Nubia Real One is the beginning of a series about a badass teen with super hero powers. It tackles many, too many, serious issues: racism, sexism, sex assault, school shootings, police brutality against minorities, queerness (no big deal she had 2 moms), domestic violence, etc. Lots of references about how to get help in the back. Book was entertaining, comedic and sad at times, and had all too real messages. “Black and brown kids are not seen as kids”, “Scared while black is a death sentence” <--true statements that unfortunately people need to prepare their kids for. This is a good book to make a black teen read and discuss with them.  I didn’t like some of the graphics because it made the black people appear white.  Also, the depiction of Nubia was inconsistent in whether she was an introvert or an extrovert. She’s kinda shy and sheltered, then she busting out in a sexy outfit and heels to go to her first party. Overall, a great story that I enjoyed, especially when she threw an ATM at someone. Worth picking up the sequels.

Incognegro A Graphic Mystery was well done. The black/white images are crisp, not busy and easy to understand.  At first I was put off by the idea of black/white, but now I think it was perfect for this story. Book covers racism, lynching, sexism, and the idea of “passing” to be a fly on the wall to get justice. Book was entertaining, informative and all too real for the time period. The twists were shocking and I felt the friend was playing with fire. Don’t play with backwoods racist people. I was surprised to note the author, who appears white, has African ancestry and has twin sons-one that looks white and another that looks black. Check out the sequel, which is really a prequel-Incognegro Renaissance. 

Incognegro Renaissance is a prequel to Incognegro A Graphic Mystery.  I enjoyed it a lot.  The black and white is perfect for this story. It covers racism and the concept of “passing” from both a male and female perspective.  Book has an interesting mystery with cultural appropriation/exploitation, queer representation which is in it’s novelty in the 1920s/1930s, and discusses the benefits of “passing” and the toll it takes on the passer. I enjoyed this quick read a lot.

Laguardia uses true aliens to speak of racism, bigotry, prejudice, immigration and immigration reform  It was told very well from several difference viewpoints of beliefs. Entertaining, yet informative story.  Sad, yet positive ending.  Well done. 

Genius Vol 1 is amazing. Don’t underestimate someone based on age and gender.  The LAPD did and got their butts handed to them.  This book started with a bang.  I was engrossed the entire time. Lots of killing, violence, blood, death and not as much cussing as I would have thought. Shows when people get fed up and can organize, anything is possible. Graphics are crisp, easy to understand, realistic. Dialogue, although mostly tame, are also realistic. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Wish my library had the second volume. 

Bitter Root (Vol 2) continues to introduce many new diverse characters and everyone is kicking but against the hate monsters.  Interesting story of the other monsters and the new threat to humanity. Very powerful because there is definitely a lot of trauma. I love you get to see why Berg has such an interesting vocabulary. The back story of Red Summer is so sad and you see how people came to be who they are from book one. One part I wanted to yell at. A character I was just getting to enjoy doesn’t make it. I appreciate the book does the unexpected.  Great story, looking forward to reading more.

Bitter Root (Vol 1) is a wild ride of action, monsters and locations. I almost couldn’t keep up with the location shifts.  I was always a step behind and had to piece it together. Graphics were busy too.  Lots of characters that I had a hard time determining between monsters and people.  I enjoyed the twist in the end.  Looking forward to the next installment.

Bitter Root (Vol 3) was deep. Like really deep. You get introduced to many new characters that seem to come out of nowhere and everyone is fighting together. I enjoyed it. Many sad stories. I hated how Blink didn’t believe in herself, but it is definitely a tough situation to be in. I like how this book (series) is not afraid to kill off main characters. Made me want to cry. I like how it said sorry and grief leads to pain leads to anger leads to hate and that sets the monsters in us free. So true. Great series, despite busy graphics and confusing flip flop of timelines and locations.  Enjoyed it a lot. Ending leaves it open for future possibilities.  

The Prince of Cats was not my thing, but I enjoyed the urban twist on it. I didn’t know what they were saying half the time as I am not a Shakespeare person.  But I got the gist of it. Tibalt is a bad ass with no regard for anyone else. Lots of senseless violence, shooting, nudity, and some use of the n-word. While not a requirement to read Romeo and Juliet to enjoy this story, I think it is best to read it first or know about it to understand the ending. I thought it funny Romeo is this corny dude, while everyone else is tough looking. This story does a lot of jumping around and is confusing.  Not my cup of tea, but definitely unique.

The Stone Sky is a nice conclusion to this series. It was sad and somber, and very technical. I was so lost in the tech, that I found myself skipping over a lot of it (paragraphs at a time). As I have said in my other reviews of this series, I am not invested in the earth magic of the orogenes and the whole silver thing was just a lot for me. It was unique and I can appreciate it, but definitely not something that held my interest. The character’s did though. I felt for everyone in the end. So much suffering and trauma with no happy ending, for anyone really. I enjoyed how it all came together. Several shockers. Good writing and wouldn’t mind reading more by NKJ, just not about earth magic.