In this episode Mia sits down for a chat with Georgina Chadderton.

Georgina is a freelance cartoonist, lover of dogs, and plant enthusiast living on Kaurna Country (Adelaide), South Australia. Georgina has recently published Oh Brother, a memoir about growing up with their younger brother Robert, who is autistic and has an intellectual disability. The book is being published by Penguin Random House in Australia, the UK, Canada and the US. Oh Brother has been selected as part of the Junior Library Guild Gold Selection and as the American Booksellers Association’s Indie Introduces pick.

02:14 Georgina talks about the publication of Oh Brother

03:54 Georgina talks about how she discovered comics at the school library and how she got into making comics

06:30 Georgina talks about libraries and their librarian story

10:46 Vegemite, crumpets and pretzels

12:13 The chat turns to Oh Brother, disability, autism and representation

24:20 Ten years in the making, the story evolved and changed in the process

33:12 Georgina talks about the process of making the graphic novel

39:35 Discussion turns to the Papercuts comics festival in Adelaide

45:35 A sneak peak on what Georgina is working on next

51:09 Georgina recommends a bunch of graphic novels

For more info from Georgina check out their website here: https://www.georgerexcomics.com/

To stay up to date, for the full roundup of news, resources and new titles and our social media links visit our website: https://graphic.alia.org.au/

The ALIA Graphic Groove Theme 2025 courtesy of Clint Owen Ellis https://www.clintowenellis.com/

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In another packed episode, Iurgi and Mia discuss some of the latest news and new titles, which include two new graphic novels by Australian creators. Campbell Whyte returning with the highly anticipated Luna Express and Georgina Chadderton making her debut with Oh Brother. Also, the first twelve issues of Melbournian C.S. Pacat’s Fence have been collected into a new paperback.

02:00 Recent Reads

Mia:

Oh brother by Georgina Chadderton

Frieren: Beyond journey’s end, vol 1 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe

Iurgi:

Frieren vols 1 to 3

Paul Auster’s The New York Trilogy by David Mazzuchelli, Lorenzo Mattotti, Paul Kurasik.

Luna Express by Campbell Whyte

10:42 News

• Edutopia highlights 12 middle-grade graphic novels that use visual storytelling to destigmatize mental health issues like anxiety and depression.
• Comics Bulletin ranks the top 10 standalone Batman graphic novels
• The 2025 Aurealis Awards finalists and the winner for Best Graphic Novel/Illustrated Work.
• The Comic Arts Awards of Australia were announced at the end of January. These awards were celebrating the best Australian comics published in 2024. Bronze, Silver and Gold, they're all winners and Iurgi couldn't be happier with Chris Gooch's In Utero receiving gold.
• The American Library Association (ALA) has officially launched its Outstanding Comics Awards, marking a significant milestone in library-backed literary recognition. French publisher Morgen, backed by industry veterans, enters the global market with high-profile deals including writer Ram V.

29:31 Our favourite picks of the new titles:

Oh Brother by Georgina Chadderton (Penguin Australia) [Australian creator]

Luna Express by Campbell Whyte (Top Shelf Productions) [Australian Creator]

Damsel in D.I.S.T.R.E.S.S. by Andrew Clemson, Mau Mora, Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (Maverick)

Batman and Robin Year One by Chris Samnee, Mark Waid (DC Comics)

Lovely Recipe by Myra Rose Nino (Random House)

Frieren Beyond Journey’s End, Vol. 14 by Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe (VIZ media)

37:51 Closing

• We have a creator chat with Georgina Chadderton coming up. Mia give us a preview.
• Thank you to everyone who reached out volunteering to join the judging panel of the ALIA Graphic Notable Australian Graphic Novels of 2025. We’ve received lots of expressions of interest and we couldn’t get everyone in but we’ve got three great panels, for Junior, YA and Adult and they’ll start reading the comics, so we’re hoping to announce the notables in May or June. There’s lots of reading to do.

To stay up to date, for the full roundup of news, resources and new titles and our social media links visit our website: https://graphic.alia.org.au/

The ALIA Graphic Groove Theme 2025 courtesy of Clint Owen Ellis https://www.clintowenellis.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Australian comics folio website has just been launched and it’s a treasure trove of stories, information, interviews, essays, and so much more on Australian comics, Australian comics creators and the Australian comics community at large.

In this episode we have a chat with two of the key researchers involved in the project.

The Lead Investigator for the project was Elizabeth MacFarlane, who is a writer and Associate Professor in Creative Writing at the University of Melbourne where she teaches Graphic Narratives and Critical-Creative Writing Practices.

Gabriel Clark is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Design at the University of Technology Sydney and a creative producer. He was one of the chief investigators in the project.

This conversation is not directly about libraries and comics librarianship, but I think it’s a very valuable conversation about the Australian comics community. We’ve got enormous talent in Australia and I feel like comics by Australian creators often go under the radar. I encourage everyone to visit the Folio website and explore its vast contents.

02:48 The Folio comics project is launched!

08:00 Elizabeth and Gabe’s relationship with comics

18:01 What Elizabeth and Gabe learned about the Australian comics community

27:11 How the Folio: Stories of Australian Comics project came about

33:40 Gabe and Elizabeth discuss the Folio project, how it developed and what it looks like

40:51 The future of the Folio project

44:17 Elizabeth and Gabe talk about their highlights in the making of the Folio

50:49 The relationship of universities and academia with comics

57:09 Elizabeth and Gabe recommend some Australian comics

Folio: Stories of Australian Comics project website here: https://foliocomics.com/

The Librarians Roundtable Interview is here: https://foliocomics.com/interviews/librarians-roundtable-interview

To stay up to date, for the full roundup of news, resources and new titles and our social media links visit our website: https://graphic.alia.org.au/

The ALIA Graphic Groove Theme 2025 courtesy of Clint Owen Ellis https://www.clintowenellis.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.