There's nothing quite like the power of using simple imagery to explore a complex topic. And when one hopes to spur readers to action with their art, it's even more important to strike the right balance between illustrations and text. Holler, a graphic memoir, is a well-crafted, emotional work that does just that. Combining individual stories into a collective narrative, artist and activist Denali Sai Nalamalapu uses a limited color palette to recount a yearslong fight against a destructive oil pipeline in Appalachia.
Against a backdrop of green and white, Nalamalapu rotates through spotlight colors to guide readers' eyes in chapters that introduce ordinary people using whatever skills and decisions are at their disposal to protect their land. There's a photographer who takes long hikes with her dog to document potential impacts of the pipeline; a high school science teacher who places her car in the path of construction and chains herself to the vehicle; and a single mother who lives at the intersection of "a myriad of social injustices, including classism, racism, greed, and environmental injustice."
Although the fight against the pipeline is ultimately unsuccessful, this straightforward memoir is both a historical record of a movement and a call to action as Nalamalapu asks readers to imagine what the world could look like if "more people turned their love of the land into action." Not every battle will be won, but Holler's heart lies in that which outlasts temporary disappointments: the power of community. "You lost hope in existing systems. But you found it in something bigger... in people building the future they deserve together." --Kristen Coates, editor and freelance reviewer