Happy Saturday!

This week we are heading out to Eastern Canada to meet a small press that has been around since 1996 and has evolved into a well-respected publisher of literary graphic novels – I am happy to introduce you to Conundrum Press!

Owned and founded in 1996 by Andy Brown, Condundrum Press is based in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. The press focuses exclusively on publishing graphic novels and they are spectacular! They range in subject matter from contemporary to the fantastical and weird and sometimes political or a commentary on society. You can find a little bit of everything in their backlist and they continue to release timely and gorgeous books.

They do a variety of genres of graphic novels and honestly have stories for every reading taste. I grabbed three to highlight for you.

Published in 2019, Dakwäkãda by Cole Pauls is a young adult graphic novel with vibrant eye-catching artwork. It is an accessible allegory about colonialism and the text is infused with the ancestral language of Southern Tutchone with translations throughout. Reading it is an immersive and educational experience.

Simon & Louise by Max de Radigues, published in 2017, is a lovely contemporary dual point-of-view young adult graphic novel that explores friendships and love and the chaos that happens when technology gets in the way. It is perfect for readers that like their fiction hard rooted in reality and the illustrations are simple yet captivating.

To Know You’re Alive by Dakota McFadzean, published in 2020, is an adult literary graphic novel that is a collection of stories that lean dark and sardonic. The art throughout is done in black, white, and red and explores interesting stylistic choices from story to story. This quote captures the essence of this book precisely:

“Lurking in the background of this comic is the fear that you can’t protect your children; the fear that you are going to be like your parents; or the fear that you won’t be able to give your child more than what you had. But perhaps more remarkable… is how well it blends autobiography and supernatural horror. It’s a standard reflective parenting comic, until it’s not. And in that moment when the boundary is crossed, that’s where McFadzean’s work shines.” – Alex Hoffman, Sequential State

On my wishlist from Conundrum Press is a backlist title called Duran Duran, Imelda Marcos, and Me by Lorina Mapa. It is a graphic memoir about growing up in the Philippines in the 1980s with Depeche Mode, Duran Duran, Imelda Marcos and the EDSA Revolution, and I can’t wait to read it.

So, if you are looking for a summer read in graphic novel format, I highly recommend that you check out Conundrum Press and their spectacular list.

Happy Reading!

– Stacey