Tag: novels
How one of the greatest visual novels got an English translation because of its fans
You might not know what Muv-Luv is. I hadn’t even heard of it till a few years ago. Which is strange, since Muv-Luv is considered by many to be one of the most greatest visual novels of all time. What begins as a light-hearted slice-of-life high school romantic comedy eventually pulls the rug out from under the player, and transforms into a war epic featuring mechs and aliens with a much darker tone. In Muv-Luv’s original Japanese release, this twist was hidden and only briefly hinted at in the marketing.
Today both Muv-Luv games are easily available on Steam, marketed specifically with this twist, and where they sit fully-translated and with Overwhelmingly Positive reviews. iOS and Android ports are apparently in development, and other Muv-Luv spin-offs continue to get translated. But the first time anyone experienced a complete English language version of Muv-Luv was in July 2010, when a fan translation group called Amaterasu released a patch localising the first game.
Ian Fleming’s classic Bond novels have been re-worded to remove racist material
IAN Fleming’s James Bond novels have been re-worded to remove racial references.
Every 007 book is to be re-issued this spring to mark 70 years since the spy appeared.
Ian Fleming Publications commissioned a review by sensitivity readers of the classic texts – pictured Sean Connery[/caption]
But a woke disclaimer will read: “This book was written at a time when terms and attitudes which might be considered offensive by modern readers were commonplace.
“A number of updates have been made in this edition, while keeping as close as possible to the original text and the period in which it is set.”
The changes result in some depictions of black people being reworked or removed.
But dated references to other ethnicities, including Bond’s racial terms for Asian people, remain.
His comments about “blithering women” and homosexuality being a “stubborn disability” are also kept.
Ian Fleming Publications, the firm that owns the literary rights to the author’s work, commissioned a review by sensitivity readers of the classic texts under its control.
The N-word, which Fleming used to refer to black people when he was writing in the 1950s and ’60s, has been almost entirely expunged, the Telegraph reports.
Ian Fleming Publications said: “We encourage people to read the books for themselves when the new paperbacks are published.”
It comes after passages from Roald Dahl’s books were purged by children’s publisher Puffin.
ChatGPT is overtly and covertly writing novels and short stories and the industry is freaking out
Want to encourage social-emotional learning at home? Check out these graphic novels.
Social-emotional learning, what you might know as SEL, is a decades-old philosophy that teaches emotional well-being alongside academic skills, promoting educational success that reaches far beyond grades on paper. Incorporating these ideas looks different for every parent, teacher, and kid — but if you’re searching for ways to help your child absorb social-emotional teachings, it might be worth trying out some accessible illustrated novels.
There’s a broad lexicon of SEL terms, principles, and varying definitions of what it means to teach social-emotional skills, but a simple way to think of SEL is to distill it into five key areas: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. In the classroom, you see these core competencies integrated into direct instruction and the daily, routine behaviors of both students and teachers, such as group work, conflict resolution, and emotional check-ins. Novels exploring these concepts through engaging narratives can be a fun way to support young readers in recognizing and modeling SEL skills.
And this all seems pretty great, right? As children learn the basics of academic subjects that will certainly help them in their educational journey, they’re also receiving a compassion crash course in how to take care of themselves as students, as community members, and as people. SEL isn’t age-specific, either, with its core lessons offering essential skills for adults and parents, as well.
Unfortunately, SEL isn’t free from the scrutiny of parents and politicians alike, many of whom have lumped its curriculum in with a wide-scale attack on inclusive teaching practices, critical race theory, and other so-called liberal learning agendas. Combine political turmoil with a concern for young people’s emotional health and development in an isolated, remote-learning age, and it’s clear our country’s educators can’t be expected to champion social-emotional wellness alone.
While there are many teaching tools, books, and workshops online, an easy place to start is to introduce SEL-related options into your children’s media consumption. Mashable has put together a short list of graphic novels as a starting point for SEL, digging into related themes like empathy, emotional regulation, and relationship building, among many, many others.
1. Growing Pangs by Kathryn Ormsbee
Ages 8+
Credit: Penguin Random House
Growing Pangs is a graphic novel about Katie, a young girl whose summer camp worries about her best friend grow into a form of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Katie learns healthy ways to channel her worries about her friend Kacey, homeschooling, and generally feeling like an outsider. Her story is a kind, accessible look into young people’s mental health, friendships, and growing up.
SEL themes: self-awareness, self-management, relationship skills
2. El Deafo by Cece Bell
Ages 8+
Credit: Abrams Books
In the elementary-appropriate graphic novel El Deafo, young bunny Cece processes attending school as a deaf student through a brave and powerful superhero alter-ego. The story touches on how children deal with complex emotions, accept individual differences, and spot social cues. Cece and her classmates also engage in a lot of collaboration and cooperation.
SEL themes: self-management, social awareness, relationship skills
3. Real Friends by Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham
Ages 8+
Credit: Macmillan Publishers
Real Friends is a memoir-esque story inspired by Hale’s childhood and all the turmoil a young girl feels when she senses her friendships might be changing. The story’s main character is Shannon, who finds herself growing apart from her best friend, Adrienne, after she joins a tough, popular crowd at school. Shannon’s navigation of girlhood, relationships, and adolescent emotions inform the bulk of the illustrated tale.
SEL themes: self-management, relationship skills, responsible decision-making
4. Stargazing by Jen Wang
Ages 10+
Credit: Macmillan Publishers
Wang’s novel depicts a new relationship between two fast friends: Christine and new-to-the-neighborhood Moon, who form a close bond as misunderstood preteens. The two of them navigate social conflicts, emotional upheaval, and life-changing health scares as they both compete in their school’s talent show.
SEL themes: self-management, social awareness, relationship skills
5. Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol
Ages 10+
Credit: Macmillan Publishers
In Be Prepared, tween Vera, a young girl from a Russian family that’s moved to American suburbia, is going to Russian summer camp. Hailing from a single-parent, low-income household and surrounded by much wealthier families, Vera is still trying to fit in and come to terms with disappointment, exclusion, and cultural differences.
SEL themes: self-awareness, relationship skills
6. Duff Parker and the Downfall of the Dystopiad by J. Hill and Ian Moore
Ages 12+
Credit: Avenue A Books / The Center for Responsible Schools
In Duff Parker and the Downfall of the Dystopiad, middle schooler Duff seeks out graphic novels and his school’s science-fiction club as sources of stability and community as he deals with the aftermath of falling into a neighborhood gang — a circumstance that led to someone getting seriously hurt. The novel was published by the Center for Responsive Schools, an education nonprofit and publishing house that focuses on SEL resources.
A bonus: The graphic novel is illustrated by Mashable’s very own resident artist, Ian Moore.
SEL themes: self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making
7. Smells Like Trouble by Micah Amundsen and Marta Tedry
Ages 12+
Credit: Avenue A Books / The Center for Responsible Schools
This middle school graphic novel uses the tale of Dawn, a science whiz and chronic anxiety sufferer, and her best friend, James, to show how young people can manage their anxiety in uncomfortable and stressful social situations. When James is accused of a smelly, over-the-top prank, Dawn must overcome her own fears to stand up for her friends and passions. It was also published by the Center for Responsible Schools.
SEL themes: self-management, relationship skills, responsible decision-making
8. Essex County Trilogy by Jeff Lemire
Ages 13+
Credit: Penguin Random House
In Tales from the Farm, the first of a three-book collection following a community in an imaginary version of the author’s home in Ontario, Canada, Lemire tells the story of a 10-year-old orphan named Lester who finds solace in some unexpected local relationships. The rest of Essex County shares the intimate stories of a single community navigating grief, friendship, love, and loneliness.
SEL themes: self-awareness, social awareness, relationship skills
9. Everything Is Beautiful, and I’m Not Afraid by Yao Xiao
Ages 13+
Credit: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Inspired by the author and cartoonist’s own experiences as a young, queer immigrant, this graphic novel follows a young person on a journey to find a place of belonging as they explore their gender nonconformity, home life, and interpersonal conflicts. The book is a collection of Yao Xiao’s poetic monthly web comic series, known as Baopu.
SEL themes: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness
10. Alexis vs. Summer Vacation by Sarah Jamila Stevenson and Veronica Agarwal
Ages 13+
Credit: Avenue A Books / The Center for Responsible Schools
Alexis vs. Summer Vacation is a coming-of-age story about being 14 years old and struggling to figure out who you are and who you want to be. Alexis is about to start high school and is attempting to make new friends, all while coping with what that means for her now that she’s realized she has a crush on a girl. She must come up with a way to stand up for herself and her community while processing her own identity.
SEL themes: self-awareness, social awareness, relationship skills
Over 50 Programmers Generate 50,000-Word Novels For 9th Annual ‘Nanogenmo’ Event
“The only rule is that you share at least one novel and also your source code at the end,” explains the event’s official page on GitHub.
From the repository’s README file:
The “novel” is defined however you want. It could be 50,000 repetitions of the word “meow” (and yes it’s been done!). It could literally grab a random novel from Project Gutenberg. It doesn’t matter, as long as it’s 50k+ words.
Please try to respect copyright. We’re not going to police it, as ultimately it’s on your head if you want to just copy/paste a Stephen King novel or whatever, but the most useful/interesting implementations are going to be ones that don’t engender lawsuits.
This year’s computer-generated novels include ” sunday in the sunday in the,” mapping the colors from each dot in the Pointillist painting Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte onto words from the lyrics of a musical about that painting. (“Rush blind. Link adds shallot again….”)
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
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One of the best visual novels now has a free sequel
The sequel to 2017 visual novel smash hit Butterfly Soup is out now. It’s set a few months after the original game and continues to tell the story of “gay Asian-American teens playing baseball and falling in love”. It’s also, just like the first game, free to download and play – although you can also name your price and pay $5 for a digital artbook over on Itch.