Sunday Again

216. American Elf, Book 2: The Collected Sketchbook Diaries of James Kolchalka. Until I read the first volume of his Sketchbook Diaries, Kolchalka's work never really clicked with me. I guess I just needed exposure to enough of his comics before I got them. This book continues to show little slices of his life. Great stuff. (Checked out of the library.)
     
217. The Legend of GrimJack, vol. 7 by John Ostrander & Tom Mandrake. The previous volume ended with the death of the main character. No tricks; John Gaunt genuinely died. And this volume continues his adventures, and it does so in a way that works. Not many writers can pull that off, but Ostrander did. It's one of the reasons this is one of my favorite comic series of all time.
     
218. Ranma 1/2, vol. 35 by Rumiko Takahashi. The penultimate volume. (Library.)
     
219. Ranma 1/2, vol. 36 by Rumiko Takahashi. The many plots & character relationships in this series aren't quite entirely resolved in this volume, but close enough. Lots of fun. (Library.)
     
220. Usagi Yojimbo, vol. 12: Grasscutter by Stan Sakai. The story in this volume starts off with two issues of Japanese mythology & history before settling into the main tale. One of the best volumes in an excellent series.
     
221. Young Avengers, vol. 2: Family Matters by Allan Heinberg, Jim Cheung, et al. I wish Heinberg could meet deadlines better, because he writes some damn good super-hero comics.
     
222. The Art of Usagi Yojimbo by Stan Sakai. (Library.)
     
223. The Dark Tower, Book 6: Song of Susannah by Stephen King. I like this series more & more as it goes on. The cliff-hanger at the end of this volume is brutal, but for some reason I'm sticking to my schedule, and I'm reading a Harry Potter book next. (Borrowed from Teena.)
     
224. Fantastic Four Visionaries: Walter Simonson, vol. 1. Man, I love Simonson's artwork. And his writing is fun & entertaining as well.
     
225. The Professor's Daughter by Joan Sfarr & Emmanuel Guibert. (Library.)
     
226. Mouse Guard, vol. 1: Fall 1152 by David Petersen. Despite the internet buzz about this series, I managed to resist buying the individual issues & wait for the collection. Very nice, but I think I will continue to wait for the books.
     
227. The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, vol. 3 by Eiji Otsuka & Housui Yamazaki. (Library.)
     
228. Wasteland, Book 1: Cities in Dust by Antony Johnston & Christopher Mitten. Post-apocalyptic story that didn't really grab me. I think it may be because the art style is not my cup of tea.
     
229. Alice in Sunderland: An Entertainment by Bryan Talbot. This is an odd thing. It's a massive book about the history of a city in northeastern England and the connections to it that both Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell had. It's beautifully drawn and thoroughly researched, but it just feels strange. In some ways, it feels like Alan Moore's novel, Voice of the Fire, which explores the history of Moore's hometown of Northampton. In other ways, it feels like the chapter of From Hell in which two characters drive around London, and one of them expounds on the city's history. I can't recommend this to everybody, but for some it's definitely worth reading.
     
230. Billy Hazelnuts by Tony Millionaire. (Library.)
     
231. Spider-Woman: Origin by Brian Michael Bendis, Brian Reed, Johnathan Luna, & Joshua Luna. Not terribly interesting. Pretty boring, in fact. (Library.)
     
232. Ghost of Hoppers by Jaime Hernandez. (Library.)