Interview 2- Comic books and more!

 For my second interview, I wanted to interview someone who reads something other than the genre type of books I read. I chose Cici because she's hilarious, honest, and trendy. I think she's awesome sauce and I'm glad that I met her while she lived in Maryland. My favorite part of this interview was that she included her love of pancakes in the 'tell me about yourself' question. For anyone who hasn't read a comic in a long time, I think Cici does a great job explaining how to start and I think you can feel her sense of love for comic books in this interview.
Enjoy!

1. Tell me about yourself. I am an air force wife, mother of 2 girls, photographer, and avid reader. I love pop culture, pancakes, and roller derby.

2. What captures your attention about comic books?  I am so captivated by these complex stories and characters that are represented in illustrations. Most people assume that there is no depth or symbolism to these stories because they are in picture-form, but you find a lot of relevant and important issues represented in the stories. And as times change, so do the issues. I especially love that you can find these incredibly empowering female characters to love, who fight alongside the men.

3. Do you like to read Manga, Anime, and graphic novels?  Even though I grew up in Japan, I do not like anime or manga. At all. I think the closest I get to reading it is through a character called Empowered, but its comic book superhero genre that happens to be drawn in anime style.

4.  What are your top 3 comic books that you'd recommend to people new to comic books?I know it can seem pretty daunting to start reading comics and not know where to start. The beauty is that in 2011, DC comics relaunched their monthly titles in the New 52 and basically started from the beginning. If you want to catch up, you can start there. And you don't even have to get the single issues, you can buy trade paperbacks which are a series of issues in book format, printed in volumes. Personally, I love Nightwing and Wonder Woman, but you can visit your local comic book shop and they can eagerly help you pick a title to love. Marvel comics also have trade paperbacks as well. My top 3 reccomendations for newbies: The Sandman by Neil Gaiman, Superman Birthright by Mark Waid, and Saga by Brian K Vaughn & Fiona Staples. Saga is my favorite, though. Its still an on-going series so hurry and catch-up!!!

5. Favorite Superhero/herione? Why? Favorite superhero? Its actually a tie between Wonder Woman and the Scarlet Witch, and i think the two are very different. Wonder Woman is the mother of all female superhero characters. I think all women should love her. She's the first to really stand out on her own, and I love that in the Justice League she is among the top 3 most important members: Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. She fights for justice, equality, and truth. Unlike Superman and Batman, Diana was born a warrior and has trained to fight since she could walk. Its what she does best. She's immensely powerful, but also extremely compassionate, and above everything she believes in love and kindness. On the flip side you have the Scarlet Witch- who is a member of The Avengers and daughter of X-men villain Magneto. Her powers are ever evolving, she controls probability, and can also perform hex magic. Sounds cheesy, I know. But I love Wanda because even with all of this strength and power (I think she's easily one of the most powerful superheroes out there) she's extremely volatile. Her powers shift with her emotions, which I realize can be a pretty stereotypical representation for a female character, but its still relatable. In fact, she eliminated most of the world's population of mutants by just saying "no more mutants" all because she had a bit of a mental breakdown. Call me crazy, but who hasn't had a day like that?

6. When I want to see the latest trends and things, I usually go to your Facebook to see what you've been posting. What are some things that you think are trending now (comic book, books, technology)? Things that are trending? Its good to be a nerd right now. Nerd culture is really hitting it big lately, which can be a little bittersweet. We grew up being teased for our love of these things, and now its the cool thing to do. Superhero films and great tv representation has helped. Game of Thrones is amazing. Doctor Who is huge. Marvel and DC are finally bringing us great comic book movies. New Star Wars films are on their way. Video games are getting better. People are happy to proclaim that they love old 80's movies. Its a great time to love what you love, and not give a damn. Also- everyone should be watching Comicbookgirl19's videos on youtube. She is the best thing EVER!

7. Anything else you'd like to add? I'm sorry I rambled, I'm just passionate about these subjects. People need to read more comics! Go to your local library- they usually always have a graphic novels section. No matter what you like, you will find something to enjoy. There are even graphic novels and comics made for Game of Thrones, Doctor Who, Star Wars, the Mortal Instruments, and yes (dare I say it) the Twilight series. Don't assume that this is only a boy's world- women in comics is the largest growing demographic for the industry and we are kicking serious butt with the writers and artists being hired. And not everything has to be about superheroes. There are comics for westerns, sci-fi, noir, comedy, thrillers, fantasy...whatever you want, I know there's something you'll enjoy. If you enjoyed movies like Blade, Hellboy, Wanted, Kick Ass, Ghost World, Scott Pilgrim, Watchmen, V For Vendetta, or The Walking Dead: you will also enjoy comics. You've got nothing to lose!

First Interview!

My first interview for my blog is none other than, MY MOTHER! She's a wonderful, beautiful, and hilarious woman who I love so much and who is the inspiration for my being a librarian. I don't know what I would do without her and her help. She's a great librarian and an even better mother and grandmother! I love you, Mom!

1. How long have you been a librarian? Technically, I’ve been a librarian for about 25 years. I worked as a page (part time) for 2 years, then moved to full time at the library. I later took over the Children’s Librarian’s job for the Pascagoula library, then moved to the position as the first Jackson-George Regional Youth Services Librarian. I worked there from 1975-1983. I left when Ben was born. I started back to work in about 1992 or 93 as an assistant teacher. That led to becoming the school librarian for Resurrection Catholic Elementary, finishing my library degree, and starting working at Colmer Middle school in 1999.

2. Why did you choose to be a librarian? I always thought I would be a kindergarten teacher or a P.E. teacher but when I started to work at the Pascagoula Public Library……that was it. I knew I wanted to become a librarian. What wasn’t there to like? Books….Children…Helping patrons…I loved it all!

3. What are 2 things people get wrong about librarians? One thing people always get wrong is that librarians are not necessarily QUIET! I have never thought libraries should be totally quiet. However, a free for all in the library is not what I am talking about either. The library is a very happening place and if done right, it’s a happy, bubbly, informative place. 2. All librarians don’t wear glasses, don’t have hair buns, and are not 80 years old!

4.Who is your favorite author? I would say that my favorite children’s/youth author is Tamora Pierce. She writes about strong female characters who are not afraid to try new things. If you have more than one, top5 ? Others I enjoy: J. K. Rowling and her Harry Potter series (not so much her adult tries.), Janet Evanovitch (hysterical series: One for the Money, etc. If you saw the movie, wipe it from your mind and read the books. They are literally laugh out loud funny!), Agatha Christie….nuf said. I am a very eclectic reader so I try many genres and enjoy authors from all over.

5. What do you like most about being a school librarian? What I love is turning the students on to reading. There is nothing as satisfying as handing a book to a student and saying, “try it. If you don’t like it, bring it back and we’ll try again.’ Then, that student comes in and there is a HUGE grin on his/her face and says, “I loved it. Got any more?” That is why I do this. Plus I am constantly amazed that as much as children love technology, they don’t always know how to do research and find the things they really need. I love that I get to see them all, but they don’t stay.I love being flexible and having different things happening every day. I am usually too busy to be bored and that is a good thing.

Adding New Content to this Blog

So I've decided that instead of just doing book reviews on the books I read, that I'm going to also include news and interesting articles and pictures I find about libraries, reading, and the like. I want to expand my horizons and see if I can get a broader base of readers than just my Mom and husband reading my blog for me. I'm also wanting people to leave feedback/comments so I know I'm getting some traffic on here. I may even do some interviews and post those on here. Who knows?

Websites/Blogs

Right now I follow a few blogs written by other librarians. One of my favorites is Librarian in Black, written by Sarah Houghton. I find her posts both informational and humorous. You can check her out at: http://librarianinblack.net/librarianinblack/

Another good place I find information is the ALA website. They are THE place to go for library needs, as far as librarians go. They have information on pretty much all topics library/librarian related. It's a website I use almost weekly for my school work. And it's one the websites I'll be using for my research paper to graduate. http://www.ala.org/

One blog that I recently stumbled on was the http://theunquietlibrarian.wordpress.com/. It's very interesting! She seems to update her blog every couple days or so. I like that she inserts videos, pictures,etc in some of her posts. Her blog is easily maneuverable and has links to her other social media sites.

Books

Hi! So I need some suggestions on what to read next. I also went back through my Kindle and found a couple books I overlooked and haven't reviewed so I'll be reviewing those soon. I currently am borrowing the book The Monuments Men from the local library via their new online system for Kindles and the like.

Please leave a comment suggesting a couple good books to read! I would greatly appreciate it. Also, if you come across any interesting library news please feel free to share it with me as I love reading about library-esque type things.

Thanks! Now, Go Read!