Jon Chad

This is a graphic novel. The premise is that one kid is home sick and bored. Her friend comes by with a book about the solar system, so they invent a spaceship (with their pets as the fictional crew) to travel throughout the solar system – to the sun, then to all the planets and “belts” in between them and slightly beyond, where they learn about where they are visiting.

This is aimed toward kids, but I learned some stuff about the solar system, as well. I really enjoyed this. The pets show more as crew was kind of silly, but likely appealing to kids. I liked that there was a summary at the end of each planetary visit to explain some of the things learned. I also liked that they stopped at Pluto, even though it is no longer considered a planet. And I also enjoyed learning about a few of the planets’ moons. It was unfortunate temperatures were only in Fahrenheit, however. The illustrator did a really nice job, as well; the illustrations are all in colour. show less

Simultaneously a cute analysis and veeeeerry abridged history of pinball. And by pinball I mean specifically pinball in America.

The history portion of this book is fine and serves as a decent overview. You'll definitely want a deeper history to follow up on this book, though. For that, I'd recommend Pinball Wizards: Jackpots, Drains, and the Cult of the Silver Ball. But I'd absolutely recommend reading both rather than choosing one over the other, because one of the flaws in Pinball Wizards show more is the lack of photos and other visuals. And since pinball demands a visual medium to convey it's appeal, I think Chad's graphic novel is an essential primer.

Where this book really shines and what makes it special is in the author's worldview of pinball as a "people's game." I love his analysis of pinball as an ultimately inclusive, egalitarian form of entertainment. "Classless" in the sense that it defies belonging to any one social or economic class, rather than causing you to stick it to The Man.

...which of course it does too but show less

A fun history of pinball machines teaches me a lot about the game, gives me some nostalgic vibes about my favorite machines, and makes me almost want to see if there are any arcades near me. The author may be a little too close to the subject and allows his enthusiasm to result in some hyperbole and purple prose, but hey, that works fine in a comic book format.

3.5 stars

Science comics are geared toward middle grade kids. This one’s topic is volcanoes. The premise behind the “story” is that it’s set in the future and the world is a very cold place. When some kids are helping their teacher find materials that can be burned for heat, they come across an archives with a book about volcanoes, so one of the kids reads through it and is fascinated (and hopeful) to learn about the heat in the Earth’s crust.

The story often seems a little silly to show more me, an adult, but I would guess it would/could appeal to kids. Otherwise, these comics are always very informative and have very nice artwork, including diagrams and other illustrations to help explain whatever scientific topic it is explaining. As usual, I learned some things; in fact, I had to slow down a bit to try to understand in a few places! show less