Links: ‘Persepolis’ Challenge Fails in Illinois

What is it about Persepolis? Marjane Satrapi’s graphic memoir of growing up in post-Revolutionary Iran has been pulled from classrooms in the Chicago Public Schools (but retained in their libraries) and challenged in Murphy, Oregon, and now a parent asked that it be removed from the reading list of Glenwood High School in Illinois. The parent objected to the book’s depictions of torture and a dismembered body, and he also questioned why the teacher would assign a book about Muslims on September 11. In a hearing before the Ball-Chatham School Board, Glenwood High School principal Jim Lee stood up for the book, saying, “Reading controversial material does not hurt students or corrupt them… This is the world our students live in, and our students need to understand the reality of it.” The board voted unanimously to keep the book on the reading list.

Nominations for the Cybils, the Children’s and Young Adult Bloggers Literary Awards, are open. They have two graphic novel categories, for young adults and younger readers, so go, nominate your favorites!

Whit Taylor talks to Jesse Lonergan, the creator of All Star.

Jason Rodriguez, editor of the anthology Colonial Comics: New England, 1620-1750, talks about putting together the book, which is the first of a planned three-volume series; many of the stories were written by historians. Here’s how Rodriguez sums up his “mission statement”:

I want to create a book that functions as both entertainment and education. The main idea is to tell stories that you often don’t find in school history books that can, in turn, lead into larger discussions about colonial American history. When I was growing up, my knowledge of colonial American history was essentially: 1) some people came over here for religious freedom, they wore funny hats, 2) they met this one Native American…not sure what happened to him, 3) something about burning witches, and 4) we went to war with England. What I want to do is fill in those gaps and tell stories about the Native Americans and women and free-thinkers and slaves and business owners who came from the Colonies and give a better understanding of what life was like over our first 200+ years, the good and the bad.

The book is published by Fulcrum, which also gave us the anthology of Native American folk tales, Trickster.

At The Roarbots, five-year-old Zoey interviews Gene Luen Yang (American Born Chinese, Boxers & Saints) Jeffrey Brown (Darth Vader and Son and a host of other Star Wars books), Frank Cammuso (Knights of the Lunch Table, Salem Hyde), David Petersen (Mouse Guard) and Jeff Smith (Bone).

Tim O’Shea talks to Ted Naifeh about his new series, Princess Ugg:

In a way, one might say the barbarian fantasy is “boy fantasy” and I thought it would be fun to contrast it with the Disney princess “girl fantasy” tropes. But over the last few years, things have become really interesting. More and more women relate to barbarian fantasy, in the form of Game of Thrones, or Skyrim, or Becky Cloonan’s creator-owned comic work. While boys are becoming more and more interested in things like Frozen and My Little Pony, which is all very much what one would call “girl fantasy.” It turns out that the audience doesn’t give a damn who these categories are “intended” for by the marketing people. So now seems like the best possible time to put this book out, as it’s a combo of both.

If you liked Lumberjanes, you might want to check out A Home for Mr. Easter, the earlier graphic novel by artist Brooke Allen.

Associate editor Michael Petranek provides an inside look at Papercutz.

Previews

Fraggle Rock: Journey to the Everspring #1 (ToughPigs)
Sonic Universe #68 (Comicosity)
World of Archie Comics Digest #43 (Comicosity)

Reviews

Sterg Botzakis on Afterlife With Archie (Graphic Novel Resources)
Alyssa Stewart on Comics Squad: Recess! (Everead)
Steve Bennett on Disney Kingdoms: Seekers of the Weird (ICv2)
Cindy Dobrez and Lynn Rutan on El Deafo (Booklist)
Jamie on Maddy Kettle: The Adventure of the Thimblewitch (The Roarbots)
Lori Henderson on vols. 1 and 2 of Monster Soul (Manga Xanadu)
Brigid Alverson on The Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow (Robot 6)
Doug Zawisza on The Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow (Comic Book Resources)
Sarah Hunter on Nimona (Bookends)
Richard Bruton on The Phoenix #143 (Forbidden Planet)
Rob McMonigal on The Rise of Aurora West (Panel Patter)
Sarah Stevenson on The Rise of Aurora West (Finding Wonderland)
InfiniteSpeech on Samurai Jack #12 (Comic Attack)
Johanna Draper Carlson on Shackleton: Antarctic Odyssey (Comics Worth Reading)
Ryan Roe on The Storyteller: Witches, Tale One (ToughPigs)
Maggie Idzikowski on This One Summer (Mama Librarian)
Henry Chamberlain on The Wrenchies (Comics Grinder)

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