Title: Darkroom
Author: Lila Quintero Weaver
Genre: graphic novel, memoir, Hispanic author, non-fiction, Southern history, American history
Psst! I have a confession to make.... I just read a graphic novel for the first time last night.....I read Archie and Veronica comics as a kid but I never did become a huge graphic novel fan- mainly because of the scantily clad women on most of the covers, but the premise behind Darkroom was intriguing: a graphic novel/memoir about growing up Hispanic in a tiny, rural Alabama town during the tumultuous Civil Rights era. Call me a nerd, but that sounded pretty riveting. Instead of the traditional inked comic panels, Darkroom is full of original, detailed pencil drawings.
Lila Quintero Weaver originally created this as a senior project for her undergrad degree back in 2007. As a non-traditional college student myself, this is inspiring to see her schoolwork become a published work.
Ms. Quintero Weaver came to Augusta a few months ago as part of Augusta University's Latino Americans series but unfortunately, I couldn't attend her lecture due to work and school obligations, but you can watch part of her lecture here: https://vimeo.com/152378185 and you can read more about the Latino Americans series here: http://guides.augusta.edu/latino
