James Sturm's America: God, Gold, and Golems

James Sturm is a comics artist and director of The Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, Vermont. He has created a number of other graphic novels, many with a historical bent, such as Satchel Page: Striking Out Jim Crow. and Market Day. In a more contemporary vein, he produced a series of columns and cartoons for Slate about his attempts to quit the internet. He is respected for his work, having won a Xeric and Eisner Award. This interview with Tom Spurgeon informs about his recent work and activities.

This volume is a compendium of the following works:

The Revival - Set in 1810, this tale is about a giant tent revival in Kentucky that is emblematic of the Second Great Awakening. It centers on a couple attending the revival and their attempts to reconcile their faith with the death of an infant.

Hundreds of Feet Below Daylight - Set in the isolated mining town of Solomon's Gulch, Idaho in 1886, this tale concerns the greed, paranoia, and desperation of a dwindling number of miners striving to strike it rich.

The Golem's Mighty Swing - The lengthiest and last story chronicles a Jewish barnstorming baseball team in the 1920s. It follows the Stars of David and their rickety bus on a tour of the Midwest. They feature a sole black player, a member of the "lost tribe" who gets dressed up as a golem to increase theatrics. Civil rights and the players' treatment features strongly.

Sturm's craftsmanship and solid story-telling are highlighted in reviews. Andrew Wheeler credited Sturm for creating sharp dialogue and well-defined characters. JohnSeven wrote that the book displays a "great talent for emotionally honest stories told through straightforward means." Kirkus Reviews agrees, "It doesn’t take many words or strokes for Sturm’s graphic artistry to leave a lasting impression."

A pdf preview is available here from the book's publisher Drawn & Quarterly.

Adventures in Cartooning Activity Book

This activity book is a sequel to Adventures in Cartooning, a rollicking adventure featuring a knight, an elf, a hungry horse, and a gum-chewing dragon. It builds on the drawing and composing lessons of the prior book, combining the adventures of these fun characters with blank pages where readers can add to the story. The story begins when the sun bursts into tears because it does not get to hear stories like the moon when children go to bed, putting into motion a sequence of bizarre events. The last chunk of pages are a series of blank panels where readers can draw their own stories and cheer the sun up.

This book's creators all have a connection to The Center for Cartoon Studies. James Sturm is the Director of the Center, Andrew Arnold is a current student, and Alexis Frederick-Frost is a graduate. Arnold and Frederick-Frost do not have many other credits yet but Sturm has created lots of comics and graphic novels, tending toward historical fiction but also dabbling in superheroes and even breakfast cereal mascots.

Critics have seen many positive features in this book for younger readers. The reviewer at Charlotte's Library wrote that the book is full of happiness and engagement for a certain 7 year old. Jonathan Liu, the Geek Daddy at Wired, relates a similar story where his daughter won't let him look at the book until she finishes her drawings.

First Second, the book's publisher, has an extended preview of the first book available here.

A great, big thank you to Gina for the review copy!

Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow

This piece of historical fiction begins in 1929 when Emmet Wilson decides to leave his young family at 18 years of age to make money as a professional baseball player. His career choice takes him away from home for a long period of time but he makes a larger amount of money in the Negro Leagues than he would otherwise make working at his farm. In his first game as a pro, he faces Satchel Paige, one of the legendary pitchers of the league. And perhaps the greatest pitcher of all time. Emmet's debut is very memorable, but injury cuts his career short.

The rest of the story involves Emmet living a different life with his family in the fictional town Tuckwilla, Alabama over a period of years. He farms, picks cotton, and follows the exploits of Satchel Paige in news stories. Paige, while not allowed to play in the Major Leagues, makes a lot of money barnstorming. Finally, Emmet and his son attend a baseball game where Paige's All Star team faces off with the local ball club, which is all white. The Tuckwilla All Stars have some ex-baseball players on their team as well but most of them do not respect the African-American players as equals. The climax of the book involves Paige's unique manner of confronting this racial discrimination.

James Sturm and Rich Tommaso created this book, a publication of The Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, Vermont. Sturm has created many works of historical fiction, mostly published through Drawn & Quarterly, and he is the founder and director of the Center. Tommaso is a prolific cartoonist in his own right, and he has a great variety of works available for preview at his official website.

This book was very well researched for historical accuracy. Although it is a fictionalized account, it draws upon many facts to create the story. These facts are highlighted at the end of the book, through a series of panel examinations. Additionally there are a few other sources listed, for those interested in further reading. The story, for all this research is simultaneously spare and affecting. Sturm and Tommaso get a lot of mileage from simple images and their pacing creates great drama during the game sequences. This would be a great resource for those interested in Jim Crow laws, civil rights in the US, the Negro Leagues, the Great Depression era, or just baseball in general.

Reviews of this book are pretty positive, such as this one from Alison Morris. Some, such as Elizabeth Bird, point out that this book should not replace a true biography of Satchel Paige. Andrew Wheeler also enjoyed the book, but worries it will be relegated to the oft-neglected biography shelf in school libraries. He would also like to have seen a true biography of Paige, a man who lived an extraordinary life.

The book's official webpage has a wealth of resources, including an interview with the authors, preview pages, teacher resources, and thumbnail sketches used to plan the book.