Where Libraries, Comics and Medicine Meet

While today’s public librarians are no strangers to comic books, those librarians working in hospitals or medical schools are still woefully behind in embracing the medium (for more information about public libraries and graphic novels, see this article). It is with this in mind that I have spent the past few months working to gather the information presented throughout this website in an effort to provide the baseline knowledge necessary to be an effective health sciences librarian while working with comics. The following is a reflection on this process up until this point.

All good ideas are built on the backs of other good ideas and my work here is no different. I was initially drawn to the idea of how one might incorporate comic books into medicine while working at the University of Kentucky Medical Center Library reference desk and was up against a wall trying to help a patron find information in a form they were comfortable with. See, most of what we have available is written to an academic or professional audience and this individual was looking for information for their own use as a patient and had less-than-zero medical training, making the language in the resources available undesirable. Since I had been reading a comic book myself just prior to this, I decided as a Hail Mary to try searching “epilepsy comic”, thinking that most anyone can understand information when it is in comic book form. As it turns out, there IS such a comic book – Epileptic by David B. – and the patron decided they would seek it out and give it a chance. I never did find out if it was helpful for them – such is the nature of reference work – but this interaction sparked the beginnings of my work here.

After that interaction, I discovered that there is an entire academic field built upon the premise of the medical narrative and that ‘graphic medicine’ had been coined as the comics conception of this idea. This field can be seen in various places throughout this website – such as in the review of the Graphic Medicine Manifesto – and is easily explored through the Graphic Medicine website put together by the founding members of the field. Discovering that this is a fledgling field and area of publication, I decided it would be important to think about how libraries can step up and provide access to these resources – because no institution is better at meeting people where they are than libraries.

Keeping in mind that this is a new field and many, if not most, librarians working in our hospital and medical libraries have little-to-no experience in comics as a medium or as a reference resources is the basis for the work done on this website this year. For example, the juxtaposition of evaluating both UptoDate and The Grand Comics Database provides both an opportunity to explore important and potentially unknown resources, but a chance to elevate a resource such as the GCD in the eyes of librarians who might otherwise dismiss it as unimportant. The natural extension of this purpose then was the Information Portal that provides a valuable overview of some of the most important resources when considering comics – both in cataloging and non-library resources – and will in the future serve as the template for a libguide for students as well.

Thinking more broadly than just comics in medicine, I have also spent time considering the importance of meeting our patrons where they are. In our digital world it is vitally important that the library’s services be made available outside of the physical confines of the library and reference chat services are the perfect example of this. Ongoing evaluation of such a service is vital to keeping up with patron needs and more importantly, discovering why “non-patrons” are not making use of our services and how we can meet their needs as well. Looking to the future, it is clear that medical libraries need to do a better job of reaching out to patients and their families – which was the subject of my Reference Services Plan (essentially the bones of a programming proposal).

While the majority of my work here has been to bring the focus to graphic medicine, ultimately the purpose of this is to reconsider the way health libraries today are practicing outreach to their communities. It is time for us to look beyond our “guaranteed” patrons in students and physicians to the patients and families in our hospitals, our nursing homes, and our communities at large. Introducing these potential patrons to graphic narratives to help them cope with their illness, offering our support in providing appropriate resources for their needs, and stepping up when the hospital staff either doesn’t or cannot are just some of the ways it is time for the reference librarian to step out from behind the reference desk and into the forefront.

Information Portal

Comic Studies – A Beginning Pathfinder

The following is meant to serve as a guide for those who are at the start of the work in the field of comic studies, as well as for those who are simply looking for a single resource page to bookmark for later use. These listings are by no means exhaustive, but are intended to serve as a broad sampling of the information resources available for those seeking to study comics. In keeping with the “bookmarked for later reference” theme, this page will be broken down into clearly divided sections, so as to make it all the easier to take a quick glance at later.

Note: due to the nature of comic studies, it is important for the new scholar to keep an open mind about the visual appearance of reference sources. For example, The Grand Comics Database – reviewed here – does not have the glossy, well-maintained appearance that some pay-to-play databases do, but it is nonetheless an important resource for any comics historian.

Browsing

Browsing for either comics themselves (in graphic novel format) or for comics studies literature can be a challenge when making use of the Library of Congress classifications (though they are still more accommodating than Dewey).

  • Subject Headings: these will be most useful when searching in a library catalog, primarily as a good starting place followed up by browsing the stacks in the area in which you find a relevant result. There are numerous subject headings for comics, some more general, others rather specific.
    •  For some general headings, try:
      • Comic Books, Strips, Etc.
      • Comic Books, Strips, Etc. – History and Criticism
      • Graphic Novels
      • Cartooning
      • Comic Book Covers
    • For those feeling more adventurous:
      • Fotonovelas
      • Underground Comic Books, Strips, Etc.
      • Comic Books, Strips, Etc. – Moral and Ethical Aspects
    • Finally, for some specific subject areas, there may be other options, such as:
      • Medicine – Caricatures and Cartoons
      • Medical Care – Caricatures and Cartoons
  • Call Number Ranges: comics, in all forms, are limited in their representation of specific call numbers. Below are the general locations one might expect to find texts. It is important to make note that there are several occasions in which a graphic novel will be cataloged with no indication that it is one – rather, it will be cataloged under the subject about which the graphic novel is written. [For example, A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge is classified under F379 (History of the Americas – Local history – Gulf States – Louisiana)].
    • PN6700 – PN6790 Comic Books, Strips, Etc.
    • PZ7.7 Children’s Graphic Novels
      • This classification number is relatively new, so it should be used with caution as older items may or may not be updated to reflect it.
    • NC845 – NC915 Graphic Art Materials
    • NC950 – NC966 Illustration
      • The above two ranges are seldom in use for comics, but on occasion a text discussing the production of comics – especially those in the past – will find themselves here.
    • NC1300 – NC1766 Pictorial Humor, Caricature, Etc.
      • Some specialized areas are cataloged here, though it is not always clear why. For example, the Graphic Medicine Manifesto is cataloged here, when it might have arguably made more sense to place it in Medicine.

Reference

  • Graphic Novels: A Bibliographic Guide to Book-Length Comics. This text, while somewhat dated (published in 1995), is still a valuable tool to anyone looking to understand the publishing history of graphic novels or to those looking for a fantastic annotated guide to hundreds of English language graphic novels. Advertised as a way to help “distinguish between classics and hackwork”, this is a reference resource that could be worthy of a study all-it’s-own to determine how accurate it was given the changes in the industry over the past two decades. For University of Kentucky users, you can find an available eBook version here; for those outside of UK, find information about obtaining a copy here.
  • Representing Multiculturalism in Comics and Graphic Novels is a collection of fifteen articles originally presented at the 2012 Comics forum that seeks to provide insight on the ways in which comics have and have not represented diverse characters. This is the first collection of its kind for comic studies and several of the articles collected here cannot be found elsewhere (at least, not without connections) and is available both as an eBook (University of Kentucky users see here) and in print here.
  • Teaching the Graphic Novel is a collection of 34 essays that explore the issues, challenges, and opportunities that using graphic novels in the classroom presents to educators. The volume serves well as an introductory text even for those who are uninitiated into the comics culture and includes a selected bibliography of graphic novels and sequential art – designed to help get the reader using comics in the classroom as easily as possible. The book can be found in University of Kentucky libraries here – or, alternatively, by using the Library of Congress Call Number: PN6710.T38 2009.
  • A Comic Studies Reader is an anthology of roughly 30 essays ranging from work on editorial cartoons to comic books to manga, covering topics such as style, anti-comics rhetoric, and issues of power and class. The essays serve as a wonderful introduction to the wide variety of issues in comic studies today and with such a broad scope offers a chance to see what is going on outside of our own individual foci. This anthology can be found in University of Kentucky libraries here – or, alternatively, by using the Library of Congress Call Number: PN6710.C667 2009.
  • On the Edge of the Panel: Essays on Comics Criticism is a collection of essays that seeks to offer reflection on the cultural, social, historical, and ideological dimensions of comics – with a focus on the origins of comics, the tools of the medium, and the authors themselves. The work contained here is unlike previous collected work as there is less attempt to defend the legitimacy of the study – as is common in comic studies – and more nuanced, and previously unconsidered, scholarship. As of now, this text is difficult to obtain in the United States, but can be found for purchase here – or, alternatively, searched for in your local library by using the Library of Congress Call number: PN6710.O52 2015.

E-Resources

  • [Comics] As Reading, or A Theory of Alter-Textuality is an eBook in the broadest sense of the word – what it actually is might be better described as an ongoing scholarly experiment in publishing a book via WordPress. This eBook exists as a series of posts on the WordPress of Nicholas Theisen known as “What is Manga”, where he regularly posts updates reviewing manga and providing scholarly insight into what does and does not constitute manga. [Comics] is an ongoing project to engage comics in a way that transcends the academic language which, Theisen contends, cannot adequately capture the essence of what it “is” to experience a comic. This eBook can be found here.
  • Comixology is the name in the digital comic services game as of 2015 and has a variety of price points, including some free options, as well as contracts with many libraries (primarily local public libraries) to provide various levels of access to their patrons. The primary purpose for highlighting this service here is not for its commercial purpose however, but rather to make note of digital comics broadly as a new medium. There are still numerous issues with the transfer of physical comic to digital form and many comics scholars are dedicating time to studying the differences – so it is important to stay abreast of how Comixology moves forward.
  • Oh, Comics! is a weekly news and talk podcast revolving around the world of comics – including conversations about specific comics themselves and, more importantly, the culture surrounding comics, including the difficult discussions about racism and sexism. Much the same way that attention should be paid to Comixology for its impact on the market, a podcast such as Oh, Comics! can provide valuable insight and context to the “real world” that is of immeasurable importance to the studies conducted in academia.
  • The Comics and Graphic Novels LibGuide from the Cornell University Library, found here, is an invaluable resource for anyone seeking to find new resources for which to seek scholarly information on comics. The guide is available to the general public, though many of the links for Finding Articles require the user to have access to pay-to-play databases. Of particular note, this guide points the user to opportunities for Academic Networking – a key aspect for anyone attempting to get started in comic studies, as the field is relatively small, making it difficult to know where to start.
  • Comic Art in Scholarly Writing: A Citation Guide by Allen Ellis is a helpful guide to citing comics when drafting a scholarly essay. The focus here is on helping researchers understand a standardized way to cite individual issues of comics (graphic novels follow more conventional practices), which to this day is still not adequately detailed in most citation manuals, regardless of style. The guide can be found here.

Databases (Pay-to-Play)

Described below are two potential databases to make use of when conducting searches for scholarly articles in the field of comic studies – Academic Search Premiere  and Library, Information Science, & Technology Abstracts. These were chosen highlight the interdisciplinary and practical applications of the field of comic studies – other worthwhile databases certainly exist, such as the H.W. Wilson Art Index if seeking to explore art criticism related to comics or PubMed and/or CINHAL to explore the idea of narrative medicine.

  • Each of these databases are part of the EBSCOHost family of databases (for those users at the University of Kentucky) and as such share some similar features that merit highlighting.
    • Boolean Operators: Boolean operators are used to expand or narrow a search – in EBSCOHost, these operators include AND, OR, and NOT. The use of AND will force the search to find only those results with both terms included, while the use of OR will limit the results to one of two terms. NOT will force the search to exclude the specified term from the results.
    • Truncation and Wildcard Operators: Truncation is the use of the (*) symbol at a given point in a word, typically at the end, indicating that results should include any use of the preceeding letters. For example: cart* would tell the search to retrieve anything that includes cart + the proceeding words – this would ensure the retrieval of cartoon and cartoons (but would also catch cartwheel – use truncation wisely). Wildcard in this situation is the use of the (?) symbol inside of a word to catch the results of all permutations of a set of letters, with one letter being the wildcard. For example: searching n?vel would tell the search to retrieve all results that include that arrangement of letters – meaning results such as novel and navel.
    • Stop Words: Stop Words are words that are so common that the search engine does not include them when conducting the search. In the EBSCOHost database, these include:   a, also, an, and, are, as, at, be, because, been, but, by, for, from, has, have, however, if, in, is, not, of, on, or, p, so, than, that, the, their, there, these, this, to, was, were, whatever, whether, which, with, would.
    • Searchable Fields: Within these databases, it is possible to select from a large variety of searchable fields for each individual term in the advanced search options via a drop-down menu – or, alternatively, making use of the two-letter field indicator (such as AU for Author). Some of these fields include: TX – All Text, AU – Author, TI – Title, SU – Subject Terms, AB – Abstract, and IS – ISSN (No Dashes).
  • Academic Search Premier is a general purpose academic database, covering a wide multidisciplinary range – making it well suited for searching for content in an interdisciplinary field such as comics studies. University of Kentucky users can find access here – others should seek access through their local institutions, or seek access here.
    • Keyword Searching can be conducted in ASP by simply typing in a query into the search box available from the “Basic Search” screen. Though not recommended in scholarly databases, some examples of keyword searching here would be: graphic novels, comic books, comics, comics in America, comics culture, seduction of the innocent, and so on. These keywords can be combined using any of the above features (such as searching graphic novels AND comics).
    • Subject Heading Searches can be conducted by either discovering the Subject Headings and entering them into the search bar (combined, ideally, with some form of Boolean Operator) or by building a search by using the Subject Terms feature located at the top-left corner of the page header. For searching articles related to comic studies generally, consider using: comic book artists, comic book covers, graphic novels, supervillians, comic books, strips, etc. (this term has roughly 30 subheadings – make the most of them), and so on.
  • Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA) is a database dedicated to the Library and Information Science field, including work on public libraries, databases and other technology, special collections, and more. The database does a decent job of collecting articles related to the collection and maintenance of comic book collections, as well as addressing the controversy and censorship that can arise around their use. University of Kentucky users can find access here – others should seek access through their local institutions, or seek access here.
    • Keyword Searching can be conducted in LISTA by simply typing in a query into the search box available from the “Basic Search” screen. Though not recommended in scholarly databases, some examples of keyword searching here would be: graphic novels, comic books, comics, public libraries, collection development, seduction of the innocent, and so on. These keywords can be combined using any of the above features (such as searching graphic novels AND comics).
    • Subject Heading Searches can be conducted by either discovering the Subject Headings and entering them into the search bar (combined, ideally, with some form of Boolean Operator) or by building a search by using the Thesaurus feature located at the top-left corner of the page header. For searching articles related to comic studies generally, consider using: graphic novels, comic books, strips, etc. (this term has roughly 10 subheadings – make the most of them), graphic novels – awards, censorship, censorship in libraries, and so on.

Periodicals

  • ImageTexT is a peer-reviewed, open access journal focused on the interdisciplinary study of comics (and related media) that is published by the English Department at the University of Florida. The content is made available free of charge and is published on average three times a year (on Volume 8 as of Fall 2015). ImageTexT can be found here.
  • The Comics Journal is a daily digital magazine about comics edited by Timothy Holder and Dan Nadel, with a print version still published on an annual basis. The Journal has been in existence for some 40+ years and has undergone numerous content, purpose, and editorial changes in that time. Today, it serves as an outlet for reviews of comics – both professional and blogger – and publishers long-form interviews and biographies of big names in the comics industry (of note, several years back there was a novella length interview with Garth Ennis). There is currently an archive project underway to collect digitally every issue of the Journal. TCJ can be found here.
  • Image [&] Narrative is a peer-reviewed, open access journal on visual narratology and word and image studies “in the broadest sense of the term”. This journal is designed for a worldwide audience, containing articles in English, French, German and more – some with translation, some without. The articles are as broad as the scope suggests, with articles ranging from issues of authenticity in comics to explorations of the use of photography in French culture. Image [&] Narrative can be found here.
  • The Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics is one of the only periodicals about comics to belong to one of the major publishing groups – in this case, Routledge, as part of the Taylor and Francis Group. The journal seeks to cover all aspects of the graphic novel, comic strip, and comic book, with a focus primarily on the modern age (20th and 21st centuries). Articles are claimed to be subject to double-blind peer-review, with publication happening four times per year (currently in Volume 6). Unlike the other periodicals listed here, this journal is not open-access and thus requires either a personal subscription or institutional access (not available through the University of Kentucky). The Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics can be found here.

Websites

  • http://www.graphicmedicine.org. Home to the Graphic Medicine movement, this website is still the place where the founders of the group post conference updates, new research and regular book reviews of new and upcoming graphic narratives. The group also has a podcast that has recently been revamped to be more productive, which can be accessed from the site. In essence, if you want to get to know Graphic Medicine, this is the place to go online (alternatively, check out the Graphic Medicine Manifesto, as reviewed here).
  • http://www.comicssociety.org. The Comics Studies Society is a relatively new professional association aimed at the comics scholar, teacher, and independent researcher (a key difference from most professional associations). Perhaps the most important aspect of this website is that it boasts a page full of outside links to both scholarly and cause-specific comic studies resources.
  • http://www.comicsresearch.org. While still mired in a miserable plain HTML and flash page design, Comics Research is a valuable resource for seeing what work has been done on comics from all across the globe. The page has only been updated sporadically in the past couple of years, but the links it provides to other resources are still active and still better collected here than anywhere else.
  • http://www.comicbookresources.com. While it is important to make note of scholarly resources, it is often just as important to be aware of what is happening outside of academics – which is where Comic Book Resources, or CBR, comes in. CBR is known as THE website for keeping up-to-date on new releases (they include previews and reviews) and for keeping abreast of what public opinion is as it relates to the politics of comics. The site also is host to several of its own databases, including a guide to creator Twitter handles and a “Find A Comic Shop” tool.

The Grand Comics Database

The Grand Comics Database. GCD, 2015. http://www.comics.org

The Grand Comics Database (or GCD) is an ongoing, online, international database project with the intention of collecting information on all published comic books across the globe. This project began in 1994 by Bob Klein and a group of fellows soon joined, with the original database being held on computer disks, though the project soon went online. Since that time, the project has been ongoing with innumerable volunteers and as of this review contains more than 1.5 million individual instances. The information collected in the GCD includes creator credits, story details, dates of publication, cover art, and any other information deemed to have value to the comic book “reader, fan, collector, and scholar”.

As a product of the open Internet, the GCD is available to all those with Internet access and does not require subscription (or donation) to access any of the content. Searching the GCD can be done either by basic search, much like on would search Google, or by advanced search. The advanced search features are reminiscent of EBSCOhost run databases, where a large number of searchable fields and modifiers are made available, however there are some significant caveats that are explained in detail on the page. These include the inability to use Boolean logic and difficulties in accurately searching a database of information that spans the globe (particularly problematic for publication date(s)). Of note, the Michigan State University’s Comic Art Collection is an indexing partner with the GCD, lending the database much-needed credibility and stability. The GCD is an invaluable resource to those undertaking deep research into comic book history, story-line development, publisher distribution, and more. Summing up: Highly recommended. Suitable for any audience, but of particular interest to comic scholars.

The Oxford Handbook of American Philosophy

Misak, Cheryl. The Oxford handbook of American philosophy. Oxford University Press, 2008. 656p. ISBN 978-0-19-921931-5, $185.00

Billed as the first collective study on the development of philosophy in North America, this handbook collects essays from 26 leading experts in their respective corners of American philosophy. Included are brief biographies for each contributor, containing their academic appointment(s) and research interests. The essays are collected in a chronological order, starting with the 18th century moving up into the late 20th century. Subjects range from 18th century religious philosophy to late 20th century American feminism. This arrangement allows the reader the option to explore the evolution of American philosophy across time or to select for a particular subject/author as needed. Each essay follows a similar structure, with clear section markers and detailed bibliographic entries at the end, however this does not distract from each contributor’s individual style. The book is not meant to, nor could it, replace the role of primary texts, but it does serve as a good overview for the topics at hand. Included are two indexes, one searchable by name and one by subject – a valuable distinction in philosophical work, as it is often important to separate the idea from the speaker. It may be argued that with the availability of the online Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, this handbook is redundant. This reviewer believes otherwise for two reasons: the SEP cannot be arranged to flow chronologically within a part of the world and it cannot replace the critical commentary provided by each contributor. As a whole, this is a valuable, accessible  text to those interested in 20th century philosophy and its roots. Summing Up: Recommended for Academic libraries. Most suited for undergraduate students or those new to philosophy.

UpToDate

UpToDate. Wolters Kluwer, 2015. http://libraries.uky.edu/record.php?lir_id=862

UpToDate is an evidence-based database with content created by healthcare professionals, for healthcare professionals. With that said, the database serves a much wider audience than just those already considered “professionals” and should be considered a highly valuable source of information for pre-medical and medical students as well. UpToDate requires an expensive subscription to access, but this is often managed by splitting the cost between hospital and library and offers a better ROI than many journal subscription bundles when patron use is considered. The interface is reminiscent of Google, though with a touch of Wikipedia in layout, as topics are subdivided within pages and can be accessed via in-page hyperlinks for quick navigation. As such, there is a lower learning curve to using UpToDate for patrons than with most other quality databases. As of this review, the database can be viewed in 10 languages. Each topic page includes several levels of information including terminological, manifestation, diagnosis, treatment, and so on. Importantly, each page also provides a comprehensive references list, with hyperlinks out to the web location of each reference (most behind separate paywalls). UpToDate does not support traditional database searching operators (no Boolean, stopwords, etc.) and relies entirely on natural language. This database is valuable for quick reference for clinical appointments, student presentations, and more, but it is not sufficient for in-depth research. The articles are written clearly, concisely, and avoid the use of specific medical jargon where possible. Summing up: Essential. Recommended for medical students and practicing professionals.

Graphic Medicine Manifesto

MK Czerwiec, Ian Williams, Susan Merrill Squier, Michael J. Green, Kimberly R. Myers, and Scott T. Smith. Graphic medicine manifesto. Penn State Press, 2015. 208p. 34 color/86 B&W Illustrations. ISBN 978-0-271-06649-3 $29.95

This inaugural compilation in Graphic Medicine brings together the early voices of this new area and offers articles that establish the principles of the field in an attempt to begin mapping it out. The text includes scholarly essays from a wide cohort, including newly published visual narratives. The text is broken into three deliberate sections: argument for the establishment of the field, engagement of the health profession, and the practice of creating graphic narratives. Included are an introduction to the authors and a conclusion offering a view of the current landscape, both in comic form. Importantly, the authors of the text, and subsequently their work, address both the United States and the United Kingdom – though this can prove confusing while using the text without careful consideration. Of particular interest are the two bibliographies included at the end of the text. One directs the reader to further scholarly work on comic studies (both broadly and on graphic medicine), while the other offers a guide to key comic texts. Readers may find that some of the essay’s in this volume are repetitive in their desire to justify the work of the scholars, but that is common to find in any newly established field. For those new to the idea of using comics in an academic or professional setting, this text also serves as a wonderful introduction to the art of incorporating visual imagery into scholarly text. As this is the first text of its kind, this text is a must have for any academic or health related collection and would be an appropriate addition for undergraduate, graduate, and professional students alike. Summing up: Essential. Academic and Health collections. All readers.

A Brief Bio

Hello all! My name is Matthew Noe and I am entering my final year in the Master of Library and Information Science program at the University of Kentucky (UK), where I also work as a part-time instructor for an introductory level communications course and as an archives assistant. My prior education includes a B.A. in Philosophy, also from UK, and an academic certification in Library Information Technology from a local community college (Bluegrass Community and Technical).

I’ve been consistently employed since I was 16, working numerous retail jobs (Peebles, Meijer, several bookstores), as a Resident Advisor for 4 years, and as a manager at a local greasy spoon, Tolly Ho. In the past year I worked as a reference intern at the UK Medical Center Library, as a research assistant on a project documenting anti-bullying resources for the LGBTQ community in libraries, and briefly as a cataloging assistant and as a barista. I spent this past summer as a research fellow at the University of Michigan as part of a Research Experience for Master’s Students program, where I worked to analyze previously collected data on a project studying collaborative information behavior of families dealing with chronic illness.

My hobbies and interests are wide and varied, but for the purposes of this blog, I will stick to my interest in comic books and how they interact with my academic interests in literacy, health, and education. To give you an idea of how much time/money gets spent on comics, here’s a look at the graphic novel shelves in my house (not pictured: half a dozen longboxes of single issue comics):

Untitled

And since they will inevitably show up in later posts or discussions, I – and my significant other – are the caretakers for two obnoxious dogs: Luna, the 3 year-old cattle dog/shepherd mix and Belle, the 1 year-old border collie/great pyrenees mix.

happyluna happybelle

I hope this gives you at least a little background information on who I am, though it is far from exhaustive! Feel free to reach out using my posted contact information any time!