Illustrations have been adding context and culture to widespread religious texts since their inception. In the 15th century, woodcut images were seen in Günther Zainer’s German Bible, and the first extensively illustrated version of the Bible, by Isaiah Thomas, was released in America in 1791. Today, visual titles are more popular than ever—PW reported a 61% increase in graphic novel sales from 2020 to 2021. Modern religion publishers are jumping on that trend, harnessing the power of images to inspire readers and revitalize biblical texts and beloved spiritual stories.
Simon Amadeus Pillario, the creator of The Word for Word Bible Comic a self-published graphic novel series of biblical stories, is one of the illustrators looking to share God’s word with new audiences. Pillario, who is based in Bristol, England, uses a colorful American indie style to bring an exclusively unabridged NIV biblical translation to life. His latest title, The Book of Joshua (Feb.), was aimed at tweens and teens 12 and up. However, his upcoming comic, The Book of Judges (Sept.), has an age advisory of 15+. “It includes a lot of blood, battles, betrayal, and alcohol abuse,” Pillario told PW.
Pillario chose to aim at slightly older audiences after recent Statista research revealed that 47% of graphic novel readers are aged 18-44. He says interest from these older demographics makes sense. “While 30 or 40 years ago comics were just for kids, those kids are now 30 or 40 years older and are still into comics,” said Pillario. And his illustrations aren’t just opening up biblical texts for varying age groups. He also hopes to make the texts more accessible for readers with disabilities and learning differences. “There are people who are really keen to read the Bible, but they struggle because of dyslexia or autism or low literacy in general,” said Pillario. “Images, consistent faces, small bite size pieces of text, and a much more visual narrative is much more engaging for people who struggle to read,” he added.
Chosen Books is using the popularity of illustrations to revamp one of its classic bestsellers for a target audience of middle-grade schoolers. First published in 1971, The Hiding Place, by Corrie Ten Boom and Elizabeth and John Sherrill was Chosen Books' debut title and has now sold more than 3.5 million copies. It tells the story of Ten Boom, a Dutch watchmaker who was sent to a concentration camp after she hid Jews from the Nazis in her family’s shop. Now, with the help of writer/art director Mario DeMatteo and illustrator Ismael Castro, The Hiding Place: A Graphic Novel, will be released in April 2024. “We hope this new format will reach teens and preteens, and share the same powerful truths of the original work, which include faith, hope, forgiveness and triumphing over evil,” acquisitions editor David Sluka told PW.
Another upcoming picture book, The Book That Changed Everything (Pauline Books, Aug.), is aiming to reach an even younger audience, children aged three to seven. Inspired by the words of scripture, writer and acquisitions editor Sr. Allison Gliot and illustrator Santiago “Samlo” López created the story of Sofia, a little girl who has a “life-changing encounter with Jesus” according to Pauline Books & Media. “A lot of kids today are really steeped in an audio-visual world,” Gliot told PW. By sharing Sofia’s story in a picture book format, Gliot was able to “meet them where they are, in the language that they are most familiar with.” López, who has worked with big publishers such as Marvel, was drawn to Gliot’s work after finding it to be “one of the most creative scripts [he] has ever read.” He quickly forged a fruitful artistic relationship with Gliot, and believes their title will “bring light to the lives of children and adults.”
And more books that highlight a visual format are likely. Pillario, whose books are distributed by Baker & Taylor, will release The Christmas Nativity: Word for Word Bible Comic in November. And, depending on the success of The Hiding Place, Chosen Books is considering graphic versions of two other bestselling titles, God’s Smuggler by Brother Andrew and The Cross and The Switchblade by David Wilkerson, Sluka said.
