Book Review: 'Still I Rise: A Cartoon History of African Americans'

From the arrival of the first slaves in colonial Virginia to the Million Man March on Washington, Still I Rise is an amazingly condensed cartoon chronicle of African Americans that's aimed primarily at adults and prefaced with an introductory history of black cartoonists. Except for charming portraits of Booker T. Washington and Madame C.J. Walker (the first self-made millionairess in America), the drawings are stiff, but this format nonetheless brings to life the struggles and triumphs of blacks in America. Despite some questionable editorial decisions (what, no Billie Holiday?), the Lairds have packed an epic quantity of information into this engaging, well-written volume. A-