January 4, 2019

First Friday 5: Societal "Norms"

Whether written or unwritten, societies have rules and rule breakers. Here are five books in which the characters push the boundaries of their societal "norms."


3x4: Toon Level 1
Written and illustrated by Ivan Brunetti

Annemarie and her classmates are assigned homework wherein they have to use their imaginations to find sets of twelve in their everyday lives. Readers follow several children as they use their own lives to fulfill their homework, though sometimes math isn't as easy as it seems!

Animus
Written and illustrated by Antoine Revoy

A local playground becomes haunted as children around a Japanese town begin to disappear. Two friends, a young boy and girl, uncover the evil in the playground and decide to help put the soul who haunts it to rest, but things hardly go as planned and both end up giving away parts of themselves, either for the greater good or for selfish reasons. Trust me, this is one where you want to go in cold!


Flawed
Written and illustrated by Andrea Dorfman

Andrea has fallen head-over-heels with Dave, but he's a plastic surgeon and Andrea hates plastic surgery, believing it to be a waste of time and self-worth. Andrea works to overcome this hesitation, though, and falls in love with Dave, even sitting in on his surgeries long enough to realize that he is a true artist who helps people. One day, though, he performs cosmetic surgery on an otherwise healthy boy so he won't be teased at school, and Andrea begins to question everything she thought about Dave, forcing her to confront her own fears about the way she looks.



Mr. Wolf's Class
Written and illustrated by Aron Nels Steinke

In this first book in the series, Mr. Wolf has just started teaching fourth grade at Hazelwood Elementary and wants the first day of school to go well. Each student comes with their own backstory, though, so we get a chance to connect with them and Mr. Wolf and to observe reactions to new projects, new friends, and old irritants. As the day continues for all of the characters, Mr. Wolf discovers that every student is unique and has their own set of needs.



The Tea Dragon Society
Written and illustrated by Katie O'Neill

Greta is a blacksmith apprentice who finds a lost tea dragon in the marketplace and returns it to its home. Its owners, Hesekiel and Erik, draw her into the beautiful and enthralling world of the Tea Dragon Society, a nearly-dead art form of caring for tea dragons. As Hesekiel and Erik pass along their knowledge to Greta and another apprentice, Minette, Greta learns kindness, love, and care.





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2 comments:

  1. Just when I thought I'd save some money after the holidays - I read this post and I want ALL these books. I'll have to figure out with whom I can share them!

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  2. Hahahaha @Samantha Vamos--I hope most people don't visit the site to save money!!

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