I read a graphic novel...and I liked it

I've been binge-watching BookTube (YouTube videos for book lovers full of reviews, book hauls, etc) which of course means I've added a ton of books to my TRL (To-Read-List for any newbies to the blog. Hey there!). As I've mentioned before, I'm not a big fan of graphic novels. However, I saw a review of one which peaked my interest and...I actually liked it! It's Emily Carroll's Through the Woods which contains 5 short horror stories which range from a tale of 3 sisters left in their cabin in the woods to a pair of best friends mixed up in the occult. The illustrations are really beautiful and I especially liked the color scheme which relied heavily on blacks and reds. The stories
fall into the category of 'gothic horror' and I don't recommend reading them by flashlight under your bedcovers at night (unless you're feeling especially brave).

Excerpt from the book's Amazon page

I also read a really fun book by British YouTubers Dan Howell (danisnotonfire) and Phil Lester (AmazingPhil) called The Amazing Book is Not on Fire. The talk of the town on this book is how lovely it smells. I'm going to have to call 'bull' on that one as I found the smell to be off-putting. I wasn't at all impressed with the smell but I was impressed with the use of mixed media which ran the gamut from collages to excerpts of their text messages with one another. If you're a fan of their YouTube channels, it's a really fun ride but I think that even for those uninitiated into the fold it's a silly, smile-inducing book. Edit: I also listened to the audiobook and it was FANTASTIC. Unlike any audiobook I've ever listened to because there were two authors and they often went 'off script' and just chatted with one another. A really unique experience that I encourage you all to give a whirl.

Finally, I read The 40s: The Story of a Decade which has made me want to subscribe to The New Yorker so it definitely did its job. It's a collection of pieces from that illustrious publication during the 1940s when it underwent the change from witty, humorist magazine to political, correspondence magazine. From profiles to poetry to politics, The New Yorker broke down barriers and contributed some truly revolutionary writings that left an indelible mark on the history of journalism. I was especially moved by the essay on Hiroshima which focused on a handful of survivors of the atomic bomb. The entire collection was fascinating for its time capsule like quality but it was also a fine sampling of excellent writing. I'd also like to point out that I heard about this book on the New York Public Library's homepage on a blog post entitled "The Blacklist: What is Red Reading?". Turns out James Spader is currently reading this book and it sounded so intriguing that I decided to give it a shot. I'm so glad that I did!