The venerable Library Journal enewsletter Book Smack recently sent out word about their best of 2009 list. Some familiar (and well-deserving) faces show up there (yes, that means The Book of Genesis Illustrated, Asterios Polyp, The Photographer, and Logicomix), but some not-so-expected ones make an appearance as well (that includes Sandman: The Dream Hunters, Pluto, and Ooku). Check out the list here.

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Comics are a powerful learning and teaching tool. That’s obvious to many teachers, a lot of whom have had great success reaching their students through graphic books. And while grade schools and middle schools have been on the forefront of using comics in the classroom, they’re also a fantastic resource at institutions of higher learning. Randy Duncan and Matthew J. Smith have written the book on how to teach the history, impact, importance, and cultural significance of comics at the university and college level. Their book, The Power of Comics, delves deeply into the teaching of comics at the higher level and offers other professors a structure for setting up their own intensive comics courses, whether they be an Intro to Comics or something more specific.

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The American Library Association just announced its 2010 Great Graphic Novels for Teens list. It’s a huge list: 73 titles, to be exact! And it’s a very good list.

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Tons of awards were handed out over the weekend at the American Library Association's midwinter meeting in Boston. And a couple were comics-related! Congratulations to RAW/Toon Books for two big wins. Benny and Penny in the Big No-No! by Geoffrey Hayes won the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for beginning reader books, and Little Mouse Gets Ready by Jeff Smith took a Geisel Honor.

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Earlier today, I was on San Francisco public radio KALW on their program Your Call, which was a fun experience. The topic was graphic journalism, and the in-studio guest was Joe Sacco. Joe's one of the best in the field, so it was an honor just to be on-air with him.

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If you're in the San Francisco area this Thursday, January 14, I hope you'll tune in to KALW for the program Your Call. Their topic that day will be nonfiction graphic books, and I'll be one of their guests. Also on the show will be Joe Sacco (Safe Area Goražde), and I think it will be a very interesting discussion. The show runs from 11 to noon. Hope you can listen!

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Congratulations to Matt Phelan for winning the 2010 Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction! His Storm in the Barn took the win this past week, which means he earns the $5,000 prize. Good job, Matt!

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I just realized I spent a good portion of my recent holidays in some very dark places. Namely: Creepy Archives, Volume Two, The Walking Dead, and Strange Suspense: The Steve Ditko Archives, Vol. 1. I'm not sure what that says about me. But I'm pretty sure it's a bit of an oddity that at a time of rest and relaxation I turn to the cold comforts of horror. Whether they're your holiday cup of tea or not, I still recommend all three to you. Reviews of these collections to come soon, too!

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Just weeks after the sad death of Sheldon Dorf, Ken Krueger, who cofounded the world-famous San Diego Comic-Con, has also died. Krueger, who helped found the con in 1970, passed away from a heart attack in Lockport, New York, on November 21. Krueger had worked as a publisher and distributor, as well as a retailer, in the industry.

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The current issue of Entertainment Weekly (December 4) has an interesting letter in it. It's from a guy named Roy in Springfield, Virginia, who describes himself as "a 57-year-old comics fan" and thanks EW for including a comics bestseller list in a recent issue. So far so good. But then comes the parenthetical: "and yes, I also have a life."

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