graphic novels

In this graphic novel memoir, David Small chronicles his sickly childhood growing up in Detroit in the 1950s. Small is told he needs surgery to remove a cyst, but he wakes up without a vocal cord . . . and voiceless. He eventually learns he had cancer—a fact his parents kept a secret from him. The use of the images helps Small to capture his adolescent frustrations, his powerlessness, and his lack of voice better than just words can.

An unusual format, a fully illustrated scrapbook, makes this period romance unique.  Frankie Pratt receives a scrapbook, her father's old typewriter and a letter of acceptance to Vassar for her high school graduation in 1920 and begins to record her world.  Caroline Preston does a remarkable job creating Frankie's voice through the small snippets of conversation and captions she uses on each scrapbook page.   True to the way one really keeps a scrapbook it only hits the highlights, an almost disasterous romance before college gets a few gushing pages, the first tough year a

This masterfully drawn and written Brazilian graphic novel chronicles the life of Brás, an obituary writer and son of a famous author. The story jumps around throughout Brás’ life, but every chapter ends the same way: Brás dies. More beautiful than morbid, the novel shows the reader all the possibilities life has to offer and how, in a moment, those possibilities can vanish. The sparse words and powerful images—wonderful enough to be framed on a wall—draw you in to the heartaches, the joys, the relationships, and the truly great moments of Brás’ life.