Posted on by Erica Firment

Librarians: Mimi Smartypants needs our Help!

Mimi Smartypants is my favorite blogger. I want to say more about her writing and why I enjoy it, but everything I type comes out like: “blarg! cliche! gush! gush!”

So, I’ll just skip that and mention that she recently asked for comic book recommendations for her daughter. This woman needs a librarian! We are compelled to help! Here’s a thumbnail reference interview:

  1. The little girl in question is Preschool age
  2. Ideally, avoid mainstream comics. You know, ones with TV tie-ins or superheros.
  3. She currently enjoys The Far Side, and Sam and Max
  4. Violence/weapons are to be avoided.

I took a crack at it. Let me know what you think in the comments, and I’ll ship the whole list off to her Miminess at the end of the week as a tribute of librarianly esteem.

These are comics I have personally read and recommend. I take full responsibility if you think they suck. I avoided the Bone series, despite the cute drawings because those Stupid Rat Creatures can be pretty scary. Stupid, stupid rat creatures.

Librarian Powers: Activate!
Clan Apis – A view of life as a honeybee but without looking like a Mark Trail comic strip. Hilariously written by an entomology grad student who is allergic to bees. Great for kids, fun for adults.

Pogo Possum – I learned to read with these cartoons. Which gave me a rather unusual grasp of the Queen’s English. Still, you don’t have to be old enough to read to appreciate the indelible Albert Alligator and Porkypine.

Castle Waiting – These are the sweetest stories ever. Great art, gentle tales with subtle feminist undertones. Sort of the anti-Optic Nerve.

Liberty Meadows – Frank Cho. Why not? Talking frogs are funny.

Ok, go ahead. You try.

Related posts:

Chess with the President, Bake Sales Default ThumbnailHot Librarian Necklace Epidermaography Default ThumbnailAdvantages to dating Librarians

17 Replies to “Librarians: Mimi Smartypants needs our Help!”

  1. I was so intrigued by the website by Castle Waiting author Linda Medley that I checked the book out on Wednesday. Finished it Thursday, laughing like a loon. My daughter (12), hovered around, anxious to get her hands on the book. But I wanted to see if it was age-appropriate, and by golly it is. It’s very sweet, sometimes sad, always interesting. My daughter plowed through it by noon on Friday. Now we’re off to buy our own copy.

    In other words, this is a great story!

  4. oh, and they aren’t comics, but the I-Spy series of books have pre-school editions, too. Great for building visual discernment skills.

  5. Why not the ‘Archie’/Betty & Veronica comics series? They are still popular and still ‘squeaky clean’, and even though they have been published for ages (60 years?), I don’t consider them ‘mainstream’.

    Also, my son loves the collected Garfield books. He’s 11.

  6. I recommend PS238 by Aaron Williams. Young super heroes in a super hero school or, as he calls it, a “school for metaprodigy children.” Like “Sky High,” the Disney movie of a couple of years ago, except much better and the fact that he’s been drawing this a lot longer. I especially like his comic timing.

    I’d recommend Nodwick on the same grounds, except for the “violence and weapons” clause.

  8. Pogo Possum! I too learned to read with Pogo, and still love it. Who wouldn’t?! I agree with others who recommended Tintin and Calvin and Hobbes. They’ve been my daughter’s favorite for years.

  9. Might be a little too old but anything of Calvin and Hobbes is funny! Parent or older sibling could explain if necessary but the pictures are great! (I think we all know this).

  10. the castle waiting looks great, but I’d debate the appropriateness for the age. it suggests 9th grade and up, and I’m wondering about subject matter for my 8 yr old, let alone a preschooler (I’m also debating buying it for my 8 yr old – perhaps I’ll try to melcat it and read it first). Of course, I don’t read her blog. if she’s not got a problem with it, it looks great.

    clan apis is definitely something my daughter would have liked as a preschooler, and would probably like now. (in kindergarden every library book she brought home was a science book of some sort)

  11. My little one really likes Jill Thompson’s Scary Godmother. It really helped with the monster in my closet problem.

Comments are closed.