Virtual Event: Joel Christian Gill

Harvard Book Store's virtual event series welcomes celebrated cartoonist JOEL CHRISTIAN GILL—author of the beloved Strange Fruit: Uncelebrated Narratives from Black History—for a discussion of the latest title in his acclaimed Tales of the Talented Tenth series, Robert Smalls. He will be joined in conversation by fellow acclaimed, award-winning cartoonists TIM FIELDER and NATE POWELL.

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While payment is not required, we are suggesting a $5 contribution to support this author series, our staff, and the future of Harvard Book Store—a locally owned, independently run Cambridge institution. In addition, by purchasing a copy of Robert Smalls on harvard.com, you support indie bookselling and the writing community during this difficult time.

About Robert Smalls

Do you know the story of the slave who sailed himself to freedom? For the third book in the bestselling Tales of the Talented Tenth series, Joel Christian Gill brings Robert Smalls to life by telling the true story of the enslaved African who pulled off one of the most daring and largest heists of the Civil War. Come along for the adventure as Robert earns a job working for the C.S.S. Planter, escapes to freedom, goes on to become a first-generation Black politician, and makes history by writing and leading the passage of legislation that led to the United States’ first free and compulsory public school system.

Tales of the Talented Tenth is a historical comic series that focuses on the adventures of amazing African Americans in action.

Praise for Robert Smalls

"Joel Christian Gill is a modern day graphic griot. His mastery of visual storytelling coupled with his tireless research make him one of the most important artist/scholars working today." —John Jennings, Eisner-nominated comics scholar and award-winning graphic novelist

"Joel Christian Gill gives Robert Smalls the adventure genre treatment that he deserves. We need so much more of what Gill consistently delivers." —Rebecca Wanzo, author of The Content of Our Caricature: African American Comic Art and Political Belonging

“Tales of the Talented Tenth is a testament, in the words of W. E. B. Du Bois, that everyday Black people stand under the sun, with bravery and courage, to represent us. Joel Christian Gills shows how ordinary people fight for our collective liberation and whose stories are not often at the forefront of our historical consciousness.” —Ibram X. Kendi, author of How to Be an Antiracist