''Incognegro'' is a black-and-white

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

written by

Mat Johnson Mat Johnson (born August 19, 1970, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American fiction writer who works in both prose and the comics format. In 2007, he was named the first USA James Baldwin Fellow by United States Artists. Life and career Jo ...

with art by

Warren Pleece Warren Pleece is a British comics artist. He is best known for his work at the DC Comics imprint Vertigo and the 2012–16 Irish novel series '' Zom-B''. Biography Warren, with his brother Gary Pleece, wrote and drew three issues of a self-pub ...

. It was published by

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

imprint

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition in which a person has the sensation that they are moving, or that objects around them are moving, when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, perspira ...

Publication history

The book was published by

in February 2008 as a hardcover () and in June 2009 as a softcover volume ().

Titan Books Titan Publishing Group is the publishing division of the British entertainment company Titan Entertainment, which was established as Titan Books in 1981. The books division has two main areas of publishing: film and television tie-ins and cine ...

also released British versions, the softcover in June 2009 () and the hardcover in August of the same year (). The author,

, is an African-American who, due to his light skin, was able to be perceived as a white person. As a child he played games where he pretended to be an undercover black person investigating white hate crimes against blacks. He learned that Walter White, who served as the chief executive of the

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du&nbs ...

(NAACP), pretended to be a white person in order to investigate lynchings. In addition, he received inspiration from the birth of his twins in 2005, one of whom appears white and the other appears black.Gustines, George Gene.
Black and White and Graphic All Over: A 1930s Tale of Race, Passing and Pain
. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. March 3, 2008. Retrieved on April 30, 2013.

Plot synopsis

Zane Pinchback is a reporter for a black newspaper in the early 1930s New York City. He has built his career investigating lynchings while undercover as a white person, as he is light-skinned enough to pass for white. He is about to retire, but then fate intervenes as his brother is charged with the brutal murder of a white woman in Mississippi. Fearing that his brother will be lynched before given a chance to clear his name, Zane decides to go on one final investigation to free him, and brings along a friend who hopes to assume his job after he retires.

Characters

* Zane Pinchback is an undercover reporter for the fictional black-owned newspaper ''The New Holland Herald'' newspaper based out of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He takes undercover missions into the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

to investigate lynchings which are ignored by newspapers owned by

White Americans White Americans (sometimes also called Caucasian Americans) are Americans who identify as white people. In a more official sense, the United States Census Bureau, which collects demographic data on Americans, defines "white" as " person hav ...

. Zane decides to quit these missions in favor of doing work based on the

Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African-American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics, and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the ti ...

but his editor asks him to take one more mission into

Tupelo, Mississippi Tupelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1860, the population was 37,923 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, 7th-most populous ...

. George Gene Gustines of ''

'' described Zane as a "confident charmer". * Carl is Zane's friend, who accompanies him in his mission to Mississippi. During his mission he pretends to be a baron from Europe. Gustines described Carl as "cocky and confrontational" and that "though his style ultimately lands him in dire trouble, Carl's method of jumping into the thick of things generates almost as much information as Zane’s restraint". * Alonzo Pinchback is Zane's twin brother, who was accused of murdering Michaela Mathers, a local White woman. Alonzo, Michaela's boyfriend, had set up an illegal

moonshine Moonshine is alcohol proof, high-proof liquor, traditionally made or distributed alcohol law, illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of distilling the alcohol (drug), alcohol at night to avoid detection. In the first decades of the ...

business with her. Gustines said that Alonzo "presumably has darker skin" than Zane. In the book, two characters see a resemblance between Alonzo and Zane only after being told that the two men are brothers.

Reception

The book has received positive reviews in ''

'', ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

'', and ''

Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

''.Caron, p
144
George Gene Gustines of ''The New York Times'' wrote that ''Incognegro'' "proudly exemplifies the graphic novel". Nisi Shawl of the ''Seattle Times'' wrote that "with its savvy comments on racial politics and privilege, ''Incognegro'' is a valiant and successful effort to redeem the past without rewriting it". Charles Solomon of the ''San Francisco Chronicle'' wrote that ''Incognegro''' "portrayal of a savage chapter in the history of race relations in the United States reflects the growing diversity and maturity of the graphic novel". Tim Caron, author of "Representing Race in ''Incognegro'': A Graphic Mystery", wrote that the book is perceived as discussing race with little public attention on its other themes and that the reviews discussed the racial "passing" but not the woman's "passing" as a man.

Prequel

A prequel series ''Incognegro: Renaissance'', also written by Mat Johnson, was published by Berger Books (imprint of

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, manga and Artist's book, art book publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon, by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, O ...

) from February to June 2018. A hardcover collection of the series was published in October of the same year.

References

* Caron, Tim. "Representing Race in ''Incognegro'': A Graphic Mystery". In: Costello, Brannon and Qiana J. Whitted (editors). ''Comics and the U.S. South''.

University Press of Mississippi The University Press of Mississippi (UPM), founded in 1970, is a university press that is sponsored by the eight state universities in Mississippi (i.e., Alcorn State University, Delta State University, Jackson State University, Mississippi Sta ...

, 2012. , 9781617030192.

Notes

External links

''Incognegro'' on Vertigo

''Incognegro'' on Comics Worth Reading
{{Mat Johnson 2008 non-fiction books 2008 comics debuts 2008 graphic novels Vertigo Comics graphic novels Mystery comics African-American comics Novels by Mat Johnson Graphic novels set in the 1930s Graphic novels set in New York City Graphic novels about race and ethnicity Graphic novels about racism Graphic novels set in the United States