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Yesterday, G. Willow Wilson won the Second Annual Dwayne McDuffie Awards for Diversity in Comics for her work with artist Adrian Alphona on Ms. Marvel.  The ceremony was held at Long Beach Comic Expo and began with a speech by Khary Payton (Teen Titans), host of the awards and long time collaborator with the late Dwayne McDuffie (Static Shock).  He recounted […]

Fans got the chance to read the brand new A-Force #1 last week but Marvel has already announced a brand new creative team for the series. Writer Kelly Thompson (Gem and the Holograms) is joining artist Ben Caldwell (Prez) to take over the series from writers G. Willow Wilson (Ms. Marvel), Marguerite Bennett (Angela: Queen […]

Is it truly all new and different? G. Willow Wilson and Jorge Molina are back on the book from before that whole Secret Wars thing, as are Singularity, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, Dazzler, Medusa and Nico Minoru. Somewhat new? According to the blurb, coming back from the Secret Wars Singularity has to get the team together but they don't remember who she is. Awkward. At any rate, the lady Avengers get to recreate the all-timer Straight Outta Compton album cover, and that's pretty cool.

Marvel is prepping to relaunch their entire line (which we are taking a look at in critical detail) including the acclaimed Ms. Marvel series. Ms. Marvel was promoted to Captain Marvel in 2012 effectively leaving the Ms. Marvel moniker open. Kamala Khan swooped in two years later after the events of Infinity triggered a terrigen […]

Writers: 

G. Willow Wilson

Marguerite Bennett

Artists:

Jorge Molina

Craig Yeung

Colorists:

Laura Martin

Matt Milla

Letterer: 

VC’s Cory Petit

Marvel’s Mightiest Women finally get their own explosive series! In a secluded corner of the Battleworld, an island nation is fiercely protected by a team of Avengers the likes of which has only ever been glimpsed before… Fighting to protect the small sliver of their world that’s left, the Amazing A-FORCE stands shoulder-to-shoulder, ready to take on the horde!

What’s left to be said about Marvel’s A-Force? After The New Yorker author Jill Lepore doused the characters inside with criticism, author G. Willow Wilson came back with a defense that really cemented a reason for the title’s existence. This is the Marvel Universe, and these are the ladies of the Marvel Universe coming together in the middle of Secret Wars. Bringing me back to the first question: what’s left to be said about Marvel’s A-Force? The answer is if the title is actually any good — to which I would respond: yes…yes it is.

Jorge Molina delivers some interiors that are more than worthy of the beautiful Jim Cheung cover gracing this issue. The linework and facial expressions from the various characters are rendered with absolute care. It’s easy to differentiate the various heroine’s lacing the tale as well, thanks in part to the excellent coloring of Laura Martin and Matt Milla. From a presentation perspective, the way that this book introduces itself is breathtaking. The first couple pages hide a double-page spread that dovetails into the nicely introduced recap section. The excellent facial perspectives really bring out another strength of the art in this title: the ambitious layouts allow for some truly dynamic action.

The ladies of the Marvel Universe unite to defend Arcadia — which is the name of the A-Force island contained within Secret Wars. Also, Marvel definitely delivers on that preview promised with Captain Marvel punching a shark — I’ll be forever grateful for that. This title gets some props for giving Dazzler a moment to shine, as well as many supporting cast members featured in this issue. Thanks to the art of Molina even the moments of downtime really do some poignant here (see the opening pages.)

Eventually the larger perspective of Secret Wars begins to shed some light on how the girls ended up in the singular location. The way the narrative is thrust into into the greater conflict seems appropriate — and actually makes the conflict more natural than it would have been if it wasn’t launching during the event. This is actually a pretty good Secret Wars tie-in as well. There’s a few characters in this narrative that are going to surprise readers. We don’t quite know everyone in the cast just from the cover here. Also, many of the relationships have been changed since we are thrust in the middle of Secret Wars. Reading the main title is essential for full reader comprehension to start to get a sense of how the world is actually different. This isn’t just the Battleworld of the Secret Wars from 1984, it’s a new Battleworld that’s much better fleshed out. In fact, new elements of Battleworld are introduced into this issue that should offer even more intrigue to the current status of the event as a whole.

It’s also hard not to appreciate how Wilson and Bennett turn the attention towards a few of the characters in the Marvel Universe that aren’t as well known. Just handing over the screen time to characters like Phoenix or Captain Marvel would have been fun, but the authors go a step further in introducing some old favorites. While there is indeed a lot to love about the issue, the best part of A-Force #1 is how it both retains a plot and functions as an excellent addition to the current Secret Wars crossover. Marvel is changing the direction of the current Universe, and it’s up to the ladies to protect it. Wilson, Bennett, and Molina are destined to help the women of Arcadia defend their region of Battleworld against harm in the pages of A-Force.

A pinup from artist George Petty, alluded to in Prof. Lepore’s piece

I kind of missed the tidal ebb and flow over Jill Lepore’s analysis of A-Force in the New Yorker while I was at TCAF. I saw it in my feed and figured it would ignite some debate but I was misled by the title on the piece

Looking at Female Superheroes with Ten-Year-Old Boys

as opposed to the internet title of the piece

Why Marvel’s Female Superheroes Look Like Porn Stars

which is a bit more clickbaity.

But what no one seems to have commented on is that MARVEL SENT THE NEW YORKER AN ADVANCE COPY OF A-FORCE! The issue doesn’t go on sale until May 20th, but here it is:

The morning after we saw “Age of Ultron”—a sleepover was involved—Captain Comics and Mr. What? and I read the first issue of “A-Force” at the kitchen table, unheroically, over waffles. I asked the captain to tell me who the women on the cover were: a swarm of female superheroes.

“She-Hulk, Phoenix, Scarlet Witch, Storm, Medusa, Rogue, Wasp, Electra,” he began. “Rescue, Miss—no, Miss Marvel, Black Widow,” he trailed off, vaguely. “I think that’s Dazzler…”

As you probably know, the co-author of the comic, G. Willow Wilson, gave a spirited rebuttal to Lepore’s musings over sueperheroine’s descent from pin-ups of the 30s:

So I was a bit surprised that someone who obviously values rigorous scholarship would analyze the first issue of a crossover event without any apparent knowledge of what a crossover event is, or what the heavily tongue-in-cheek “feminist paradise,” Arcadia, represents in the context of the Secret Wars and the wider Marvel Universe. (Does she know about the zombies? Somebody please tell her about the zombies.) Thus decontextualized, what Dr. Lepore is left with is a cover depicting a bunch of characters about whom she admits to knowing nothing, and one fifth of a story, which is perhaps why her analysis reads as so perplexingly shallow, even snarky.

As sympathetic as I am to Wilson, and supportive of the idea of an all-woman Avengers, there are a few people in the world—mostly history professors at Harvard, like Lepore, I suppose—who don’t know what a crossover event is. They may not even care. Lepore was responding to one set of tropes, while Wilson writes that the comic was created with knowledge of those same tropes:

We, the creators and editors (three women and a gay dude, by the way) are aware that the characters in A FORCE come from a bewildering mashup of genres and mythologies and time periods. That’s the whole point. A FORCE comes out of a very specific conversation about gender in comics that has been evolving rapidly in the past few years, driven as much by fandom as it is by creators and editors. Across the industry, we have been systematically un-fridging (I’ll let Dr. Lepore google that one) female characters who may have gotten short shrift in the past, looking at their backstories, and discovering, as a community, what has been left unsaid. And in A FORCE, we’ve put them all together–for the first time.

I was frankly, more interested in the story suggested by the visible title, examining just how tweener boys, the traditional audience for superheroes, actually respond to female characters, a reaction seemingly at the root of the dearth of Black Widow and Gamora merchandise, as well as the male audience that many observers to comics still presume. Lepore did quiz her kids a bit, but didn’t dig in:

“All the girls here have, like, gigantic cleavages,” Captain Comics said, giggling.

“Why do they have gigantic cleavages?” I asked. Did it seem inevitable to these little boys, I wondered, that women would be drawn this way?

“Because they’re girls, Mom,” Mr. What? said. “What else is going to happen?” And he laughed, because it was funny, and he knew I would find that funny—the idea that nothing else was possible—the way it’s funny when Jessica Rabbit says, “I’m not bad. I’m just drawn that way.” Alas, the Avengers are not funny, and neither are the She-Avengers.

I’d also like to draw attention to another rebuttal that Wilson linked to that hasn’t gotten as much attention, written by Leia Calderon, a member of the retail group the Valkyries:

Perhaps you were concerned with how much of female superheroes are drawn for the male gaze, which is a completely valid concern. Let’s talk about how to fix that. How do we reclaim She-Hulk from the fantasies of teenage boys, if that’s all a grown woman like yourself sees when she opens A-Force? I pictured She-Hulk as she is and turned an imaginary boob-dial in my head to reduce her cup-size… and my stomach churned. It felt like body-shaming a powerful character that I adore, and would adore no less if she had a different figure than the one she’s had for almost 25 years. I understand your superficial criticism, but not your implied solution.

Obviously, there are some deep cultural forces at play here, and one would hope that A-Force will be able to transcend them. I guess I’ll have to wait until May 20th like everyone except the Lepore household to find out.

Marvel’s A-Force #1 from G. Willow Wilson and Marguerite Bennett with art from Jorge Molina features a stable of the publishers mightiest female heroes — and Captain Marvel punching a shark. The comic takes place during Battleworld in the upcoming Secret Wars event, which see’s nearly every Marvel character converging (haha) on one singular planet. The warriors attempt to defend their section of Battleworld, and Marvel notes that they have to fight off a mysterious horde. Nestled in the preview art is a mysterious woman in the back of the roster (five points to anyone who can figure out who she is in the comments!) The title includes a large roster of characters including familiar faces like She-Hulk, Spider-Woman, Rogue, Dazzler, Phoenix, Pixie, Captain Marvel, Medusa and more. The new comic is set to debut at local comic shops on May 20, 2015 at a $3.99 price point. Cover artists include Jim Cheung, Jorge Molina, Stephanie Hans, Russell Dauterman, Adam Hughes, and more. Thanks to CBR for the preview. More importantly, Captain Marvel punches a shark in this comic…you’re welcome.

A-FORCE #1 (MAR150665)
Written by G. WILLOW WILSON & MARGUERITE BENNETT
Art by JORGE MOLINA
Inhumans 50^th Anniversary Variant by ADAM HUGES (MAR150666)
Variant Covers by RUSSELL DAUTERMAN (MAR150667) STEPHANIE HANS (MAR150668)
JORGE MOLINA (MAR150669) and SKOTTIE YOUNG (MAR150670)
Blank Variant Also Available (MAR150671)
FOC – 04/27/15, On-Sale – 05/20/15
As the Secret Wars begin, the Avengers as you know them are no more – and a new team will lead the way! In a secluded corner of Battleworld lies Arcadia, an island nation fiercely protected by a team of Avengers the likes of which has never been seen before!
So who are the Marvel powerhouses taking center stage? “She-Hulk, Dazzler, Medusa, Nico Minoru and other fan favorites, will take charge,” says series co-writer G. Willow Wilson. “We’ve purposefully assembled a team composed of different characters from disparate parts of the Marvel U, with very different power sets, identities and ideologies.”
And there came a day unlike any other, when Earth’s Mightiest Heroines found themselves united against a common threat. Fighting to protect the small sliver of their world that’s left, they stand tall, shoulder-to-shoulder, ready to take on the horde. Ushering in a new day with a rallying cry heard across Battleworld – A-FORCE ASSEMBLE!

Dynamite has had a lot of news this week in the busy Toy Fair/ComicsPRo period, including an exciting crossover event the return of two iconic heroes, and a new merchandise line. Here’s a digest version:

• Mark Waid is writing Justice, Inc.: The Avenger with artist Ronilson Freire. The series debuts in June and expands on the Justice, Inc., universe and vigilante industrialist Richard Henry Benson. variant covers include Alex Ross (Kingdom Come), Walter Simonson (The Mighty Thor), Francesco Francavilla (Afterlife with Archie), Marc Laming (All-New Invaders), and Barry Kitson (The Amazing Spider-Man).

In Justice, Inc.: The Avenger #1, Waid and Freire continue the adventures of Richard Henry Benson, a victim of a criminal attack that left his facial features forever deadened, gray in color and incapable of showing genuine emotion. And yet, the harsh stroke of fate gave him the ability to mold his face to match the appearance of anyone… a skill he could employ as the ultimate master of disguise. Driven to mete out retribution against those who would prey on the innocent, The Avenger finds himself on a collision course with a villain even more secretive, brutal, and unrelenting than himself: an Invisible Man.

Mark Waid’s participation in the Avenger launch fulfills a longtime writing goal; he says, “Moreso than The Shadow, moreso than Doc Savage, the Avenger has always, always been my favorite pulp hero, and I’ve been aching to write this story since I was eleven years old. What a blast! Having the opportunity to dive into the psyche of a crimefighter as unique as Benson has been a lifelong dream — I’ve been thinking about what his life and mind would be like ever since I read my first Avenger paperback back in the day. How does a man live his life when he has nothing to live for but justice? How does he navigate in a world of life and love and joy when his own features are frozen and stiff like putty, mirroring his cold, dead insides? There’s so much here to unpack.”

• Will Eisner’s The Spirit is coming back in a series written by Matt Wagner and covers by Alex Ross, Eric Powell, and Wagner. DEny Colt, a masked everyman crimefighter, was the center of an iconic series by Eisner and has been brought back most recently at DC.

“I discovered The Spirit via the black-and-white, magazine-sized reprints of the mid-70s. It was the first time that I truly perceived sequential narrative as a legitimate art form, of the immense creative power of a comic-artist in his prime,” says Wagner. “I can honestly say that seeing and experiencing The Spirit in my formative years ultimately led to my career as a comics author. It’s such an immense thrill and a professional honor to have the chance to contribute to Will Eisner’s legacy on the milestone 75th anniversary of his most influential and iconic character.”

• Joining the wave of female led titles that is changing the ace of the industry, in May Swords of Sorrow is a giant crossover event featuring Red Sonja, Vampirella, Dejah Thoris with an all-female writing team led by Gail Simone. The event kicks off with a Swords of Sorrow series by Simone, Swords of Sorrow: Vampirella / Jennifer Blood miniseries written by Nancy A. Collins (Vampirella, Swamp Thing); Swords of Sorrow: Chaos special by Mairghread Scott (Transformers: Windblade); and the Swords of Sorrow: Masquerade / Katospecial by G. Willow Wilson (Ms. Marvel) and Erica Schultz (M3). In later months, more projects by Leah Moore, Marguerite Bennett, Emma Beeby, and Mikki Kendal will debut. That’s a lot of female writers!

In keeping with the theme, variant cover artists include a main cover byJ. Scott Campbell (Danger Girl); variants by Jenny Frison, Emanuela Lupacchino; a subscription edition by Robert Hack available to fans placing preorders with their local retailers; and incentive editions by Joyce Chin, Tula Lotay, Nei Ruffino, Cedric Poulat.  Swords of Sorrow: Vampirella / Jennifer Blood #1 and the Swords of Sorrow: Masquerade / Kato special both feature covers by Billy Tan, while the Swords of Sorrow: Chaos special spotlights Joyce Chin.

Gail Simone, who has been planning the project since her involvement was announced in July, says, “Here’s the thing: I love pulp adventure, always have. But as male-dominated as comics have often been, the pulp adventure world seems to be even more so.  Most of the big name stars and creators are dudes, and that’s fine, it’s great. But it hit me… what if that wasn’t the case? What if adventure pulps had also been written with female readers in mind, and awesome female characters in the spotlight? That’s the scenario we are imagining, and it’s just been a blast. The key players are Red Sonja, Vampirella, and Dejah Thoris, but it’s such an epic-spanning, world-hopping event that we also have Kato, Jungle Girl, Lady Rawhide, Jennifer Blood, and so many more. It’s the crossover I dreamed of when I was a kid, and now we get to make it happen.”

Simone’s core Swords of Sorrow story serves as the starting point for a new universe of pulp adventure. Illustrated by Sergio Davila (Legenderry: A Steampunk Adventure), the series features the supernatural heroine Vampirella, Martian princess Dejah Thoris, crimson-tressed swordswoman Red Sonja, martial artist Kato (from filmmaker Kevin Smith’s reboot of The Green Hornet), primal warrior Jungle Girl, and many more. Drawn from a dozen worlds and eras to face off against a legendary evil that threatens their homelands, Dynamite’s fiercest females must overcome their differences to harness the power of mystical blades — the eponymous Swords of Sorrow — in final conflict.

Gail Simone also serves as the architect for all storylines tied into the event, providing direction to her personally selected team of writers. “We got the best writers around, gave them a fun combination of characters and just let them go wild,” says Simone. “It’s creators like G. Willow Wilson, Marguerite Bennett, Nancy A. Collins and more, with book titles like Vampirella vs. Jennifer Blood, Kato vs. Masquerade, and Red Sonja vs. Jungle Girl. More about these tag teams will be coming soon, but it’s just a ridiculous amount of fun to set these characters against each other, and I’m very proud of the astounding team of writers, who I hand-picked from among the very best of new female adventure writers. There’s never been a crossover event in comics like this, ever.”

• Finally, Dynamite has entered into a partnership with The Brewing Factory, the merchandise development company founded by former DC vp Georg Brewer. The line debuts with Women of Dynamite, a line of female figures including Vampirella designed by Jason Smith and based on the artwork of J. Scott Campbell), set for June release.

“I’ve been really fortunate to work on some great projects these last few years, but my first love will always be comics,” says Georg Brewer. “Working with Nick and Joe at Dynamite, and their talented comics creators, has been a blast! It’s certainly been a fantastic way for me to get back to where it all started, and along with sculptor Jason Smith, we are creating an amazing line of statues.”

”We are extremely fortunate to work with someone of Georg’s knowledge, skill, experience, and sterling reputation,” says Nick Barrucci, CEO and Publisher ofDynamite Entertainment. “His passion and expertise in the development and manufacturing of cool fan collectibles is second to none, and our being able to work with Georg is going to help bring fans additional great product lines featuring Dynamite’s extensive library of characters. The debut product line resulting from our creative partnership will be Women of Dynamite statues inspired by J. Scott Campbell artwork, and from there, we will continue to delve into our expansive library of intellectual properties.”

Whew!

The finalists for the inaugural Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity Award have just been announced (disclosure: I am honored to have been one of the judges) and they are:

Hex11 by Lisa K. Weber and Kelly Sue Milano (HexComics)

M.F.K. by Nilah Magruder

Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona (Marvel)

The Shadow Hero by Gene Luen Yang and Sonny Liew (First Second Books)

Shaft by writer David F. Walker and artist Bilquis Evely (Dynamite).

The winner will be announced on Saturday February 28 at 2 PM PT at the Long Beach Comic Expo. Reggie Hudlin will deliver the keynote address.

It was a tough choice in picking these but all the nominees are not only wonderful comics, but they push comics in the direction that they need to go; a direction that McDuffie was aware of the worked for both quietly and loudly before his very tragic death.

The LA times has a bit more on the awards from awards director Matt Wayne:

“Who gets to be the hero, and how readers get to see themselves reflected in the hero are complex matters that Dwayne thought about often. As editor in chief of Milestone Media’s original run of comics, he used terms like ‘multi-experiential’ to describe what we were doing,” said Matt Wayne, the director of the Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity. “Independent publishing by its nature is more inclusive, so it’s no surprise that a number of the nominees are indies or even self-published. We hope that the DMAD will help these comics find new readers. The major comics publishers need no help from us, but whoa, ‘Ms. Marvel’ deserves every plaudit the world can work up!”

“I am so proud that my husband’s personal mission to include a more diverse array of voices–both in content and creators–is able to continue now through this Award in his name, by encouraging others who share his vision of comics, characters, and the industry itself better mirroring society,” said Charlotte McDuffie, Dwayne’s widow in a statement.

“The Long Beach shows are committed to diversity,” said Martha Donato, Executive Director of Long Beach Comic Expo. “It’s our great pleasure to host the Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity Award ceremony and to celebrate the legacy of a wonderful man and writer who inspired so many people with his words, his action and his creations.”

Here’s the entire judging committee:

• Neo Edmund – Novelist, animation and comics writer;
• Joan Hilty – Nickelodeon Comics Editor; Creator of Bitter Girl;
• Joseph Illidge – Former Editor, Milestone and DC Comics; Columnist, Comic Book Resources; Writer, First Second Books;
• Heidi MacDonald – Editor in Chief, The Beat;
• Glen Murakami – Producer/Supervising Director, DC animated properties and Ben 10: Alien Force/Ultimate Alien;
• Eugene Son – Comics writer/Story Editor, Ultimate Spider-Man Animated;
• William J. Watkins – Writer; Former owner, Chicago’s first Black-owned comics store;
• Len Wein – Co-creator Swamp Thing, Wolverine, New X-Men; Former Editor-in-Chief- of Marvel Comics and Senior Editor, DC Comics.

And just because,here’s more info on the nominees and Dwayne:

ABOUT THE CREATORS OF HEX11:
Kelly Sue Milano was introduced to comics the way most five-year-old girls are: by getting taken to the Fullerton AMC Theaters to see Batman with her Dad in the summer of 1989. Though she wasn’t stoked at first, what followed was total and complete love. Not just with superheroes and comics – but with stories. She has been published in the Orange County Register, has written award-winning short stories, monologues, and comedy sketches, and has contributed to the development of several film projects for Periscope Entertainment. She also curates the blog for A.WAKE; a movement dedicated to celebrating female artists. Kelly Sue is a sucker for Nabakov and fancy coffee and currently lives in Los Angeles with her dog, Louie.

Lisa K. Weber makes art for comics, kid’s books, and cartoons. She also enjoys satire, white wine, and classic rock hits. She has created artwork for comic adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe’s Hop-Frog, Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla, and Saki’s Tobermory, all featured in Graphic Classics. Her illustrations have appeared in publications from Penguin Books, Houghton-Mifflin Harcourt, Scholastic Inc, and Capstone Press. She has also contributed character designs and storyboards for Nickelodeon, Curious Pictures, and PBS Kids. Lisa currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California.

ABOUT THE CREATORS OF M.F.K.:
Nilah Magruder is a storyboard and concept artist artist in Los Angeles. Born and raised in Maryland, from a young age she developed an eternal love for three things: nature, books, and animation. Naturally, all of her school notebooks were full of doodles of animals and cartoon characters.

Nilah received a B.A. in communication arts from Hood College and B.F.A. in computer animation from Ringling College of Art and Design. She has illustrated for comics, children’s books, film and commercial television. Interested in exploring diversity in storytelling, she launched the action-adventure webcomic M.F.K. She believes that everyone should have characters with whom they can relate in their chosen entertainment, be it comic book, novel, film, TV, or video game.

ABOUT THE WRITER & ARTIST OF MS. MARVEL:
G. Willow Wilson is a novelist and comic book writer based in Seattle. Her works include the novel Alif the Unseen, a New York Times Notable Book and winner of the 2013 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel. She is the creator, with artist Adrian Alphona, of the bestselling All-New Ms. Marvel series from Marvel Comics. Her series Air (DC/Vertigo) and Mystic: The Tenth Apprentice (Marvel) were both nominated for Eisner Awards. In what spare time she has, Willow enjoys playing MMOs, watching British television, cooking, and maintaining the proud tradition of the Oxford comma. She lives with her husband and their two children.

Adrian Alphona is the artist of MS. MARVEL. He illustrated an acclaimed run of RUNAWAYS written by Brian K Vaughan for Marvel Entertainment.

ABOUT THE CREATORS OF THE SHADOW HERO
Gene Luen Yang’s 2006 book American Born Chinese was the first graphic novel to be nominated for a National Book Award and the first to win the American Library Association’s Michael L. Printz Award. His 2013 two-volume graphic novel Boxers & Saints was also nominated for a National Book Award and won the L.A. Times Book Prize.  Gene currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and children.

Sonny Liew is a comic artist, painter and illustrator whose work includes titles for DC Vertigo, Marvel Comics and First Second Books. He has received Eisner nominations for his art on Wonderland (Disney), as well as for spearheading Liquid City (Image Comics), a multi-volume comics anthology featuring creators from Southeast  Asia. His Malinky Robot series was a Xeric grant recipient and winner of the Best Science Fiction Comic Album Award at the Utopiales SF Festival in Nantes (2009).

His latest work is The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, which will be published by Pantheon Books in 2016.

ABOUT THE WRITER & ARTIST OF SHAFT:
David F. Walker is an award-winning journalist, filmmaker, and author of the YA series The Adventures of Darius Logan. His publication BadAzz MoFo became internationally known as the indispensable resource guide to black films of the 1970s. His work in comics includes the series Shaft (Dynamite Entertainment), Doc Savage (Dynamite Entertainment), Number 13 (Dark Horse Comics), The Army of Dr. Moreau (IDW/Monkeybrain Comics), and The Supernals Experiment (Canon Comics).

Bilquis Evely is a 24-year-old Brazilian comic book artist. She started her professional life in 2010 as the penceiller of the Brazilian comic book, Luluzinha Teen e Sua Turma” Her recent work includes The Shadow and Doc Savage for Dynamite. She is currently working on Shaft, which is written by David F. Walker.

ABOUT DWAYNE MCDUFFIE:
Dwayne McDuffie is best known as the co-founder and creator of Milestone Media. He was a Story Editor on the KIDS WB’s Emmy Award-winning animated series STATIC SHOCK, which he co-created. He was also a Producer and Story Editor on Cartoon Network’s JUSTICE LEAGUE. He was Editor-In-Chief of Milestone Media’s award-winning line of comic books, managing an editorial operation which boasted the best on-time delivery record in the industry for nearly four years running and has also worked as an editor for Marvel Comics and Harvey Entertainment. As a writer, Dwayne created or co-created more than a dozen series, including DAMAGE CONTROL, DEATHLOK II, ICON, STATIC, XOMBI, THE ROAD TO HELL and HARDWARE. He wrote stories for dozens of other comics, including, SPIDER-MAN, BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT, THE TICK, CAPTAIN MARVEL, AVENGERS SPOTLIGHT, BACK TO THE FUTURE, HELLRAISER, ULTRAMAN, (The Artist Formerly Known As) PRINCE and X-O MANOWAR.

Dwayne won the 2003 HUMANITAS PRIZE for “Jimmy,” a STATIC SHOCK script about gun violence in schools. He was nominated for two EMMY AWARDS for the TV series STATIC SHOCK, a WRITERS GUILD AWARD for the TV series JUSTICE LEAGUE and three EISNER AWARDS for his work in comic books. His comic book work won eleven PARENTS’ CHOICE AWARDS, six “Best Editor” awards, and a GOLDEN APPLE AWARD for his “use of popular art to promote and enhance human dignity.”

Dwayne was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan and attended The Roeper School. Before entering comics, he studied in undergraduate and graduate programs at The University of Michigan, then attended film school at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He also co-hosted a radio comedy program, while moonlighting pseudonymously as a freelance writer for stand-up comedians and late-night television comedy programs. He wrote scripts for an animated feature, episodes of BEN 10: ALIEN FORCE, STATIC SHOCK!, JUSTICE LEAGUE, WHAT’S NEW, SCOOBY-DOO? and TEEN TITANS.

Religion, metaphor, rebellion. The Quran and the Internet. Hackers, effrit, and sheikhs. Douglas Hofstadter shout-outs. Holy moly. Otherworldly elements swirl into the modern-day Middle East in this sandstorm of magic and mortals. The environments are finely crafted, completely believable, and often beautiful. We see skyscrapers after a sandstorm, the contrast of chaiwallahs and Starbucks, and [...]

Rukhsana Khan’s award-winning novel Wanting Mor (Groundwood Books, 2009) was one of the books on Corinne’s YA Top 10 posted last week (and it would be on mine too!).  One of the themes that runs through the book is the main character Jameela’s faith, and Rukhsana evokes great depth of feeling and understanding about Jameela’s culture growing up in post-Taliban Afghanistan.  Her other YA novel Dahling, If You Luv Me, Would You Please, Please Smile (Stoddart Kids, 1999) focuses on a Muslim Canadian teen Zainab’s journey towards self-acceptance in the face of peer pressure.  Rukhsana has also written  several acclaimed picture books, including Big Red Lollipop (illustrated by Sophie Blackall; Viking Children’s Books, 2010) and The Roses in My Carpets (illustrated by Ronald Himler).

You can find out more about Rukhsana’s books on her website and keep up-to-date with her news on her Khanversations blog; and do also read our interview with her.

Top 10 YA/Crossover Books with a Religious Theme, by Rukhsana Khan

1.   The Autobiography of Malcolm X — This book absolutely moved me as a teen! It’s about a man who succumbs to a sort of personality cult (Nation of Islam)—but emerges as a truly noble man! I wanted to be like Malcolm X!

2.   Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson — A real classic! Absolutely adored this book! It’s full of quotations from the Bible and there’s a really mean and sanctimonious grandmother!

3.   A Single Light by Maia Wojcieschowska — Read this as a girl and found it haunting!

4.   Mansfield Park by Jane Austen — Fanny Price is no Elizabeth Bennet! I loved that Edward chooses Fanny for her faith and good moral character.

5.   Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare — A story about tolerance but also about differences in faith. I’d never heard of the Quaker religion before this!

6.   Does My Head Look Big in This? Randa Abdel Fattah — The first book I ever read that made you root for the girl to keep wearing her hijab.

7.   Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte — Read this book as a kid and it actually confirmed my belief in Islam—Mr. Rochester and Jane would have had no problem marrying if they were Muslim!

8.   The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain — Loved how Mark Twain explored the ways in which the status quo—slave ownership—was justified by the establishment. And I wrestled alongside Huck as he struggled to do the *right* thing!

9.   The Butterfly Mosque by G. Willow Wilson — A lyrical beautiful book about a woman who falls in love with Egypt and the Muslim faith.

10.  The Razor’s Edge by Somerset Maugham — I only recently read this book and realized how way ahead of its time it was! It’s about a guy who goes and finds himself, and particularly about him exploring his faith.

I know a lot of the books aren’t exactly kids’ books. I couldn’t help it. I do really like all these books! Although Randa Abdel Fattah’s book annoys me a little because it’s about a girl you’re rooting for, who has the courage to wear hijab, and yet she, as an author, no longer wears hijab; and there’s a spot in that book when they go to the cinema during Ramadan while they’re fasting and there’s no mention of prayer!!! *grrr*

Here are some literary events to jump-start your week. To get your event posted on our calendar, visit our Facebook Your Literary Event page. Please post your event at least one week prior to its date.

Writers G. Willow Wilson and Lev Grossman will be appearing at the powerHouse arena. See them on Tuesday, July 17th from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. (Brooklyn, NY)

The powerHouse Arena will be hosting “A Night with Brooklyn Indie Lit Mags.” Join in on Wednesday, July 19th from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. (Brooklyn, NY)

The “How I Learned…” reading series is sponsoring a storytelling event called “STORYTIMES.” Check it out on Thursday, July 19th at the Happy Ending Lounge starting 7 p.m. (New York, NY)

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