According to NPR, there is a “comics renaissance” taking place in the graphic novel genre. These titles examine fantasy, realism, and commentary on socioeconomic analysis.
Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands
Kate Beaton created Hark! A Vagrant, a historical webcomic that was adapted into two bestselling books. Her latest work, Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands, has a different tone. She gives a realistic portrayal of the difficulty she had with paying student loans, which caused her to work in the oil field of Alberta for two years. The book covers a range of topics including economic injustice, environmental crisis, sexual harassment, white entitlement and indigenous dispossession. The story depicts how these experiences affected her creativity and outlook on life.
It Won’t Always Be Like This
NPR’s Malaka Gharib released a 2019 memoir entitled I Was Their American Dream, which documents her life experiences in regards to racial diversity and identity (in high school and college). In It Won’t Always Be Like This, Gharib’s story covers her teen years in the 90s-early 2000s. Looking back with adult eyes, Gharib explains the impact her multicultural background had on her development and interaction with others.
Below Ambition
Simon Hanselmann’s Below Ambition has a punk rock theme with two familiar characters in Megg the witch and Werewolf Jones. Critics assert the tone is like previous works in the series, but with more realism. The plot displays how punk rock group Horse Mania gained the reputation of being “the worst band in town” by performing without rehearsals and while being high on drugs, which frustrates their audiences. The concept of alienation is explored in the story and some critics suggest that fans of the previous books may find that this one is a much different read.
All Your Racial Problems Will Soon End: The Cartoons of Charles Johnson
Charles Johnson earned a MacArthur “Genius Grant” and a National Book Award for his 1990 novel Middle Passage. He is also a cartoonist and his latest title features the first collection of his work in over 50 years. All Your Racial Problems Will Soon End: The Cartoons of Charles Johnson features elements of his previous work and a never-published manuscript. Critics seem to enjoy the way Johnson uses humor to make some important topics easier to examine; NPR calls the book “a great read.”
The Night Eaters: She Eats, the Night
Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda released their popular Monstress series in 2015. Their latest project, The Night Eaters, has the edginess of previous books in the series and some new, visually captivating artwork by Takeda. Critics were impressed with the level of detail within the art and how well it underscored the language; the work has been described as “mesmerizing” with luminous hues, vibrant character designs and electrifying compositions
