Black History in Graphic NovelsLike this list

29 items

• Fights

  One Boy's Triumph Over Violence

  Gill, Joel Christian,

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  Fights is a good place to start this list. This memoir of Joel Christian Gill gives you some historical perspective since he is the author/artist of many graphic novels about Black American history.

• March. Book One

  Lewis, John, 1940-2020,

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  This award winner is a must-read for everyone. The memoir of Congressman John Lewis, a living legend of the Civil Rights Movement, chronicles major events in the Civil Rights Movement from 1963–1965. The first in a trilogy that demonstrates the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Run. Book One

  Lewis, John, 1940-2020,

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  "Run" is the next chapter in John Lewis' life and his involvement in the Civil Rights movement. It takes place after his award-winning "March" series.

• Nat Turner

  Baker, Kyle

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  A graphic portrayal of what being enslaved was like and Nat Turner's rebellion in 1831.

• Incognegro

  a Graphic Mystery

  Johnson, Mat,

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  An "incognegro" Black American journalist, whose skin color is light enough to pass as white, goes undercover to investigate a series of lynchings. Complex characters, mystery, a gamut of human emotions and a twisting plot set in the Jim Crow South…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Black Heroes of the Wild West

  Smith, James Otis,

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  Fill in some of your gaps in American history with stories of Stagecoach Mary, lawman Bass Reeves, cowboy Bob Lemmons, and more.

• Across the Tracks

  Remembering Greenwood, Black Wall Street, and the Tulsa Race Massacre

  Ball, Alverne

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  One hundred years after the Tulsa Race Massacre, Across the Tracks is a celebration and memorial of Greenwood, Oklahoma.

• Your Black Friend and Other Strangers

  Passmore, Ben,

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  Passmore's short comics explore overt racism and the subtler forms of prejudice experienced daily by people of color.

• Josephine Baker

  Bocquet, José-Louis,

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  The fascinating story of Josephine Baker starts in St. Louis where she eventually fled as a teen to escape racial discrimination. A dancer at heart, famous for her "banana dance" and Folies Bergere, she was one of the first African Americans to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Black Panther Party

  A Graphic Novel History

  Walker, David F.

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  A fascinating history of the revolutionary Black Panther Party.

• Colorblind

  a Story of Racism

  Harris, Johnathan,

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  A young African American boy growing up in Long Beach, California, shares his experiences of racism and how he overcame his own prejudices.

• Bitter Root. Volume 1, Family Business

  Walker, David, 1968-

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  The Sangereye family fights hate and racism in this fascinating mix of the Harlem Renaissance, the supernatural and steampunk.

• Hot Comb

  Flowers, Ebony,

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  Short coming-of-age stories that uses Black women's relationship to their hair to explore race, class and community.

• Underground Abductor

  An Abolitionist Tale

  Hale, Nathan, 1976-

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  This issue of the fun graphic novel series by Nathan Hale tells the story of Araminta Ross who escaped slavery, fled to freedom, and changed her name to Harriet Tubman.

• Monk!

  Thelonious, Pannonica, and the Friendship Behind a Musical Revolution

  Daoudi, Youssef, 1969-

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  Beautiful panels with muted colors tell the story of Thelonious Sphere Monk, a brilliant jazz musician who struggled with mental illness and broke race barriers.

• Strange Fruit. Volume I

  Uncelebrated Narratives From Black History

  Gill, Joel Christian

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  Nine uncelebrated African Americans with unique stories to tell. Did you know that Henry "Box" Brown escaped from slavery by mailing himself to Philadelphia? When you finish this, check out the second volume published in 2018.

• Showtime at the Apollo

  the Epic Tale of Harlem's Legendary Theater

  Fox, Ted, 1954-

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  Read about the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem and the role it played in African-American music and culture.

• Kindred

  a Graphic Novel Adaptation

  Duffy, Damian,

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  A great adaptation of Octavia Butler's novel about a young woman transported back through time to the antebellum South.

• The Silence of Our Friends

  Long, Mark, 1957-

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  As the Civil Rights struggle heats up in 1960's Texas, two families—one white, one black—find common ground to win the freedom of five black college students unjustly charged with murder.

• African-American Classics

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  Twenty-three stories and poems by America's earliest Black authors and illustrated by contemporary Black artists.