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Trans History—From Ancient Times to the Present Day

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By Martha Cornog   Content advisory: This book/review discusses suicide and sexual violence. The crisis Lifeline number in the U.S. and Canada is 988, in the U.K. it’s 999; and for elsewhere go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines.   Trans History aims to explain the nature of “trans” (also referred to as “transsexual” or “transgender”) by telling the stories of notable likely-trans individuals throughout history, following a sequence from earliest documented times to the present. These brief biographies are intercut with anecdotes about laws and customs that have been applied to such people over the centuries, and commentary about how these individuals fit—or… Read More

The Parakeet

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by Liz Argall Content warning: this book contains attempted and completed suicide, teeth injuries, mental health institutions, physical restriction and electro convulsive therapy. The crisis Lifeline number in the U.S. and Canada is 988, in the U.K. it’s 999; and for elsewhere go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines. The Parakeet is done in a way that contains vivid images and use of color at times, but it is profoundly humanizing and fundamentally tender in its gaze.   Summary Espé (pen name pen name of Sébastien Porte if you’re struggling to find him on the internet) published Le Perroquet in 2017 and I applaud… Read More

But You Have Friends

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By Louise Page   But You Have Friends is a graphic memoir primarily about friendship, whilst also taking in themes of BPD, depression, suicide and grief. The art is lightly done but full of emotion, and almost all in shades of purple; however the main focus here is the story, and the poetic way it is gently told. The purple colour scheme makes a lot of sense, as it was the favourite colour of the subject of this memoir, and makes it feel like she permeates every page. Charlotte, or C, made friends with the author, Emilia McKenzie, when they… Read More

Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey

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by Saily Marrero Edel Rodriguez’s graphic memoir, Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey is an immigrant story about the perilous journeys families make in the hopes for a better future. Because of the topics covered in this book and some brief nudity, this memoir is for mature audiences. Rodriguez’s memoir briefly mentions many different medical topics from work injuries, mental health, alcoholism but the inadequate medical care and hunger faced by the author’s family take center stage. More than anything, Rodriguez’s Cuba is a country of scarcity. There are innumerable mentions of lack of food, opportunities, and medical supplies, which only… Read More

Tribal Force #1 (2023)

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By Matt Peters   After it debuted in 1996, Tribal Force became a bit of a paradox. The comic was meant to be a series, but after its first issue, subsequent issues never appeared. The title faced a variety of setbacks that left its future uncertain, but even so, it went on to have an influence far beyond its modest run. As the first comic book to feature a team made entirely of Native American superheroes, it became a precursor among comics and graphic novels by and about indigenous people, and it eventually garnered the attention of the Smithsonian Institution…. Read More

Goodbye: A Story of Suicide

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by Kevin Wolf Zuiker Press has published several books in the Teen Topics (“issue-based”) series; and “All of our authors … tell their personal stories [as] … ambassadors of their cause. Their goal … is that young people will learn from their pain and heroics and find HOPE, CHANGE, and HAPPINESS in their own lives. [emphasis in original, page 4]” Other graphic medicine works include Identity: A Story of Transitioning about being transgender and Brother: A Story of Autism—both awaiting review at www.graphicmedicine.org. The covers of the series are similar with the right-side of the protagonists’ face on the cover… Read More