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Graphic Novel Review: Hellboy and the B.P.R.D., Vol.4: 1955 by Mike Mignola and Chris Roberson, illustrated by Shawn Martinbrough (Secret Nature), Brian Churilla (Occult Intelligence), and Paolo Rivera and Joe Rivera (Burning Season)


Hellboy and the B.P.R.D., Vol. 4: 1955 by Mike Mignola and Chris Roberson; art by Shawn Martinbrough (Secret Nature), Brian Churilla (Occult Intelligence), and Paolo Rivera and Joe Rivera (Burning Season)

Dark Horse, 2018

ISBN: 9781506705965

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition, comiXology edition

In Hellboy and the B.P.R.D., Vol. 4: 1955, Hellboy and the B.P.R.D hunt down unseen predators and demons, investigate cases of spontaneous combustion, and confront an espionage plot regarding a strange new weapon at an Air Force base where Russian agents want to steal it and the military brass are moving in. The volume collects Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1955 Secret Nature, Occult Intelligence #1-#3, Burning Season, and the 1955 story from the Hellboy Winter Special. Included in this volume is a sketchbook with storyboards, annotations, and more.

Secret Nature addresses some significant themes in this Hellboy volume. Hellboy and Woodrow Farrier, PhD., head to Oregon to investigate sightings of a deadly beast that has been killing livestock and terrorizing farmers in the area. They make a gruesome discovery in a dark cabin: some of the farm boys got ahold of a book of spells and, in making an error in the summoning ritual, let loose the creature that gutted them and has been wreaking havoc on the area farms. Throughout this chapter, Hellboy and Woody talk about the fact that more people are accepting of Hellboy than they are a Black man. Professor Bruttenholm approached him and was willing to take him in and give him a chance. Despite the professor’s trust and respect, and Hellboy’s support and defense, the Bureau is far from perfect. Can Woody and Hellboy banish the creature? Will Hellboy’s disgust of the racist farmers finally get the better of him?

Occult Intelligence has some great moments. Hellboy faces off against a giant oceanic beast that resembles a turtle while Archie Mudaro calls him “kid” the entire time he and the troops are trying to help him fight. Admittedly it was hard for me to remember that technically, the big red lug was still a kid in 1955! I also appreciated the mention of Dimension X. It helps illustrate the time period as it was a popular radio show that ran from 1950-1951. If you haven’t heard it, I highly recommend it. This story also involves a B.P.R.D agent, Susan Xiang, who finds herself experiencing disturbing visions that may give Hellboy some idea what will happen next.

Burning Season begins with a couple stopping out in the woods to make a pit stop, which results in the wife burning to ashes in front of her husband. As the B.P.R.D. investigates, it is discovered this isn’t the first mysterious fiery death in Port Orange, Florida. The land holds centuries of pain and anguish, and Hellboy may be the only one who can quench its wrath. Highly recommended.

 

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker

Posted on April 4, 2019 by , Reply

Musings: Introducing the Summer Scares Reading List

I am more than a little behind in getting information out to you all right now, but FINALLY I am at a place in my “gotta get it done” pile where I can share with you something I am pretty excited about. In fact, this is something I wanted to do years and years ago but could never really figure out how to execute it. Since Monster Librarian started, there have been huge changes in both the way HWA does things, how horror publishing works, and how seriously libraries take horror fiction. In 2006 (when we started reviewing) horror fiction and horror publishing was a pretty tiny community still communicating mainly through groups like Shocklines with independent presses that printed a lot of limited and collectible editions. Ebooks and self-publishing were just really getting their start and were the source of a lot of contention.

Dylan actually started  Monster Librarian during his internship for his MLS (for the uninitiated, that’s a master’s degree in library science) when he discovered that the other librarians working with him at the reference desk were familiar with Stephen King and… Stephen King, and neither knew or cared about most other contemporary horror. At the same time, I was sitting on a student choice awards nominating committee of school librarians who had neither a liking for or interest in horror or scary stories, this despite my being asked all the time “where are the scary books?” by kids. The fact that HWA now has a library committee, that major review publications now cover horror and scary stories and that there are major publishing imprints that now publish horror, that social media and sites like Book Riot exist and connect readers, writers, and publishers… this is huge. It makes Monster Librarian a very tiny fish now, but I am really proud that we have been here promoting horror for librarians and readers of horror and scary stories for all ages and have gotten to see and participate in this amazing growth and not just acceptance but celebration of the genre. I really wish Dylan was here to see this all happen.

And now, a press release on the beginnings of what I hope will be more than a one-time partnership: the Summer Scares reading program.

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SUMMER SCARES FIRST ANNUAL READING LIST ANNOUNCED

In celebration of National Library Lover’s Day, the Horror Writers Association (HWA), in partnership with United for Libraries, Book Riot, and Library Journal/School Library Journal, is delighted to announce the first annual Summer Scares Reading List, which includes titles selected by a panel of authors and librarians and is designed to promote horror as a great reading option for all ages, during any time of the year.

Each year, three titles will be chosen in the Adult, Young Adult, and Middle Grade categories, and for 2019 they are:

ADULT

Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones (William Morrow Paperbacks, 2017)

My Soul to Keep by Tananarive Due (Harper Voyager, 1998)

Earthworm Gods by Brian Keene (Deadite Press, 2012)

YOUNG ADULT

Rotters by Daniel Kraus (Ember, 2012)

Slasher Girls and Monster Boys, edited by April Genevieve Tucholke (Speak, 2016)

Devil and Winnie Flynn by Micol Ostow (Penguin Random House Publisher Services, 2015)

MIDDLE GRADE

Doll Bones Holly Black (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2015)

Through the Woods by Emily Carroll (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2014)

The Jumbies by Tracey Baptiste (Algonquin Young Readers, 2016)

The goal of the Summer Scares program is to introduce horror titles to school and public library workers in order to help them start conversations with readers that will extend beyond the books from each list and promote reading for years to come. Along with the annual list of recommended titles for readers of all ages, the Summer Scares committee will also release themed lists of even more “read-alike” titles for libraries to use when suggesting books to readers this summer and all year long. And, in order to help libraries forge stronger connections between books and readers, the Summer Scares committee will be working with both the recommended list authors and horror authors from all over the country, to provide free programming to libraries. From author visits (both in person and virtual) to book discussions to horror themed events, Summer Scares is focused on connecting horror creators with libraries and readers all year long.

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) will also be hosting special Library Day programming at its annual StokerCon event, which will be held May 9-12 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Several of the authors from the Summer Scares reading list, as well as the committee members, will be in attendance. Authors and committee members will also be available throughout the year for on-site and/or remote appearances to libraries and schools to promote the Summer Scares program and discuss the use of horror fiction as a tool to increase readership and nurture a love of reading.

The Summer Scares program committee consists of award-winning author Grady Hendrix (We Sold Our Souls, Paperbacks from Hell), Becky Spratford (library consultant, author of The Readers Advisory Guide to Horror, 2nd Ed.), Carolyn Ciesla (library director, academic dean, book reviewer), Kiera Parrott (reviews director for Library Journal and School Library Journal), Kelly Jensen (editor, Book Riot, author of [Don’t] Call Me Crazy: 33 Voices Start the Conversation about Mental Health), and JG Faherty (HWA Library Program director, author of The Cure and Carnival of Fear).

The HWA is a non-profit organization of writers and publishing professionals, and the oldest organization dedicated to the horror/dark fiction genre. One of the HWA’s missions is to foster an appreciation of reading through extensive programming and partnerships with libraries, schools, and literacy-based organizations.

For more information about the Summer Scares reading program, including how to obtain promotional materials and schedule events with the authors/committee members, visit the HWA’s Libraries web page (www.horror.org/libraries), Becky Spratford’s Reader’s Advisory Horror Blog RA for All: Horror (http://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/), or the Book Riot, School Library Journal, Library Journal, or United for Libraries websites and social media sites.

You can also contact JG Faherty, Library Program Director (libraries@horror.org) or Becky Spratford, HWA Secretary (bspratford@hotmail.com).

Posted on March 13, 2019 by , Reply

Book Review: Brainchew by Wol-vriey

Brainchew by Wol-vriey

Burning Bulb Publishing, 2017

ISBN: 978-0-9977-7304-0

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

With Brainchew, Nigerian horror author Wol-vriey has really hit his stride.  He’s toned down the sometimes excessive levels of blood and pain that could be found in his other horror fiction, created a new monster that fans will enjoy, and kept his dark sense of humor intact.  With Brainchew, he’s created his most memorable creature to date : this is an excellent read, and one that should be on the shelves of any horror fan who delights in campiness and carnage.

The plot: four small-time crooks who specialize in safecracking descend upon eastern Massachusetts with a deal for the “big score.” Their assignment: break into a mansion, crack the safe, steal two specific diamonds, then meet their employer at the Sunflower Motel in Raynham, Massachusetts, for the drop. One of the robbers gets killed during the heist, so his partners dump the body in a Raynham cemetery and then go to the hotel to wait to for the drop.  Unfortunately for them, the hotel owners are sleazebags who have figured out what is going on, and have their own designs on the loot.

Up to that point, the story is pretty standard.  But then it takes a very different turn, and the fun really begins.  Brainchew is a monster that somewhat resembles the creatures from the Alien series, minus the stinging tail.   Awakened from slumber in the cemetery by blood leaking into the ground from the dumped body, Brainchew is hungry for…brains, of course!  Naturally, Brainchew proceeds to the Sunflower Motel to wreak havoc in the goriest method possible, throwing the plans of both the motel owners and the robbers into disarray.

The story moves quickly, without wasting time on lengthy expositions or deep conversations.  There is just enough backstory given on the protagonists to make them seem like more than cardboard cutouts. You might find yourself disliking many of them, as they have few redeeming qualities.  That’s what makes this such fun: you might find yourself rooting for Brainchew as he chews human genital regions, gulps urine, crushes skulls, and flings cranial carnage everywhere.   All of this is done with Wol-vriey’s usual messy intensity, although it is toned down a bit from his previous books.  There’s enough bloodshed to keep gorehound readers happy, but not enough to enter the realm of excess that so many hardcore horror authors today seem to delight in.  The real delight in the book is when Raynham’s residents see Brainchew.  They know who he is already: he is a secret that the town tried to bury years ago.  Their reactions are priceless: it’s not “oh my god, what is THAT?”  but “oh no, that damn thing is awake and at it again!”  It’s nice to have a book where the characters don’t react in the same fashion as usual when a monster is encountered.

Brainchew is a fast, messy, wild ride, with an entertaining and original monster.  The only thing that may put some readers off is the graphic sex does seem excessive at times, and pulls away from the overall story thread.  If you can overlook that, this is a story that most gorehound horror fans will enjoy.  Recommended.

Contains: graphic violence, graphic sex

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

 

Posted on February 25, 2019 by , Reply
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