Research Guides: Graphic Medicine at VCU: Books

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Graphic Medicine Texts in the Collection

The following is a list of graphic novels available for check out in the VCU Libraries collection. Each addresses a topic relevant to healthcare providers and their patients.

Use the search box at the top of this page to look for items that are not listed here.

If you want to request an item we currently don't have, you can fill out a form through Interlibrary Loan.

Aliceheimer's by Dana Walrath
ISBN: 9780271074689

Publication Date: 2016-04-15

Aliceheimer's is a series of illustrated vignettes, daily glimpses into their world with Alzheimer's.
The Bad Doctor by Ian Williams
ISBN: 9780271067544

Publication Date: 2015-03-15

Meet Dr. Iwan James: cyclist, doctor, would-be lover, former heavy metal fan, and, above all, human being. Cartoonist and doctor Ian Williams introduces us to Iwan's troubled life as all humanity, it seems, passes through his surgery doors.
Cancer Made Me a Shallower Person by Miriam Engelberg
ISBN: 9780060789732

Publication Date: 2006-04-25

Cancer Made Me a Shallower Person is an offbeat and darkly humorous account of one very funny woman's battle with an uncertain and often fatal illness.
Cancer Vixen by Marisa Acocella Marchetto
ISBN: 9780307263575

Publication Date: 2006-09-26

In vivid color and with a taboo-breaking sense of humor, Marisa Acocella Marchetto tells the story of her eleven-month, ultimately triumphant bout with breast cancer.
Clinical Ethics by Kimberly R. Myers; Molly L. Osborne; Charlotte A. Wu; Zoe Schein (Illustrator)
ISBN: 9780271092812

Publication Date: 2022-05-17

Co-created by experts in clinical medicine, ethics, literature, and comics, Clinical Ethics presents a new way for students and practitioners to engage with fundamental concerns in medical ethics.
COVID Chronicles by Kendra Boileau (Editor); Rich Johnson (Editor); et al.
ISBN: 9780271090146

Publication Date: 2022-03-22

In narrative styles ranging from realistic to fantastic, they tell stories about...the anger, anxiety, fear, and bewilderment we feel in the era of COVID-19.
Graphic Medicine Manifesto by M. K. Czerwiec; Ian Williams; Susan Merrill Squier; Michael J. Green; Kimberly R. Myers; Scott T. Smith
ISBN: 9780271066493

Publication Date: 2015-05-15

This inaugural volume in the Graphic Medicine series establishes the principles of graphic medicine and begins to map the field.
Graphic Public Health by Meredith Li-Vollmer
ISBN: 9780271093253

Publication Date: 2022-06-07

Practical and purposeful, Graphic Public Health is a clarion call for the current era and an invaluable resource for public health professionals and advocates, scholars of comics and graphic studies, and fans of the graphic medicine genre.
Graphic Reproduction by Jenell Johnson (Editor); Susan Merrill Squier (Afterword by)
ISBN: 9780271080949

Publication Date: 2018-05-02

This comics anthology delves deeply into the messy and often taboo subject of human reproduction.
Kid Gloves by Lucy Knisley (Illustrator)
ISBN: 9781626728080

Publication Date: 2019-02-26

Whether you've got kids, want them, or want nothing to do with them, there's something in this graphic memoir to open your mind and heart.
The Lady Doctor by Ian Williams
ISBN: 9780271083742

Publication Date: 2019-02-18

The Lady Doctor shows that life and work in the medical field can be anything but clinical, and that even the most talented of professionals have wildly unexpected bad days.
Marbles by Ellen Forney
ISBN: 9781592407323

Publication Date: 2012-11-06

Cartoonist Ellen Forney explores the relationship between "crazy" and "creative" in this graphic memoir of her bipolar disorder, woven with stories of famous bipolar artists and writers.
Medcomic by Jorge Muniz
ISBN: 9780996651387

Publication Date: 2018-03-01

The third edition of Medcomic contains the latest collection of Jorge Muniz's world-famous educational cartoons Medcomic channels the creativity of cartoons into the field of medicine to make learning medical concepts entertaining and fun.
Neurocomic by Hana Ros; Matteo Farinella (Illustrator)
ISBN: 9781913123086

Publication Date: 2022-09-20

Neurocomic is a journey through the human brain: a place of neuron forests, memory caves, and castles of deception... Hana Ros and Matteo Farinella provide an insight into the most complex thing in the universe.
One Year Wiser by Mike Medaglia
ISBN: 9781910593387

Publication Date: 2017-10-24

This smart, accessible, and beautifully illustrated guide will help readers master the art of living mindfully. Try it--and live a healthier, happier life.
Raised on Ritalin by Tyler Page
ISBN: 9780972080163

Publication Date: 2016-09-01

This is a chance for readers to experience what it is like to be diagnosed and treated for ADD and ADHD and all of the questions and issues that can raise.
Rx by Rachel Lindsay
ISBN: 9781455598540

Publication Date: 2018-09-04

A graphic memoir about the treatment of mental illness and treating mental illness as a commodity.
Stitches by David Small
ISBN: 9780393068573

Publication Date: 2009-09-08

One day David Small awoke from a supposedly harmless operation to discover that he had been transformed into a virtual mute.Recalling Running with Scissors with its ability to evoke the trauma of a childhood lost, Stitches will transform adolescent and adult readers alike with its deeply liberating vision.
Taking Turns by M. K. Czerwiec (Preface by)
ISBN: 1637790074

Publication Date: 2021-11-16

Deeply personal yet made up of many voices, this history of daily life in a unique AIDS care unit is an open, honest look at suffering, grief, and hope among a community of medical professionals and patients at the heart of the epidemic.
Tangles by Sarah Leavitt
ISBN: 9781616086398

Publication Date: 2012-05-01

Sarah Leavitt reveals how Alzheimer's disease transformed her mother, Midge, and her family forever.
Things to Do in a Retirement Home Trailer Park ... When You're 29 and Unemployed by Aneurin Wright
ISBN: 9781908434104

Publication Date: 2008-01-18

Nye's father has been certified for hospice care, but Nye would rather move into his father's trailer and take care of him himself. In this masterful, graphic portrayal of a father and son dealing with home care, Wright's mastery allows the reader to witness the deepest emotions on many levels, where what is said is only half the story.

Webcomics

There are several "Web Comics" that are available for viewing. Some are linked within the Graphic Medicine website, others are independently published. Below are a few resources that you can peruse for graphic medicine comics curated by discipline or topic.

Annals Graphic Medicine
A collection of "original graphic narratives, comics, animation/feature, and other creative forms by those who provide or receive health care." From the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Graphic Medicine Webcomics
The Graphic Medicine Collective's archive of available webcomics.
It Takes a Village
Comic available for download from the Indigenous Story Studio.
Musings with Meg, MD
The IG account for Dr. Meagan Shinbashi, VCU School of Medicine alum, 2023.
The Nib
An online comic publication focusing on sociocultural and political topics (including the intersection of politics and healthcare).
Penn State: Collection of Graphic Narratives
"A collection of graphic stories by fourth-year medical students at Penn State College of Medicine."
Preparedness 101: Zombie Pandemic
A 2012 comic available for download from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.