his influence with Lehrer to bring him down for good. If Lehrer realizes Noam has evaded his control — and that Noam is plotting against him — Noam’s dead. Meanwhile Dara Shirazi returns to Carolinia, his magic stripped by the same vaccine that saved his life. But Dara’s attempts to ally himself with Noam prove that their methods for defeating Lehrer are violently misaligned. Dara fears Noam has only gotten himself more deeply entangled in Lehrer’s web. Sooner or later, playing double agent might cost Noam his life. (Catalogue)

Every other weekend / Johnson, Abigail
{grief, realistic fiction, romance}
Adam Moynihan’s life used to be awesome. Straight As, close friends and a home life so perfect that it could have been a TV show straight out of the 50s. Then his oldest brother died. Now his fun-loving mom cries constantly, he and his remaining brother can’t talk without fighting, and the father he always admired proved himself a coward by moving out when they needed him most. Jolene Timber’s life is nothing like the movies she loves–not the happy ones anyway. With her divorced parents at each other’s throats and using her as a pawn, no amount of mental reediting will give her the love she’s starving for. Forced to spend every other weekend in the same apartment building, the boy who thinks forgiveness makes him weak and the girl who thinks love is for fools begin an unlikely friendship. The weekends he dreaded and she endured soon become the best part of their lives. But when one’s life begins to mend while the other’s spirals out of control, they realize that falling in love while surrounded by its demise means nothing is ever guaranteed (Catalogue)

Harley in the sky / Bowman, Akemi Dawn
{coming-of-age, drama, family}
Harley Milano has dreamed of becoming a trapeze artist for as long as she can remember. With parents who run a famous circus in Las Vegas, she spends almost every night in the big top watching their lead aerialist perform, wishing with all her heart and soul that she would be up there herself one day. After a huge fight with her parents, who continue to insist she go to school instead, Harley leaves home, betrays her family, and joins the rival traveling circus Maison du Myst re. There, she is thrust into a world that is both brutal and beautiful, where she learns the value of hard work, passion, and collaboration. At the same time, Harley must come to terms with the truth of her family and her past–and reckon with the sacrifices she made and the people she hurt in order to follow her dreams. (Catalogue)

Infinity son / Silvera, Adam
{brothers, fantasy, LGBTQ+, superheroes}
Growing up in New York, brothers Emil and Brighton always idolized the Spell Walkers—a vigilante group sworn to rid the world of specters. While the Spell Walkers and other celestials are born with powers, specters take them, violently stealing the essence of endangered magical creatures. Brighton wishes he had a power so he could join the fray. Emil just wants the fighting to stop. The cycle of violence has taken a toll, making it harder for anyone with a power to live peacefully and openly. In this climate of fear, a gang of specters has been growing bolder by the day. Then, in a brawl after a protest, Emil manifests a power of his own—one that puts him right at the heart of the conflict and sets him up to be the heroic Spell Walker Brighton always wanted to be. Brotherhood, love, and loyalty will be put to the test, and no one will escape the fight unscathed. (Author Summary)

The midnight lie / Rutkoski, Marie
{fantasy, LGBTQ+, romance}
Where Nirrim lives, crime abounds, a harsh tribunal rules, and society’s pleasures are reserved for the High Kith. Life in the Ward is grim and punishing. People of her low status are forbidden from sampling sweets or wearing colors. You either follow the rules, or pay a tithe and suffer the consequences. Nirrim keeps her head down, and a dangerous secret close to her chest. But then she encounters Sid, a rakish traveler from far away, who whispers rumors that the High Kith possess magic. Sid tempts Nirrim to seek that magic for herself. But to do that, Nirrim must surrender her old life. She must place her trust in this sly stranger who asks, above all, not to be trusted. (Catalogue)

Lasers, Feelings, and RPGs

By

On Monday, 30 March, 2020

In fantasy, science fiction, stuff to do, troubled teens trying to put their past behind them

Tabletop roleplaying, such as Dungeons and Dragons, has experienced a revival in recent years, with liveplays and podcasts such as Critical Role and The Adventure Zone gaining large followings of their own. But one of the biggest sides of this is the internet allowing for not only the creation of games and systems, but the permitted sharing and remixing of them as well.

Whether you’re a tabletop veteran or someone just wanting to dip their toes into roleplaying, “micro” or “one-page” RPGs are both an excellent introduction to the hobby and a fun way to spend an afternoon with a group. The games featured here are quick to set up, don’t require massive or complex character sheets, only require six-sided dice, and can be played in the space of a single session.

Hours of nerdy fun are but a roll of the dice away!

While there are dozens of games out there based on this system, here are six to get you started.

Lasers and Feelings
The game on which all these others are based sees the party take on the roles of the crew of the interstellar ship Raptor. Their mission to explore the vast reaches of space is interrupted when their captain is overcome by a strange entity known as Something Else, leaving only the crew to handle what happens next.

Oh, Dang! Bigfoot Stole My Car With My Friend’s Birthday Present Inside
Its premise obvious, Oh, Dang! leads you on a wacky roadtrip in pursuit of a grand theft auto-committing cryptid. Its sequel Ah, Dang! Mothman Won’t Move Out (He Said It Was Just For The Weekend), sees you dealing with even more cryptid problems.

Wits and Chivalry
You are the Knights of the Round Table, sent by the great wizard Merlin to recover the Holy Grail to save an ailing King Arthur. (This is the only game I know of where Monty Python references are not only permitted, but practically mandatory!)

Magic and Mischief
Ever wanted to go to magic school like Mildred Hubble or Harry Potter? Here is your chance. After a Dark Curse befalls the headmistress of the Young Wizards’ School for Arcane Excellence, a distracted staff and student body makes for the perfect time to solve mysteries or cause mischief.

A Dream In The Woods
Inspired by Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream, players take on the servants of Titania and Oberon to cause mischief and magic while attempting to please their fickle royals.

Sturdy & Wilde Detective Agency
When the players’ employers go missing it’s up to them to follow the trail and solve the mystery in this steampunk mystery game.

If you enjoyed those and/or want to try something different, there are plenty of other options out there from science fiction to fantasy to horror to mystery. There is even a blank template (appropriately enough named Blanks and Spaces) for you to create your own game. Let us know how it all goes!

Page 1 of 5

Next →

Useful Things

Tags

Authentic Books Comics Competition DVDs dystopia Environment Espionage Events Fantasy Games Graphic Novels Happenings Historical Horror Internet LGBTQ+ magic Manga Meaningful Movies Music New New Books New CDs New DVDs New Music New Zealand Music Non-fiction poetry realistic fiction Review Romance Science Fiction Sci Fi Sport Supernatural supernatural romance Thriller Top 10 Twilight Upcoming Vampires Wellington Writing