It's Election Time: Picking Graphic Novels for Canada Reads

"If we pick the wrong book, and they read it, they don't like it, they will never read again."

-Georges Laraque on Canada Reads

In the National Post article I posted yesterday, editor Mark Medly asks an interesting question of the comic book cognescenti: “Can you think of another comic or graphic novel that might have been better received by the Canada Reads panelists?” All three conclude that it was the type of book, and not the title- and that any graphic novel would have had a steep climb winning the affection of Debbie Travis.

I say Cooke, Heer and Butcher are giving up too easily. They need to learn from the way Americans do politics: with dedication and a firm belief in magical thinking. I'll leave the attack ads down South, but will adopt the American way of bloviating about "electability." For the uninitiated, that means focusing not on the inherent qualities of a candidate, but whether they're a candidate the public will vote for.

Now, I can't poll the judges of Canada Reads, but I have gleaned the lists of past nominees and winners and listened to a couple of this year's debates. I even thought about reading a few of the past winners, but when I saw Rockbound (2005 winner) described as "The Classic Novel of Nova Scotia's South Shore", I figured I would rather light my hair on fire. I also followed the format of Canada Reads and picked five candidates: quasi-Canadian Joe Matt's Spent, Chester Brown's Louis Riel, Jillian and Mariko Tamaki's Skim, Seth's Clyde Fans and Julie Doucet's My New York Diary.

Joe Matt- Spent:
Ah, the first sacrifice. While picking books for Canada Reads, I have to keep in mind that these must be books my Mom (a CR devotee) would read, and my Mom does not want to read about masturbation. Joe Matt wallows in his sex life and porn habit. And while it would be a treat to see some Canadian icon (or, at the very least, CBC host) talk about these issues, it will never happen. Furthermore, Joe Matt was only an illegal Canadian.

Jillian and Mariko Tamaki-Skim:

I rather like Skim, and think it did a great job of making the teenaged protagonist sound wry and intelligent instead of precious. But it wouldn't win Canada Reads. For a start, it's too short- and as Cooke pointed out, Canada Reads panelists love getting reading value, which I think they calculate by dividing the number of words by the book's trade paperback price. And I think the judges would also ghettoize it as a Young Adult book. What's the difference between YA and "real lit" books that happen to have a young protagonist? They're YA if the protagonist interacts mostly with people their own age, and "real lit" if they only observe adults.

Julie Doucet- My New York Diary
The Canada Reads folks love books with a strong sense of place. It needs to telegraph that it's a Montreal book, or a salty Maritime tale, or set in a Mennonite farming community in Ontario, to make the cut. And Doucet's book is definitely strong on place- too bad it's an American place. Sure, there are parts in a very recognizable Montreal, but Canada Reads is a little xenophobic. Doucet would get a few points for being French-Canadian, but she briefly defected to our Great Southern Enemy, and is thus dead to the jury. Also, her drawings might make some of the judges feel icky.

Seth-Clyde Fans
If Clyde Fans was a novel, it would probably win. Small-town Ontario, vintage setting, depression seeping from the pages like sebum from pores? That's CBC gold, baby! And Seth already has mad CanCon cred with all those Vinyl Café covers. However, Clyde Fans doesn't offer enough on top of its manifest sadness to overcome its graphic novel status- and Book 2 still needs to be collected.

Chester Brown- Louis Riel

One thing that struck me while listening to the Canada Reads debates is how seriously the judges take their mission (see above quote.) In the first debate of this year's competition, they worry endlessly over whether this or that book is essential. "Essential," I gather from the judges, doesn't have to do with the prose style, but whether the books deal with Important Issues that are Key to Canada's Past, Present, Future or (ideally) D. All Of The Above. And so, The Birth House can be used to comment on modern technology, per Debbie Travis, and The Best-Laid Plans will rescue us from political stagnation, per That CNN Guy.

Well, Louis Riel is a book full of Important Issues. There's the Important Issue of the Métis, the Important Issue of Riel's fraught place in Canadian history, the Important Issue of the fine line that divides madness from inspiration. Also, it's definitely a Manitoba book, and it's fairly hefty for a graphic novel. Length and a sense of place? That feels good in your hands while you're catching up on The Current on CBC. So, if you want a graphic novel with electability, vote for Louis Riel in '12.