emo books
Johnny The Homicidal Maniac, the director’s cut, by Jhonen Vasquez 1997
DDC: 741.5 V335
Johnny is a guy, just like you or I, except that he has a basement that connects with the underworld, and in order to keep the gate closed between our world and the one below, Johnny must feed it… by painting it with BLOOD! This graphic novel is dark, and funny, and the characters are similar to people you meet everyday, just a bit more twisted. The author, Jhonen Vasquez, is a great author to follow if you are into emo books. Just look at all of these websites by and about the author!!
..These sites will get you started with some nightmares, or just spark your imagination…
enter with caution…
————————————————————————————————————————————————-
Everybody Hurts, by Leslie Simon and Trevor Kelley 2007
From LAPL’s website: “The definitive handbook for the popular form of confessional punk rock known as emo. From fashion to ideology, music to movies, eating habits to adulthood, it’s all covered here with razor-sharp wit. 100 black and white illustrations”. This book is the go-to reference source for all questions emo; trivial, crucial or both.
DDC: 301.57 S595
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Everything That Creeps, the Art of Liz McGrath 2006
A collection of works that include butcher knives painted by a woman who’s dad once worked for the LA County morgue! Twisted and dark animals, trees of swords, demons, blood, and strange hunting trophies fill the pages of this strange book of artwork! The only way to read this book is to find it at Barnes and Noble and flip through it while you decide to buy it, unfortunately, or maybe you could recommend that your local library order this book!
———————————————————————————————————————————————–
The Magic Bottle, by Camille Rose Garcia 2006
Dewey Decimal Call Number (DDC): 740.914 G216
This one’s for all the young whippersnappers. Or also, just anyone who wants to see some cool contemporary art in the context of an anti-capitalist fairy tale. The protagonist, sad young Lulu Blackenshoe is on a mission to discover the magical islands before the greedy Peppermint Man destroys them. Think Fern Gully minus the fairies, vivid color palate and happy ending, and you’re halfway there, throw in some crazy teardrops and lyrical prose and you’re even closer…
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
The Virgin Suicides, by Jeffrey Eugenides 1994
If you ever feel like your parents are too controlling and they are ruining your life, you might appreciate this dark novel about a group of sisters, and their eventual, and enigmatic suicides. One by one, the Lisbon sisters take their own lives in this strange tale set in the midwest in the 1970s, all while being watched secretly by the boys who live across the street. This is a beautiful and sad story, even if it happened before emo music existed.. Also on DVD.
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Girl, Interrupted, by Susanna Kaysen 1994
A true account of Kaysen’s stay in a mental hospital in Boston at age 18 in 1967, this story challenges the perceptions of what “normal” is, and is funny, introspective, and gripping to read. This autobiographical examination made in the midst of being so very misunderstood was also made into a film recently.
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Emo Boy, Volume 1: Nobody Cares About Anything Anyway, So Why Don’t We All Just Die?, by Steve Emond 2006
This is another great author from Slave Labor Graphics, the home of Jhonen Vaquez, and another representative author in the genre, Steve Emond, with a great series, that will, that’s right, you guessed it, be made into a feature film in the near future. The comic book Emo Boy chronacles the adventures of the title character, who happens to be incredibly depressed for many, many valid reasons. He also has superpowers that cause further chaos in his already cursed existence. Girls and boys can relate to all of these books, and this one is no exception. A sleekly illustrated and dark comic book, available NOW at your public library!
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Nothing Feels Good; Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo, by Andy Greenwald 2003
DDC: 781.99 G816
If you hate the fact that you are reading a blog called, “Emo Reads” right now, then you already have a lot in common with all of the bands covered in this book. It is the first comprehensive music survey of the “emo” music movement, and it also goes beyond music, into the great wide world of fashion, and youth.. Sounds good? It is so good, you’ll want to learn more about the author,
who works for Spin magazine…
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Cut, by Patricia McCormick 2000
Similar in theme to Girl, Interrupted, but in this case, a fictional account of a psychiatric patient who cuts herself. Like GI, this book is also very riveting and tough to read; it will affect your emotions, so be ready to feel some empathy for Callie, the 15 year-old protagonist, who feels responsible for her brother’s illness, begins to cut herself, goes to the mental institution, refuses to speak, and finally, begins to learn how to heal, little by little…
If you’re ready, Check it OUT!
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia (P.S.), by Marya Hornbacher 2006
This book is intense. Written when the author was just 23 years old, it conveys the real horrors of these diseases, and their ability to dominate a person’s life. This book is neither a quick, nor easy read, however, it provides a clear picture of the ordeals that one who suffers this illness can go through. During her youth (fourth grade bulimia, anorexic at age 15), the author dealt with these issues, and they seem still fresh in the writing..
DDC: 616.85 H814
————————————————————————————————————————————————–
December 10, 2008 at 09:46
[...] Reads Young Adult Literature emo books [...]