27 Graphic Novels for Women's History Month
From Louisa May Alcott to Batwoman to Wimmen's Comix
By Martha Cornog -- Library Journal, 03/04/2010
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Worst women’s comics news for 2009: DC Comics cancelled Birds of Prey, the long-running and much-loved series about a superheroine team. Best news for early 2010: the Birds will be back later this year, to be written once more by the awesome Gail Simone. Below, some well-reviewed recent titles, a few interesting older titles, and a smattering of forthcoming ones for Women's History Month (March). Please post a comment if you want to recommend additional favorites.
Recent | Forthcoming | About Comics
Alcott, Louisa May. Graphic Classics. Vol. 18: Louisa May Alcott. Eureka. 2009. c.144p. ISBN 978-0-9787919-8-8. pap. $17.95. F
Alcott is best remembered for Little Women, but she also wrote florid gothic tales. Somewhat sappy by modern tastes, her work gains verve through these lively, full-color renderings. In Trina Robbins's skillful adaptation of Little Women, pretty Jo March comes through as a modern gal ahead of her time. Of the gothics, the standout is "A Whisper in the Dark," in which a saucy young heiress plays father and son suitors against each other with a near-tragic outcome. Graphic treatment modernizes Alcott well, showing off her early feminist sensibilities. Teens and up. (See LJ's original review.)
Bashi, Parsua. Nylon Road: A Graphic Memoir of Coming of Age in Iran. Scalo, dist. by Prestel. 2009. 
c.127p. tr. from German by Teresa Go & Miriam Weisel. ISBN 978-0-312-53286-4. pap. $16.99. AUTOBIOG
Quitting Iran for Europe, like Marjane Persepolis Satrapi, Bashi reels from an ambush of her former selves at different ages, all reacting to her new European life as contrasted with the Islamic regime. This device frames Bashi's internal conflicts in a way both lighthearted and intense as she comes to terms with living in a Westernized country that perhaps also suppresses individuality, although differently from Shiite fundamentalist tactics. A perceptive and nuanced take on repression, freedom, and women's lives in stylish, two-toned art. Teens and up. Also, an excellent readalike for Persepolis. (See LJ's original review.)
Butler, Tracy. Lackadaisy. Vol. 1. 4th Dimension Entertainment. 2009. 98p. ISBN 978-0-9819599-0-0. pap. $13.95. F (purchase from www.4thdimensionentertainment.com)
Elegantly attired anthropomorphic felines populate this sepia-toned 1920s soap opera of speakeasies and bootlegging. Winner of several webcomics awards. See the strips online at www.lackadaisycats.com. Adult collections.
Eisner, Will. The Spirit: Femmes Fatales. DC. 2008. 191p. ISBN 978-1-4012-1973-4. pap. $19. F
In pre-Princess Leia comics, feisty femmes tended toward the dark side, in contrast with the hero's sweet but boring girlfriend. So meet the curvaceous and underhanded Silk Satin and P'Gell, among many others, as they drop in on the Spirit to distract him—they wish!—from his faithful crush, good-girl Ellen. With names like strippers—Pantha Stalk, Lorelei Rox—these vixens were more than a match for the Spirit, and although he could usually foil their schemes, only rarely could he arrest them. These 1940s tales all incorporate plenty of mayhem, plot twists, and distinctive personalities in a lighthearted noir style. (See LJ's original review.)
Hambly, Barbara (text) & Ron Randall & others (illus.). Anne Steelyard and the Garden of Emptiness.
Act I: An Honorary Man. 2008. 88p. ISBN 978-0-9719012-9-2.
Act II: The Gate of Dreams and Starlight. 2009. 85p. ISBN 978-0-9842143-0-3.
ea vol: Penny-Farthing. pap. $14.95. F
The British aristocrat Gertrude Bell served as inspiration for the Indiana Jones–like adventures of this woman archeologist, who befriends Turkish tribespeople to find a mysterious lost city while fighting sexism and supernatural threats as World War I looms. A forthcoming third volume will complete the trilogy, all done in attractive color art. Hambly is a popular author of genre fiction, largely science fiction and fantasy. Teens and up.
Katsura, Masakazu. Shadow Lady: Dangerous Love. 1999. 200p. ISBN 978-1-56971-408-9.
Katsura, Masakazu. Shadow Lady: Awakening. 2000. 184p. ISBN 978-1-56971-446-1.
Katsura, Masakazu. Shadow Lady: Sudden Death. 2001. 176p. ISBN 978-1-56971-477-5.
ea. vol: Dark Horse. tr. from Japanese by Toren Smith. pap. price varies. F
A swipe of her magic eye shadow turns shy teen Aimi Komori into the flirtatious bandit Shadow Lady, who saves Grey City from a crew of demonic villains while teasing and tormenting the local police force. Underappreciated and out of print, Shadow Lady manages to be both sexier and more feminist than Sailor Moon—at the end, she does not settle down with the (subpar) guy but flies off. The series was canceled midstream so the ending comes too quickly, but the art and the Shadow Lady character earn high marks. Check online used book sources. Teens and up.
Kim Dong Hwa. The Color of Earth. c.319p. ISBN 978-1-59643-458-5.
Kim Dong Hwa. The Color of Heaven. c.320p. ISBN 978-1-59643-460-8.
Kim Dong Hwa. The Color of Water. c.318p. ISBN 978-1-59643-459-2.
ea. vol: First Second: Roaring Brook. 2009. tr. from Korean by Lauren Na. pap. $16.95. F
In this lyrical coming-of-age manhwa set a century ago in rural Korea, young Ehwa grows up under the fond eye of her widowed tavern-keeper mother. Intercut with Ehwa's tentative steps toward love is her mother's intermittent and achingly sweet liaison with a traveling painter. This elegant trilogy will have strong appeal for its literary quality and offers key historical and cultural information, with a reading group guide included in the last two volumes. Sexual content and nudity, presented discreetly. Older teens up. (See LJ's original review.)
Simmonds, Posy. Tamara Drewe. Mariner: Houghton Harcourt. 2008. 136p. ISBN 978-0-547-15412-1. pap. $16.95. F
When a pretty journalist sashays into a rustic British writers' colony, men and marriages fall in her wake, and everyone behaves badly. A loosely modernized version of Thomas Hardy’s Far from the Madding Crowd. Adult collections. (See LJ's original review.)
Yoshinaga, Fumi. Ooku: The Inner Chambers. Vol. 1. Viz Media. 2009. c.205p. ISBN 978-1-4215-2747-5. pap. $12.99. F
In an alternate Tokugawa-era Japan, a mysterious disease kills off 80 percent of the males, leaving women to take control of society. Now only rich women can afford to marry, while poor women wanting children must purchase sex. And only the now-female shogun can dally in the Ooku—secluded quarters where elite male concubines await their liege's pleasure. Yoshinaga (Antique Bakery) clearly enjoys ringing the changes on gender tropes while exercising her considerable plotting skills. Adult collections. (See LJ’s original review.)
Austen, Jane & Nancy Butler (text) & Sonny Liew (illus.). Sense & Sensibility. Marvel. TBA.
While Marvel’s adaptation of Pride & Prejudice seemed to mismatch artist with story (see LJ 3/15/10), their Sense & Sensibility will feature both cover and interior art from the graceful, quirky pen behind Minx’s Re-Gifters and Disney’s Wonderland, a YALSA pick. The first of five issues is due in May, so perhaps the collection will come later this year.
Brémaud, Frédéric (text) & Giovanni Rigano (illus.). Daffodil. Marvel. Jul. 2010. 168p. ISBN 978-0-7851-4001-6. $24.99. F
If you admired the sassy elf Holly Short from the Artemis Fowl graphic novels, you’ll love Daffodil, Globuline, and Achilles, three fetching and fanged agents of the Vampire Parliament who have to take in their out-of-control boss, Nosferatu. Rigano drew them all. Rated for adults.
CLAMP & Shaenon K. Garrity. CLAMP in America: The Definitive History of the Manga Superstars in the U.S.A. Del Rey: Ballantine. May 2010. 352p. ISBN 978-0-345-51002-0. pap. $27.99. GRAPHIC ARTSThe women artists of CLAMP have a string of gorgeous hits to their credit, including Cardcaptor Sakura, Chobits, Clover, xxxHOLIC, and the recent top seller Tsubasa, with more to come. Now fans can read their 20-year backstory and gloat over their influence on the American manga industry. Indispensable for collections where manga is popular.
Female Force: Women of the Media. Bluewater. Jun. 2010. 96p. ISBN 978-1-61623-927-5. pap. $15.99. BIOG
Short bios for TV superstars Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Walters, Ellen DeGeneres, and Meredith Vieira collected from the individual comic book issues; each has a one-page bibliography of web and print sources. A good bet for hooking the literacy challenged. In August, look for the Female Force: Best Sellers collection of supernaturally famous wordsisters: Anne Rice, J.K. Rowling, Stephenie Meyer, and Charlaine Harris. Out very soon also from Bluewater: a comic book biography of Rep. Nancy Pelosi. A woman’s place is in the House! As Speaker!
O’Donnell, Peter (text) & Neville Colvin (illus.). Modesty Blaise: Death in Slow Motion. Titan. Apr. 2010. 104p. ISBN 978-1-84856-108-3. pap. $19.95. F
A former bad girl gone undercover for the British Secret Service, the gorgeous Modesty Blaise and her sidekick, Willie Garvin, undertake adventurous assignments requiring their extraordinary skill with subterfuge, hand-to-hand combat, and exotic weaponry. These pulp-style black-and-white newspaper strips, which ran 1963–2002, show admirable plotting and satisfying James Bond–style action. Numerous other Modesty Blaise volumes are also available. Occasional partial nudity and sexual suggestiveness. Adult collections.
Rucka, Greg (text) & J.H. Williams (illus.). Batwoman: Elegy. DC Comics. Jul. 2010. 192p. ISBN 978-1-4012-2692-3. $24.99. F
Haunted by a family tragedy, Katherine "Kate" Kane fights her own private war as Batwoman. She’s able to save Gotham—and her father—from a toxic cloud unleashed by a madwoman known as Alice, but the fate of Kate’s long-lost sister hangs in the balance. Ironically, the original Batwoman was introduced in the 1950s as a love interest to shore up Batman’s heterosexuality. But this Batwoman is a Jewish lesbian, trying to balance her closeted love-life with her vigilante ventures. Especially striking black-and-red-heavy art.
Rucka, Greg (text) & Matthew Southworth (illus.). Stumptown. Vol. 1. Oni. Jun. 2010. 144p. ISBN 978-1-934964-37-8. $19.99. F
In Rucka’s self-confessed love letter to The Rockford Files TV show from the 1970s, Dex can get her gambling debts cleared if the talented but unlucky PI can find her casino owner’s missing granddaughter. Dex’s phone book ad says it all: "Stumptown Investigations: Pulling the thorns out of the city of roses since 2005." Gritty tongue-in-cheek action with noirish color art.
VanHook, Kevin & Tony Bedard (text) & various (illus.). Oracle: The Cure. DC Comics. Apr. 2010. 128p. ISBN 978-1-4012-2603-9. pap. $17.99. F
After the superheroine team Birds of Prey falls apart, team leader Oracle goes off on her own and ends up tangling online with the evil Calculator, who is seeking to save his daughter’s life. Oracle is former librarian and Batgirl Barbara Gordon, now a paraplegic with highly developed intellectual and info-hacker skills. This volume collects the 2009 Oracle miniseries plus several Birds of Prey issues. (The Birds will fly together again later this year.)
Bechdel, Alison. The Indelible Alison Bechdel: Confessions, Comix, and Miscellaneous Dykes To Watch Out For. Firebrand. 1998. 224p. illus. ISBN 978-1-56341-096-3. pap. Price varies. AUTOBIOG
Before Bechdel’s multiple award–winning Fun Home, there was—and still is—the endearing crew of her lesbian strip Dykes To Watch Out For, and before Dykes, there was Bechdel drawing up a storm throughout childhood and later. Part prose memoir, part scrapbook, and part “how-I-do-it,” this includes some of the Dykes strips published elsewhere plus much other material unpublished or not previously compiled. Check online used book sources.
Brinkley, Nell. The Brinkley Girls: The Best of Nell Brinkley's Cartoons from 1913–1940. Fantagraphics. 2009. c.136p. ed. by Trina Robbins. ISBN 978-1-56097-970-8. $29.99. F
Way before CLAMP's shojo beauties, Brinkley's fabulous flappers flirted their way through her serialized sagas as well as her other illustrations in Hearst newspapers. Brinkley’s gloriously rococo line art introduced fun-loving, energetic gals who paved the way for modern American action heroines like Brenda Starr and Wonder Woman. This color collection gathered by comics herstorian Robbins (The Great Women Superheroes) includes biographical background on Brinkley plus three full serials and numerous shorter works. Public and academic libraries. (See LJ’s original review.)
Goldstein, Nancy. Jackie Ormes: The First African American Woman Cartoonist. Univ. of Michigan. 2008. 225p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-472-11624-9. $35. BIOG
Like Brenda Starr, Torchy Brown hit the comics pages as an independent woman with a career, adventure, and romance. But appearing exclusively in African American–targeted newspapers, she is not so widely known. Torchy, Patty-Jo, Ginger, and Candy came out of the pen of the pioneering Jackie Ormes (1911–85), who blended social commentary with pin-up glamour. This fine biography includes a large selection of strips. (See LJ’s original review.)
Kominsky-Crumb, Aline. Need More Love: A Graphic Memoir. M Q Pbns. 2007. 383p. ISBN 978-1-84601-133-7. $12.98. AUTOBIOG
Not any “Mrs. Robert Crumb,” Kominsky-Crumb has been a cartoonist in her own right since the early years of Wimmen's Comix amidst the misogynistic underground comix movement. This frank memoir starts with her youth as a nice Jewish girl from Long Island and touches on just about everything personal and professional: family, art, men, marriage to Robert, parenting fellow cartoonist Sophie, and more art. Heavily illustrated with photos, color strips, and art. Adult collections.
