By While civil rights activists such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks are familiar to us all, there are others who are arguably less famous. Among those is Senator John Lewis, whose story should not be forgotten.
Written by Lewis and Andrew Aydin, with lettering and illustration by Nate Powell, “March” is a trilogy of books which depicts the African-American civil rights movement (as witnessed by Lewis), in comics form.
In “March: Book One,” Lewis narrates his life to a woman and her two young sons as he prepares to attend the first inauguration of then President-elect Barack Obama. The portion of Lewis’ life depicted in the first installment stretches from his youth on a farm in Alabama to his involvement in sit-in protests while he attended college.
Though the lack of colors gives the book a dreamlike quality, the appearances and references to real figures and laws are there to remind the reader this happened in the nation we call home, in a time not so far away.
Throughout the book, Powell neglects to add specific details to the backgrounds of panels. At times this can be used to make an image more horrifying, as the reader’s imagination is left with enough of an image for them to fill in the disturbing details.
Other times it draws the attention to nearly unreadable pieces of dialogue. The letters are distinguishable enough to be read, but only by zooming in on them. It’s a great technique for visually depicting how overbearing external pressures can become for a character, and one that more artists should use.
The framing of the narrative, that of a story within a story, suggests that Lewis is sharing his memories with these youths and the readers because it relays a history which we must never forget and never stop learning from. Comic book artists should read it to learn from its excellent utilization of lettering and shading, but all should read it to remember this history. “Book One” is tragic, tender, haunting, inspiring, educational and worthy of a centimeter on your bookshelf.
“March: Book One” can be acquired through the University Library and most Long Beach Public Library locations.
Happy reading!
