As a librarian, I am lucky to be surrounded by comics. I grew up reading
Archie and the weekend comics in the
Winnipeg Free Press, spending many afternoons drawing the characters and making paper dolls of them.
In my late teens, reading the work of creators such as Julie Doucet, Adrian Tomine, Geneviève Castrée, Lynda Barry, and Gabrielle Bell helped me through difficult times. Until then, I had no idea that comics could be so varied and speak so frankly about topics like depression, identity, and sexuality. Comics have a unique intimacy that connects readers through their layered and often visceral communication of experiences, narratives, and ideas.
By Pooja Makhijani | Jan 08, 2021
What was once considered the archetypical American household a mom and dad of the same racial or ethnic background and in their first marriage, providing care and stability for their 2.2 offspring is now far from the norm. Life choices that decades ago would have been scandalous or illegal, such as divorce, or interracial or same-sex marriage, are now more acceptable and also protected by law. Women, queer people, and others with marginalized identities, especially, have benefitted from these shifts. This is all to say: as family structures have changed, so too has parenting, and so have books for caregivers and about caregiving.
By the delicate hand of Didier Kassaï (
Storm Over Bangui) comes a comic book documentary about the street children of Bangui, told in a style that mixes photo and illustration. In the Central African Republic, children grow up in a state of insecurity, poverty and malnutrition. The 2013 conflict only exacerbated this situation. The Central African Republic has become what many call “a house without windows.” Through illustrations and photos, this comic takes you into the heart of this “forgotten crisis.” With Central African artist Didier Kassaï and British photojournalist Marc Ellison as your guides, watch children at work in a diamond mine, observe life in a refugee camp and meet the street children of Bangui. Marc Ellison is currently based in Glasgow, Scotland, though this award-winning photojournalist’s favourite subject is Africa. Difficulties of reintegration of girl soldiers in Uganda, practices of female genital mutilation, topics on child marriage in T