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Librarians Share a Black Lives Matter Comics Reading List

Book covers: Drowned City, Josephine Baker, and New Kid

Comics and graphic novels have long served to educate and engage readers around social injustice—which is why the American Library Association’s Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table and the Black Caucus of the American Library Association have curated a list of comics relating to the Black Lives Matter movement. The list contains both fiction and nonfiction titles, with selections aimed toward readers of all ages.

“Comic books have always been political. They are both a reflection and a barometer of our times,” the list introduction reads. “Comic books have been and continue to be vitally important avenues to visually tell our stories, to share our histories, and to show experiences and multiple perspectives while engaging both sides of our brain.”

The full list of titles is below. For descriptions of each work, visit the Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table website.

Comics, Graphic Novels, and Picture Books for Children

The Case for Loving: The Fight for Interracial Marriage 
by Selina Alko, writer; Sean Qualls and Selina Alko, artists

Dream Big, Little One
by Vasthi Harrison, writer and artist

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History
by Vashti Harrison, writer and artist.

Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History
by Vashti Harrison, writer and artist; with Kwesi Johhnson, writer.

The Little Rock Nine and the Fight for Equal Education
by Gary Jeffrey, writer; Nana Li, artist

New Kid
by Jerry Craft

Strange Fruit. Volume II: More Uncelebrated Narratives from Black History
by Joel Christian Gill, writer and artist

Tales of the Talented Tenth: No. 2, Bessie Stringfield
by Joel Christian Gill, writer and artist 

Woke Baby
by Mahogany Browne, writer; Theodore Taylor, illustrator,

A Wreath for Emmett Till
by Marilyn Nelson, writer; Philippe Lardy, artist

Comics and Graphic Novels for Young Adults

Black History in Its Own Words
by Ronald Wimberly

Black Panther & The Crew: We are the Streets
by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Yona Harvey, and Jackson Butch Guice

Colorblind: A Story of Racism
by Johnathan Harris, writer; Donald Hudson, artist; Fahriza Kamaputra, colorist

Colored: The Unsung Life of Claudette Colvin
by Émilie Plateau

Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans
by Don Brown

Fights: One Boy’s Triumph Over Violence
by Joel Christian Gill

I Am Alfonso Jones
by Tony Medina, writer; Stacey Robinson and John Jennings, artists

Malcolm X: A Graphic Biography
by Andrew Helfer, writer; Randy DuBurke, artist

March
by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, writers; Nate Powell, artist

Monster: A Graphic Novel
by Walter Dean Myers, writer; Guy A. Sims, adapter; Dawud Anyabwile, artist

Pitch Black
by Anthony Horton, writer; Youme Landowne, writer and artist

Race to Incarcerate: A Graphic Retelling
by Marc Mauer, writer; Sabrina Jones, adapter and artist  

Superman Smashes the Klan
by Gene Luen Yang, writer; Gurihiru, artist

Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty
by Gregory Neri, writer; Randy Duburke, artist

Comics and Graphic Novels for Adults

Are You at Risk for “Empathy Myopia”?
by Ezra Claytan Daniels

Big Black: Stand at Attica
by Frank “Big Black” Smith and Jared Reinmuth, writers; Ameziane, artist

Bitter Root
by David F. Walker and Chuck Brown, writers; Sanford Greene, artist

Black
by Kwanza Osajyefo, writer/co-creator; Tim Smith 3, designer/co-creator; Jamal Igle, artist

Black (AF): America’s Sweetheart
by Kwanza Osajyefo, writer/co-creator; Tim Smith 3, co-creator; Jennifer Johnson, artist

Black History for Beginners
by Denise Dennis, writer; Susan Willmarth, illustrator

From Truth With Truth
by Lawrence Lindell

The Harlem Hellfighters
by Max Brooks, writer, Caanan White, artist

Incognegro: A Graphic Mystery
by Mat Johnson, writer; Warren Pleece, artist

Josephine Baker
by José-Louis Bocquet, writer; Catel Muller, artist

Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation
by Octavia Butler, writer; Damian Duffy, adapter; John Jennings, artist

King — A Comics Biography: The Special Edition
by Ho Che Anderson

The Life of Frederick Douglass: A Graphic Narrative of an Extraordinary Life
by David F. Walker, writer; Damon Smyth and Marissa Louise, artists

The Nib
by various artists

Parable of the Sower: A Graphic Novel Adaptation
by Octavia Butler, writer; Damian Duffy, adapter; John Jennings, artist

The Silence of Our Friends
by Mark Long and Jim Demonakos, writer; Nate Powell, artist

Silver Wire
by Kriota Willberg

Three-Fifths a Man: A Graphic History of the African American Experience
by Sid Jacobson, writer; Ernie Colón, artist

Yellow Negroes and Other Imaginary Creatures
by Yvan Alagbé

Your Black Friend
by Ben Passmore

To learn more, visit the Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table website.

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