Wake

This book brings the format of a graphic novel to the subject of women's resistance during enslavement and the trans-Altantic slave trade—and the result is fresh and compelling. As a historian myself, I appreciated the interwtined narratives of Hall's own research quest as a historian following the documentary record—and her reconstruction of the extraordinary revolt of the women held captive in 1772 on the slave-ship Unity. Both the search for truth and the dramatic uprising are conveyed with great skill and emotional power. The account of the Unity revolt calls attention to what we know, how we know it,… show more.

I don’t often read graphic novels, but I found myself entranced by this one about a particular sort of women warrior. Wake recounts Dr. Hall’s search for the enslaved women who rebelled during the Middle Passage and in colonial America. Dr. Hall writes, “if you believe something doesn’t exist, you don’t go looking for it. Worse, if you stumble upon it, you still can’t see it.” By approaching old material with fresh eyes, Hall is able to uncover and reimagine these women’s stories, showing how the past haunts us whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. I was moved… show more.