Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation: EW Review

Equal parts slave narrative, fantasy, and time-travel tale, Kindred is as beloved as it is acclaimed, which makes it particularly difficult to adapt into a graphic novel. Yet Damian Duffy and John Jennings have risen to the challenge; their book highlights all of the medium’s strengths while still respecting Butler’s original words, first published 38 years ago. Jennings’ blocky, visceral art brings the story of Dana—a modern black woman who moves back and forth between the antebellum South and the 1970s—to life, giving faces to names and capturing the harsh realities of slavery. Now readers can lose themselves in illustrated scenes of Butler’s vision. It’s a good introduction not only to Butler’s body of work but also to the potential of the graphic-novel form.