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Nonfiction graphic novels

banned books week, comics, graphic novels, KT Lowe December 11, 2023 books mdilwort

Graphic novels can be thought of as illustrated long-form stories, and can cover a variety of subjects. From tales of postmodern antiheroes to renditions of popular fiction, graphic novels have been both celebrated and derided. The IU East Campus Library has developed a collection of graphic novels for both research and reading enjoyment, including a strong selection of nonfiction offerings. Below is a description of just a few of the library’s titles. Gender Queer, Maia Kobabe More than a coming out story, Kobabe’s book is an odyssey of gender fluidity. Kobabe, who uses e/er/eir pronouns, uses eir life as a focal point for understanding gender and sexuality from bodily, emotional and relational perspectives. The loosely drawn, invitingly illustrated book is … Continued

Banning and Challenging Books

banned books week August 21, 2023 books mdilwort

“Your position is that under the Constitution, the advertising for this book or the sale for the book itself could be prohibited?” – Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy “If the book contained the functional equivalent of express advocacy.” – Deputy Solicitor General Malcom Stewart, attorney for the FEC – Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 310 (2010) American libraries stand on the First Amendment, taking as a bedrock principle that citizens’ right to read whatever they want must not be abridged. The desire to censor or control what other people have access to is insidious; and can be found in people of every creed and ideology. To draw attention to this risk, for forty years the American Library … Continued

Join the Banned!

banned books week, KT Lowe July 10, 2023 books mdilwort

In 2022, a historic number of book challenges were made across the country, targeting school, community and university libraries. In Florida alone, where over 500 books have been banned or challenged since 2021, authors ranging from inaugural poet Amanda Gorman to contemporary novelist Kurt Vonnegut have been the subject of targeted removal from classrooms and libraries. Yet according to the Washington Post, most book challenges are made by only a handful of individuals, often bonding together via social media. That means a very small number of people have attempted to create an outsized impact on the reading material allowed to a significant portion of the country. Libraries maintain collections for the benefit of heir communities, and communities are comprised of … Continued

Censoring Books

banned books week September 26, 2022 books mdilwort

Libraries advocate for the freedom to access and read any book a reader might want. To bring attention to the insidious problem of censorship and encroachment on the First Amendment, libraries all over the country celebrate Banned Books Week. Launched by the American Library Association in 1982, the ALA tabulates reports of challenges to books held in library collections, as well as any times those challenges resulted in restricting access to a book or even, in some cases, of completely withdrawing it from a collection. The resulting list of the top ten most-challenged books is updated and publicized every year. Challenges against books typically occur in school or public libraries, and often target children’s books. Common titles that have suffered … Continued

Black Contemporary Science Fiction

african american history, KT Lowe, science fiction February 7, 2022 books mdilwort

In the wake of Octavia Butler’s groundbreaking work in the 1970s, including the Patternfinder series and Kindred, Black science fiction has taken on social justice, culture and history to create one of the freshest and most exciting art forms in contemporary literature. In this blog, we’ll explore some of the biggest names in the field, covering everything from magical realism to postapocalyptic fiction. Nnedi Okorafor Dr. Okorafor was born in Cincinnati to parents of Nigerian descent,and grew up in Illinois. Her writing career began with tragedy when an operation for scoliosis left her paralyzed from the waist down. While recovering, a friend loaned her a copy of the Isaac Asimov classic I, Robot, which Okorafor marked up with notations in … Continued