Tag Archives: Superheroes

Worst. Superhero. Ever.

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Worst. Superhero. Ever. by Charlie Higson

Book of the Week: 8 September 2024

Illustrated by Warwick Johnson-Cadwell. Puffin, 2024.

We first met loveably nerdy Stan in the very funny Worst Holiday Ever by Charlie Higson.

Although Stan now has a girlfriend called Jess, whom he met on his eventful holiday with Felix, they live a hundred miles away from one another and Stan is still doubting himself, making lists about superpowers and being a keen member of Library Club, along with his friends Archie, Grace and Maximal. There are persistent rumours that their school wants to close the school library, so they are planning a fund-raising film to try and save it.

Archie is invited by Felix to watch the filming of a TV series by an actor friend of his family. She offers the boys the opportunity to be extras in a few scenes. Stan does well and is offered an audition for a new show made by the same production company. Despite being unwilling to act, he is persuaded to go along by his parents and, against the odds, is cast as a major character. The company are having to re-film most of the series because one of the teenage actors posted an inappropriate film on social media and Stan is taking over his role.

Will the self-effacing Stan be able to deal with the complications of fame or will he embarrass himself and face even more bullying in school than he does already?

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to act in a film or TV series, there is a wealth of detail in the story about what is involved (spoiler: it is more complicated than you might imagine) and what it might be like to be famous. The author, Charlie Higson, has worked as an actor, producer and director of several successful television shows, so he writes from experience and it shows.

Nimona

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Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Book of the Week: 21 February 2016

Nimona

This week’s book is a graphic novel.

Lord Ballister Blackheart may look like a villain, with his forbidding look and mechanical arm, but he is really not achieving very much until Nimona, his self-appointed sidekick, turns up. She appears to be a smart-mouthed young girl but with the added benefit of being a powerful shapeshifter. Perhaps with her help, Blackheart can propel himself up the league-table of villains and outrank official hero of the Institution of Law Enforcement, Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin. The two used to be friends and rivals until Goldenloin blew Blackheart’s arm off in a jousting match. Although Nimona calls Lord Ballister ‘Boss’, is he really the one in charge?

Graphic novels have become far more mainstream in recent years and with good reason. There are many with sophisticated stories and striking artwork. They range from prize-winning political works such as Maus by Art Spiegelman, Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi and Palestine by Joe Sacco to graphic versions of well-known series of books for young people like the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz and Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer.

If you would like to read more about Nimona the website is here

Other sites that cover graphic novels include Grovel and No Flying No Tights

graphicnovelsspinner

The graphic novel spinner in the School Library

 

Bitter Sixteen

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Bitter Sixteen by Stefan Mohamed

Book of the Week: 10 May 2015

Bitter Sixteen
Whilst most of us have sometimes wished we have superpowers, or were the sort of hero who could fight multiple bullies, fly and move things with our minds, we might not imagine this kind of hero lives in a small town in Mid-Wales. Stanly Bird is an unremarkable fifteen year-old who likes reading and who has just got a part in the school play, when on the first minute of his sixteenth birthday he finds himself floating above his bed. This gives him more of a shock than the fact that he has owned a talking dog for the last twelve months. Daryl is no ordinary talking dog, he is a big film fan and provider of sound advice to Stanly. His wise council is needed more than ever now that Stanly has to come to terms with his growing powers and his attraction to Kloe, his co-star in the school production of Romeo and Juliet.
Events start to get serious when a confrontation at school means than Stanly moves to London to find his cousin Eddie, someone his parents seem to disapprove of without telling him why. Things then take on a much more superhero-like feel as hints of supernatural monsters and sinister onlookers, who may or may not be out to manipulate Stanly and even do him harm, start to appear.
The plot has many elements that are familiar from the superhero genre but the style is sparky and funny with some wonderful turns of phrase and two excellent characters in Stanly and Daryl. The first half of the book is quite leisurely but builds to some exciting, gory and sometimes disturbing, action scenes.
Two more books are planned in the series: ‘Ace of Spiders’ and ‘Stanly’s Ghost’. Stefan Mohamed is an author to watch.
See a brief book trailer here