It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea.

Marguerite Abouet and Clément Oubrerie’s Aya series starts in the Ivory Coast 1978. Aya is a young woman with dreams of becoming a medical doctor. The episodic story moves through her and her friends lives as they experience setbacks, love, and ambitions as they grow into adults.

It all begins with an idea.

Thi Bui’s The Best We Could Do is a multifaceted narrative spanning the experiences of Bui’s father, mother, and her own experience.

It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea.

Drawing the line is a compelling anthology by 14 Indian women responding to the 2012 New Delhi bus attack that was a flash point in the women’s rights movement against sexual violence. While some of the short stories deal with sexual violence straight on, many others focus on the gender disparities that support the rape culture.

It all begins with an idea.

Roye Okupe’s Malika series was inspired by the history of Nigeria, his home country. Malika is a strong ruler, who struggles with guilt, vulnerability, and the place for mercy in her empire.

Rumiko Takahashi’s Ranma ½ is delightful, lighthearted gender-bending text. The text neatly fits into the genre of shojo, manga targeted at young girls, with it’s themes of romance and school drama.

Kim Dong Hwa’s Color of Earth is the first in a coming-of-age trilogy about a young girl and her mother. Ehwa and her mother run a local tavern in pastoral Korea. Dong Hwa uses the narrative to explore what his mother’s childhood may have been like.