-
Sep 9, 2024 | 
libraryjournal.com | Brad Rouse
Graphic novels have enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity in the last five years. Since 2019, sales of graphic novels have risen over 100 percent. While that growth has leveled off, graphic novels are now the third best-selling genre (35 million books sold) in the U.S. and Canada, behind only general fiction (49 million) and romance (36 million). What’s fueled this spike in popularity?
-
Jul 19, 2024 | 
libraryjournal.com | Brad Rouse
Christian fiction has flourished over the years, with subgenres like historical fiction, Regency romance, and contemporary women’s fiction. To expand their readership, Christian publishers are now embracing thrillers. These character-driven adventures offer high-intensity plots with moral challenges and inspirational moments. Christian fiction has flourished over the years, with subgenres like historical fiction, Regency romance, and contemporary women’s fiction.
-
Mar 27, 2024 | 
slj.com | Brigid Alverson |Kekla Magoon |Cynthia Smith |Brad Rouse
Move over, manga! With the burgeoning popularity of webtoons, K-drama, and K-pop, manhwa—comics from Korea—have made a big impact on English-language audiences. Chinese comics, manhua, are growing in number as well. Unlike manga, most manhua and manhwa available in English are in color and read from left to right. Almost all were originally published online in the vertical-scroll webtoon format and have shorter chapters than manga.
-
Feb 2, 2024 | 
slj.com | Brad Rouse |Amanda MacGregor |Travis Jonker
Decodables, or simple books written for beginning readers, have become staples in elementary school classrooms and libraries everywhere, and for good reason. By encouraging children to sound out words using decoding strategies rather than guessing from pictures or predicting from other cues, decodables help emergent readers learn to read independently.
-
Feb 1, 2024 | 
newsbreak.com | Brad Rouse
By signing up for our newsletter, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
-
Dec 20, 2023 | 
slj.com | Brigid Alverson |Brad Rouse
In the series “Elle(s)” by Kid Toussaint and Aveline Stokart, the main character has dissociative identity disorder. Her hair color and facial expressions change depending on which personality is dominant. Color also conveys powerful emotion in My Own World, about an anxious boy who finds refuge in fantasy. Creator Mike Holmes uses harsh yellow-greens to depict the real world, and a softer, black-and-red palette for the imaginary realm into which his younger self escapes.
-
Oct 25, 2023 | 
libraryjournal.com | Brad Rouse
Mystery publishers are reveling in a surge of genre mashups. Creative pairings combine classic crime thrillers with elements of genres as wide-ranging as horror, romance, dystopian, sci-fi, paranormal, political, and western. New mystery titles also feature historical characters like Elizabeth I and William Shakespeare. Why this influx of genre mashups? Mystery publishers are reveling in a surge of genre mashups.
-
May 10, 2023 | 
schoollibraryjournal.com | Dennis Pierce |Brad Rouse |Cathy Camper
Asakura, Akinari. Show-ha Shoten! Vol. 1. tr. from Japanese by Stephen Paul. illus. by Takeshi Obata. 192p. (Show-ha Shoten). Viz. Feb. 2023. pap. $9.99. ISBN 9781974736829. Gr 9 Up–Azemichi wants to become funny as a way to prove to his former crush, whose family has resettled somewhere unbeknownst to him, that he’s more than just an ordinary, nice guy. Higashikata is looking for a comedy partner in order to create laughter so loud, it reaches his former partner (who passed away) way up in the heavens.
-
Mar 21, 2023 | 
libraryjournal.com | Brad Rouse
by Brad Rouse Mar 21, 2023 | Filed in Reviews+ Over the last five years, audiobook revenue in the U.S. has increased by an astonishing 113 percent, making it the fastest-growing book format in the U.S. The category is flourishing as publishers continue to innovate and grow their reach. Best friends Barbara Holdridge and Marianne Roney wanted to work in the record business after finishing college in 1952.
