Indiginerds

Bringing together 19 Indigenous creators, Pete (The Woman in the Woods and Other North American Stories), who also contributes, assembles 11 comics that celebrate queer, Native youth and nerd culture in this illuminating graphic novel collection. In “Amplification Adaption” by Em Matson and Nipinet Landsem, members of a rock band must quickly problem-solve when their drum kit is stolen just before a competition. Gillian Joseph and Wren Rios’s “Uncured Horror” follows a group of girls who create a website where members can post reviews of Native horror films. Some entries, such as Autumn Chacon and PJ Underwood’s “Airwave Pirates,” act as history lessons for readers unfamiliar with Native customs; others, as in Ida Aronson and Tate Allen’s “Bvlbancha Forever,” express their desire to “make the ancestors proud, and become proud ancestors for the next generations.” The contributors, many of whom are two-spirited—including Allen, Joseph, and Matson—represent myriad tribal nations, such as Choctaw, Pomo, T’Sou-ke, and more. Illustrations range from computer generated to hand drawn, and some are rendered in bold swathes of color while others ground the kaleidoscopic predecessors with monochromatic hues. Ages 12–up. (Aug.)