“The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch” by Neil Gaiman & Michael Zulli

This is the third graphic novel I had to give up (it was a gift from another school). I really went back and forth on keeping it for a while. The tale is a typically dark and funny one by master storyteller Neil Gaiman (now, “NEWBERY WINNER” Neil Gaiman, how cool is that?) and is clearly a graphic novel for adults. A group of thirty-somethings go for an outing in London. Like many meanderings by such folks, this one strays to the more off-beat entertainments, as our crew finds themselves in a bizarre underground circus of sorts. The realistic dialog grounds a fantastical tale and the stunningly beautiful watercolors by Zulli (think “Sandman”) enrich every page. Proceeding from one cavern to the next, our audience finds side-show performers and magicians; entertainers who delight in disturbing and challenging the psyche. So as not to give anything else away, I will stop with the plot synopsis at this point. The problem with the book? Nudity. To be specific, naked breasts on a woman in a nun’s habit. While I fully understand the context of it, this becomes hard to defend in a school library. As breasts continue to become prominent on the following pages, I became less and less sure that I could keep the book here. My assistant suggested the “cover ‘em with a marker” method that I have, sadly, used in the past, but the artwork here is too lovely, and my chicken scratches would have marred it. Perhaps if this were Europe, and we had healthier attitudes about the human body. But we don’t. And so, off to the public library it goes. By all means, check it out next time you are there.