From heartbreaking memoirs to surreal, intergalactic tales, Comics Beyond the Margins showcases the unique ways comics provide a platform for empowering underrepresented voices. Featuring comics from UC Irvine Libraries’ general collections, this exhibit highlights examples from the 1960s to the present, covering wide-ranging themes and diverse modes of storytelling.
With the explosion of mass media in the 20th century, comics evolved into platforms for activism and community building. At the same time, artists and storytellers have used comics to share deeply personal experiences and relay emotions through visual storytelling.
This exhibit traces the underground comics that emerged in the 1960s and later efforts to represent a diverse range of identities. Pushing the boundaries of imagination and propriety, such comics have served as a counterpoint to mainstream pop culture and as outlets for independent voices. With humor and stunning graphics, Comics Beyond the Margins illustrates the current realities of our world and what a better future might look like for all.
Curated by Scott Stone, and Madelynn Dickerson
Edited by Cheryl Baltes
Designed by Allan Helmick and Sylvia Irving
Exhibit is on display in the Langson Library from March through September 2026 regular library hours
| Comics in this Exhibit | Catalog Call Number |
|---|---|
| 9-11: The World’s Finest Comic Book Writers & Artists Tell Stories to Remember, by Steven Seagle et al., 2002. | PN6727.A16 A15 2002 |
| A Good Sport, by Soizick Jaffre, 2024. | PN6727.J356 G66 2024 |
| A.B.O. Comix: A Queer Prisoner’s Anthology, vol. 2, The ABO Comix Collective, 2018. | PN6726.A36 2017 |
| Active Voice: The Comic Collection: The Real Life Adventures of an Asian-American, Lesbian, Feminist, Activist and Her Friends! by P. Kristen Enos et al., 2016. | PN6727.E56 2016 |
| After the Rain, by Nnedi Okorafor et al., 2021. | PN6727.J45 A647 2021 |
| Almost American Girl: An Illustrated Memoir, by Robin Ha, 2020. | E184.K6 H323 2020 |
| America: Fast and Fuertona, vol. 2, by Gabby Rivera et al., 2017. | PN6728.A474 R58 2017 |
| APB: Artists Against Police Brutality: A Comic Book Anthology, edited by Bill Campbell, Jason Rodriguez, and John Jennings, 2015. | HV8141 .A63 2015 |
| Arab in America, by Toufic El Rassi, 2007. | PN6727.E47 A73 2007 |
| Beirut, by Barrack Zailaa Rima, 2024. | DS89.B4 R5613 2024 |
| Bitch Planet, book 2, by Kelly Sue DeConnick et al., 2017. | PN6727.D43 B58 2015 |
| Bitter Root Omnibus, by David F. Walker, Chuck Brown, and Sanford Greene, 2023. | PN6727.W36 B58 2023 |
| Black, vol. 1, by Kwanza Osajyefo et al., 2017. | PN6728.C345 O83 2017 |
| Boy Island: A Comic, by Leo Fox, 2024. | PN6737.F69 B69 2024 |
| Come Home, Indio: A Memoir, by Jim Terry, 2020. | PN6727.T395 C65 2020 |
| COVID Chronicles: A Comics Anthology, edited by Kendra Boileau and Rich Johnson, 2021. | WC 506.C668 2021 |
| Diary of a Reluctant Dreamer: Undocumented Vignettes from a Pre-American Life, by Alberto Ledesma, 2017. | PN6727.L379 Z46 2017 |
| Dumb: Living without a Voice, by Georgia Webber, 2018. | WV 17.W364 2018 |
| El Deafo, by Cece Bell, 2014. | HV2534.B44 A3 2014 |
| Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles, by Mark Russell and Mike Feehan, 2018. | PN6728.S56666 R87 2018 |
| First Year Out: A Transition Story, by Sabrina Symington, 2018. | PN6733.S96 F57 2018 |
| Flying Kites: A Story of the 2013 California Prison Hunger Strike, by Stanford Graphic Novel Project, 2021. | HN79.C23 S73 2021 |
| Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, by Alison Bechdel, 2006. | PN6727.B3757 Z46 2006 |
| Gay Giant, by Gabriel Ebensperger, 2016. | HQ75.8.E34 A3 2022 |
| Gender Queer: A Memoir, by Maia Kobabe, 2019. | HQ77.8.K628 A3 2019 |
| Grandmothers, Our Grandmothers: Remembering the “Comfort Women” of World War II, by Han Seong-won, 2023. | D810.C698 H3513 2023 |
| Hysteria in Remission: The Comix and Drawings of Robt. William, edited by Eric Reynolds, 2002. | PN6727.W588 H9 2002 |
| I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir, by Malaka Gharib, 2019. | PN6727.G5 Z46 2019 |
| Invisible Differences: A Story of Asperger’s, Adulting, and Living a Life in Full Color, by Julie Dachez, Mademoiselle Caroline, and Fabienne Vaslet, 2020. | WS 350.8.P4 D117d 2020 |
| Invisible Kingdom, by G. Willow Wilson, Christian Ward, and Sal Cipriano, 2022. | PN6728.I574 W56 2022 |
| It’s a Bird…, by Steven T. Seagle and Teddy Kristiansen, 2004. | PN6727.S43 I7 2004 |
| LaGuardia: A Very Modern Story of immigration, by Nnedi Okorafor et al., 2019. | PN6728.L236 O38 2019 |
| March: Book One, by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell, 2013. | E840.8.L43 L48 2013 |
| Marry Me a Little: A Graphic Memoir, by Rob Kirby, 2023. | HQ1034.U5 K57 2023 |
| Maus: A Survivor’s Tale, by Art Spiegelman, 2011. | DS135.P63 S68 2011 |
| My Depression: A Picture Book, by Elizabeth Swados, 2005. | PS3569.W17 Z47 2005 |
| My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, vol. 1, by Emil Ferris, 2016. | PN6727.F4646 M95 2016 |
| Octavia Butler’s Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, adapted by Damian Duffy and John Jennings, 2017. | PN6727.D836 K56 2017 |
| Oops… I Just Catharted!: Fifty Years of Cathartic Comics, by Rupert Kinnard and William O. Tyler, 2025. | PN6727.K55 O56 2025 |
| Our Work Is Everywhere: An Illustrated Oral History of Queer & Trans Resistance, by Syan Rose et al., 2021. | HQ76.5 .R67 2021 |
| Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood, by Marjane Satrapi, 2003. | PN6747.S245 P4713 2003 |
| Pictures and Words: New Comic Art and Narrative Illustration, edited by Roanne Bell and Mark Sinclair, 2005. | PN6710.B45 2005 |
| Pregnant Butch: Nine Long Months Spent in Drag, by A.K. Summers, 2014. | PN6727.S86 P74 2014 |
| Prince of Cats, by Ronald Wimberly, 2019. | PN6727.W563 P75 2019 |
| Prism Stalker, vol. 1, by Sloane Leong, 2018. | PN6728.P73 L46 2018 |
| Redbone: The True Story of a Native American Rock Band, by Christian Staebler, Sonia Paoloni, and Thibault Balahy, 2020. | ML421.R45 S7313 2020 |
| Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology, edited by Jeff Yang et al., 2009. | PN6726.S3985 2009 |
| Showtime at the Apollo: The Epic Tale of Harlem’s Legendary Theater, by Ted Fox and James Otis | PN2277.N52 A686 2018 |
| Superman Smashes the Klan, by Gene Luen Yang and Gurihiru, 2020. | PN6728.S9 Y36 2020 |
| Tales from La Vida: A Latinx Comics Anthology, edited by Frederick Luis Aldama, 2018. | PN6725.T35 2018 |
| The Apex Treasury of Underground Comics, edited by Susan Goodrick and Don Donahue, 1974. | PN6726.G6 |
| The Best We Could Do: An Illustrated Memoir, by Thi Bui, 2017. | E184.V53 B851 2017 |
| The Complete Calvin and Hobbes, vol. 1, by Bill Watterson, 2005. | PN6728.C34 W38525 2005 |
| The End, by Anders Nilsen, 2013. | PN6727.N56 T54 2013 |
| The Life and Times of Martha Washington in the Twenty-First Century, by Frank Miller and Dave Givens, 2010. | PN6727.M55 L54 2010 |
| The Night Eaters: She Eats the Nights, vol. 1, by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda, 2022. | PN6727.L587 N54 2022 |
| The Pride Omnibus, by Joe Glass et al., 2021. | PN6738.P73 G58 2021 |
| The Seeds: A Graphic Tale in Four Acts, by Ann Nocenti and David Aja, 2020. | PN6728.S425 N63 2020 |
| The Talk, by Darrin Bell, 2023. | E185.86.B37797 2023 |
| Tits & Clits, 1972-1987, edited by Joyce Farmer et al., 2023. | PN6726 .T56 2023 |
| Toxic Tropics: A Horror Story of Environmental Injustice, by Jessica Oublié and Nicola Gobbi, 2024. | GE240.W4 O83713 2024 |
| Twisted Sisters: A Collection of Bad Girl Art, edited by Diane Noomin, 1991. | PN6726 .T85 1991 |
| Underground Classics: The Transformation of Comics into Comix, by James Danky and Denis Kitchen, 2009. | NC1764.5.U6 D36 2009 |
| Undocumented: A Worker’s Fight, by Duncan Tonatiuh, 2018. | PN6727.T663 U53 2018 |
| Wuvable Oaf, by Ed Luce, 2015. | PN6727.L83 W88 2015 |