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Reviewed by:
  • Visualizing Jewish Narrative: Jewish Comics and Graphic Novels ed. Derek Parker Royal
  • Amila Becirbegovic
Derek Parker Royal, editor. Visualizing Jewish Narrative: Jewish Comics and Graphic Novels.
Bloomsbury Academic, 2016. 294 pp. $35.95 US (paperback). ISBN 978-1-350-05630-5.

In his unintentionally timely 2020 stand-up End Times Fun, Jewish comedian, actor, and artist Marc Maron reminds his Netflix audience that "it should be recognized that the story of Jesus and the Marvel Universe were created in Jewish writer rooms." Maron goes on to give a rather bleak outlook on Jewish creativity, stating that Jewish comics creators had to keep making stuff up in order for non-Jews to enjoy the narratives so that "they don't kill us!" Maron humorously highlights the hostile landscape that Jewish artists had to trek throughout history in order for their art to survive, thus inadvertently creating comics that non-Jewish populations and Jews alike enjoyed. It is no coincidence then that the Hulk, Captain America, and the X-Men, among many others, not only were created by early American comic pioneers who happened to also be Jewish but are some of the most memorable characters since the 1930s. The underlying theme of Visualizing Jewish Narrative: Jewish Comics and Graphic Novels similarly reminds us that Jewish comics "have become of interest to large segments of society that are by no means Jewish" (xv). In fact, what often makes these comics "Jewish" is that they comment on themes that are common to non-Jewish populations and that these artists often touch on "the need we all have to be different and yet fit in, to be individuals while simultaneously part of a community" (xv). As comics creator and theorist Scott McCloud notes throughout Understanding Comics, who the comic characters are is irrelevant, but in the process of experiencing and reading a comic, the characters come to represent and mean something to the contemporary reader. Thus, whether these characters are created in Jewish writer rooms matters less than what the Hulk, Captain America, and the X-Men represent to contemporary readers.

Visualizing Jewish Narrative brings together a number of unique and diverse voices, from comic artists and editorial directors to scholars of history, English, and media studies. The book begins by carefully pointing out that even though "Jews were not the primary driving force behind early comics," they were still involved in the development of the comic book as a consumable form (3). Thus, this volume seeks to investigate what exactly is Jewish about certain comics, [End Page 394] without falling into the trap of reading any one character and narrative plot with ethnic blinders on and "only seeing the 'Jewish' aspect of a comic and ignoring any other possible similarities and influences" (4). The edited volume is organized into four distinct sections. First is the section "Picturing Jewish Identity," which focuses on Jewish identity politics and the role of nostalgia. The second section is "Jewish Engagements with Comic Genres," which focuses on various myths and cultural tropes. The third section, "Jewish Comics, the Holocaust, and Trauma," largely focuses on narratives that deal with second-generation memory and trauma theory as it relates to the Second World War and the Holocaust. The last section, "Representation of Israel, Biblical Text, and Legend," discusses the role of contemporary politics, Israel, and divine representations and interpretations. What connects all four sections are themes surrounding Jewish identity, belonging, community and notions of Jewishness, nostalgia, and memory.

Visualizing Jewish Narrative accomplishes a rather seamless blend of varied themes, genres, and tropes and, most important, acknowledges that comics, or picture narratives, are not necessarily Jewish in origin. The authors highlight that even if a comic creator is Jewish, there is not necessarily something inherently Jewish within the comic. However, when the comics do address an aspect of Jewishness, they do so in a relatively universal vein with themes that allow others to relate and maintain invested readership. What is particularly refreshing about Visualizing Jewish Narrative is the two comic inserts, "Jews and Superheroes" and "How Shaloman Was Born," which are both quite compelling in addressing the overall themes of Jewishness and add a relevant touch to the overall...

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