Graphic Novels

A pocket-sized comic by Indigenous Voices winner Cole Pauls.

Llege zedle s_on nes_it'in (Tahltan for we see stars only at night ) is a surrealistic landscape of Tahltan shapes, culture and motifs. Originally created for the Nanaimo Art Gallery's group show "Gutters are Elastic" between July 15 to September 23, 2023, Pauls decided to expand the work into a full-length book.

Playing with the connection between land, regalia, performance and heritage, Pauls follows in the footsteps of Tiger Tateishi, Hironori Kikuchi and Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas with his dreamlike narrative.

Educator Information
This work was created in the tradition of "silent" (wordless) comics and uses symbols, shapes, and motifs for the narrative.

Additional Information
80 pages | 4.25" x 6.25" | 80 b&w illustrations  | Paperback 

Guest artists Riccardo Burchielli (DMZ), Patricio Delpeche, and Emily Schnall join Stephen Graham Jones—New York Times best-selling author of The Only Good Indians and My Heart Is a Chainsaw—for a mission to the Ice Age exploring America’s pre-Columbian past!

When Martin and Tawny’s children disappeared, the couple barreled into the desert to track them down at any cost. Instead, they ran afoul of another group of rovers who claimed to be saving the world by traveling through a cave portal to the year 1492 to prevent the creation of America—an idea that defied belief until the grieving parents were lured into the cave and vanished in time and space.

Now alone, Tawny must adapt to the wild marshlands of prehistoric Florida, circa 20,000 BC, and the breathtaking and bloodthirsty megafauna are the least of her problems when she’s caught in a war between a community of native Paleo-Indians and an occupying Solutrean force. Tawny’s odds of survival are in free fall, but she’s a mother on a mission…and she’s holding on to hope that the cave brought her here for a family reunion.

In the tradition of Saga, the next chapter of the critically acclaimed sci-fi epic is here in Earthdivers Vol. 2.

Series Information
This is the second book in the Earthdivers series.  

Additional Information
104 pages | 6.62" x 10.18" | Paperback

Join or die! New York Times best-selling author Stephen Graham Jones and artist Davide Gianfelice are back in action for the next chapter of their heart-pounding historical sci-fi slasher Earthdivers!

A team of time-traveling Indigenous survivors had one goal: save the world from an American apocalypse by sending one of their own on a suicide trip to kill Christopher Columbus and course-correct world history.

Mission accomplished? Maybe not. Blood is still soaking into the sands of San Salvador as Tad’s friends suffer the consequences of his actions—and their own slippery moral rationalizations—620 years in the future. Faced with a choice to watch the world crumble or double down on their cause, the path is clear for Seminole two-spirit Emily: it's personal now, and there’s no better time and place to take another stab at America than Philadelphia, 1776.

But where violence just failed them, she has a new plan: pass as a man, infiltrate the Founding Fathers, and use only wit and words to carve out a better future in the Declaration of Independence. No need to cut throats this time…right?

The next chapter of the critically acclaimed sci-fi epic is here in Earthdivers Vol. 3.

Series Information
This is the third book in the Earthdivers series, preceded by Earthdivers, Vol. 1: Kill Columbus and Earthdivers, Vol. 2: Ice Age.

Additional Information
208 pages | 6.69" x 10.25" | Paperback

Unless there is snow on the ground, never speak their name aloud.

The more they eat the hungrier they become, and they are starving.

They were meant to stay undisturbed, their dismembered limbs scattered, frozen under the permafrost, but as is always the way, the greed of industry has unburied them once more. Now, the most feared, the Wheetago, have returned, using their powers to call back the Na acho, cannibalistic giants once banished by Dene deities.

The revered hero known as the Child Finder who is fighting to cling to his humanity after a Wheetago attack, a mother and her young son, and a desperate band of convicts, form an uneasy alliance to survive the Wheetago horrors now awakened.

ROTH, from award-winning, bestselling Tlicho Dene author Richard Van Camp, and visionary illustrator Christopher Shy is the first graphic novel in the Wheetago War series.

Reviews
"A storyteller is what Richard Van Camp is—a storyteller par excellence. He tells us of family and traditions, of past and present spirits. Through Roth, he weaves his magic yet again, entwined with the richly atmospheric and terrestrial palette of Christopher Shy. With the Wheetago War series, kind-hearted and horrifically evil come together to hold you fully embraced, page after page."– Kent Williams artist & illustrator X-Men, Batman

"This spectacular, boundary-pushing book will change the way you look at graphic novels.Rooted in ancient and powerful narratives, this captivating saga will have you holding your breath until it releases you from its grip at the end, only to want more.”- Waubgeshig Rice, author Moon of the Turning Leaves

Educator & Series Information
Recommended for ages 15+.

This book is the first book in the Wheetago War series.

Additional Information
192 pages | 6.62" x 10.25" | Paperback

Based on an Inuit traditional story passed down orally for generations, The Cannibal tells the horrific tale of a family experiencing starvation when the animals they rely on for survival disappear. While the wife stays alive by eating plants she gathers daily, the husband does the unthinkable, resorting to murder and cannibalism. Horrified, and terrified for her life, the wife eventually finds herself alone in camp with her husband. She knows what will happen to her if she does not find a way to escape. Hatching a plan, the exhausted wife embarks on the journey with her murderous husband in pursuit. After safely arriving at a nearby camp, she shares the story of what has become of her camp, and her own children. Soon the husband arrives, and the camp must decide how to deal with the cannibal. Both horrific and poignant, this cautionary traditional story provides a window into the at times harsh realities of traditional life.

Reviews
"The Cannibal by Solomon Awa and Louise Flaherty is a stark and compelling novel centred on an Inuit family facing extreme survival challenges in the Arctic. When the family’s father, driven by desperation, begins to resort to cannibalism to stay alive, the story delves into harrowing themes of survival, morality, and the impact of isolation on human behaviour. This topic is suitable for an older audience, not younger students." - David D., Indigenous Educator & Administrator, Indigenous Books for Schools 

Educator Information
The publisher labels this work as an "Adult Graphic Novel."

Recommended in the Indigenous Books for Schools catalogue as a valuable resource for grades 10 to 12 for English Language Arts and Social Studies.

Themes: Animals, Death, Environment, Loss, Reconciliation

Caution: Contains cannibalism

Additional Information
44 pages | 7.00" x 10.50" | Paperback

Ela Tahoe, a runaway turned deputy sheriff, is forced to contend with a Confederate invasion of her New Mexican town three months after the conclusion of the Civil War. Ela will need to confront her heritage and past with the Apache in order to get their aid to combat this Confederate threat, leading her to look at the world from the Native American perspective once again. Conceived as a tightly paced, gut wrenching western thriller, Ela fights tooth and nail to save the lives of her townspeople and most importantly, her son.

The American Western Frontier is arguably one of the most widely misrepresented histories, rife with inaccuracies and stereotypes. Black Mi'kmaq and Anishinaabe author Tristan Jones powerfully and critically reimagines and reclaims a historical retelling of the Frontier with a focus on the historically missing Indigenous narrative. Illustrated by master sequential artist Alexander Bumbulut, The Forgotten Frontier should be on everyone's reading list.

Additional Information
140 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback

The New York Times–bestselling author of The Only Good Indians and My Heart Is a Chainsaw makes his comics debut with this time-hopping horror thriller about far-future Indigenous outcasts on a mission to kill Christopher Columbus.

The year is 2112, and it’s the apocalypse exactly as expected: rivers receding, oceans rising, civilization crumbling. Humanity has given up hope, except for a group of Indigenous outcasts who have discovered a time travel portal in a cave in the desert and figured out where everything took a turn for the worst: America.

Convinced that the only way to save the world is to rewrite its past, they send one of their own—a reluctant linguist named Tad—on a bloody, one-way mission to 1492 to kill Christopher Columbus before he reaches the so-called New World. But there are steep costs to disrupting the timeline, and taking down an icon isn’t an easy task for an academic with no tactical training and only a wavering moral compass to guide him. As the horror of the task ahead unfolds and Tad’s commitment is tested, his actions could trigger a devastating new fate for his friends and the future.

Join Stephen Graham Jones and artist Davide Gianfelice for Earthdivers, Vol. 1 (collecting Earthdivers issues #1-6), the beginning of an unforgettable ongoing sci-fi slasher spanning centuries of America’s Colonial past to explore the staggering forces of history and the individual choices we make to survive it.

Reviews
"Earthdivers is why I read comics–a timely concept told boldly; a strong debut by Stephen Graham Jones who proves a voice to watch with something to say; and career work by Davide Gianfelice, a veteran artist who was already light years ahead of his peers." –Pornsak Pichetshote, author of The Good Asian

“A time-twisting trip you don't want to miss! Myths, mayhem and history-altering murders ahoy!” –Cavan Scott, author of Dead Seas

“Earthdivers feels fresh, compelling, and bold…It’s a comic that stands head and shoulders apart from the rest of the pack on the shelves. Don’t wait for the trade – this is an urgent comic that begs to be read.” –Comic Watch

“Stephen Graham Jones enters the comics scene with a dense but fascinating and well-paced comic with a tasty dash of political commentary, as every great science fiction story should have. The visuals from Davide Gianfelice and Joana Lafuente are well-directed and stunningly detailed, making for a wholly immersive reading experience.” –Monkeys Fighting Robots

Series Information
This is the first book in the Earthdivers series.

Additional Information
176 pages | 6.69" x 10.19" | Paperback

With gorgeous imagery, visual artist Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas brings to life the tumultuous history of first contact between Europeans and Indigenous peoples and the early colonization by the Europeans of the northern West Coast.

Yahgulanaas uses a blend of traditional and modern art, eschewing the traditional boxes of comic books for the flowing shapes of North Pacific iconography. The panels are filled with colourful and expressive watercolour paintings. The panels of each page, if removed and assembled into one whole image, form a large image reminiscent of a woven robe.

The story follows several historical figures, including Johan Adrian Jacobsen (JAJ), who comes to the Haida village of Masset to collect specimens for a German museum, through a time span that includes first contact, the devastation of the smallpox epidemic, and the mass resettlement of disenfranchised peoples, both Indigenous and European.

Reviews
“This book is a necessary tale told by the perfect voice at the right time. It also uses graphic imagery in a way I've not seen before, and it feels ground-breaking.” — Douglas Coupland

Additional Information
132 pages | 8.00" x 10.00" | Hardcover

The outrageously funny and painfully relatable satire of an aspiring artist and millennial culture.

Walter Scott’s Wendy comics have become a critical sensation, with rave reviews in The New Yorker and The Guardian, and an appearance in the Best American Comics anthology. Learn Wendy’s origin story as Scott hilariously plumbs millennial culture, creative ennui, and the nepotism of the art world’s institutions.

Wendy’s an aspiring artist in a party city, and she’s in a rut. She spends her time snorting MDMA in gallery bathrooms and watching Nurse Jackie reruns on her laptop while hungover. So when she’s accepted into the prestigious Flojo Island residency, Wendy vows to buckle down and get working. But during the remote, woodsy residency, Wendy and her collaborator/bff Winona put on a performance piece that becomes the centre of an art world controversy, and so Wendy returns to Montreal, getting a job in a coffee shop to make ends meet.

With Wendy, Scott launches the Wendyverse, brimming with painfully relatable characters like the back-stabbing frenemy Tina, the name-dropping Paloma, the cool drummer Wendy obsesses over, Jeff, and of course, our treasured Wendy, the hot mess we can’t live without. In blunt, laugh out loud funny vignettes with perfect punchlines, Scott illuminates the opacity of artspeak and the ceaseless anxieties plaguing a largely privileged generation.

Reviews
“Wendy’s lust for life is inseparable from her knee-jerk self-destruction.”–The New Yorker

“Winningly messy.”—The Guardian

“The art school party girl who is perhaps the real voice of our generation (sorry Lena Dunham).”—Vice

Educator Information
Publisher recommends for ages 16+.  

Caution: mature content (swearing and strong language, sexual content, drug/alcohol use, etc.)

Additional Information
216 pages | 6.50" x 9.00" | black and white illustrations throughout | paperback 

"[In Wendy, Master of Art,] Scott manages a rare thing: the sharpness of his satire doesn’t preclude a realistic rendering of personhood, and the seeming flatness opens up, at every turn, to a depth of feeling…. His mastery of his characters’ faces and gestures is also wonderful, his line quick and sure and expressive." —The New Yorker

The existential dread of making (or not making) art takes center stage in this trenchant satire of MFA culture.

Wendy is an aspiring contemporary artist whose adventures have taken her to galleries, art openings, and parties in Los Angeles, Tokyo, and Toronto. In Wendy, Master of Art, Walter Scott’s sly wit and social commentary zero in on MFA culture as our hero hunkers down to complete a master of fine arts at the University of Hell in small-town Ontario.

Finally Wendy has space to refine her artistic practice, but in this calm, all of her unresolved insecurities and fears explode at full volume—usually while hungover. What is the post-Jungian object as symbol? Will she ever understand her course reading—or herself? What if she’s just not smart enough? As she develops as an artist and a person, Wendy also finds herself in a teaching position, mentoring a perpetually sobbing grade-grubbing undergrad.

Scott’s incisively funny take on art school pretensions isn’t the only focus. Wendy, Master of Art explores the politics of open relationships and polyamory, performative activism, the precariousness of a life in the arts, as well as the complexities of gender identity, sex work, drug use, and more. At its heart, this is a book about the give and take of community—about learning to navigate empathy and boundaries, and to respect herself. It is deeply funny and endlessly relatable as it shows Wendy growing from millennial art party girl to successful artist, friend, teacher—and Master of Art.

Reviews
"Wendy’s personal life remains chaotic, hilarious, and relatable…" —Quill & Quire

Educator Information
The publisher recommends for ages 16+, but this graphic novel contains very mature content. 

Caution: Mature content

This is the third and largest book in the Wendy series.

Additional Information
276 pages | 6.52" x 9.07" | Black-and-white illustrations | Paperback 

This critique of the art world will have you crying with laughter

In Wendy’s Revenge, Scott’s titular heroine returns with a fresh set of awkward misadventures and messy nights out. When the book opens, aspiring artist Wendy has decided to move to the west coast to clear her head.

She plans on getting some quality time with her collaborator and friend Winona, only to find Winona packing up to leave, having decided to move back in with her mom on the rez. All alone, Wendy endeavours to foster community in Vancouver’s bleak art scene. When her hope and optimism are all used up, she packs her bags for an artist residency in Japan. Wendy then gallery hops and parties around the globe until she stumbles upon the opportunity to unite with former foe Paloma. Together they enact revenge on VVURST, the German publication that once tore her performance art to shreds.

Young artists struggle with mental health issues, they get wasted and hook up with men with gross piercings, and they’re afflicted with an insatiable longing for a stable identity—stability they themselves undermine. Scott’s deceptively simple, inky character drawings evoke millennial culture with such Jungian accuracy that you can’t help but stare and giggle in equal measure. Praised by The New Yorker, Guardian, Globe and Mail, and with an appearance in the Best American Comics anthology, it’s clear why Walter Scott’s Wendy comics have taken critics by storm.

Reviews
“I am blown away by Walter Scott’s Wendy series.” —Zadie Smith

“Wendy, her pals and her milieu comprise a fictional world as fully and funnily inhabited as any in recent Canadian storytelling.”—Globe & Mail

“Funny, poignant, and scary. Scott makes you laugh and then rips your heart out.”—Literary Hub

Educator Information
The publisher recommends for ages 16+, but this graphic novel contains very mature content. 

Caution: Mature content

In this second comic, Winona, an Indigenous character, is introduced.

Additional Information
260 pages | 6.50" x 9.00" | Black-and-white illustrations with partial color section | Paperback 

“My million years of immortality have barely begun…”

Pursued by warring human/alien hybrids, the immortal Kyrill, also known as Salamander, is the key to a prison forged by the seven gods of creation. While one of the warring factions moves to protect him, the other seeks to use him to open the prison. Kyrill’s story unfolds in a war-ravaged dystopia where his people, Indigenous North Americans, are space pirates who control the solar system’s spaceways. The Krillian Key: Salamander Run is a fun, sassy and fast-paced graphic novel set in the post-apocalyptic future of Neo-New York circa 2242, with flashbacks to modern-day Canada.

Additional Information
200 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | black and white illustrations

“The ragged edges of the temperate rainforest reach far out onto an island in the western seas. It is a place where one chooses to go ahead or turn back…” 

In a prequel to the award-winning Red: A Haida Manga, acclaimed artist Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas blends Asian manhwa/manga with the Haida artistic and oral tradition in another stunning hand-painted volume. 

In a small near-future community perched between the ocean and the northern temperate rainforest, a series of disasters is taking a heavy toll. It is early fall and a fuel spill has contaminated the marine foods the village was preparing to harvest. As food supplies dwindle, a small group decides to make a late-season expedition to search for sea lions. Surprised by a ferocious storm, they abandon one man, Carpe, on an isolated rock at sea. After ten days they are finally able to return, but he has vanished. The story follows Carpe’s encounters with the Lord of the Rock, who demands retribution for Carpe’s role in the hunt, and Carpe’s fate in the half-life between human and animal, life and death.

Educator & Series Information
Haida manga is a contemporary style of Haida comics and print cartoons that explores the elements of both traditional North Pacific Indigenous arts and narrative, while also adapting contemporary techniques of artistic design from the western portion of the North Pacific, namely the Japanese manga from which its name derives.

Additional Information
120 pages | 10.00" x 10.00" | 100 colour illustrations

Referencing a classic Haida oral narrative, this stunning full-colour graphic novel documents the powerful story of Red, a leader so blinded by revenge that he leads his community to the brink of war and destruction.

Set in the islands off the northwest coast of B.C., it tells the tale of orphan Red and his sister, Jaada. When raiders attack their village, Red, still a boy, escapes dramatically. But Jaada is whisked away. The loss of Jaada breeds a seething anger, and Red sets out to find his sister and exact revenge on her captors.

Red blends traditional Haida imagery into a Japanese manga-styled story. Tragic and timeless, it is reminiscent of such classic stories as Oedipus Rex, Macbeth and King Lear.

This innovation in contemporary storytelling consists of 108 pages of hand-painted illustrations. When arranged in a specific order, the panels of the narrative create a Haida formline image four metres long. The sequence for this complex design is displayed on the inside jacket.

Educator & Series Information
Haida manga is a contemporary style of Haida comics and print cartoons that explores the elements of both traditional North Pacific Indigenous arts and narrative, while also adapting contemporary techniques of artistic design from the western portion of the North Pacific, namely the Japanese manga from which its name derives.

This book is available in French: Red: Un manga haïda 

Additional Information
120 pages | 8.00" x 8.75"