Those who recognise the power of comics beyond superheroes, who enjoy their capacity to emotionally overwhelm and powerfully persuade, have probably already read Maus by Art Spiegelman. A landmark graphic novel, it portrays an astonishing and utterly moving true story of one family’s struggle to survive through world war 2 and the Auschwitz prison camp. For me it transcends history better than any story I’ve come across in any media, in bringing home the intensity of events that happened during the lifetime of many people alive today.
Barefoot Gen is another gripping attempt to help us remember another aspect of world war 2 – the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, ,in this case a manga novel written by Keiji Nakazawa, loosely based on his own experiences as a survivor of the atomic horrors. ( Two animated films were based on the manga : Barefoot Gen & Barefoot Gen 2 )
Probably the most deserving of the comic-journalist title, Joe Sacco has made extensive comics about his experiences in war zones, outlining in very human detail his interactions with locals, against a contextual backdrop filled with historical background. Try fantagraphics.com for his books : Palestine, The Fixer: A Story from Sarajevo, War’s End: Profiles from Bosnia 1995-6 & more.