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lela's review
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Firstly, this book is beautiful. The illustrations are gorgeous and Fert did a wonderful job creating atmospheres of suspense, grief, and joy with his artwork and also gave the girls such wonderful senses of individuality that I just loved.
Story-wise this book falls flat for maybe lacking a bit of nuance. While overall I enjoyed the story and think its a good historic story to tell there is some troubling messaging about Black men and what the 'right' way to fight for equality and freedom (and these problems feel particularly highlighted due to the fact that this story of Black American women is being told by a white French man). There are some things that I think were done well, including having the vignettes of the girls going on to teach after the school was closed which removed a lot of the white-savior-y tones for me
That being said I'm glad I picked this up, I just think it should be taken with a grain of salt
Story-wise this book falls flat for maybe lacking a bit of nuance. While overall I enjoyed the story and think its a good historic story to tell there is some troubling messaging about Black men and what the 'right' way to fight for equality and freedom (and these problems feel particularly highlighted due to the fact that this story of Black American women is being told by a white French man). There are some things that I think were done well,
That being said I'm glad I picked this up, I just think it should be taken with a grain of salt
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, and Sexism
Moderate: Sexual harassment
lectricefeministe's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism
kwiko's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Cette histoire, même si tirée de faits réels, était totalement nouvelle pour moi: c'est presque dommage, j'ai l'impression qu'un récit du genre devrait être connu de tous. Blanc Autour raconte l'histoire de la première école pour jeune femmes noires aux États-Unis dans le début des années 1800, fondée par une femme blanche, dans un village également (très) blanc.
Malgré un sujet qui est évidemment lourd par moment, l'histoire est emmenée de manière douce grâce à des illustrations et couleurs magnifiques, des personnages attachants et l'espoir qui nous gagne au long de la lecture. Le plus gros bémol, à mon avis, est la longeur de l'ouvrage: l'histoire aurait méritée beaucoup plus de pages et beaucoup plus de détails. Heureusement, la BD inclue une post-face très intéressante portant sur la vie des personnages vus au tout au long de l'histoire. C'est un très gros highlight qui vaut absolument le détour!
Malgré un sujet qui est évidemment lourd par moment, l'histoire est emmenée de manière douce grâce à des illustrations et couleurs magnifiques, des personnages attachants et l'espoir qui nous gagne au long de la lecture. Le plus gros bémol, à mon avis, est la longeur de l'ouvrage: l'histoire aurait méritée beaucoup plus de pages et beaucoup plus de détails. Heureusement, la BD inclue une post-face très intéressante portant sur la vie des personnages vus au tout au long de l'histoire. C'est un très gros highlight qui vaut absolument le détour!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Hate crime, and Racism
Moderate: Misogyny, Racial slurs, and Violence
vicky1318's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, and Violence
dustyloup's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.5
**Cette BD vaut une relecture**
Sometimes it takes an outsider to show you the horrors of your own country in a moving way. I'd only vaguely heard of the Nat Turner revolt. Is never heard of Miss Crandall and her school.
I think it's easy to forget that racism and violence against blacks was limited to the South, but here we see the upstanding citizens of Connecticut shunning, harassing, threatening and eventually committing horrible acts all in the name of what they truly believed was right.
And Sarah asked Miss Crandall the million dollar question. What's the difference between Nat Turner and these men or other (white men) in history who were considered heroes for similar actions?
I think the mark of a great historical graphics novel is the quality of the back matter. This one doesn't disappoint with a very informative text from the director of the Prudence Crandall museum. Didn't realize the influence of pauper laws in US (used in combination with black laws to keep the girls out of the school), and completely forgot how closely New York was tied to the South economically - apparently Gangs of New York treats the topic of the draft riots.
The style and color palette is very modern, but it almost looks like it's for children. I imagine it would be difficult to find the target audience in English especially with *gasp* images of a naked boy and a topless goddess.
Sometimes it takes an outsider to show you the horrors of your own country in a moving way. I'd only vaguely heard of the Nat Turner revolt. Is never heard of Miss Crandall and her school.
I think it's easy to forget that racism and violence against blacks was limited to the South, but here we see the upstanding citizens of Connecticut shunning, harassing, threatening and eventually committing horrible acts all in the name of what they truly believed was right.
And Sarah asked Miss Crandall the million dollar question. What's the difference between Nat Turner and these men or other (white men) in history who were considered heroes for similar actions?
I think the mark of a great historical graphics novel is the quality of the back matter. This one doesn't disappoint with a very informative text from the director of the Prudence Crandall museum. Didn't realize the influence of pauper laws in US (used in combination with black laws to keep the girls out of the school), and completely forgot how closely New York was tied to the South economically - apparently Gangs of New York treats the topic of the draft riots.
The style and color palette is very modern, but it almost looks like it's for children. I imagine it would be difficult to find the target audience in English especially with *gasp* images of a naked boy and a topless goddess.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism
avisreadsandreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Murder
escapinginpaper's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Racism
Moderate: Racial slurs and Violence
Minor: Sexual violence
mezzarella's review
adventurous
dark
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
White All Around by Wilfrid Lupano is a beautifully illustrated story about an underappreciated part of American History. Unfortunately, it is also lacking in its historical accuracy, cultural presentation, and general plotline. Although the graphic novel clearly demonstrates how racism still affected Black people in America in a Northern "Free" World, it's message is muddled by a magical subplot.
The strength of this story, outside its lovely artistic renderings, is certainly in the characters themselves. The Black girls who sought out a better education are seen as intelligent, capable, and independent in their own respective ways. When I first started reading, I was worried the story would focus too much on the white female educator and the school's legal proceedings. While legal fights and adversity faced by the teacher was discussed, the book was squarely focused on the Black students themselves. I really appreciated how the teacher's own prejudices were challenged. It was great to see a narrative that was respectful of the students' autonomy, voices, and current knowledge before becoming more educated. The Black girls' attempts to fit in with society and elevate their statuses through education was also challenged by other Black characters in the book. I appreciated how the book refused to shy away from the racism of white people and also discuss how Black people themselves were split on what was considered right and wrong.
Despite some nuance, much of this graphic novel is a miss both in its historical presentation and narrative choices. I found myself really invested in Feral's story and his self-educated view of the world around him. I thought it was interesting how people responded to Feral's recited quotes from Nat Turner, but was perplexed on why Turner's actions were never discussed. Nat Turner was referred to as a murderer and a zealot by both white and Black people alike. There was no mention of how his actions was not senseless murder but instead a slave rebellion meant to liberate enslaved peoples. There were some comments the Black female students made about tying Nat Turner's actions to the fact he was a man, just like the racist white people who prevented them from attaining an equitable education. This comment was not an accurate representation of the power dynamics involving the two men or the racial history which took place during this time period. I was also confused by Lupano's decision to deviate the ending of the book from the actual historical events, as keeping its historical accuracy would not have significantly changed the message or plot of the fictionalized story. I did appreciate, however, that the real history of the boarding school was included at the end of the graphic novel. The final aspect of the presentation that confused me was the addition of a witch subplot to the story. There was a white witch who meets the Black students at a part of the book, and encourages them to explore themselves in less conventional ways. Considering the emphasis that the story takes on both the importance of Christianity and the time period this story is set, the addition of the witch was confusing. While there are Black characters in the story that believed in the magical powers nature has, the subplot itself had very little purpose to the story itself and would have been better off excluded from the narrative or replaced with a more accurate portrayal of cultural magic use in Black communities.
This book has its merit as a book which is appealing to the eye while also spurring difficult historical conversations. It's loose interpretation of history isn't ideal and is likely due to the author's French heritage. Regardless, it is nice for little known aspects of America's history to be brought into international attention.
The strength of this story, outside its lovely artistic renderings, is certainly in the characters themselves. The Black girls who sought out a better education are seen as intelligent, capable, and independent in their own respective ways. When I first started reading, I was worried the story would focus too much on the white female educator and the school's legal proceedings. While legal fights and adversity faced by the teacher was discussed, the book was squarely focused on the Black students themselves. I really appreciated how the teacher's own prejudices were challenged. It was great to see a narrative that was respectful of the students' autonomy, voices, and current knowledge before becoming more educated. The Black girls' attempts to fit in with society and elevate their statuses through education was also challenged by other Black characters in the book. I appreciated how the book refused to shy away from the racism of white people and also discuss how Black people themselves were split on what was considered right and wrong.
Despite some nuance, much of this graphic novel is a miss both in its historical presentation and narrative choices. I found myself really invested in Feral's story and his self-educated view of the world around him. I thought it was interesting how people responded to Feral's recited quotes from Nat Turner, but was perplexed on why Turner's actions were never discussed. Nat Turner was referred to as a murderer and a zealot by both white and Black people alike. There was no mention of how his actions was not senseless murder but instead a slave rebellion meant to liberate enslaved peoples. There were some comments the Black female students made about tying Nat Turner's actions to the fact he was a man, just like the racist white people who prevented them from attaining an equitable education. This comment was not an accurate representation of the power dynamics involving the two men or the racial history which took place during this time period. I was also confused by Lupano's decision to deviate the ending of the book from the actual historical events, as keeping its historical accuracy would not have significantly changed the message or plot of the fictionalized story. I did appreciate, however, that the real history of the boarding school was included at the end of the graphic novel. The final aspect of the presentation that confused me was the addition of a witch subplot to the story. There was a white witch who meets the Black students at a part of the book, and encourages them to explore themselves in less conventional ways. Considering the emphasis that the story takes on both the importance of Christianity and the time period this story is set, the addition of the witch was confusing. While there are Black characters in the story that believed in the magical powers nature has, the subplot itself had very little purpose to the story itself and would have been better off excluded from the narrative or replaced with a more accurate portrayal of cultural magic use in Black communities.
This book has its merit as a book which is appealing to the eye while also spurring difficult historical conversations. It's loose interpretation of history isn't ideal and is likely due to the author's French heritage. Regardless, it is nice for little known aspects of America's history to be brought into international attention.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime and Racism
Moderate: Child death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Murder
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