To Kill a Mockingbird (Graphic Novel) Adapted by Fred Fordham

In 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird was published under the pen name, Harper Lee. This would go on to be her legacy, having published one novel, until the first draft of the well-known work would later be printed in 2016 and titled Go Set a Watchman. This took place while Lee was in a nursing home unable to consent to this publication, which many people think is a sequel to her famous novel, leading to outrage and disappointment.

To be clear, To Kill a Mockingbird was my favorite book I read for school and was a big stepping stone in cultivating my passion to write. Women wrote back then? Who knew? I can write, too! Harper Lee’s death stands to be the only “celebrity death” I have cried about and written about. Thus, I come to this graphic novel both loving the medium and the original text and the mindset of, “Please don’t make me hate this.”

I didn’t. Hate it, that is. The illustrations and color are beautiful, and the pages are thick and crisp. It doesn’t get much better than that, right book lovers? However, I love the novel as a novel and expected the graphic rendition to be written more to the style of a graphic novel: intricate artwork that stands in place of longer text, sequential images without interruption, and a variety of paneling choices.

While the book has these moments, they are far and few between. There is a lot of text that can be a turn-off to younger readers promised a comic-book-like experience. I understand the desire to put the entire novel into his new rendition and to stay true to Lee’s text—believe me, I know—however, this book seeks to do so by putting in too much dialogue to the point of a few monologues. The speech can be cut down and replaced with images that show expression or the dynamic between Scout, Dill, and Jem.

Also, I love graphic novels for how the illustrator uses paneling and white space across the spread. For most of the book, Fordham does not use these methods to his advantage. Rather, there is a consistent 7-9 panel page for most of the book. I love when images jump out at me, and there were some, but I also love when they jump out of their panels and seemingly come to life, which is only done one or two times. It is a technique that shouldn’t be used all the time but could’ve been done to make some dramatic scenes really pop.

Yes, I do love this rendition of To Kill a Mockingbird. Does it have to do with my previous love for the original novel? Oh, most definitely. Though, I love the medium and I think Fordham did the text justice (get it, because Atticus is a lawyer!). I also believe this is a great way for students to get into this 60-year-old text. My middle schoolers love graphic novels and comics! This is a lovely chance to meet halfway and say, “Let’s talk about it.” From race to our criminal justice system to gender norms, this book has it all and depicts it visually so all students can access the story.

Please do be aware of the author’s note in the back that discusses the way the characters speak and the use of n—. 

Find To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee here!
Find To Kill a Mockingbird Adapted by Fred Fordham here!

Queer: A Graphic History by Meg-John Barker and Julia Scheele

Meg-John Barker’s Queer: A Graphic History is very properly named. With comic illustrations by Julia Scheele, Barker provides an overview of the history of queerness, citing many players involved in queer activism and queer theory. This book is best used as a reference book or a springboard to delve into the many, many avenues queerness has taken over the years. I especially think it’s a good book, in an academic sense, for an introduction to queer theory, or queerness, or gender/sexuality studies. Readers and students can learn a lot from specific pages and then launch into their own research from there. In addition, Barker provides a Resources section of her research as well as other resources that may be helpful. As for a cover-to-cover read, well, there’s a lot to take in.

First, Barker defines the word queer and its use as different parts of speech, including a noun, verb, and adjective. What’s important here is how scholars and people queer an idea, or turn an idea around, twisting it into something different or strange or something one hasn’t thought of before, which can bring about change and positive thinking.

Barker then breaks down the differences between identity politics and queer theory; gender, sex, and sexuality; nature and nurture; and sex and gender. Most important here is the shift in the notion that the meaning of sexuality went from one of behavior to one of identity based on attractions and sexual preferences. To cover these topics, Barker along with Scheele provide a detailed yet concise overview of queer theory and activism (the gay rights movements similarities to black feminism and the struggles of multi-marginalized peoples) as well as key figures and thinkers in conversation with one another.

To make these ideas more accessible to the reader, Barker and Scheele put these ideas in cartoons and pop culture references. Barker claims queer theory is known to be hard for most people to understand and is full of multiple binaries to diffuse the idea of binaries, thus making itself contradictory and making it inaccessible to the common person, which is why it has not been as widely recognized as other fields of study. Barker concludes with the hope that this book makes the introduction to queer theory and queerness a bit easier to grasp, which it can when taken in small doses, like a reference book. Whether or not this book is successful is in how the reader uses the book and their explorations from there.

Find Queer: A Graphic History here.