Outstanding Books for the College Bound: 2014 History & Cultures - March: book one by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell

Lewis, J., Aydin, A., & Powell, N. (2013). March. Marietta, GA: Top Shelf Productions.

 The List of Outstanding Books for the College Bound is a list by YALSA that offers opportunities to discover new ideas and provide various perspectives on a variety of topics. This list is curated every five years with the new list for 2019 to be released in December of 2019 or January of 2020. This list is separated into categories to pick from including: Arts & Humanities, History & Cultures, Literature & Language Arts, Science & Technology, and a Social Sciences list. These lists were designed around prospective academic disciplines when a student is entering college or in college. I chose the graphic novel March book one from the History and Cultures list as I felt that this was an area that both interests me and that I have a lack of knowledge in.  I have read many positive reviews of  the March  series since they began coming in out in 2013, but never seemed to have enough time to get my hands on each or read them- despite that they are quick reads. I looked at this as a great opportunity to read something that I already know is of great caliber and introduce me to knew parts of our history and culture that I did not know about before. 

 March is a nonfiction graphic novel that weaves together John Lewis' humble upbringing, his time as an activist during the civil rights movement, and a glimpse at his current life as a US congressman. The story begins with John Lewis getting up the morning of Barack Obama is going to be inaugurated as President on January 20th, 2009. While he is in his office, he runs into a woman and her two little boys who are big admirers. Then the woman's two little boys launch into a slew of questions about his love for chickens- as they are all over his office. This begins the flashbacks of John Lewis telling about his past and how he became who he is today. The story is perfectly told in the graphic novel format because it allows the reader to see and experience John Lewis' past not just through words but also actions. John Lewis, being a big name in the civil rights movement and further activism as a US congressman, tells the story of his life in a descriptive and yet succinct way that makes this book even more accessible to the young readers who might read this. This graphic novel is split into 3 parts, and as when the list came out Book one was the only one published at the time. Book one ends after the SNCC has seemingly won a battle to get Nashville's public eating counters integrated, ending part of his story, as he begins to walk out to the inauguration. 

 The choices that the authors of this book made are what make this graphic novel so spectacular. The use of black and white color scheme helps show how decisive the country was at the time, as everything is defined by the color of their skin. The integration of using the two little boys and their mom as a way of telling his story, so that it does not read as a text book or strict retelling of his life, but of answering all of the questions that we have of the legend that is John Lewis.  

 Other books you might enjoy after reading March: 

  • Maus graphic novel by Art Speigelman
  • Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi 
  • Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptation by Anne Frank, adapted by Ari Folman and illustrated by David Polonsky


    Source: 
   Jfinneke. (2016, February 24). 2014 Outstanding Books for the College Bound and Lifelong Learners. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/yalsa/2014-outstanding-books-college-bound-and-lifelong-learners

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