Review: Fast Enough

Children“s books are a fantastic reminder for all of us about the essence of comic books. The best children“s books combine the wonder of visual storytelling driven by the engine of basic morality and humanity. Joel Christian Gill“s “Fast Enough: Bessie Stringfield“s First Ride,”“ (Lion Forge) will give you all of the nostalgic feels of the first time that you experienced the freedom of riding a bike.

Bessie Stringfield was the first Black woman to ride a motorcycle across these United States. But she did not start her riding days on anything motorized. She started like we all did ”“ riding a regular old bike. It is befitting that a children“s book, loosely based on her formative years, comes to us right at the onset of Black History Month 2019. Even if you are beyond the childhood stages, “Fast Enough”“ is a welcome distraction from the Blackface craze currently re-sweeping our nation.

Gill“s visual rendition of Stringfield is visually stunning. The young protagonist has BIG hair and a beautiful brown face. The story is a simple one with magnificent implications for history and our current realities. The young Bessie Stringfield is ostracized from her neighborhood“s bike-riding pastimes by boys who don“t think she is fast enough to keep up with them. You can probably figure out the rest of the story from here ”“ it is in fact history. But it resonates with Black History Month ”“ the ongoing narrative reminding America of the contributions made by African-Americans. BHM is shaping up to be an eternal struggle, one that requires as many well-crafted contributions as possible along the way. “Fast Enough”“ puts a bit of that work into our national memory and it does so with bright ebullient imagery that will engage young readers and/or the parents who read to their young ones.

Professor Gill has been shaping and bending the comic book form into educational curricula for some time now. His ”˜Tales of the Talented Tenth”“ and “Strange Fruit”“ Volumes 1 and 2 are essential reads and valuable selections for any American History collection designed for young readers. Gill has a knack for adapting Black History to the comic form, almost creating his own subgenre. His ability to excavate little-known narratives from our history and visually flash each story“s significance across the page is like a little bit of Black lightning in every book he produces. 4.5/5!

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(W) Joel Christian Gill (A/CA) Joel Christian Gill