Friday, August 05, 2022

Dreams and Nightmares: A Blog Post on The Sandman by Neil Gaiman

Disclaimer: The Sandman rightfully belongs to DC Comics and is only suitable for adult readers. Beware of spoilers if you're not familiar with or have just heard about the series.
The Sandman characters were created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg.

    "Dreams are lovely. But they are just dreams. Fleeting, ephemeral. Pretty. But dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It's hard work that makes things happen. It's hard work that creates change." -- Shonda Rhimes, "Year of Yes"

About Neil Gaiman

    "What I say is, a town isn't a town without a bookstore. It may call itself a town, but unless it's got a bookstore, it knows it's not foolin' a soul." -- Neil Gaiman, "American Gods"
               
    Born on November 10, 1960, Neil Gaiman is a best-selling writer of novels, comics, children's books, audio, theatre, films, and television.
    As a child, his love for literature came from reading the novels by classic authors such as C.S. Lewis, Edgar Allan Poe, and J. R. R. Tolkien.
    Gaiman began his career as a journalist in England before going on to pen his best-selling books. In addition to short stories, his popular works include the novels American Gods, Coraline, Stardust, The Graveyard Book, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Good Omens, which he had co-written with the late Terry Pratchett, and the ground-breaking comics series The Sandman.
    He has also written for radio, film, and television, and even guest-starred in episodes of Arthur, The Simpsons, and The Big Bang Theory. Several of his books have been adapted for radio, screen, and stage.

About The Sandman
Age Rating: 17+

    "Man is a genius when he is dreaming." -- Akira Kurosawa

    In 1987, Neil Gaiman was commissioned by British liaison editor, Karen Berger, to make a new version of a DC Comics character called the Sandman. After two weeks without power, caused by a powerful hurricane that struck Britain, Neil wrote the outlines of the first eight issues. The Sandman was then approved as an ongoing comics series. In 1988, penciller Sam Kieth was invited on board, and he suggested inker Mike Dringenberg. When Kieth dropped out of the project, Dringenberg took over as penciller and Malcolm Jones III was made the new inker. 
    In 1989, The Sandman was launched. With every issue released, the series gained a big fan base, outsold the Superman and Batman comics, won multiple awards, and made Neil Gaiman a household name. The Sandman features covers and illustrations by an ensemble of artists, including Dave McKean and Charles Vess.
    The Sandman ran until 1996 with a total of 75 issues.

Meet the Family

    "We can't control our destiny, but we can control who we become." -- Anne Frank, "The Diary of a Young Girl"

    In the beginning, Time and Night came together and had seven children. Their progeny aren't deities, but rather personify seven aspects of life: Destiny, Death, Dream, Destruction, Desire, Despair, and Delirium. Together, they are the seven Endless, powerful beings whose functions have been affecting all living things since the creation of the universe.
    Though they don't get along well, they would occasionally hold family meetings to discuss serious matters. Each sibling inhabits their own realm and has a gallery of the others' sigils which they use to summon them. The Endless are also forbidden from spilling their own blood lest they incur the wrath of the Furies.

The Family by Spamushka
Left to right: Desire, Destiny, Despair (crouching on the floor), Destruction, Dream, Delirium, and Death.

Destiny
    Destiny is the oldest of The Endless. Omniscient, he walks around his garden, reading from his chained Book the past, the present, and the future.

Death
    Death appears to every living thing twice: to give them the breath of life and to guide them when their time has come. Of all the family, she is the member Dream is closest to. One day every century, Death becomes mortal to keep in touch with the finite lives she collects.

Dream
    Also known as the Dream King, the Prince of Stories, and the Sandman amongst other names, Lord Morpheus rules The Dreaming, the world of sleep and imagination and home to thousands of weird and wonderful beings. His function is to give sweet dreams and horrifying nightmares to all who have his sand blown into their eyes. To make up for past wrongs, he must either change or die.

Destruction
    Little is known about Destruction-the Prodigal member of the Endless-as he abandoned his duties and realm centuries before Dream's capture.

Desire
    Desire is selfish and manipulative. But to encounter them is to love them, while ignoring everything else. Always the possessor, never the possession, they are everything you wish for, whoever or whatever you are.

Despair
    Despair is Desire's twin sister. Watching us through our mirrors, she is the moment when all hope is gone.

Delight
    Delirium is the youngest of The Endless. Originally named Delight, she can alter reality and drive a person mad. No one can comprehend her domain nor knows what she sees through her green and blue eyes.

The Books

    "Without leaps of imagination or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all is a form of planning." -- Gloria Steinem


    In 1916, occultist Roderick Burgess and his group attempt to summon and capture Death to claim immortality. However, the occultists instead imprison Death's younger brother, Dream. 70 years later, Dream, also known as Lord Morpheus, escapes and returns to The Dreaming. Finding his kingdom in disarray, Morpheus summons the Hecateae who inform him how to reclaim his three symbols of office: a pouch of sand, a helm, and a ruby.
    During his quest, Morpheus is aided by superheroes, humiliates the fallen angel Lucifer, and puts a villainous madman back in the Arkham Asylum.
    When all is said and done, he then accompanies Death on her errands.

Morpheus: "It is as natural to die as it is to be born."


    An African tribesman tells his grandson the story of Nada, a mortal queen who fell in love with the Dream Lord.
    Since 1389, an Englishman named Hob Gadling has been meeting with Dream at a pub every century.
    In 1980s USA, 21-year-old Rose Walker searches for her missing brother while their mother spends time in England with their newly-discovered grandmother.
    In The Dreaming, Morpheus learns that four dreams escaped to the waking world during his imprisonment, and that a dream vortex has appeared for the first time in eons. With the vortex a threat to his domain, Morpheus sets out to kill her and to capture the runaway dreams.
    Two seemingly unrelated parties, each with their own goal, will cross paths at the unlikeliest place: a serial killer convention.
               
Rose Walker: "If my dream was true, then everything we know, everything we think we know is a lie."


    What is the price for a dream come true?
    An author with writer's block regularly assaults the muse Calliope to gain inspiration for his next books, unaware she has asked for help from her wasband, the Shaper of Form.
    A Siamese cat preaches to her fellow felines of a world where they rule over humans.
    In 1593, William Shakespeare and his troupe perform A Midsummer Night's Dream* in front of Morpheus and the fair folk.
    Unable to die because of a curse placed on her by the Egyptian god Ra, Urania Blackwell is visited by Death.

Siamese Cat: "But if enough of us dream... if a bare thousand of us dream... we can change the world."

*The Sandman Issue #19 won the World Fantasy Award for Best Short Story back in 1991, and remains the only comic to do so.


    A family meeting prompts Morpheus to rescue his former lover Nada, whom he banished to Hell thousands of years ago for rejecting him. However, Lucifer has quit ruling Hell and gives Dream the Key to it.
    Upon returning to The Dreaming, Morpheus plays host to gods, demons, fey, and angels who have come for the infernal Key. As the souls of the damned wreak havoc on an all-boys boarding school, Dream must choose Hell's next ruler before he could make amends with Nada.

    October knew, of course, that the action of turning a page, of ending a chapter or of shutting a book, did not end a tale. -- G.K. Chesterton, "The Man Who Was October"


    Barbie, a former neighbour of Rose Walker's, has been living in a New York City apartment since her divorce from her husband Ken. The line between reality and fantasy becomes blurred when Barbie finds herself journeying to the kingdom of her childhood imagination to battle a villain called the Cuckoo.

Barbie: "And if there's a moral there, I don't know what it is, save maybe that we should take our goodbyes whenever we can. And that's all."


    Travel back and forth between the past and the present, reality and fantasy, as stories are told and retold.
    An actor recounts his dream of falling.
    Joshua Norton is the self-proclaimed Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, but what roles will The Endless play in his reign?
    During the French Revolution, Morpheus sends Lady Johanna Constantine on a mission to retrieve the disembodied head of his son, the Greek musician Orpheus.
    An old man tells his teenage granddaughter the story of a lad's quest to return a duchess's necklace.
    Lycius the Dwarf records the conversation he had with Augustus Caesar.
    Explorer Marco Polo dreams in the middle of a desert.
    Orpheus, son of Morpheus and Calliope, descends to the Underworld to retrieve his late wife Eurydice's shade.
    Eve, Cain, and Abel tell strange yet fantastic stories to Daniel Hall, a baby conceived in The Dreaming.
    A caliph wishes for his magnificent city to be preserved for eternity.

Todd: "Sometimes you wake up. Sometimes the fall kills you. And sometimes, when you fall, you fly."


    Delirium and Dream seek out their prodigal brother Destruction, who left his domain centuries ago and hasn't been seen nor heard of since. To successfully find him though, Dream must first consult with his son Orpheus.

Destruction: "A two-sided coin: destruction is needed. Nothing new can exist without destroying the old."


    A reality storm forces a man and a woman to seek shelter at a mysterious inn. While waiting for the storm to pass, Brant and Charlene listen to the stories told by the people and creatures who have travelled from various times and realities:
    Robert dwells into the city of his dreams, or is it the dreams of his city?
    The Cluracan causes an uproar while preventing an alliance that would threaten Fairie. 
    A girl disguises herself a boy to sail the seven seas.
    A teenager gets elected as the President of an alternative United States.
    An apprentice from the necropolis Litharge recounts his participation in a sky funeral.
    The lady in charge of the tavern (re)defines reality.

Innkeeper: "Reality is a very fragile thing, after all."

    As punishment for killing his son, Morpheus has the Kindly Ones imposing vengeance on him. Embodying maiden, mother, and crone is Lyta Hall, a superhero who is convinced the Dream King has also murdered her own son Daniel.
    The Dreaming becomes a battlefield. Lives are lost. An era ends.

Morpheus: "We make choices. No one else can live our lives for us. And we must confront and accept the consequences of our actions."


    Dream of The Endless is dead. At his wake, his siblings, friends, former lovers, and even enemies arrive at The Dreaming to pay their last respects.
    A new era begins.

Matthew the Raven: "The king is dead. That's what they say. The king is dead. Long live the king."


    Seven Endless siblings.
    Seven short stories.
    Learn more about Morpheus and his family in this follow-up.
               
Narrator: "A page turns."


    In 1999, Gaiman penned The Dream Hunters, a Sandman novella inspired by Japanese mythology. In 2008, artist P. Craig Russell adapted the text into a four-issue comics miniseries.
    A shape-shifting fox falls in love with a monk. When she overhears a plot to take her beloved's life, the fox must use all her cunning to save him.

Morpheus: "Vengeance can be a road that has no ending. You would be wise to avoid it."


    Before he was imprisoned, Morpheus went on an adventure across dimensions in Overture, a prequel published in 2015. This book is best read after the original series.

Morpheus: "I tell myself, I am Dream of The Endless. I am Dream. And I am prepared for whatever awaits me."

The Sandman Over the Years

    "Dreams come true; without that possibility, nature would not incite us to have them." -- John Updike

2001

    Dark Horse, Chaos! Comics, Image Comics, and DC co-published two volumes of comics to benefit the loved ones of the victims of the September 11 attacks.
    The second volume contains two Sandman stories:
  • Lucien the librarian tells the reader the story of the American Dream.
  • Death and Destruction comfort a heartbroken boy whose mother died on that tragic day.

2013

    Death of The Endless is obviously one of the most popular characters in the Sandman franchise. In the 1990s, she starred in an eight-page AIDS awareness comic and two spin-off series-Death: The High Cost of Living and Death: The Time of Your Life-all of which can be read in one deluxe volume.

Death: "When the first living thing existed, I was there, waiting. When the last living thing dies, my job is finished. I'll put the chairs on the tables, turn out the lights and lock the universe behind me when I leave."

2016

    For three seasons, Fox aired Lucifer, a fantasy series loosely based on the supporting character.
    Bored with punishing sinners, Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis; Miranda) leaves Hell for Hollywood where he runs a bar. When he isn't catering to clients, Lucifer solves crimes with Detective Chloe Decker and deals with his estranged Celestial family.


    Originally cancelled, fans successfully petitioned Netflix to buy the rights and renew the series for three additional seasons.

2017

    Directors Evan Henderson and Nicholas Brown uploaded on YouTube and Vimeo a (NSFW) fan film based on the sixth issue. Running for 30 minutes, Sandman: 24 Hour Diner is a faithful adaptation that has been praised by Gaiman and fans.


2019

    DC Comics commemorated the 30th anniversary of The Sandman by printing new editions of the collected tomes and have been releasing an ongoing series of spin-offs set in what is now called The Sandman Universe. Although he isn't involved in the writing, Neil is a creative consultant.
    In October, Warner Bros. released the first Sandman-based animated film. Part of the DC Showcase shorts, Death is about a struggling artist who encounters an unlikely muse (Jamie Chung; Big Hero 6) who just might help him overcome his inner demons and make a masterpiece. The short film is available as a special feature in Wonder Woman: Bloodlines and Batman: Death in the Family.

2020

    On July 15, 2020, Audible released the first act of a star-studded audio drama based on Volumes 1-3.
    The audio drama is directed by Dirk Maggs and the cast includes James McAvoy (Atonement, X-Men) as Morpheus, Kat Dennings (2 Broke Girls, Thor) as Death, Michael Sheen (Good Omens, The Twilight Saga) as Lucifer, Miriam Margolyes (Romeo + Juliet, Mulan) as Despair, Bebe Neuwirth (Cheers, The Addams Family) as the Siamese Cat, Taron Egerton (Kingsman: The Golden Circle, Rocketman) as John Constantine, Joanna Lumley (Absolutely Fabulous, Corpse Bride) as Johanna Constantine, Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars) as Matthew the Raven, and Neil Gaiman himself as the Narrator.


2021

    On September 22, 2021, Audible released The Sandman: Act II, adapting Volumes 4 and 5, plus the majority of the stories from Volume 6.
    In addition to several actors from the previous act reprising their respective roles, the cast of Act II includes Kristen Schaal (Bob's Burgers, Gravity Falls) as Delirium, Jeffrey Wright (Angels in America, Westworld) as Destiny, Regรฉ-Jean Page (Roots, Bridgerton) as Orpheus, Bill Nighy (Love Actually, Pirates of the Caribbean) as Odin, David Tennant (Good Omens, DuckTales) as Loki, and Aidan Turner (Being Human, And Then There Were None) as the Cluracan.


    On September 25, Netflix released the first look at the first season of the TV series adaptation. The first season would adapt Volumes 1 and 2, with Neil Gaiman serving as an executive producer.


2022

    IDW and DC published Hell & Gone, a crossover miniseries between Joe Hill's Locke & Key comics and The Sandman. The plot centres on members of the Locke family encountering The Endless and journeying to The Dreaming and Hell.
    All three issues of the miniseries can be read in Locke & Key: The Golden Age.

If you think you can unlock the gates of Hell and just invite yourself in, you must be Dreaming!

    On August 5, 2022, Netflix launched the first season of The Sandman.


    Released to mostly positive reviews and critical acclaim, the first season of The Sandman, consisting of eleven episodes, has become one of the most viewed TV series on Netflix.
    The cast of the long-awaited adaptation includes Tom Sturridge (Being Julia, Like Minds) as Morpheus, Charles Dance (Game of Thrones, And Then There Were None) as Roderick Burgess, Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones, Star Wars) as Lucifer, Kirby (The Good Place, Why Women Kill) as Death, Mason Alexander Park (I Am My Own Wife, The Rocky Horror Picture Show) as Desire, Mark Hamill (Star Wars, Batman: The Animated Series) as Mervyn Pumpkinhead, John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Rabbit Hole) as Hal Carter, Stephen Fry (Wilde, Twelfth Night) as Gilbert, David Thewlis (Dragonheart, Anomalisa) as John Dee, with Patton Oswalt (Ratatouille, We Bare Bears) as Matthew the Raven, Sandra Oh (Killing Eve, Turning Red) as The Siamese Cat, and Melissanthi Mahut (Assassin's Creed,  Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga) as Calliope.
    On November 28, 2023, the first season of The Sandman was released on Blu-ray.
    On May 20, 2024, Netflix announced three new cast members for the upcoming second season of The Sandman: Adrian Lester (The Ghost Squad, Bonekickers) as Destiny, Esmรฉ Creed-Miles (Hanna, The Doll Factory) as Delirium, and Barry Sloane (Revenge, Modern Warfare) as the Prodigal.


    "Dream well, my friend, and good night." -- Lucien, Paul Levitz, "The American Dream"

References:
  1. McCrae, J. et al. (2001). 9-11: Artists Respond, Volume One. Dark Horse Comics.
  2. Anonymous. (n.d.). Biography. Neil Gaiman.  https://neilgaiman.com/About_Neil/Biography
  3. Audible. (2021, September 25). Sandman: Act II Trailer | Audible, The [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UzhHSNi2JA
  4. Barker, M. et al. (Executive Producers). (2022-). Sandman, The [TV series]. DC Entertainment; Warner Bros. Television.
  5. Brown, N. & Henderson, E. (Directors). (2017). Sandman: 24 Hour Diner [Film].
  6. DC. (2020, March 4). Sandman | Official Trailer (Summer 2020), The [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn8WDXY6hRM
  7. Gaiman, N. (2013). Death: The Deluxe Edition. Vertigo.
  8. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman: Overture - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  9. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman: The Dream Hunters - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  10. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. New York City, New York: Vertigo.
  11. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 2 The Doll's House - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  12. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  13. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 4: Season of Mists - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  14. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 5: A Game of You - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  15. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 6: Fables & Reflections - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  16. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 7: Brief Lives - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  17. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 8: World's End - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  18. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 9: The Kindly Ones - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  19. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 10: The Wake - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  20. Gaiman, N. (2019). Sandman Vol. 11: Endless Nights - 30th Anniversary Edition, The. Vertigo.
  21. Gaiman, N. & Maggs, D. (2020). Sandman, The [Audiobook]. Audible.
  22. Gaiman, N. & Maggs, D. (2021). Sandman: Act II, The [Audiobook]. Audible.
  23. Henderson, J. et al. (Executive Producers). (2016-2021). Lucifer [TV series]. Fox; Netflix.
  24. Hill, J. (2022). Locke & Key: The Golden Age. IDW Publishing.
  25. Liu, S. (Director). (2019). DC Showcase: Death [Film]. Warner Bros. Animation.
  26. Lucifer. (2015, May 11). Official Trailer | Season 1 | Lucifer [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4bF_quwNtw
  27. Morpheus Dream. (2017, June 30). Sandman: 24 Hour Diner - Fan Film [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kIP70LAIBI
  28. Netflix. (2021, September 25). Sandman | First Look | Netflix, The [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBXqrBl6pEo
  29. Netflix. (2022, July 23). Sandman | Official Trailer | Netflix, The [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83ClbRPRDXU
  30. Netflix (May 20, 2024). Meet the new faces of the Endless in the next season of The Sandman [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heTFGhS-7T0
  31. Seagle, S. T. et al. (2001). 9-11: The World's Finest Comic Book Writers & Artists Tell Stories to Remember, Volume Two. DC.
  32. spamushka. (2016, January 10). Family, The [Image]. DeviantArt. https://www.deviantart.com/spamushka/art/The-Family-663124968
  33. TED-ED. (2018, January 11). Tragic Myth of Orpheus and Eurydice - Brendan Pelsue, The [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhaepLsP5eg
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Sunday, February 27, 2022

๐Ÿฆธ๐Ÿป‍♀️Human and Divine: Recommendations for Women's History Month 2022๐Ÿฆธ๐Ÿฟ‍♀️

    "When a young woman tells me that she wants to become an actor, I say, 'No, be a writer. Or go to business school and learn how to run a studio.' The only real change will come from behind the scenes." -- Halle Berry

My dear readers,

    Here is my fourth list of recommendations for women's history month. Please take your time reading this blog post and remember to take note of the age ratings and to beware of spoilers.
    The following media rightfully belong to their respective owners.


-A. Eleazar

Wonder Woman by DC Comics

    "A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself." -- Joseph Campbell

    Ever since she first appeared on October 21, 1941, Wonder Woman, aka Princess Diana of Themyscira and Diana Prince, has been a feminist icon. Originally created by William Moulton Marston and Harry G. Peter, Diana has appeared in a number of comics, TV series, and films, saving the day and empowering generations of strong women around the world.

Age Rating: All Ages

    "Clay can be dirt in the wrong hands, but clay can be art in the right hands." -- Lupita Nyong'o

    In this children's book written by Kirsten W. Larson and illustrated by Katy Wu, the history of the Wonder Woman franchise is revealed. From Alice Marble to Joye Hummel, from Lynda Carter to Patty Jenkins, read A True Wonder to meet Professor Marston and the real life superheroes who have made the DC Comics character the timeless icon she is.

Narrator: "For 80 years, Wonder Woman has changed people's minds. And in turn she's inspired us to change the world, making it a better place for all of us."

Age Rating: 15+

    "I've been locked up (for disturbing the peace in Detroit) and I know you got to disturb the peace when you can't get no peace. -- Aretha Franklin

    Nubia Johnson's a black teenager who lives with her two mothers and best friends in an American neighbourhood full of double standards. Despite having superpowers similar to those of her idol Wonder Woman, Nubia is feared rather than celebrated.
    One morning, Nubia meets Wonder Woman in person and learns a big surprise: they're biracial twin sisters.
    Centuries ago, Queen Hippolyta of Themyscira became a mother when she formed two baby girls out of clay: the white-skinned Diana and the black-skinned Nubia. Shorty after being brought to life, however, the bloodthirsty Ares kidnapped Nubia and vanished without a trace.
    Meanwhile, Diana grew up and became Wonder Woman, but it would be a long time before she found her long-lost twin, whom the war god had prevented from ageing.
    To keep her sister safe, Diana placed Nubia with her adoptive family, observing her from time to time.
    Armed with the knowledge of her origins and her own pair of bulletproof bracelets, Nubia stands up for herself and her loved ones to show the world what she has been all along: a superhero.
    DC's first black superheroine, Nubia is the main protagonist of a YA graphic novel written by L.L. McKinney and illustrated by Robyn Smith. Tackling the topics of police brutality, white supremacy, and gun violence, Nubia: Real One is a timely book for people of all races to read.

Nubia: "Besides, if being a hero means protecting those you love... I can do that."

Age Rating: 17+

    "Women have to harness their power... And if you can't go straight ahead, you go around the corner." -- Cher

    High on Mount Olympus, Hera, Queen of the Gods and Goddess of Women, leads a rebellion. Confronting their male counterparts, the Greek goddesses demand that all mortal men be punished for abusing women. But when Zeus, the King of the Gods and Hera's adulterous husband, dismisses their demand, the goddesses come up with a plan.
    Reconvening at The Well of the Lost in the Underworld, the goddesses, except Hera, use forbidden magic to create an all new society of women: female beings free from the control of abusive men and the tyranny of male gods; warrior women called the Amazons.
    Back in the Upper World, a midwife orders her widowed assistant, Hippolyta, to abandon an unwanted baby girl. Having a change of heart, Hippolyta races against the elements in search of the child and encounters the fearless sisters to whom she would one day be Queen.
    Three years in the making, writer Kelly Sue DeConnick invites readers to Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons, a new graphic novel trilogy chronicling the history of Diana's people.


    Illustrated by Phil Jimenez, Book One is now available for purchase.

Antiope: "An Amazon is your sister. And your protector."

    Book Two will be illustrated by Gene Ha and published this coming April. 

    "The message of Strength reminds you that you have more strength, power, and courage than you realize. Learn to live easily with these gifts and use them when appropriate." -- Barbara Moore, "Gilded Tarot Royale Guidebook"

   Book Three will be illustrated by Nicola Scott and published in the future.
    For more information on the Amazons, watch this TED-Ed video on the real women behind the myths.


The Olympians by George O'Connor๐ŸŒฉ️๐Ÿฆ‰๐Ÿฆš๐ŸŒพ๐Ÿ”ฑ๐Ÿ’˜⚔️☀️๐ŸŒ•๐Ÿข๐ŸŒ‹๐Ÿ‡
Age Rating: 9+

    "These gods and goddesses-they seemed to have as many aliases as a modern criminal. Indeed they seemed to be definitely criminal types." -- Agatha Christie, The Labours of Hercules

    DC Comics wouldn't have published Wonder Woman, nor would've the late Ray Harryhausen brought to life skeleton warriors and Medusa, nor would've Rick Riordan written about Percy Jackson's adventures if not for their common source: Greek mythology.
    From 2010 to 2022, author and illustrator George O'Connor had published a twelve-volume graphic novel saga that faithfully retells the stories about the most powerful yet flawed family of Greek gods: the twelve Olympians.
    Zeus, Athena, Hera, Demeter, Poseidon, Aphrodite, Ares, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Hephaistos, and Dionysos await you readers on Mount Olympus. Witness the Greek deities' clashes with family and foe alike, go on epic adventures with heroes, and learn about the mythology's contributions to popular culture.

Hestia: "All around me they gather, and old tales are told. New stories unfold. And I sit, and I watch. And I listen."

Age Rating: All Ages

    "Well-behaved women seldom make history." -- Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
    
    At Miss Quinzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet's Camp for Hardcore Lady Types, best friends Jo, April, Molly, Mal, and Ripley earn badges by performing the usual summer camp activities and by going on not-so-usual supernatural adventures. Whether it involves bickering deities, amazing cryptids, their long-suffering counselor Jen, a shapeshifting Bear Woman, bigots, swearing in the names of feminist icons, or their daring camp director Rosie, the girls of Roanoke Cabin can overcome any obstacle that comes in their way.
    Written and illustrated from 2014 to 2020 by a number of talented authors and artists, Lumberjanes is a 76-issue fantasy comics series about the powers of friendship and being your true self.
    Sweet Agatha Christie! What are you waiting for? If you have the money, good grades, or whatever, read the Lumberjanes!

Jo: "Just what the junk is going on here, anyway?"

Age Rating: 9+

    "Your mind is not a cage. It's a garden. And it requires cultivating." -- Libba Bray

    After losing her neglectful parents to a cholera outbreak in India, the spoiled Mary Lennox is sent to England to live with her reclusive Uncle Craven.
    With the help of friendly servants and animals, Mary changes her ways, just in time to meet her mysterious cousin and to discover a key that unlocks a secret garden and love.
    Originally published in 1911 by A Little Princess author Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden has been adapted into a graphic novel by Mariah Marsden, with illustrations by Hanna Leuchtefeld.

Mary Lennox: "I found the door to the secret garden."

Age Rating 9+

    "Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties." -- Helen Keller

    At four years old, Cece's just an ordinary child, until she gets diagnosed with meningitis. Although she recovers, Cece becomes deaf and is given her own Phonic Ear hearing aid to hear properly. Being deaf and wearing a hearing aid make Cece feel she's different from the other kids who can hear just fine. On the other hand, being different also gives Cece a chance to make friends and to be her own superhero: El Deafo.
       Published in 2014, El Deafo is an autobiographical children's graphic novel based on author and illustrator Cece Bell's experiences in growing up deaf.

Cece: "Just call me El Deafo."

    This past January, El Deafo has been adapted into a three-part animated miniseries narrated by Bell herself and featuring the voices of Jane Lynch, Pamela Adlon, and Chuck Nice amongst others.


    All three episodes of El Deafo can be viewed on Apple TV+.

Song For My Dog by Leslie Mosier๐Ÿถ
Age Rating: All Ages

    "If conversation was the lyrics, laughter was the music, making time spent together a melody that could be replayed over and over without getting stale." -- Nicholas Sparks, "The Choice"

    Born in May 2012 and living in Nashville, Tennessee, Doug the Pug is an international celebrity. With his verified Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube accounts, Doug's mission is to spread messages of love and kindness to people of all shapes, sizes, and lifestyles. When he isn't posing for photos or making videos, Doug spends time with his human, Leslie Mosier, and two cat siblings, Fiona and Teddy.
    In 2021, Doug made his film debut as the voice of Monchi in the Oscar-nominated animated comedy film The Mitchells vs. The Machines.
    A month before Doug's eighth birthday, Leslie released Song for My Dog, a heartwarming tribute to dogs and dog-lovers alike.
    Please prepare tissues.


Age Rating: 17+

    "It is not your business to determine how good (your passion) is, nor how valuable it is. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly." -- Martha Graham

    In the Kingdom of Dumnonia, King Cador has converted to Christianity, severing ties to the magical land. Amidst the citizens' clashes with the hypocritical parish priest and rumours of a Saxon invasion, Cador's three children struggle to be themselves.
    Dark-haired Riva, who can heal others, tries to cure the internal scars caused by a mysterious fire that nearly claimed her life.
    Rebellious Keyne, who identifies as male, practices magic instead of conforming to society's expectations.
    Golden-haired Sinne, a talented singer, prefers the old ways to mass and desires to venture beyond her homeland's borders.
    When a handsome stranger enters Dumnonia, two sisters become rivals, a boy becomes a man, and a ballad involving a harp of bones is retold in Sistersong, a historical fantasy novel written by author Lucy Holland and narrated by actor Robyn Holdaway.

He made a harp of her breastbone
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And straight it began to play alone
The swans swim so bonny-o
--Loreena McKennitt, The Bonny Swans

The Soloists by GOBELINS♀️
Age Rating: 13+

    "Do what you feel in your heart to be right -- for you'll be criticized anyway." -- Eleanor Roosevelt

    In the French animated short film The Soloists, three singing sisters have been invited to perform at a festival. The trio live in a country with misogynist laws, two of which forbid women from singing in groups with less than three members and from owning dogs. When one of the sisters dies during rehearsal, the other two hold auditions for a third member to avoid persecution. But when all the auditionees die suddenly, the two surviving sisters resort to desperate measures.


    Starring Persepolis author Marjane Satrapi as one of the sisters, The Soloists is an allegory of women's ongoing fight for their rights.

Disney's Encanto๐Ÿฆ‹
Age Rating: 9+

    "The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away." -- Pablo Picasso

    In the country of Colombia live 15-year-old Mirabel and her fantastical and magical family, La Familia Madrigal.
    Years ago, an enchanted candle blessed the widowed Abuela Alma and her triplet children with their magical house, the Casita.
    Since then, whenever a Madrigal child turns five, the townsfolk gather at the Casita to celebrate and to witness the candle bless that particular Madrigal with a magical gift which they'd use to help the community.
    Tia Pepa controls the weather with her emotions. She's married to Tio Fรฉlix with whom she has three children: Dolores, who knows what's what via her ultra hearing, the shapeshifting Camilo, and little Antonio who can talk to animals.
    Tio Bruno can see into the future... we don't talk about him.
    Julieta is the town doctor, healing her patients with her cooking. She's married to Augustรญn with whom she has three daughters: "Seรฑorita Perfecta" Isabela who can make flowers bloom everywhere, the super-strong Luisa, and Mirabel, the only Madrigal child without a gift.
    When the magic comes under threat and her family starts losing its powers, Mirabel Madrigal discovers that, with or without a gift, she just might be the only person who can solve the problem.


    Directed by Zootopia's Jared Bush and Byron Howard and featuring songs by Broadway star Lin-Manuel Miranda, Disney's Encanto is a Golden Globe and Oscar winning film about the one gift we often take for granted: family.
    The 60th Walt Disney Animation Studios film, Encanto is now available on Disney+, DVD, and Blu-ray.

Mirabel Madrigal: "Because the truth is, Gift or no Gift, I am just as special as the rest of my family."

Age Rating: All Ages     "When I was a young girl, my family used to drive up to Manhattan to see all the big musicals. And I remember levitating off my seat, amazed that there were these people, arm's length away, singing and dancing. It's always been magic to me." -- Debra Messing

    In this follow up to A is for Audra and B is for Ballet, John Robert Allman has written B is for Broadway, his third abecedarian rhyme and tribute to hit Broadway musicals and performers. Illustrated by Peter Emmerich, B is for Broadway is proof that-no matter what happens-the show must go on.

Narrator:
"From A to Z, you know the showbiz slang you've got to know.
So, as Ethel Merman belted out, let's go on with the show!"

The Girl in the Hallway or The Kidnapping of Xiana Fairchild by Jamie DeWolf๐Ÿบ
Age Rating: 15+
    
    "When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one that has opened for us." -- Alexander Graham Bell

    In 1999, a neglected Indigenous girl named Xiana Fairchild was kidnapped and murdered at the age of 7. Even after the cruel being responsible for Xiana's death was brought to justice, the story is far from over.
    In 2014, Jamie DeWolf, a neighbour of Xiana's, told her story in front of a live audience. Four years later, DeWolf's narration was adapted into The Girl in the Hallway, a stop-motion animated short film directed by Valerie Barnhart.

    
    The CDC says that homicide's the third leading cause of death for women aged 10-24 and is the fifth leading cause of death for Indigenous women aged 25-34.
    Sadly, when Indigenous and black people-especially women-vanish, they receive less media coverage than missing white people like Natalee Holloway and Gabby Petito. With domestic violence made worse by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the discovery of human remains at the sites of Canadian residential schools, and the cry for justice against police brutality, watching Xiana Fairchild's story should serve as a wakeup call.
    My readers, if you or someone you know needs help, please contact your local help hotlines; one phone call could make a big difference.
    Regardless of race, gender, or beliefs, we're all human beings.

Age Rating: 9+

    "Feet, what do I need you for when I have wings to fly?" -- Frida Kahlo

    Since premiering in 1877, Swan Lake has been one of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's famous compositions and one of the most performed ballets in history.
    This year, the timeless story returns with a whole new twist.
    For years, war has been occurring between the Kingdoms of Bloom, Rotbart, and Montrose.
    Princess Odette of Bloom Kingdom wishes to study ballet, but can't because she's cursed to be a white swan every day from sunrise to sundown. Princess Odile of Rotbart Kingdom wishes to go on an adventure, but is forbidden due to her disability. Prince Siegfried of Montrose Kingdom wishes to prove himself worthy of the crown despite being described as too sensitive to rule.
    When Odette and Dillie meet at Swan Lake, they become good friends. Upon discovering that Dillie's father has been accused of cursing Odette, the two princesses team up with Siegfried and embark on a quest to break the spell, prove Dillie's family innocent, and restore peace between the realms.
    Written by Rey Terciero and illustrated by Megan Kearney, Swan Lake: Quest for the Kingdoms is a graphic novel retelling of the world-famous ballet that had inspired The Swan Princess, Princess Tutu, and Black Swan.

Odette: "I guess flying is pretty awesome..."

Sidewalk by Celia Bullwinkel⌛
Age Rating: 12+

    "My mother always used to say, "The older you get, the better you get. Unless you're a banana." -- Betty White

    In Celia Bullwinkel's 2013 short film Sidewalk, we watch a woman as she grows from a child to an adult, experiencing body changes, unwanted attention, romance, motherhood, old age, and self acceptance.


Age Rating: 9+

    "I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear." -- Rosa Parks

    Neil Gaiman is an author whose best-known works include DC's The Sandman comics, Stardust, Neverwhere, American Gods, Good Omens, a comedy novel he had co-written with the late Terry Pratchett, and the children's fantasy novella Coraline.
    A girl named Coraline Jones and her workaholic parents have just moved to a big house that has been converted to flats.
    Below live retired actresses Miss Spink and Miss Forcible and their pet dogs. Then there's the Crazy Old Man Upstairs training a mouse circus. Also inhabiting the premises is a stray black cat that comes and goes when he pleases. In the Jones family's own flat is a door that can only be unlocked with a particular key, revealing nothing but a brick wall.
    At her new home, Coraline's bored and dislikes her neighbours calling her "Caroline".
    One day when both her parents are out doing errands, Coraline unlocks the door to discover that the bricks have been replaced with a hallway.
    Following the passage, Coraline enters a parallel world inhabited by button-eyed look-alikes of her parents and neighbours. In this fantastic place, she is given what she wants, including attention and being called by her real name. The Other Mother then offers the price to stay forever: two black buttons to be sewn into Coraline's eyes...
    Published back in 2002 and illustrated by Dave McKean, Coraline has been one of Neil Gaiman's bestselling and popular books. 

Coraline Jones: "It's Coraline. Not Caroline. Coraline."

    In 2008, Coraline was adapted into a graphic novel by American artist P. Craig Russell.

Coraline Jones: "Because when you're scared but you still do it anyway, that's brave."

    In 2009, the book was adapted into an Oscar-nominated stop-motion animated film directed by Henry Selick of The Nightmare Before Christmas fame and produced by LAIKA Studios. The film's a critically-acclaimed box office hit, featuring an all star-cast which includes Dakota Fanning (Charlotte's Web) as Coraline, Teri Hatcher (Desperate Housewives) as Mrs. Jones and the Other Mother, Keith David (Gargoyles) as the Cat, Ian McShane (If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium) as the Crazy Old Man Upstairs, and former comedy duo Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders as Miss Spink and Miss Forcible.


    As if Coraline couldn't get any scarier, the book had also been adapted into a musical and an opera.
    In 2012, Gaiman and eleven of his celebrity friends commemorated the tenth anniversary of Coraline by narrating all thirteen chapters of the novella.
    Twenty years on, Coraline Jones remains one of Neil Gaiman's strong female characters, a child whose adventures warn audiences to be careful what they wish for.

The New Mother by Lucy Clifford๐Ÿ”ต๐Ÿฆƒ
Age Rating: 9+

    "The scariest monster in the world is human beings and what we are capable of, especially when we get together." -- Jordan Peele

    When writing Coraline, Neil Gaiman was influenced by The New Mother, a horror short story written in 1882 by English novelist Lucy Clifford.


    Two sisters nicknamed Blue Eyes and the Turkey live in the forest with their mother and baby sibling while their father is away at sea.
    One day, the two sisters meet a strange girl who claims to have a tiny dancing man and woman inside a box attached to her peardrum. The stranger offers to show the sisters the tiny dancers on one condition: they must be very naughty. Tempted by such a wonder, Blue Eyes and the Turkey start misbehaving at home.

The Girl: "I only show them to naughty children."

    Shocked by the girls' sudden change in behaviour, their mother threatens to leave them for the New Mother, a woman with two glass eyes and a long wooden tail. However, Blue-Eyes and the Turkey ignore their mother's warning and become naughtier every day to see the contents of the stranger's peardrum. Saddened by her eldest children's selfishness, the mother takes the baby and leaves them forever.

The Mother: "Good-bye, my Blue-Eyes; good-bye my Turkey; the new mother will be home presently. Oh, my poor children!"

    Only after being naughty do Blue-Eyes and the Turkey realise that the stranger with the peardrum has been messing with them, and suffer the consequences...

The New Mother: "I must break open the door with my tail."

    Published during the Victorian era, The New Mother is guaranteed to send chills down readers' spines. In the late 20th century, the story was retold by children's book authors Alvin Schwartz and Robert D. San Souci.
    Since the early 2010s, people can now read The New Mother on Weird Fiction Review and listen to an unabridged narration uploaded on YouTube by Chilling Tales for Dark Nights.

Age Rating: All Ages

    "Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception." -- Niccolรฒ Machiavelli, "The Prince"

    With Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys being adapted into a fantasy TV series, I remembered not only the novel but also a children's book by American author Gail E. Haley.
    A white woman, Haley grew up in the segregated southern States. She witnessed how racism denied African Americans their human rights, including access to the library.
    After moving north, Haley started her own family and lived in the Caribbean for some years. There, she overheard the native women talk of Anansi, the shapeshifting spider-man who tricks people and animals to get what he wants. When Haley and her family returned to the United States, she researched on the trickster and immersed herself and her daughter into African Life. Two weeks before her son was born, Haley wrote and illustrated A Story, A Story, a children's book that retells the African tale of how Anansi came to own all stories.
    Long ago, the Sky God Nyame owns all the stories in the world, keeping them in a golden box. One day, Ananse climbs up to the sky to buy the stories. Not believing that a small creature like Ananse could pay the price, the Sky God demands a few dangerous creatures in exchange for the golden box. To Nyame's surprise, however, Ananse uses trickery to successfully purchase the stories and share them with the people on Earth.

African Storyteller: "A story, a story; let it come, let it go."

    A best-selling classic, A Story, A Story won Gail E. Haley the Caldecott Medal and was adapted into an animated short film narrated by Dr. John Akar, the Sierra Leonean ambassador to the United States.
    Anansi may be a trickster but his stories show that having a brain is better than having brawn. To this day, the enslaved Africans' descendants remind children of the powers that come from opposing racism and telling "spider stories."
    Courtesy of TED-ED, here's a variant of the African folktale:


Feathers and Fools by Mem Fox๐Ÿฆš๐Ÿฆข
Age Rating: All Ages

    "When we see others as the enemy, we risk becoming what we hate. When we oppress others, we end up oppressing ourselves. All of our humanity is dependent upon recognizing the humanity in others." -- Desmond Tutu

    In 1989, Mem Fox wrote Feathers and Fools, a children's book first illustrated by Helen Semmler and then by Nicholas Wilton.
    A pride of peacocks and a flock of swans live side by side.    
    Instead of respecting the swans, the peacocks fear them due to their different appearances and behaviours. Fear then evolves into paranoia as the two species sharpen their feathers into arrows and wage war on one another.
    When all hope seems lost, two lives start in respect and harmony.

"I grew up in a pacifist household. In fact my father was such a pacifist that we were not allowed to use the word 'hate'. He said hatred got us nowhere." -- Mem Fox

    Feathers and Fools is a fable with a powerful timely moral on the consequences of unfounded fear and discrimination.
   If you're unable to buy or borrow a copy, you can watch the whole plot in this YouTube video created and narrated by Ashley Paladini.


Age Rating: Adults Only
"Heav'n has no rage, like love to hatred turn'd,
Nor hell a fury, like a woman scorn'd."
-- William Congreve, The Mourning Bride

    Thirty-one years before "The Bride" slashed her way in a mission of revenge, a fictional Japanese woman wielded her own sword to show how double-edged she can be: as beautiful and as cold as the snow she is named after.
    From 1972 to 1973, Kazuo Koike and Kazuo Kamimura wrote and illustrated Lady Snowblood, an adults-only manga about a woman's hunt for those who had done her mother wrong.
    After four con artists get away with murdering her husband and son and sexually assaulting her, a woman named Sayo wishes for revenge. Imprisoned for murdering one of the four perpetrators, Sayo sleeps with various men until she conceives a child who will carry out her retribution. On a cold, snowy winter night, Sayo dies after giving birth to a baby girl whom the other women prisoners name Oyuki, after the snow.
    Raised by the midwife who delivered her, and trained brutally by a priest and a pickpocket, Oyuki becomes the assassin known as Syura Yuki or Lady Snowblood. Her mission? Deliver her late mother's vengeance on the three remaining scammers.
    Armed with her umbrella sword, Syura Yuki travels around 19th century Japan to grant her mother's wish. Along the way, Oyuki does contract killing, theft, seduction, disguises, and recruits a fighting of beggars and a writer to help her accomplish her mission.
    Published in two volumes (four in the official English translation by Dark Horse Comics), Lady Snowblood is a revenge story for classic manga and anime fans.

Oyuki: "I am a child of Syura. I am Syura Yuki..."

    In 1973, Lady Snowblood was adapted into a Japanese live action period drama film directed by Toshiro Fujita, with actress and singer Meiko Kaji playing Oyuki and performing the film's theme song.


    Fifty years after being made, the Lady Snowblood franchise remains a classic inside and outside of Japan. The Kindle editions of Dark Horse's English translation can currently be purchased within the United States or by customers using VPNs, while the film can now be watched on DVD and Blu-ray, courtesy of the Criterion Collection.

Oyuki: "Even before we enter this world, we are marked by karma."
   
The Sister Act Franchise by Touchstone Pictures⛪๐Ÿ‘ฉ๐Ÿฟ‍๐ŸŽค๐Ÿซ
Age Rating: 12+

     "When I sing, trouble can sit right on my shoulder and I don't even notice." -- Sarah Vaughan

    In 1992, EGOT winner Whoopi Goldberg starred in Sister Act, a musical comedy film that brings new meaning to the term sisterhood.
    Deloris Van Cartier (Goldberg) is a lounge singer at a casino in Reno, Nevada. When she witnesses her married lover, Vince LaRocca, executing his chauffeur, Deloris enters the witness protection program. Lt. Souther places Deloris in St. Katherine's Parish's convent of nuns where the stern Mother Superior (Dame Maggie Smith) gives her the alias "Sister Mary Clarence."
    Until she can testify against LaRocca, Deloris must pretend to be a nun and listen to the convent's choir which is notorious throughout the neighbourhood for singing off-key.
    After Deloris breaks one rule too many, Mother Superior has her join the choir, the members of which include the cheerful Sister Mary Patrick (Kathy Najimy), the humble Sister Mary Robert (Wendy Makkena), and the melancholic Sister Mary Lazarus (Mary Wickes).
    Then one Sunday morning, Mother Superior, the Monsignor, and the neighbourhood get a big surprise: Sister Mary Clarence has transformed the nuns into beautiful singers by combining Gospel music with Rock and Roll, and later inspiring them to help the community.
    When Deloris gets kidnapped by LaRocca, Mother Superior reveals the truth and she and the nuns of St. Katherine's fly to Las Vegas to get Deloris out of trouble.

Deloris Van Cartier: "Sister. We could. We could rock this place."

    A box office hit, Sister Act was followed in 1993 by a sequel, Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit.
    A year after becoming the unlikeliest of friends, Deloris reunites with the nuns of St. Katherine's Parish. This time, the sisters teach at a San Francisco Catholic high school where Deloris is hired as the new music teacher.
    Once more, Deloris masquerades as Sister Mary Clarence to train a class of rambunctious teens into becoming a choir and compete in a choral singing contest to save their school from shutting down.
    Although not as successful as the previous film, Sister Act 2 is loved by fans and is the film debut of Deedee Magno Hall, an American actress and singer who would go on to star in various musicals and voice Pearl in Cartoon Network's Steven Universe franchise.

Deloris Van Cartier: "If you wanna be somebody, if you wanna go somewhere... you better wake up and pay attention."

Since premiering thirty years ago, the Sister Act films will have you laughing at loud and singing along, regardless of your beliefs.

Wolf Children by Mamoru Hosoda❄️๐Ÿบ๐ŸŒง️
Age Rating: 12+

    "Life provides losses and heartbreak for all of us -- but the greatest tragedy is to have the experience and miss the meaning." -- Robin Roberts, Everybody's Got Something

    In 2012, Mamoru Hosoda, best known for Summer Wars, Mirai, and Belle, directed the anime drama film Wolf Children.
    In a Japanese city, a university student named Hana and a wolf man fall in love and have two children: a girl named Yuki (snow) and a boy named Ame (rain).


    Sadly, the family's fairy tale life gets shattered when the wolf man dies while hunting for food. Afraid of how her neighbours will react to her children's inherited ability to transform from human to wolf and vice versa, Hana moves with Ame and Yuki to the countryside to keep their shapeshifting a secret.
    As they grow older, Ame and Yuki face challenges while Hana works hard to support them in memory of their late patriarch.
    Released in 2012, Wolf Children is a beautiful story about the lengths a single mother goes to show how much she loves her unique progeny.


Hana: "What do you want to do? Be humans or be wolves? I think we should move. So you can choose."

Evil Angels, or A Cry in the Dark, by Fred Schepisi๐ŸŒ
Age Rating: 13+

    "People say the truth hurts. ... It hurts even more if you do a whole bunch of foolishness to try and avoid it." -- Tyler Perry, Don't Make a Black Woman Take Off Her Earrings

    2022 marked the tenth anniversary of Coroner Elizabeth Morris's delivery of findings that proved-once and for all-the real cause of one child's death.
    It all began on the night of August 17, 1980, when a Seventh-day Adventist family's camping trip to Uluru, Australia became a living nightmare. In that unforgettable event, Michael and Lindy Chamberlain's nine-week-old daughter, Azaria, was stolen by a wild dingo.
    Rather than comfort them, the masses falsely accused the baby's grieving parents of killing her. Bias against against the Chamberlain family's religious beliefs, gossip, a botched police investigation, and the media frenzy surrounding the case all portrayed Lindy as a cold heartless being. On October 29, 1982, Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlain were falsely convicted of murdering their own child and sentenced to life behind bars.
    In 1985, author John Bryson wrote Evil Angels, a non-fiction book about the case.
    In 1986, Azaria's jacket was discovered in an area with dingo lairs.
    In 1988, Fred Schepisi directed a drama film based on Bryson's book, starring Oscar winner Meryl Streep as Lindy and Sam Neill as Michael. Evil Angels, also known as A Cry in the Dark outside of Australia and New Zealand, premiered in November 1988, less than two months after the real Chamberlains were exonerated of all charges filed against them.


    On June 12, 2012, more than thirty years after the whole thing started, it was finally proven that a dingo was responsible for Azaria Chamberlain's death.
    Even though Azaria's body was never found, her death is a cautionary tale about the consequences of believing in fake news and of the delicate balance between humanity and nature.

Lindy Chamberlain: "I'd like to know more than anyone else... what happened to my... my baby daughter."

Linda & Joan by Russell Quinn๐Ÿง”๐Ÿผ‍♀️๐Ÿ‘ต๐Ÿผ
Age Rating: 9+

    "You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough." -- Mae West

    Last year, I had recommended Russell Quinn's precious two-part video game, Linda & Joan.
    Here's a recap: Russell was born in England, raised and loved by his mum Linda Quinn and his maternal nan Joan Bevis.
    After he had grown up and lived in different countries, Russell kept in touch with his family, even taking his mum to see popular tourist spots.
    However, like all other people, the Quinns had experienced both positive and negative events throughout the years they were together.
    A few months before Russell was born, his dad died from leukaemia. In 2013, Linda's breast cancer had recurred and metastasised after being cured of it back in the 1990s, and Joan's other daughter died from bowel cancer.
     One winter, Russell had his heart broken twice. In December 2017, Linda died from breast cancer, and then in January 2018, Joan died while undergoing surgery to repair her broken hip.
    In memory of his loved ones, Russell Quinn has been making Linda & Joan, a two-part video game set in "the worst year of his life".
    The first part, Prologue: Four Months Earlier, was released in 2020.


    The second part and main game, Linda & Joan, is still being made, so people must follow its official social media accounts for updates.

Linda Quinn: "I wanted you to have your own life."

Human and Divine, a Song by Lynda Carter
Age Rating: All Ages

    "To be deeply loved by someone gives you strength, but to love someone deeply gives you courage." -- Esther Huertas

    For my final recommendation this year, here's Human and Divine, a love song by the one and only Lynda Carter.


I fell just like a Stone
From heaven to the fire below 
And into your arms 

You held me out of Time 
Showed me paradise 
An island in the storm 

I know you know 
we know our love will go on 

Human and Divine
Love is Human and Divine 
Until the end of Time
Our Love is Human and Divine
Love is Human and Divine
Love is Human and Divine

I found that love is still a Gift
A rainbow in the mist
Human and divine 

We're bound together in desire 
The ice inside the Fire 
Until the end of time

 I know you know
 We know that love will go ON

Human and Divine
Love is Human and Divine 
Until the end of Time
Our Love is  Human and Divine
Love is Human and Divine
Love is Human and Divine

References:
  1. Abdollahinia, M. et al. (Directors). (2021). Soloists, The [Film]. GOBELINS.
  2. Allman, J. R. (2022). B is for Broadway: Onstage and Backstage from A to Z. Doubleday Books for Young Readers.
  3. Anderson, L. H. (Ed.). (2021). Wonderful Women of the World. DC Comics.
  4. Anonymous. (2022). Dingoes. Australia Zoo. https://www.australiazoo.com.au/wildlife/our-animals/dingoes/
  5. Apple TV. (2021, December 16). El Deafo — Official Trailer | Apple TV+ [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqZ9ncOYRS4
  6. Ardolino, E. (Director). (1992). Sister Act [Film]. Touchstone Pictures.
  7. Barnhart, V. (2018). Girl in the Hallway, The [Film].
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