LibGuides: Comics, Manga and Graphic Novels: Asian/Pacific Islander/Asian American

Comics at Marist with Asian/Pacific Islander/Asian American Representation

After Lambana : myth and magic in Manila : a graphic novel by Eliza Victoria; Mervin Malonzo (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.P63 V53 2022
ISBN: 9780804855259
Publication Date: 2022
Enter a Filipino fantasy world where myth, magic, and mystery collide! On the shadowy, noir-tinged streets of Manila, two friends seek a cure for a mysterious malady. To add to their problems, the Magic Prohibition Act has been adopted, and Lambana -- the supernatural realm of the Diwata -- has fallen. Slinky sirenas and wraith-like spirits populate this parallel universe of lurking danger and corruption. Will Lambana spill its secrets and provide the healing balm that's needed? Or will Conrad and Ignacio fail in their quest and perish in the process?
Akane-banashi. 1, On That Day by Yuki Suenaga; Takamasa Moue (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.J34 A33 2023 v.1
ISBN: 9781974736485
Publication Date: 2023
Akane takes on the world of rakugo to avenge her father! Shinta Arakawa wants nothing more than to pass his shin'uchi exam--the test that would make him a top-rank headliner and master storyteller in the traditional Japanese art of rakugo. Akane Osaki, his daughter and biggest fan, spies on him while he practices and learns his routines for herself. When rakugo master Issho Arakawa expels everyone after the exam with no explanation, a fire is lit inside Akane. From that day forth, she has had one goal--to avenge her father and prove his art was worthy of the title of shin'uchi. Akane unintentionally stirs up a scandal when she's discovered taking informal lessons from her father's former teacher, Shiguma Arakawa. And she's about to make even bigger waves because she is about to begin her first steps in climbing the ranks of a rakugo performer, from zenza opening act to shin'uchi headliner, by exchanging her secret lessons for formal training. But she'll still have to finish high school and navigate her relationship with Shiguma's existing apprentices, all while learning that becoming a stellar rakugoka takes much more than just being good at performing!
Almost American Girl: An Illustrated Memoir by Robin Ha
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.H23 Z46 2020
ISBN: 9780062685100
Publication Date: 2020
For as long as she can remember, it's been Robin and her mom against the world. Growing up as the only child of a single mother in Seoul, Korea, wasn't always easy, but it has bonded them fiercely together. So when a vacation to visit friends in Huntsville, Alabama, unexpectedly becomes a permanent relocation--following her mother's announcement that she's getting married--Robin is devastated. Overnight, her life changes. She is dropped into a new school where she doesn't understand the language and struggles to keep up. She is completely cut off from her friends in Seoul and has no access to her beloved comics. At home, she doesn't fit in with her new stepfamily, and worst of all, she is furious with the one person she is closest to--her mother. Then one day Robin's mother enrolls her in a local comic drawing class, which opens the window to a future Robin could never have imagined.
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang; Lark Pien (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.Y36 A54 2006
ISBN: 9781596432086
Publication Date: 2006
Story 1: "All Jin Wing wants is to fit in. When his family moves to a new neighborhood, he suddenly finds that he's the only Chinese American student at the school. Jocki and his bullies pick on him constantly, and he has hardly any friends. Then, to make matters worse, he falls in love with an all-American girl." Story 2: "Born to rule over all the monkeys in the world, the story of the Monkey King is one of the oldest and greatest Chinese fables. Adored by his subjects, master of the arts of kung-fu, he is the most powerful monkey on Earth. But the Monkey King doesn't want to be a monkey. He wants to be hailed as a god ..." Story 3: "Chin-Kee is the ultimate negative Chinese stereotype, and he's ruining his cousin Danny's life. Danny's a basketball player, a popular kid at school, but every year Chin-Kee comes to visit, and every year Danny has to transfer to a new school to escape the shame. This year, though, things quickly go from bad to worse.
The American Dream? A Journey on Route 66, Discovering Dinosaur Statues, Muffler Men, and the Perfect Breakfast Burrito by Shing Yin Khor
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor F595.3 .K46 2019
ISBN: 9781541578524
Publication Date: 2019
An illustrated comic travelogue about an American immigrant driving alone through all that's left of "The Mother Road," Route 66.
The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye by Sonny Liew
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.S55 L54 2015
ISBN: 9781101870693
Publication Date: 2016
Meet Charlie Chan Hock Chye. Now in his early 70s as he looks back on his career, Chan has spent a lifetime making comics in his native Singapore since he was a boy of 16, in 1954. The artist doubles here as both the narrator and the subject matter, as his life story parallels the changes in Singapore over five decades since the war. The evolution of his artwork mirrors the evolution of both his homeland and the comic book medium itself. The myriad art styles employed by Liew go beyond deft sleight-of-hand and actually inform the narrative in a thoroughly ingenious and engaging way. While all the detail about the formation of the Singapore government adheres meticulously to the facts, the reader is ultimately left wondering whether or not Charlie Chan Hock Chye himself is real or a construct. And given the subject at hand, that quandary only adds to the themes raised in this enthralling graphic novel.
At 30 I Realized I had No Gender: Life Lessons From a 50-Year-Old After Two Decades of Self-Discovery by Shou Arai
Call Number: Graphic HQ78.2.J3 A73 2023
ISBN: 9781427873453
Publication Date: 2023
At age 30, transgender intersex mangaka Shou Arai (he/him) came to a realization; he had no gender. Now he was faced with a question he'd never really considered: how to age in a society where everything is so strongly segregated between two genders? This autobiographical manga explores Japanese culture surrounding gender, transgender issues, and the day to day obstacles faced by gender minorities and members of the LGBTQIA+ community with a lighthearted, comedic attitude.
Banned Book Club by Hyun-Sook Kim; Ryan Estrada; Hyung-Ju Ko (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels DS922.35 .K56 2020
ISBN: 9781945820427
Publication Date: 2020
When Kim Hyun Sook started college in 1983 she was ready for her world to open up. After acing her exams and sort-of convincing her traditional mother that it was a good idea for a woman to go to college, she looked forward to soaking up the ideas of Western Literature far from the drudgery she was promised at her family's restaurant. But literature class would prove to be just the start of a massive turning point, still focused on reading but with life-or-death stakes she never could have imagined. This was during South Korea's Fifth Republic, a military regime that entrenched its power through censorship, torture, and the murder of protestors. In this charged political climate, with Molotov cocktails flying and fellow students disappearing for hours and returning with bruises, Hyun Sook sought refuge in the comfort of books. When the handsome young editor of the school newspaper invited her to his reading group, she expected to pop into the cafeteria to talk about Moby Dick, Hamlet, and The Scarlet Letter. Instead she found herself hiding in a basement as the youngest member of an underground banned book club. And as Hyun Sook soon discovered, in a totalitarian regime, the delights of discovering great works of illicit literature are quickly overshadowed by fear and violence as the walls close in. In BANNED BOOK CLUB, Hyun Sook shares a dramatic true story of political division, fear-mongering, anti-intellectualism, the death of democratic institutions, and the relentless rebellion of reading.
The Best We Could Do : An Illustrated Memoir by Thi Bui
Call Number: Graphic Novels E184.V53 B85 2017
ISBN: 9781419718779
Publication Date: 2017
Exploring the anguish of immigration and the lasting effects that displacement has on a child and her family, Bui documents the story of her family's daring escape after the fall of South Vietnam in the 1970s, and the difficulties they faced building new lives for themselves.
Besties: Find Their Groove by Kayla Miller; Kristina Luu (Illustrator); Jeffrey Canino
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.M55 B47 2022
ISBN: 9780358521167
Publication Date: 2022
With their first formal school dance around the corner, Beth and Chanda are on a mission to make it the best night ever. Step one? Secure the perfect dresses so they can dominate the dance floor! But when neither of them can find an outfit that lives up to their high expectations--and when they encounter unexpected pressure to find dates--these besties will need to lean on their friendship more than ever if they hope to find their groove and bust a move!
Besties. Work It Out by Kayla Miller; Kristina Luu (Illustrator); Jeffrey Canino
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.M55 B47 2021
ISBN: 9780358561910
Publication Date: 2021
Meet Beth and Chanda, two stylish best friends on their way to building their fashion empire! An unexpected business opportunity presents itself when the girls are asked to dogsit at Ms. Langford's luxurious house while she's away, but it quickly turns into a disaster after an accident leaves one of Ms. Langford's prized possessions in pieces! Now Beth and Chanda have to take on as many odd jobs as they can in order to afford a replacement. Car washing, book sales, interior decorating--you name it, Beth and Chanda are there! Will they be able to patch up their mistake in time?
Blame This on the Boogie by Rina Ayuyang
Call Number: Graphic Novels NC1429.A98 A2 2018
ISBN: 9781770463189
Publication Date: 2018
Inspired by the visual richness and cinematic structure of the Hollywood musical, Blame This on the Boogie chronicles the adventures of a Filipino American girl born in the decade of disco who escapes life's hardships and mundanity through the genre's feel-good song-and-dance numbers. Rina Ayuyang explores how the glowing charm of the silver screen can transform reality, shaping a person's approach to childhood, relationships, sports, reality TV, and eventually politics, parenthood, and mortality. Ayuyang showcases the way her love of musicals became a form of therapeutic distraction to circumnavigate a childhood of dealing with cultural differences, her struggles with postpartum depression, and an adulthood overshadowed by an increasingly frightening and depressing political climate.
Boxers by Gene Luen Yang (Illustrator); Lark Pien (Inked or colored by)
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor PN6727.Y36 B68 2013
ISBN: 9781596433595
Publication Date: 2013
In China in 1898 bands of foreign missionaries and soldiers roam the countryside, bullying and robbing Chinese peasants. Little Bao has had enough: harnessing the powers of ancient Chinese gods, he recruits an army of Boxers--commoners trained in kung fu who fight to free China from "foreign devils."
Bury the Lede by Gaby Dunn; Claire Roe (Illustrator); Miquel Muerto (Colorist (comics))
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor ; PN6727.D8885 B87 2019
ISBN: 9781684154272
Publication Date: 2019
Cub reporter Madison Jackson is young, scrappy, and hungry to prove that she deserves her coveted college internship at the premiere newspaper in town, The Boston Lede, where she fetches coffee for the night crew and dreams of her own byline. So when her police scanner mentions a brutal murder tied to a prominent Boston family, Madison races to the crime scene, looking for the scoop of the century. What she finds instead is the woman who'll change her life forever: Dahlia Kennedy, celebrity socialite, now widow, covered in gore and the prime suspect in the murder of her husband and child. When Dahlia refuses to talk to anyone but Madison, they begin a dangerous game of cat and mouse that leads the young journalist down a twisted path.
The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6747.S245 P4713 2007
Publication Date: 2007
Persepolis is the story of Marjane Satrapi's childhood and coming of age within a large and loving family in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution; of the contradictions between private life and public life in a country plagued by political upheaval; of her high school years in Vienna facing the trails of adolescence far from her family; of her homecoming--both sweet and terrible; and, finally, of her self-imposed exile from her beloved homeland.
Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.Y36 D73 2020
ISBN: 9781626720794
Publication Date: 2020
Gene Luen Yang understands stories--comic book stories, in particular. Big action. Bigger thrills. And the hero always wins. But Gene doesn't get sports. As a kid, his friends called him "Stick" and every basketball game he played ended in pain. He lost interest in basketball long ago, but at the high school where he now teaches, it's all anyone can talk about. The men's varsity team, the Dragons, is having a phenomenal season that's been decades in the making. Each victory brings them closer to their ultimate goal: the California State Championships. Once Gene gets to know these young all-stars, he realizes that their story is just as thrilling as anything he's seen on a comic book page. He knows he has to follow this epic to its end. What he doesn't know yet is that this season is not only going to change the Dragons's lives, but his own life as well.
Family Style: Memories of an American from Vietnam by Thien Pham
Call Number: Graphic Novels E184.V53 P43 2023
ISBN: 9781250809711
Publication Date: 2023
Thien's first memory isn't a sight or a sound. It's the sweetness of watermelon and the saltiness of fish. It's the taste of the foods he ate while adrift at sea as his family fled Vietnam. After the Pham family arrives at a refugee camp in Thailand, they struggle to survive. Things don't get much easier once they resettle in California. And through each chapter of their lives, food takes on a new meaning. Strawberries come to signify struggle as Thien's mom and dad look for work. Potato chips are an indulgence that bring Thien so much joy that they become a necessity. Behind every cut of steak and inside every croissant lies a story. And for Thien Pham, that story is about a search-- for belonging, for happiness, for the American dream.
Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir by Tessa Hulls
Call Number: Graphic Novels E184.C5 H85 2024
ISBN: 9780374601652
Publication Date: 2024
Tessa Hulls delves into her Chinese American family history and the intergenerational trauma caused by mental illness and political strife.
Flamer by Mike Curato (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic PN6727.C87 F53 2020
ISBN: 9781627796415
Publication Date: 2020
I know I'm not gay. Gay boys like other boys. I hate boys. They're mean, and scary, and they're always destroying something or saying something dumb or both. I hate that word. Gay. It makes me feel . . . unsafe. It's the summer between middle school and high school, and Filipino American teen Aiden Navarro is away at camp. Everyone's going through changes--but for Aiden, the stakes feel higher. As he navigates friendships, deals with bullies, and spends time with Elias (a boy he can't stop thinking about), he finds himself on a path of self-discovery and acceptance.
Good talk : a memoir in conversations by Mira Jacob
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.J33 Z46 2018
ISBN: 9780399589041
Publication Date: 2019
Like many six-year-olds, Mira Jacob's half-Jewish, half-Indian son, Z, has questions about everything. At first they are innocuous enough, but as tensions from the 2016 election spread from the media into his own family, they become much, much more complicated. Trying to answer him honestly, Mira has to think back to where she's gotten her own answers: her most formative conversations about race, color, sexuality, and, of course, love. Written with humor and vulnerability, this deeply relatable graphic memoir is a love letter to the art of conversation--and to the hope that hovers in our most difficult questions.
Grandmothers, Our Grandmothers: Remembering the "Comfort Women" of World War II by Han Seong-won
Call Number: Graphic Novels D810.C698 H36 2023
ISBN: 9780804856638
Publication Date: 2023
In "Grandmothers, our grandmothers" the "comfort women" of the Japanese Imperial Army share their personal stories with us and give us their testimony. Alongside passionate advocates from younger generations, they protest on a weekly basis-- speaking for all victims of war and violations of human rights. In this book, writer and artist Han Seong-won depicts the ongoing crusade of some of war's most courageous survivor women. These women were forced into sexual slavery in Han's native Korea and other countries where the Japanese army set up military camps.
Hokusai: A Graphic Biography by Giuseppe Lantazi; Francesco Matteuzzi
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor NE1325.K38 L38 2021
ISBN: 9781786278937
Publication Date: 2021
A stunning visual biography of one of Japan's most famous historical artists, this book beautifully illustrates the story of Katsushika Hokusai. Enter the world of Katsushika Hokusai - the enigmatic creator of Japanese art's all-time most iconic image. This vivid graphic biography tells the story of Hokusai's intriguing life and pioneering works, details the fascinating historical context of Edo-era Japan, and explains how Hokusai forged an image of his country that still resonates across the world today. Telling the story of both his eccentric (and incredibly productive) life - while simultaneously painting a fascination picture of his wider cultural legacy, this book is ideal for both those new to Hokusai's work - and his biggest fans.
I Escaped a Chinese Internment Camp by Anthony Del Col; Fahmida Azim (Artist)
Call Number: Graphic Novels DS731.U4 A95 2023
ISBN: 9781988247960
Publication Date: 2024
This graphic novella recounts the true story of Zumrat Dawut, as originally published in the independent online news organization, Insider, through interviews conducted by Anthony Del Col and testimony given to the United Nations Human Rights Council. Zumrat Dawut is a mother of three in the Xinjiang autonomous region in China, who was arrested and sent to a detention facility for simply being a Muslim. There she endured brutal living conditions, torture, interrogations, anti-Muslim propaganda, and sterilization. But that was just the beginning of Zumrat's troubles, who with her husband would soon hatch a plan to escape to America.
I Hear the Sunspot by Yuki Fumino (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.J34 I33 2017
ISBN: 9781944937300
Publication Date: 2017
Because of a hearing disability, Kohei is often misunderstood and has trouble integrating into life on campus, so he learns to keep his distance. That is until he meets the outspoken and cheerful Taichi. He tells Kohei that his hearing loss is not his fault. Taichi's words cut through Kohei's usual defense mechanisms and open his heart. More than friends, less than lovers, their relationship changes Kohei forever.
Infidel by Aaron Campbell (Artist); Jose Villarrubia (Artist); Pornsak Pichetshote
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6728.I46 P53 2018
ISBN: 9781534308367
Publication Date: 2018
Presenting an illustrated horror tale for the twenty-first century and a modern update to the class haunted house story, Infidel follows a young American Muslim woman and her multi-racial neighbors who move into a building haunted by entities fueled by xenophobia.
Invisible Wounds: Graphic Journalism by Jess Ruliffson
Call Number: Graphic Novels U52 .R85 2022
ISBN: 9781683961901
Publication Date: 2022
Shares the stories of veterans from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, with diverse gender identities and sexual orientations, who struggle to reconcile their wartime experiences with their postwar lives, revealing how America's endless entanglement in wars has affected the psyches of the people who wage them.
Iranian Love Stories by Jane Deuxard (Text by); Deloupy (Illustrator); Ivanka Hahnenberger (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor DS318.82 .D48 2021
ISBN: 9781637790045
Publication Date: 2022
Gila, 26, was at a party when the police showed up. The men were able to get away with bribes, but the women were taken to the station, and anyone who'd been drinking was forced to submit to a virginity test. She never went to another party after that. Zeinab is 20 and she loves being a woman in Iran. She says that she feels like a queen! And despite all the risks, she confesses that she makes love with her boyfriend because the danger excites her. Vahid is 26. He was a leader with the Green Movement. Then he watched his friend Neda die right in front of him. Now he keeps his head down, trying to finish his studies. In a series of vignettes based on clandestine interviews, this award-winning graphic novel explores the politics and love lives of ten young Iranian men and women from diverse backgrounds. The result is an honest portrait of Iranian youth today and a rare glimpse into a society where the sexes are strictly segregated; and Western journalists aren't welcome. Through testimonies from across the country, we learn about traditional marriages, the pressures of living under the regime, and how young people escape the police and defy tradition to live their love stories.
I Was Their American Dream : A Graphic Memoir by Malaka Gharib
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.G53 Z46 2019
Publication Date: 2019
I Was Their American Dream is at once a coming-of-age story and a reminder of the thousands of immigrants who come to America in search for a better life for themselves and their children. The daughter of parents with unfulfilled dreams themselves, Malaka navigated her childhood chasing her parents' ideals, learning to code-switch between her family's Filipino and Egyptian customs, adapting to white culture to fit in, crushing on skater boys, and trying to understand the tension between holding onto cultural values and trying to be an all-American kid. Malaka Gharib's triumphant graphic memoir brings to life her teenage antics and illuminates earnest questions about identity and culture, while providing thoughtful insight into the lives of modern immigrants and the generation of millennial children they raised. Malaka's story is a heartfelt tribute to the American immigrants who have invested their future in the promise of the American dream.
Kimiko Does Cancer by Kimiko Tobimatsu (Text by); Keet Geniza (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels RC280.B8 T63 2020
ISBN: 9781551528199
Publication Date: 2020
A moving and honest graphic memoir about the unexpected cancer journey of a young, queer, mixed-race woman. At the age of twenty-five, Kimiko Tobimatsu was a young, queer, mixed-race woman with no history of health problems whose world was turned upside down when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. In an instant, she became immersed in a new and complicated life of endless appointments, evaluations, and treatments, and difficult conversations with her partner and parents. Kimiko knew that this wasn't what being twenty-five was supposed to be like ... but then, she didn't have a choice. With tender illustrations by Keet Geniza, Kimiko Does Cancer is a graphic memoir that upends the traditional cancer narrative from a young woman's perspective, confronting issues such as dating while in menopause, navigating work and treatment, and talking to well-meaning friends, health care professionals, and other cancer survivors with viewpoints different from her own. Not one for pink ribbons or runs for the cure, Kimiko seeks connection within the cancer community while also critiquing the mainstream cancer experience. Honest and poignant, Kimiko Does Cancer is about finding one's own way out of a health crisis.
The King of Bangkok by Claudio Sopranzetti, Sara Fabbri, Chiara NatalucciClaudio Sopranzetti, Sara Fabbri, Chiara Natalucci
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor ; PN6767.S677 R4313 2021
ISBN: 1487508867
Publication Date: 2021
Based on a decade of interviews and archival research, the English translation of this best-selling graphic novel tells the story of Nok, an old blind man who sells lottery tickets in Bangkok, as he decides to leave the urban capital and return to his native village. The King of Bangkok follows Nok as he walks the streets of the city for the last time, trying to get rid of his last five lottery tickets. With each ticket he sells, he encounters something that brings him back to a period of his life, from his arrival in Bangkok all the way to the Red Shirt protests of 2010. Through an alternation of reflections on contemporary Bangkok and flashbacks to his past, we reconstruct Nok's story, the love story with his wife Gai, and the ups and downs of their migrant lives, as well as those of an entire country around them. This is a story of migration to the city and distant families in the countryside; economic development eroding the land, and of political protest choked in blood. Ultimately, it is a story about contemporary Thailand and how the waves of history lift, engulf, or crash two ordinary people. A perfect entry into the history of contemporary Thailand, this book is essential reading for both students and travelers.
Kusama : the graphic novel by Elisa Macellari
Call Number: Graphic Novels N6537.K878 M33 2020
ISBN: 9781786277169
Publication Date: 2020
From rural Japan to international icon - Yayoi Kusama has spent her remarkable life immersed in her art. Follow her incredible journey in this vivid graphic biography which details her bold departure from Japan as a young artist, her embrace of the buzzing New York art scene in the 1960s, and her eventual return home and rise to twenty-first-century super-fame.

Comics at Marist with Asian/Pacific Islander/Asian American Representation

The Less Than Epic Adventures of TJ and Amal by E. K. Weaver
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.W43 L47 2017
ISBN: 9780983875550
Publication Date: 2015
In the span of a single tumultuous evening, Amal calls off his arranged marriage, comes out to his conservative parents, gets disowned, goes on a bender-- and wakes up next morning to find a lanky, dreadlocked vagrant named TJ in his kitchen. TJ claims that the two have made a drunken pact to travel from Berkeley, California to Providence, Rhode Island. As it happens, Amal promised his sister he'd be in Providence for her graduation the following week. As for TJ-- well, he's got his own reasons. The agreement is simple: Amal does the driving, TJ pays the way-- but a 3500 mile journey leaves plenty of time for things to get complicated.
Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang; LeUyen Pham (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.Y36 L86 2024
ISBN: 9781626728103
Publication Date: 2024
Graphic novel superstars Gene Luen Yang and LeUyen Pham join forces in this heartwarming rom-com about fate, family, and falling in love. Val is ready to give up on love. It's led to nothing but secrets and heartbreak, and she's pretty sure she's cursed--no one in her family, for generations, has ever had any luck with love. But then a chance encounter with a pair of cute lion dancers sparks something in Val. Is it real love? Could this be her chance to break the family curse? Or is she destined to live with a broken heart forever?
Measuring Up by Lily LaMotte; Ann Xu (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.L36 M43 2020
ISBN: 9780062973870
Publication Date: 2020
Having just moved to Seattle from Taiwan, twelve-year-old Cici enters a cooking competition to win the chance to see her grandmother again, but she only knows how to cook Taiwanese food.
Messy Roots: a Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese American by Laura Gao (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor ; F395.C5 G365 2022
ISBN: 9780063067776
Publication Date: 2022
After spending her early years in Wuhan, China, riding water buffalos and devouring stinky tofu, Laura immigrates to Texas, where their hometown is as foreign as Mars--at least until 2020, when COVID-19 makes Wuhan a household name. In Messy Roots, Laura illustrates their coming-of-age as the kid who simply wants to make the basketball team, escape Chinese school, and figure out why girls make their heart flutter. Insightful, original, and hilarious, toggling seamlessly between past and present, China and America, Gao's debut is a tour de force of graphic storytelling.
The Minamata Story by Sean Michael Wilson; Akiko Shimojima (Illustrator); Brian Small (Introduction by)
Call Number: Graphic Novels RA1231.M5 W55 2021
ISBN: 9781611720563
Publication Date: 2021
A powerful graphic novel /manga that tells the story of "Minamata disease," a debilitating and sometimes fatal condition caused by the Chisso chemical factory's careless release of methylmercury into the waters of the coastal community of Minamata in southern Japan. First identified in 1956, it became a hot topic in Japan in the 1970s and 80s, growing into an iconic struggle between people versus corporations and government agencies. This struggle is relevant today, not simply because many people are still living with the disease but also because, in this time of growing concern over the safety of our environment--viz. Flint, Michigan--Minamata gives us as a very moving example of such human-caused environmental disasters and what we can do about them.
New Super-Man. Vol. 3, Equillibrium by Gene Luen Yang
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6728.N329 Y36 2017 v.3
ISBN: 9781401280444
Publication Date: 2018
Shanghai falls--and Emperor Super-Man rules the ashes! With an army of super-villains on the streets, the Justice League of China leads the movement to take the city back. It's up to I-Ching and the New Flash of China to snap Kenan out of it and save Shanghai. As Kenan fights to save his city and its people, a final casualty shakes the young hero to his solid-steel core. Collects issues #13-18.
New Superman. Vol. 1, Made in China by Gene Luen Yang
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6728.N329 Y36 2017 v.1
ISBN: 9781401270933
Publication Date: 2017
An impulsive act of heroism thrusts an arrogant young man into the limelight of Shanghai as China begins to form its own Justice League of powerful heroes. As the government creates their own Superman, will they live to regret the person they've chosen? Rising from the ashes of SUPERMAN: THE FINAL DAYS OF SUPERMAN and the death of the Man of Steel, will this New Super-Man step up to the challenge, or be crushed under the weight of his hubris and inexperience? Award-winning writer Gene Luen Yang (American Born Chinese, SUPERMAN) and on-the-rise art star Viktor Bogdanovic (BATMAN: ARKHAM KNIGHT) introduce readers to Kong Kenan, an all-new superhero who could change the world ... or be the end of it. Collects issues #1-6.
New Superman. Vol. 2, Coming to America by Gene Luen Yang
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6728.N329 Y36 2017 v.2
ISBN: 9781401273903
Publication Date: 2017
To uncover the truth behind his mother's murder, the New Super-Man must reawaken his full power under the tutelage of the mysterious I-Ching! But as training begins, Kong Kenan's ego isn't the only thing taking a beating! Plus, a shocking and deadly betrayal lurks in the shadows of the school that trained the New Bat-Man of China! Collects issues #7-12.
Okinawa by Susumu Higa; Jocelyne Allen (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels DS894.99.O375 H54 2023
ISBN: 9781683961185
Publication Date: 2023
A peaceful, independent kingdom until its annexation by the Japanese Empire in the 19th century, Okinawa was the site of the most destructive land battle of the Pacific War. Today, the archipelago is Japan's poorest prefecture and unwilling host to 75% of all US military bases in Japan. Okinawa brings together two collections of intertwined stories by the island's pre-eminent mangaka, Susumu Higa, which reflect on this difficult history and pull together traditional Okinawan spirituality, the modern-day realities of the continuing US military occupation, and the senselessness of the War. The first collection, Sword of Sand, is a ground level, unflinching look at the horrors of the Battle of Okinawa. Higa then turns an observant eye to the present-day in Mabui (Okinawan for "spirit"), where he explores how the American occupation has irreversibly changed the island prefecture, through the lens of the archipelago's indigenous spirituality and the central character of the yuta priestess.
Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths by Shigeru Mizuki; Jocelyne Allen (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.J34 O59 2022
ISBN: 9781770466302
Publication Date: 2022
The book that brought pre-eminent Manga-ka Shigeru Mizuki to the English-speaking world. Kokopo, 1943: A platoon of soldiers is ordered into battle. The objective is death. The alternative is certain execution as a consequence of survival. Inspired by Eisner Award-winning author Shigeru Mizuki's own mandatory tour of duty as an active combatant in the Imperial Japanese Army, Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths portrays a flailing infantry unit on its last legs near the end of the Second World War. This deeply personal and landmark anti-war work could only have been made by a pacifist. The desperation and moral depravity on display is devastating. Mizuki's fanciful characters must make do against a photo-realistic backdrop teeming with tropical life that remains inhospitable. Indeed, commanding officers prove even more ferocious than the wild unknown of Papua New Guinea. And yet the human instinct endures, seeing through the absurdity of such a rigid and outdated command structure with gallows humor.
Papaya Salad by Elisa Macellari
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6767.M33 P37 2020
ISBN: 9781506719139
Publication Date: 2020
The debut graphic novel from Thai-Italian illustrator Elisa Macellari, Papaya Salad tells the story of her great-uncle Sompong who found himself in Europe on military scholarship on the eve of World War I. A gentle and resolute man in love with books and languages, in search of his place in the world, Sompong chronicles his life during the war and falling for his wife, finding humor and joy even as the world changes irrevocably around him.
Persepolis. 2, The story of a return by Marjane Satrapi
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6747.S245 P4713 2004
ISBN: 9780375422881
Publication Date: 2004
In 1984, Marjane flees fundamentalism and the war with Iraq to begin a new life in Vienna. Once there, she faces the trials of adolescence far from her friends and family, and while she soon carves out a place for herself among a group of fellow outsiders, she continues to struggle for a sense of belonging. Finding that she misses her home more than she can stand, Marjane returns to Iran after graduation. Her difficult homecoming forces her to confront the changes both she and her country have undergone in her absence and her shame at what she perceives as her failure in Austria. Marjane allows her past to weigh heavily on her until she finds some like-minded friends, falls in love, and begins studying art at a university. However, the repression and state-sanctioned chauvinism eventually lead her to question whether she can have a future in Iran. As funny and poignant as its predecessor, Persepolis 2 is another clear-eyed and searing condemnation of the human cost of fundamentalism. In its depiction of the struggles of growing up--here compounded by Marjane's status as an outsider both abroad and at home--it is raw, honest, and incredibly illuminating.
Ruth Asawa: An Artist Takes Shape by Sam Nakahira
Call Number: Graphic Novels NB237.A82 N35 2024
ISBN: 9781947440098
Publication Date: 2024
This graphic biography chronicles the genesis of Ruth Asawa as an artist--from the horror of Pearl Harbor to her transformative education at Black Mountain College to building her life in San Francisco, where she would further develop and refine her groundbreaking wire sculptures.
Saints by Gene Luen Yang (Illustrator); Lark Pien (Inked or colored by)
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor PN6727.Y36 S25 2013
ISBN: 9781596436893
Publication Date: 2013
China, 1898. An unwanted and unwelcome fourth daughter, Four-Girl isn't even given a proper name by her family when she's born. She finally finds friendship-- and a name, Vibiana -- in the most unlikely of places: Christianity. But China is a dangerous place for Christians. The Boxer Rebellion is in full swing, and bands of young men roam the countryside, murdering Westerners and Chinese Christians alike. Torn between her nation and her Christian friends, Vibiana will have to decide where her true loyalties lie-- and whether she is willing to die for her faith.
Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology by Jeff Yang; Parry Shen; Keith Chow; Jerry Ma
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6726 .S87 2009
ISBN: 9781595583987
Publication Date: 2009
Appealing to both comics fans and Asian Americans seeking to claim their place in American culture, Secret Identities makes brilliant use of the conventions of the superhero comic book to expose the real face of the Asian American experience. This groundbreaking graphic anthology brings together leading Asian American creators in the comics industry including Gene Yang (National Book Award finalist for American Born Chinese), Bernard Chang (Wonder Woman), Greg Pak (The Hulk), and Christine Norrie (Black Canary Wedding Special) to craft original graphical short stories set in a compelling shadow history of our country: from the building of the railroads to the Japanese American internment, the Vietnam airlift, the murder of Vincent Chin, and the incarceration of Dr. Wen Ho Lee. Entertaining and enlightening, Secret Identities offers whiz-bang action, searing satire, and thoughtful commentary from a community too often overlooked by the cultural mainstream, while showcasing a vivid cross-section of the talents whose imagination and creativity is driving the contemporary comics renaissance.
Stargazing by Jen Wang (Author, Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.W36 S83 2019
ISBN: 9781250183873
Publication Date: 2019
Moon is everything Christine isn't. She's confident, impulsive, artistic ... and though they both grew up in the same Chinese-American suburb, Moon is somehow unlike anyone Christine has ever known. When Moon's family moves in next door to Christine's, Moon goes from unlikely friend to best friend--maybe even the perfect friend. The girls share their favorite music videos, paint their toenails when Christine's strict parents aren't around, and make plans to enter the school talent show together. Moon even tells Christine her deepest secret: that she sometimes has visions of celestial beings who speak to her from the stars. Who reassure her that earth isn't where she really belongs. But when they're least expecting it, catastrophe strikes. After relying on Moon for everything, can Christine find it in herself to be the friend Moon needs?
They Called Us Enemy by George Takei; Justin Eisinger; Steven Scott; Harmony Becker (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels D769.8.A6 T355 2019
ISBN: 9781603094504
Publication Date: 2019
A stunning graphic memoir recounting actor/author/activist George Takei's childhood imprisoned within American concentration camps during World War II. George Takei has captured hearts and minds worldwide with his captivating stage presence and outspoken commitment to equal rights. But long before he braved new frontiers in Star Trek, he woke up as a four-year-old boy to find his own birth country at war with his father's -- and their entire family forced from their home into an uncertain future. In 1942, at the order of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, every person of Japanese descent on the west coast was rounded up and shipped to one of ten 'relocation centers', hundreds or thousands of miles from home, where they would be held for years under armed guard. They Called Us Enemy is Takei's firsthand account of those years behind barbed wire, the joys and terrors of growing up under legalized racism, his mother's hard choices, his father's faith in democracy, and the way those experiences planted the seeds for his astonishing future. What is American? Who gets to decide? When the world is against you, what can one person do?
This Country: Searching for Home in (Very) Rural America by Navied Mahdavian
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.M24 Z46 2023
ISBN: 9781797223674
Publication Date: 2023
Before Navied Mahdavian moved with his wife and dog in November of 2016 from San Francisco to an off-the-grid cabin in rural Idaho, he had never fished, gardened, hiked, hunted, or lived in a snowy place. But there, he could own land, realize his dream of being an artist, and start a family--the Millennial dream. Over the next three years, Iranian American Mahdavian leaned into the wonders of the natural Idaho landscape and found himself adjusting to and enjoying a slower pace of living. But beyond the boundaries of his six acres, he was confronted with the realities of America's political shifts and forced to confront the question: Do I belong here?
Tiananmen 1989: our shattered hopes by Lun Zhang; Adrien Gombeaud; Ameziane (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels DS779.32 .Z43 2020
ISBN: 9781684056996
Publication Date: 2020
Follow the story of China's infamous June Fourth Incident--otherwise known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre--from the first-hand account of a young sociology teacher who witnessed it all.
Tono Monogatari by Shigeru Mizuki; Zack Davisson (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.J34 T66 2021
ISBN: 9781770464360
Publication Date: 2021
Shigeru Mizuki--Japan's grand master of Yokai comics--adapts one of the most important works of supernatural literature into comic book form. The cultural equivalent of Brothers Grimm's fairy tales, Tono Monogatari is a defining text of Japanese folklore and one of the country's most important works of literature. This graphic novel was created during the later stage of Mizuki's career, after he had retired from the daily grind of commercial comics to create personal, lasting works of art. Originally written in 1910 by folklorists and field researchers Kunio Yanagita and Kizen Sasaki, Tono Monogatari celebrates and archives legends from the Tono region. These stories were recorded as Japan's rapid modernization led to the disappearance of traditional culture. This adaptation mingles the original text with autobiography: Mizuki attempts to retrace Yanagita and Sasaki's path, but finds his old body is not quite up to the challenge of following in their footsteps. As Mizuki wanders through Tono he retells some of the most famous legends, manifesting a host of monsters, dragons, and foxes. In the finale, Mizuki meets Yanagita himself and the two sit down to discuss their works.
The Tryout by Christina Soontornvat; Joanna Cacao (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.S66 T79 2022
ISBN: 9781338741308
Publication Date: 2022
As one of the only Asian Americans in her school, Christina confronts both well-meaning ignorance and cruel racism, but in middle school fitting in is important, which is why she and her best friend Megan are both excited and nervous to try out for the popular cheerleading squad.
#Tumeke! by Michael Petherick
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor ; PN6790.N454 T86 2019
ISBN: 9780994141576
Publication Date: 2020
#Tumeke! brings you the lives, loves and larrikin spirit of an inner-city neighborhood in New Zealand, as community members prepare for the annual Waitangi Day festival. The story is told through texts, Instagram posts, emails, fliers, committee minutes, posters, diary entries, blog posts, chatrooms, school homework, raps and the reliably bonkers community noticeboard. Stuffed with big personalities, surprising friendships and a little intrigue, this multimedia story brims with creativity and comedy, and everyday heartaches, too.
Umma's Table by Yeon-sik Hong; Janet Hong (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.K63 H66 2020
ISBN: 9781770463868
Publication Date: 2020
Madang is an artist and new father who moves to a quiet home in the countryside with his wife and young baby, excited to build a new life full of hope and joy, complete with a garden and even snow. But soon reality sets in and his attention is divided between his growing happy family and his impoverished parents back in Seoul in a dingy basement apartment. With an ailing mother in and out of the hospital and an alcoholic father, Madang struggles to overcome the exhaustion and frustration of trying to be everything all at once: a good son, devoted father, and loving husband. To cope, he finds himself reminiscing about their family meals together, particularly his mother's kimchi, a traditional dish that is prepared by the family and requires months of fermentation. Memories of his mother's glorious cooking--so good it would prompt a young Madang and his brother into song--soothe the family. With her impending death, Madang races to learn her recipes and bring together the three generations at the family table while it's still possible. This is a beautiful and thoughtful meditation on how the kitchen and communal cooking--in the past, present, and future--bind a family together amidst the inevitable.
Uncomfortably Happily by Yeon-sik Hong; Hellen Jo (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels NC1729.H66 A2 2017
ISBN: 9781770462601
Publication Date: 2017
When the gentler pace and stillness of the countryside replace the roar of the city, but your editor keeps calling. With gorgeously detailed yet minimal art, cartoonist Yeon-Sik Hong explores his move with his wife to a small house atop a rural mountain, replacing the high-rent hubbub of Seoul with the quiet murmur of the country. With their dog, cats, and chickens by their side, the simple life and isolation they so desperately craved proves to present new anxieties. Hong paints a beautiful portrait of the Korean countryside, changing seasons, and the universal relationships humans have with each other as well as nature, both of which are sometimes frustrating but always rewarding. Uncomfortably Happily is translated by American cartoonist Hellen Jo from the acclaimed Manhwa Today award-winning Korean edition.
The Waiting by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim; Janet Hong (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6790.K63 G46 2021
ISBN: 9781770464575
Publication Date: 2021
Keum Suk Gendry-Kim was an adult when her mother revealed a family secret: She had been separated from her sister during the Korean War. It's not an uncommon story--the peninsula was split across the 38th parallel, dividing one country into two. As many fled violence in the north, not everyone was able to make it south. Her mother's story inspired Gendry-Kim to begin interviewing her and other Koreans separated by the war; that research fueled a deeply resonant graphic novel. The Waiting is the fictional story of Gwija, told by her novelist daughter Jina. When Gwija was 17 years old, after hearing that the Japanese were seizing unmarried girls, her family married her in a hurry to a man she didn't know. Japan fell, Korea gained its independence, and the couple started a family. But peace didn't come. The young family of four fled south. On the road, while breastfeeding and changing her daughter, Gwija was separated from her husband and son. Then seventy years passed. Seventy years of waiting. Gwija is now an elderly woman and Jina can't stop thinking about the promise she made to help find her brother.
We Are Not Strangers by Josh Tuininga
Call Number: Graphic Novels PN6727.T85 W43 2023
ISBN: 9781419759949
Publication Date: 2023
We Are Not Strangers explores a unique situation of Japanese and Jewish Americans living side by side in a country at war. Marco Calvo always knew his grandfather, affectionately called Papoo, was a good man. After all, he was named for him. A first-generation Jewish immigrant, Papoo was hardworking, smart, and caring. When Papoo peacefully passes away, Marco expects the funeral to be simple. However, he is caught off guard by something unusual. Among his close family and friends are mourners he doesn't recognize--Japanese American families--and no one is quite sure who they are or why they are at the service. How did these strangers know his grandfather so well?
We Hereby Refuse : Japanese American Resistance to Wartime Incarceration by Frank Abe; Tamiko Nimura; Ross Ishikawa (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels D769.8.A6 A24 2021
ISBN: 9781634059763
Publication Date: 2021
Three voices. Three acts of defiance. One mass injustice. The story of camp as you've never seen it before. Japanese Americans complied when evicted from their homes in World War II -- but many refused to submit to imprisonment in American concentration camps without a fight. In this groundbreaking graphic novel, meet JIM AKUTSU, the inspiration for John Okada's No-No Boy, who refuses to be drafted from the camp at Minidoka when classified as a non-citizen, an enemy alien; HIROSHI KASHIWAGI, who resists government pressure to sign a loyalty oath at Tule Lake, but yields to family pressure to renounce his U.S. citizenship; and MITSUYE ENDO, a reluctant recruit to a lawsuit contesting her imprisonment, who refuses a chance to leave the camp at Topaz so that her case could reach the U.S. Supreme Court. Based upon painstaking research, We Hereby Refuse presents an original vision of America's past with disturbing links to the American present.
What Is Home, Mum? by Sabba Khan
Call Number: Graphic Novels - 2nd Floor ; DA676.9.S6 K43 2022
ISBN: 9781951491178
Publication Date: 2022
As a second-generation Pakistani immigrant living in East London, Sabba Khan paints a vivid snapshot of contemporary British Asian life and investigates the complex shifts experienced by different generations within immigrant communities, creating an uplifting and universal story that crosses borders and decades. Race, gender, and class are explored in a compelling personal narrative creating a strong feminist message of self-reflection and empowerment which is illuminated in stunning artwork.
Woman, Life, Freedom by Marjane Satrapi; Una Dimitrijevic (Translator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels HQ1735.2 .F46 2024
ISBN: 9781644214053
Publication Date: 2024
On September 13, 2022, a young Iranian student, Mahsa Amini, was arrested by the morality police in Tehran. Her only crime was that she wasn't properly wearing the headscarf required for women by the Islamic Republic. At the police station, she was beaten so badly she had to be taken to the hospital, where she fell into a deep coma. She died three days later. A wave of protests soon spread through the whole country, and crowds adopted the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom"-- words that have been chanted around the world during solidarity rallies. In order to tell the story of this major revolution happening in her homeland, Marjane Satrapi has gathered together an array of journalists, activists, academics, artists, and writers from around the world to create this powerful collection of full-color, graphic-novel-style essays and perspectives that bear witness. Woman, Life, Freedom demonstrates that this is not an unexpected movement, but a major uprising in a long history of women who have wanted to affirm their rights. It will continue.
X-Gender Vol. 1 by Asuka Miyazaki
Call Number: Graphic Novels HQ18.55 .M59 2022 v.1
ISBN: 9781638583998
Publication Date: 2022
Living life and finding love as an X-gender person in Japan. At 33 years old, Asuka Miyazaki realizes that they like women! Asuka, however, is neither a woman nor a man--instead, they're X-gender, (a non-binary identity). Follow Asuka through the pages of this autobiographical manga as they record the ins and outs of their journey to finding love with a woman.
Zodiac: A Graphic Memoir by Ai Weiwei; Elettra Stamboulis (As told to); Gianluca Costantini (Illustrator)
Call Number: Graphic Novels N7349.A5 A2 2024
ISBN: 9781984863003
Publication Date: 2024
As a child living in exile during the Cultural Revolution, Ai Weiwei often found himself with nothing to read but government-approved comic books. Although they were restricted by the confines of political propaganda, Ai Weiwei was struck by the artists' ability to express their thoughts on art and humanity through graphic storytelling. Now, decades later, Ai Weiwei and Italian comic artist Gianluca Costantini present Zodiac, Ai Weiwei's first graphic memoir. Inspired by the twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac and their associated human characteristics, Ai Weiwei masterfully interweaves ancient Chinese folklore with stories of his life, family, and career. The narrative shifts back and forth through the years--at once in the past, present, and future--mirroring memory and our relationship to time. As readers delve deeper into the beautifully illustrated pages of Zodiac, they will find not only a personal history of Ai Weiwei and an examination of the sociopolitical climate in which he makes his art, but a philosophical exploration of what it means to find oneself through art and freedom of expression.