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Holler: A Graphic Memoir of Rural Resistance
An "important piece of activist art", this beautiful graphic memoir tells the story of six hopeful activists in Appalachia who had the courage to resist against a threat to their community (Margaret Killjoy).
Drawing from original interviews with the author, Holler is an illustrated look at six inspiring changemakers. Denali Nalamalapu, a climate organizer in their own right, introduces readers to the ordinary people who became resisters of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a project that spans approximately 300 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia—a teacher, a single mother, a nurse, an organizer, a photographer, and a seed keeper.
In West Virginia, Becky Crabtree, grandmother of five, chains herself to her 1970s Ford Pinto to stop construction from destroying her farm. Farther south, in Virginia, young organizer Michael James-Deramo organizes mutual aid to support community members showing up to protest the pipeline expansion. These (and more) are the stories of everyday resistance that show what difference we can make when we stand up for what we love, and stand together in community. When the world tells these resisters to sit down and back off, they refuse to give up.
More than anything, Holler is an invitation to readers everywhere searching for their own path to sending the message that no matter how small your action is, it’s impactful. The story of the Mountain Valley Pipeline is one we can all relate to, as each and every one of our communities faces the increasing threats of the climate crisis, and the corporations that benefit from the destruction of our natural resources. Holler is a moving and deeply accessible—and beautifully visual—story about change, hope, and humanity.
Drawing from original interviews with the author, Holler is an illustrated look at six inspiring changemakers. Denali Nalamalapu, a climate organizer in their own right, introduces readers to the ordinary people who became resisters of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a project that spans approximately 300 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia—a teacher, a single mother, a nurse, an organizer, a photographer, and a seed keeper.
In West Virginia, Becky Crabtree, grandmother of five, chains herself to her 1970s Ford Pinto to stop construction from destroying her farm. Farther south, in Virginia, young organizer Michael James-Deramo organizes mutual aid to support community members showing up to protest the pipeline expansion. These (and more) are the stories of everyday resistance that show what difference we can make when we stand up for what we love, and stand together in community. When the world tells these resisters to sit down and back off, they refuse to give up.
More than anything, Holler is an invitation to readers everywhere searching for their own path to sending the message that no matter how small your action is, it’s impactful. The story of the Mountain Valley Pipeline is one we can all relate to, as each and every one of our communities faces the increasing threats of the climate crisis, and the corporations that benefit from the destruction of our natural resources. Holler is a moving and deeply accessible—and beautifully visual—story about change, hope, and humanity.
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First published May 13, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews
July 1, 2025
This review published in the Charleston (WV) Gazette Mail Saturday/Sunday June 28/29, 2025.
HOLLER by Denali Sai Nalamalapu, Timber Press, 177 pages.
This graphic novel features six ordinary people turned activists who objected to the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
For those who don’t know (and that included me until I read this book,) the pipeline spans approximately 300 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia, with the ultimate goal lan being to extend it into North Carolina.
The six subjects include a teacher, a single mother, a nurse, an organizer, a photographer and a seed keeper - two of whom are from West Virginia.
The pipeline was first proposed in 2014, and the goal was completion by 2018. But, you know, it was the government, so construction actually began in 2018.
Becky Crabtree, a grandmother of five from Monroe County realized the pipeline would essentially destroy her family sheep farm. She attempted to use the court system and pleaded with fossil fuel advocates to stop it but nothing worked.
Frustrated with the inaction, she protested by setting up a blockade on her property and by chaining herself to her 1971 Pinto. She was, of course, arrested.
Since then, she has stated that most of her sheep died and those that survived were barren. She notes that environmental activists warned that construction and implementation of the pipeline would disturb the soil, causing runoff and flooding which can dump contaminants into aquifers.
Ultimately, the charges against Crabtree were dismissed. Crabtree is a science teacher at James Monroe High School in Lindside, West Virginia. Part of her curriculum is teaching her students about the environment, including the historical facts about the extraction industry in West Virginia, which she claims has left the state’s citizens “sick and poor.” She hopes that giving her students this information will make them more likely to defend the environment.
Paula Mann and her husband attended an informational meeting before pipeline work began, as they realized it would likely go through their land. Mann, a photographer from Monroe County, began documenting the dangers of the pipeline, like the landslide-prone areas that might ultimately lead to an explosion. She, too, noted the potential damage to the aquifers and pointed out that the pipeline went straight through the Jefferson National Forest.
She used her photographs to inform the public, but also presented them to the Forest Service.
In 2019, the federal government ordered MVP to stop construction when the company lost key permits due to continuing environmental concerns. In May 2022, the completion date was pushed to 2023 and the cost of the project was increased from $3.7 billion to $6.6 billion.
The stalled project received a lifeline when Wedt Virginia Senator Joe Manchin agreed to vote for President Joe Biden’s climate bill if Biden and Democratic leadership would fast-track the pipeline. The deal was struck, despite protests, and in June 2024 the pipeline began pumping oil.
Becky Crabtree acknowledges the battle was lost, but says standing up gave her “hope” for the future.
Though the subject matter is grave, the graphic novel format helps Nalamalapu focus on the spirit of the activists and it also makes it accessible to all ages: the book would be a great way to introduce older children to issues about the environment and how regular people can make a difference.
HOLLER by Denali Sai Nalamalapu, Timber Press, 177 pages.
This graphic novel features six ordinary people turned activists who objected to the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
For those who don’t know (and that included me until I read this book,) the pipeline spans approximately 300 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia, with the ultimate goal lan being to extend it into North Carolina.
The six subjects include a teacher, a single mother, a nurse, an organizer, a photographer and a seed keeper - two of whom are from West Virginia.
The pipeline was first proposed in 2014, and the goal was completion by 2018. But, you know, it was the government, so construction actually began in 2018.
Becky Crabtree, a grandmother of five from Monroe County realized the pipeline would essentially destroy her family sheep farm. She attempted to use the court system and pleaded with fossil fuel advocates to stop it but nothing worked.
Frustrated with the inaction, she protested by setting up a blockade on her property and by chaining herself to her 1971 Pinto. She was, of course, arrested.
Since then, she has stated that most of her sheep died and those that survived were barren. She notes that environmental activists warned that construction and implementation of the pipeline would disturb the soil, causing runoff and flooding which can dump contaminants into aquifers.
Ultimately, the charges against Crabtree were dismissed. Crabtree is a science teacher at James Monroe High School in Lindside, West Virginia. Part of her curriculum is teaching her students about the environment, including the historical facts about the extraction industry in West Virginia, which she claims has left the state’s citizens “sick and poor.” She hopes that giving her students this information will make them more likely to defend the environment.
Paula Mann and her husband attended an informational meeting before pipeline work began, as they realized it would likely go through their land. Mann, a photographer from Monroe County, began documenting the dangers of the pipeline, like the landslide-prone areas that might ultimately lead to an explosion. She, too, noted the potential damage to the aquifers and pointed out that the pipeline went straight through the Jefferson National Forest.
She used her photographs to inform the public, but also presented them to the Forest Service.
In 2019, the federal government ordered MVP to stop construction when the company lost key permits due to continuing environmental concerns. In May 2022, the completion date was pushed to 2023 and the cost of the project was increased from $3.7 billion to $6.6 billion.
The stalled project received a lifeline when Wedt Virginia Senator Joe Manchin agreed to vote for President Joe Biden’s climate bill if Biden and Democratic leadership would fast-track the pipeline. The deal was struck, despite protests, and in June 2024 the pipeline began pumping oil.
Becky Crabtree acknowledges the battle was lost, but says standing up gave her “hope” for the future.
Though the subject matter is grave, the graphic novel format helps Nalamalapu focus on the spirit of the activists and it also makes it accessible to all ages: the book would be a great way to introduce older children to issues about the environment and how regular people can make a difference.
April 18, 2025
Holler is a graphic memoir featuring interviews with six people in Appalachia who protested against the installation of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. There are a wide array of ways to resist detailed here from picketing to mutual aid to chaining oneself to a car.
The artwork is decent and the stories are quite short. I wish they would've been a little longer. The narrative is very well written though and kept me fully engaged with each chapter. This is perfect for older teens on up to adults looking to get into activism.
My thanks to Timber Press, the author, and NetGalley for gifting me a digital copy of this book. My opinions are my own.
Releases May 13, 2025
The artwork is decent and the stories are quite short. I wish they would've been a little longer. The narrative is very well written though and kept me fully engaged with each chapter. This is perfect for older teens on up to adults looking to get into activism.
My thanks to Timber Press, the author, and NetGalley for gifting me a digital copy of this book. My opinions are my own.
Releases May 13, 2025
August 13, 2025
Another graphic novel that shows how well this medium can adapt to telling a wide variety of stories, and not just those we traditionally associate with "comics."
HOLLER is a heartfelt, straightforwardly presented collection of interviews with people who worked to fight an enormous oil pipeline being constructed through Appalachia, threatening their homes, health, and livelihoods. It's also a sobering and realistic meditation on the fact that even when we have truth on our side and we fight as hard as we can, we don't always win against the moneyed forces that call the shots in our government. That doesn't mean that we do nothing, however, as the brave individuals in this book demonstrate.
HOLLER is a heartfelt, straightforwardly presented collection of interviews with people who worked to fight an enormous oil pipeline being constructed through Appalachia, threatening their homes, health, and livelihoods. It's also a sobering and realistic meditation on the fact that even when we have truth on our side and we fight as hard as we can, we don't always win against the moneyed forces that call the shots in our government. That doesn't mean that we do nothing, however, as the brave individuals in this book demonstrate.
April 25, 2025
I received an ARC through NetGalley for an honest review
As soon as I saw this I was incredibly excited to get into it as it very much speaks to my own passions.
Holler is essentially a graphic novel documentary told through the history and experience of the creator, Denali Sai Nalamalapu, and a diverse group of six others who have different experiences and connections to the land and nature that the MVP pipeline is destroying.
This is a truly charming, informative, entertaining, envigorating, and infuriating (complimentary) comic that tells a very human and heartbreaking story of greed and ignorance of capital and those in power, all the way to the President of United States (if anyone was still in doubt about the evils of those in authority, regardless how banal). Beyond climate disaster and economical and political greed and corruption, it discusses systemic inequality, racism, and the power of community; what we can do when we stand together against oppression and destruction.
I absolutely adored this and cannot recommend it more strongly!
As soon as I saw this I was incredibly excited to get into it as it very much speaks to my own passions.
Holler is essentially a graphic novel documentary told through the history and experience of the creator, Denali Sai Nalamalapu, and a diverse group of six others who have different experiences and connections to the land and nature that the MVP pipeline is destroying.
This is a truly charming, informative, entertaining, envigorating, and infuriating (complimentary) comic that tells a very human and heartbreaking story of greed and ignorance of capital and those in power, all the way to the President of United States (if anyone was still in doubt about the evils of those in authority, regardless how banal). Beyond climate disaster and economical and political greed and corruption, it discusses systemic inequality, racism, and the power of community; what we can do when we stand together against oppression and destruction.
I absolutely adored this and cannot recommend it more strongly!
March 10, 2025
This features shortened versions of interviews conducted by the author. They introduce the overarching issue—the Mountain Valley Pipeline project & the destruction of natural resources—then they speak with six people who have worked to save their Appalachian communities & the land they grew up on/live on.
I loved the graphic format of the interviews & how the artwork was simple enough to not overshadow the important message, yet detailed enough to show the beauty of the natural lands. I have never been to Appalachia, but I grew up in “the natural state” of Arkansas, so I felt connected to these activists who have worked to protect their natural surroundings from environmental injustice.
While I think the graphic novel could have been longer overall, I still learned a lot & I was inspired by these wonderful, regular people standing up to the powerful, greedy politicians & corporations responsible for dangerous, destructive projects. This is a quick, educational, & moving read that I think is accessible to all ages. Everyone everywhere can learn something from this.
It shows us that when we stand up for what we believe in, together, we can & will make a difference—no matter how small or how hopeless it may seem!
Many thanks to NetGalley & to Timber Press for this e-ARC!
I loved the graphic format of the interviews & how the artwork was simple enough to not overshadow the important message, yet detailed enough to show the beauty of the natural lands. I have never been to Appalachia, but I grew up in “the natural state” of Arkansas, so I felt connected to these activists who have worked to protect their natural surroundings from environmental injustice.
While I think the graphic novel could have been longer overall, I still learned a lot & I was inspired by these wonderful, regular people standing up to the powerful, greedy politicians & corporations responsible for dangerous, destructive projects. This is a quick, educational, & moving read that I think is accessible to all ages. Everyone everywhere can learn something from this.
It shows us that when we stand up for what we believe in, together, we can & will make a difference—no matter how small or how hopeless it may seem!
Many thanks to NetGalley & to Timber Press for this e-ARC!
March 27, 2025
I didn't know what a holler was when I started reading this. I knew that holler meant to shout, and it fit for the book's message and contents, but when I got to the end and realized that holler is also an Appalachian term, I appreciated the complexity of the title even more. I looked it up and found that it's the Appalachian English way of saying "hollow," and it refers to the valleys and hollows of the Appalachian region where people live. The way Nalamalapu uses it as her title connects to both meanings, and I really appreciate that.
I chose to read this book after seeing it in a NetGalley email because I love ideas of resistance and rebellion, and I also find the Appalachian region fascinating. Things like the Mountain Valley Pipeline really frustrate me although I'm not an active resister by any means. I also liked the idea that this is in a graphic novel form and approachable for young adults. I read it partially because I wondered if I could use it for Children's Literature.
I did enjoy the book. It's a quick, easy read, and I learned a lot from it. It's structured with Nalamalapu as the narrator and also the interviewer. It's broken up into 7 parts, the intro explaining the author's interest in resisting the MVP and resistance against injustice in general, the 5 interviews she conducts with people from Appalachia who fought against the MVP, and then, the conclusion, urging her readers to step up. The interviews are great, but the narrator's summary after each one is overly didactic. If this is intended for YA readers, it's way too manipulative. There are even questions, like "Shouldn't you want to do this and that if you see this and that?" I just don't like the way each section ends and how the intentions feel very pushy. The conclusion is even more that way, and it's way too much, especially in a book for YA readers. If people don't read about this and want to do something about the way things are, that's on them. They should feel that way naturally out of sympathy and empathy. I definitely can't use this for Children's Literature, too, because of the politics involved and the clear bias included as well. I'm not saying I disagree with the author, but I couldn't use it in a classroom.
All that being said, I got something out of the book, but there are strong aspects of it that rubbed me the wrong way. I really appreciate the thoughtfulness of the author's artwork and her obvious care and passion for the subject. Overall, I recommend it if you want to learn more about fighting against the powers that be, defending the earth against pollution, and Appalachia. Also, if you know someone who wants to do more or feels hopeless about the way things are, this book could be very encouraging.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this copy of the book!
I chose to read this book after seeing it in a NetGalley email because I love ideas of resistance and rebellion, and I also find the Appalachian region fascinating. Things like the Mountain Valley Pipeline really frustrate me although I'm not an active resister by any means. I also liked the idea that this is in a graphic novel form and approachable for young adults. I read it partially because I wondered if I could use it for Children's Literature.
I did enjoy the book. It's a quick, easy read, and I learned a lot from it. It's structured with Nalamalapu as the narrator and also the interviewer. It's broken up into 7 parts, the intro explaining the author's interest in resisting the MVP and resistance against injustice in general, the 5 interviews she conducts with people from Appalachia who fought against the MVP, and then, the conclusion, urging her readers to step up. The interviews are great, but the narrator's summary after each one is overly didactic. If this is intended for YA readers, it's way too manipulative. There are even questions, like "Shouldn't you want to do this and that if you see this and that?" I just don't like the way each section ends and how the intentions feel very pushy. The conclusion is even more that way, and it's way too much, especially in a book for YA readers. If people don't read about this and want to do something about the way things are, that's on them. They should feel that way naturally out of sympathy and empathy. I definitely can't use this for Children's Literature, too, because of the politics involved and the clear bias included as well. I'm not saying I disagree with the author, but I couldn't use it in a classroom.
All that being said, I got something out of the book, but there are strong aspects of it that rubbed me the wrong way. I really appreciate the thoughtfulness of the author's artwork and her obvious care and passion for the subject. Overall, I recommend it if you want to learn more about fighting against the powers that be, defending the earth against pollution, and Appalachia. Also, if you know someone who wants to do more or feels hopeless about the way things are, this book could be very encouraging.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this copy of the book!
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November 19, 2025This is one of Book Riot’s Best Books of 2025:
Denali Sai Nalamalapu, a climate activist, brings the story of the Mountain Valley Pipeline and the people who resisted it to vivid life. Spanning 300 miles through West Virginia and Virginia, the pipeline cut through farms and forests, devastating land. Nalamalapu spent hours with activists, organizing their experiences into six illustrated chapters. Each one depicts small but powerful acts of defiance, like Becky Crabtree chaining herself to her Bronco or Monacan seedkeeper Desirée Shelley preserving her community’s future. With its intimate storytelling, Holler shows how collective, everyday resistance can protect both land and hope.
- Kendra Winchester
Denali Sai Nalamalapu, a climate activist, brings the story of the Mountain Valley Pipeline and the people who resisted it to vivid life. Spanning 300 miles through West Virginia and Virginia, the pipeline cut through farms and forests, devastating land. Nalamalapu spent hours with activists, organizing their experiences into six illustrated chapters. Each one depicts small but powerful acts of defiance, like Becky Crabtree chaining herself to her Bronco or Monacan seedkeeper Desirée Shelley preserving her community’s future. With its intimate storytelling, Holler shows how collective, everyday resistance can protect both land and hope.
- Kendra Winchester
March 5, 2025
This was a simple but to the point kind of graphic novel. It was inspiring even though it was a bit rushed.
I especially loved Paula’s interview/story.
I recommend this graphic novel if you like graphic novels and looking for something short. It releases on 5/13/2025.
I especially loved Paula’s interview/story.
I recommend this graphic novel if you like graphic novels and looking for something short. It releases on 5/13/2025.
December 23, 2024
Short but sweet. Profiles of folks leading the way in pipeline resistance in Applachia. Great artwork, important storytelling, but I did feel this fell short of being classified as a memoir.
December 30, 2025
This book is really good and important.
April 14, 2025
an effusive thank you to Timber Press and also NetGalley for the advanced digital copy of this super special graphic novel.
please pick this up on May 13, 2025 when it's pubbed!
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i have family in appalachia, so this was a very important read to me. but it was also an important read to me because i love this world and i hate what greed, both individual and corporate, has done to this country and this world.
this book features interviews with six activists that took on powerful voices to protest the mountain valley pipeline, which was existing only to enrich the rich, and being rammed through homes, beautiful lands that were subsequently destroyed by a lack of proper installation and absolutely no oversight or caring into the environments in which it was installed.
we've probably all seen on the news stories about protestors being arrested for fighting against pipelines, spun stories about how these pipelines will create labor, will save communities. here's the thing - press is only as good as the people that own it and the people that own it are the same rich people, corporate businessmen, and politicians that serve to gain from putting pipelines in. and in this world, decaying through environmental abuse and hatred, these people exist to serve only themselves and never people.
homes have been destroyed, habitats for animals have been obliterated. people have been hurt. this book made me furious.
i remember reading march, the graphic novel series that john lewis participated in creating prior to his death. he recounted how in the civil rights era they often created small comics and distributed them to the people as they found the graphic novel was a super accessible way to distribute critical information otherwise deplatformed or obfuscated by those it would critique. with that said, i loved the form these interviews took and will be heavily recommending this graphic novel loudly to anyone that listens.
please pick this up on May 13, 2025 when it's pubbed!
--
i have family in appalachia, so this was a very important read to me. but it was also an important read to me because i love this world and i hate what greed, both individual and corporate, has done to this country and this world.
this book features interviews with six activists that took on powerful voices to protest the mountain valley pipeline, which was existing only to enrich the rich, and being rammed through homes, beautiful lands that were subsequently destroyed by a lack of proper installation and absolutely no oversight or caring into the environments in which it was installed.
we've probably all seen on the news stories about protestors being arrested for fighting against pipelines, spun stories about how these pipelines will create labor, will save communities. here's the thing - press is only as good as the people that own it and the people that own it are the same rich people, corporate businessmen, and politicians that serve to gain from putting pipelines in. and in this world, decaying through environmental abuse and hatred, these people exist to serve only themselves and never people.
homes have been destroyed, habitats for animals have been obliterated. people have been hurt. this book made me furious.
i remember reading march, the graphic novel series that john lewis participated in creating prior to his death. he recounted how in the civil rights era they often created small comics and distributed them to the people as they found the graphic novel was a super accessible way to distribute critical information otherwise deplatformed or obfuscated by those it would critique. with that said, i loved the form these interviews took and will be heavily recommending this graphic novel loudly to anyone that listens.
November 9, 2025
A graphic memoir and oral history, Holler tells the story of grassroots rural resistance to the construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline through Appalachia.
Author and artist Denali Sai Nalamalapu lives in the area and is an activist against the construction of the MVP, and each chapter here highlights the work of different activists in their community who have fought tirelessly against the MVP. The perspectives range from landowners to single mothers, teachers to students to nurses. The book also features a much-needed Indigenous perspective. Each of the activists get into why they are doing what they're doing, the damage that the MVP has done and will do, and the types of activism they've engaged in (ranging from political activism to putting their bodies on the line in barricades). I knew tragically little about this pipeline before this book (I'm Canadian), but I'm incredibly grateful for the chance to learn about it and everyone working so hard to prevent it from impacting their lives, their community, and the land and water we all share. The book really drives home the importance of community, especially community that's rooted in place. It's inspirational reading that will give many readers ideas about how to engage in activism to protect their own communities. I honestly just wish it was longer. I wish it had the time to go more into detail, because I feel like this really just scratches the surface.
The art is lovely, especially the nature scenes that really drive home what's at stake.
Overall, Holler is an excellent book and one that I recommend for anyone who cares about the environment today, especially budding activists looking to get a better understanding of what's going on and how they can get involved.
Author and artist Denali Sai Nalamalapu lives in the area and is an activist against the construction of the MVP, and each chapter here highlights the work of different activists in their community who have fought tirelessly against the MVP. The perspectives range from landowners to single mothers, teachers to students to nurses. The book also features a much-needed Indigenous perspective. Each of the activists get into why they are doing what they're doing, the damage that the MVP has done and will do, and the types of activism they've engaged in (ranging from political activism to putting their bodies on the line in barricades). I knew tragically little about this pipeline before this book (I'm Canadian), but I'm incredibly grateful for the chance to learn about it and everyone working so hard to prevent it from impacting their lives, their community, and the land and water we all share. The book really drives home the importance of community, especially community that's rooted in place. It's inspirational reading that will give many readers ideas about how to engage in activism to protect their own communities. I honestly just wish it was longer. I wish it had the time to go more into detail, because I feel like this really just scratches the surface.
The art is lovely, especially the nature scenes that really drive home what's at stake.
Overall, Holler is an excellent book and one that I recommend for anyone who cares about the environment today, especially budding activists looking to get a better understanding of what's going on and how they can get involved.
March 14, 2025
Holler* is a graphic novel depicting short bursts of interviews with individuals impacted by the MVP (Mountain Valley Pipeline) in the Appalachian Mountains. I’ll say first hand that I had never heard of the MVP and I can only imagine how devastating it must be to have your home put at risk and feel unheard.
This is a powerful read and one I will purchase to read to my little one when she’s bigger. I love powerful women, and I love graphic novels!
*Netgalley ARC
This is a powerful read and one I will purchase to read to my little one when she’s bigger. I love powerful women, and I love graphic novels!
*Netgalley ARC
May 31, 2025
This was just okay. The different stories felt disjointed and didn't flow well together. The message of "doing a small part still goes a long way" feels like it gets lost by the end. I like how this was meant to get the word out about environmental activism, but I feel like it could have been done in a better way.
September 3, 2025
"...for generations rich people have robbed us of our resources and left us sick and poor..." 85
"Capitalism prioritizes economic growth from resource extraction at the expense of people and the planet's health." 125
"If you're not connected to the land you live on, you might not fight as hard to protect it." 143
"Capitalism prioritizes economic growth from resource extraction at the expense of people and the planet's health." 125
"If you're not connected to the land you live on, you might not fight as hard to protect it." 143
July 26, 2025
3.5 great message but lacks cohesion, at the end of each chapter the author emerges in graphic form to sum up each person's perspective but I wish it had been in their words instead. love the place-based grounding message.
October 6, 2025
"Capitalism prioritizes economic growth from resource extraction at the expense of people and the planet's health."
October 16, 2025
Denali demonstrates her dedication to environmental justice through this graphic novel adaptation of interviews she had done with activists. Inspiring people all around.
October 18, 2025
really adored this. was maybe wanting it to dig a little deeper into some of these stories, but its quick pace allows it to make an empathetic and accessible appeal for caring about our land.
October 10, 2025
Short but special. It's exciting to watch as nonfiction continues to move its way into graphic novel territory.
July 9, 2025
A graphic novel about the activism efforts of 6 people involved with protests and efforts to stop the Mountain Valley Pipeline. This was just too simplistic to me and didn't have a lot of substance other than the short stories of the 6 people and the author. This could have been a blog post.
August 12, 2025
2 stars is harsh, maybe I’d go 2.5. I had high hopes for this book since it’s journalistic and about environmental justice activism. The illustrations were cute but honestly it felt a little shallow. Like just when we were getting to know each character, their section ended. This book barely scratched the surface.
March 2, 2025
I’m glad to have read this brief (< 1 hour read) graphic novel, as I feel like I know a lot more about something I wasn’t aware of previously. I think that’s probably the purpose of writing a collection like this, so Nalamalapu definitely achieved her goal of spreading awareness about MVP 👍 I think the only thing detracting from the book overall is the author’s little summaries at the end of each chapter; the activists’ words speak powerfully for themselves without addition.
Thank you to NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest and fair review 💕
Thank you to NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest and fair review 💕
July 4, 2025
i think this would be an important book for someone young or someone just getting into climate activism. felt kind of surface level & preachy
February 2, 2025
Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I picked this up because the topic sounded interesting and relevant, and I really appreciated the diversity of voices the author included. Unfortunately, the book ended up disappointing me. It felt shallow and not very informative, repeating the same cliché statements (yes, fossil fuels are bad; yes, racism is a huge problem; yes, the greed of a few hurts many). While I respect the effort that went into the interviews, this one just didn’t work for me.
I picked this up because the topic sounded interesting and relevant, and I really appreciated the diversity of voices the author included. Unfortunately, the book ended up disappointing me. It felt shallow and not very informative, repeating the same cliché statements (yes, fossil fuels are bad; yes, racism is a huge problem; yes, the greed of a few hurts many). While I respect the effort that went into the interviews, this one just didn’t work for me.
June 25, 2025
This collection of interviews presented in a quick-read graphic novel format shares the variety of people and perspectives who came together with one goal: to stop the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) from destroying the land they love.
I had not heard of the pipeline or how coal baron Senator Manchin said he would sign climate change legislation IF the democrats rubber stamped the MVP project. Well, Manchin and the fossil fuel companies got what they wanted and the climate change legislation never happened so instead a bunch of Appalachians got screwed for generations.
The pipeline effected so many different people: people who care about the forests being chopped down, their family farm being bisected and flooded by the pipeline, Indigenous burial grounds being run through, the safety of the aquifers that supply the county with water being ignored, the Jefferson National Forest not even considered, nurses who know that an explosion will vaporize people and cause people for miles to have to be evacuated… etc.
The pipeline effects the communities it crosses, the one positive being that it’s bringing people together whose paths might not have crossed otherwise 🤪, but it is also hurting the world on a larger scale:
-Methane will leak from the pipeline and increase greenhouse gases.
-The pipeline company is responsible for one of the biggest climate disasters of 2022 by gassing a Pennsylvania town for weeks with methane and has received hundreds of violations, yet continues to operate.
-The pipeline is being built in a seismically active zone (earthquakes, landslides, steep slopes, highways, etc.) where a breach is more likely to occur.
-Millions are becoming ill and dying because of climate change and more will suffer, yet the government continues to support and subsidize fossil fuels which are causing the crisis.
So, this is a sad story because most of the people’s concerns were ignored, the land was destroyed, graves desecrated, farms ruined—the pipeline was built and no climate change legislation happened.
It’s depressing, but when the oil companies and the government “meet your gaze and hiss, ‘sit down, shut up, give up!’ you have to smile and say, NO!”
I had not heard of the pipeline or how coal baron Senator Manchin said he would sign climate change legislation IF the democrats rubber stamped the MVP project. Well, Manchin and the fossil fuel companies got what they wanted and the climate change legislation never happened so instead a bunch of Appalachians got screwed for generations.
The pipeline effected so many different people: people who care about the forests being chopped down, their family farm being bisected and flooded by the pipeline, Indigenous burial grounds being run through, the safety of the aquifers that supply the county with water being ignored, the Jefferson National Forest not even considered, nurses who know that an explosion will vaporize people and cause people for miles to have to be evacuated… etc.
The pipeline effects the communities it crosses, the one positive being that it’s bringing people together whose paths might not have crossed otherwise 🤪, but it is also hurting the world on a larger scale:
-Methane will leak from the pipeline and increase greenhouse gases.
-The pipeline company is responsible for one of the biggest climate disasters of 2022 by gassing a Pennsylvania town for weeks with methane and has received hundreds of violations, yet continues to operate.
-The pipeline is being built in a seismically active zone (earthquakes, landslides, steep slopes, highways, etc.) where a breach is more likely to occur.
-Millions are becoming ill and dying because of climate change and more will suffer, yet the government continues to support and subsidize fossil fuels which are causing the crisis.
So, this is a sad story because most of the people’s concerns were ignored, the land was destroyed, graves desecrated, farms ruined—the pipeline was built and no climate change legislation happened.
It’s depressing, but when the oil companies and the government “meet your gaze and hiss, ‘sit down, shut up, give up!’ you have to smile and say, NO!”
March 12, 2025
As someone who grew up near Appalachia and spent summers, birthdays, holidays, and every spare moment in East Tennessee and rural Alabama, my heart has always resided in the hollers and mountains of my ancestors. Holler does a beautiful job of concisely communicating these mountains' ancestral power and the importance of place in regard to culture and resistance to white supremacy.
As Americans (especially those of us who are white), we are often disconnected from "place" and from the ways the land sustains our lives. Holler helps readers reconnect to the importance of the land as a symbiotic entity inextricable from our survival. It demonstrates how to resist corporate greed, white supremacy, and a loss of connection to community. We must notice what is wrong, speak up, get involved in our local communities, and bring attention to the problems that plague our sacred land sites if we want to retain our agency in this world.
I thought Holler had endearing artwork that underpinned the passion and urgency required to preserve and protect everything that makes human life worth living. The different interviews and viewpoints featured in the book demonstrated the unique ways each person can contribute to resistance while keeping the values of community and connection at the center. As a life-long lover of Appalachia, I think Holler is a lovely snapshot of the problems working class people and people of color are facing and the many ways activism can manifest. I think it should be required reading in schools!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers at Timber Press for sending me an e-ARC! This book is short enough to be accessible to most people, but it is powerful enough to impart a message that readers will be thinking about long after they close its pages.
As Americans (especially those of us who are white), we are often disconnected from "place" and from the ways the land sustains our lives. Holler helps readers reconnect to the importance of the land as a symbiotic entity inextricable from our survival. It demonstrates how to resist corporate greed, white supremacy, and a loss of connection to community. We must notice what is wrong, speak up, get involved in our local communities, and bring attention to the problems that plague our sacred land sites if we want to retain our agency in this world.
I thought Holler had endearing artwork that underpinned the passion and urgency required to preserve and protect everything that makes human life worth living. The different interviews and viewpoints featured in the book demonstrated the unique ways each person can contribute to resistance while keeping the values of community and connection at the center. As a life-long lover of Appalachia, I think Holler is a lovely snapshot of the problems working class people and people of color are facing and the many ways activism can manifest. I think it should be required reading in schools!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers at Timber Press for sending me an e-ARC! This book is short enough to be accessible to most people, but it is powerful enough to impart a message that readers will be thinking about long after they close its pages.
July 2, 2025
A book that with the speed and clarity of better graphic novels takes us through the objections to a gas pipeline across the Appalachian hills, or three states, mountains, destructive seismic zones, vital aquifers, virgin forests named after beloved people, indigenous burial sites, and all that sort of stuff.
After the introduction, each chapter has a monologue/interview with its subject, and the highly restricted palette of white and green plus one other changes that one other. So you have to ignore the fact the Blue Ridge Mountains are never blue, as everything is an ochre or orange – something that edge of the colour wheel.
What's harder to ignore, perhaps, is that this is still a memoir about the author – certainly chapters 2 and 5 are too short to really be effective, and with the conclusion being from our creator's point of view we see this as definitely something about their response to the pipeline, as opposed to the group biography it may seem to be claiming to be.
But at the same time the piece is effective – the way oil and coal money has backed this cockamamie idea to the hilt – and the way Biden's time in power really didn't change the enthusiasm for the project amongst its funders one little bit. You see here the hills looking the same at every portion of the line – and the scar of the pipe's track looks the same at every page-turn too. This clearly is a ruinously bad idea, and this book about it is a nice all-ages-friendly complaint. But I didn't think it as great as it might have been – three and a half stars. Its message is strong and valid beyond all doubt, its execution not quite matching.
After the introduction, each chapter has a monologue/interview with its subject, and the highly restricted palette of white and green plus one other changes that one other. So you have to ignore the fact the Blue Ridge Mountains are never blue, as everything is an ochre or orange – something that edge of the colour wheel.
What's harder to ignore, perhaps, is that this is still a memoir about the author – certainly chapters 2 and 5 are too short to really be effective, and with the conclusion being from our creator's point of view we see this as definitely something about their response to the pipeline, as opposed to the group biography it may seem to be claiming to be.
But at the same time the piece is effective – the way oil and coal money has backed this cockamamie idea to the hilt – and the way Biden's time in power really didn't change the enthusiasm for the project amongst its funders one little bit. You see here the hills looking the same at every portion of the line – and the scar of the pipe's track looks the same at every page-turn too. This clearly is a ruinously bad idea, and this book about it is a nice all-ages-friendly complaint. But I didn't think it as great as it might have been – three and a half stars. Its message is strong and valid beyond all doubt, its execution not quite matching.
March 2, 2025
Holler offers a diverse cross-section of rural perspectives that come together to begin, endure and continue the resistance against the Mountain Valley Pipeline that spans approximately 300 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia.
The timeline at the beginning of the book gives context for the proposal, key areas of the movement to oppose the construction, and the different forces that challenge the continued push for constructing the pipeline.
The subsequent chapters highlight different people who unite to illuminate the harmful impacts of such a pipeline. Featuring ordinary people with different skill sets and backgrounds is a delightful way to illustrate that movements are indeed composed of multiple ordinary human beings taking action over a common purpose. Although their stories differ, the style and color palette are consistent threads that weave throughout the book.
The last chapter breaks through the fourth wall and ask us, the readers, what we can do given our skills and situational contexts. This is a powerful way to wrap up the book, especially since the pipeline is still getting traction towards completion despite evidence of hazards due to the pipeline's existence.
Overall, this was an illuminating read that is the culmination of over a decade of collective action. If you are newly aware of this movement, this book is a great primer for you to be brought up to speed. If you are already aware of this movement, this book encapsulates the struggle in an accessible and concise manner. Definitely a recommended read!
The timeline at the beginning of the book gives context for the proposal, key areas of the movement to oppose the construction, and the different forces that challenge the continued push for constructing the pipeline.
The subsequent chapters highlight different people who unite to illuminate the harmful impacts of such a pipeline. Featuring ordinary people with different skill sets and backgrounds is a delightful way to illustrate that movements are indeed composed of multiple ordinary human beings taking action over a common purpose. Although their stories differ, the style and color palette are consistent threads that weave throughout the book.
The last chapter breaks through the fourth wall and ask us, the readers, what we can do given our skills and situational contexts. This is a powerful way to wrap up the book, especially since the pipeline is still getting traction towards completion despite evidence of hazards due to the pipeline's existence.
Overall, this was an illuminating read that is the culmination of over a decade of collective action. If you are newly aware of this movement, this book is a great primer for you to be brought up to speed. If you are already aware of this movement, this book encapsulates the struggle in an accessible and concise manner. Definitely a recommended read!
September 21, 2025
"Holler" is Appalachian dialect for a community living in a small valley, or hollow. It is community that is at the core of this new graphic novel.
This is an easy-to-read non-fiction account of environmental injustice, about how the Mountain Valley Pipeline, first proposed in 2014, is destroying both land and people. More importantly it portrays how people are fighting back.
There are six chapters in this book, each named for an activist. The chapters are interviews with each person. Some are older people, who grew up to cherish every nook and cranny in their mountain home. Women like Paula Mann, a West Virginia photographer, who remembers long walks with her mother through woods, identifying each plant.
"A part of the land is gone, and with it, a part of me," she says.
Then there's single mother Crystal Mello, long involved in anti-racist grassroots efforts, who joined the Yellow Finch Tree campaign, where people stop MVP construction by camping in tree houses.
Desirée Shelley, like author and illustrator Denali Sai Nalamalapu their self, wasn't born in Appalachia, but was deeply drawn to the land. An indigenous woman, she is fighting the pipeline so her children can celebrate their ancestral homeland.
This is an important piece of art, and a case study, about climate change, corporate greed and governmental indifference--and on how people power is pushing back.
Subtitled the story of a pipeline and the creation of a movement, Holler, a graphic memoir of rural resistance, is a story for exactly these times.
This is an easy-to-read non-fiction account of environmental injustice, about how the Mountain Valley Pipeline, first proposed in 2014, is destroying both land and people. More importantly it portrays how people are fighting back.
There are six chapters in this book, each named for an activist. The chapters are interviews with each person. Some are older people, who grew up to cherish every nook and cranny in their mountain home. Women like Paula Mann, a West Virginia photographer, who remembers long walks with her mother through woods, identifying each plant.
"A part of the land is gone, and with it, a part of me," she says.
Then there's single mother Crystal Mello, long involved in anti-racist grassroots efforts, who joined the Yellow Finch Tree campaign, where people stop MVP construction by camping in tree houses.
Desirée Shelley, like author and illustrator Denali Sai Nalamalapu their self, wasn't born in Appalachia, but was deeply drawn to the land. An indigenous woman, she is fighting the pipeline so her children can celebrate their ancestral homeland.
This is an important piece of art, and a case study, about climate change, corporate greed and governmental indifference--and on how people power is pushing back.
Subtitled the story of a pipeline and the creation of a movement, Holler, a graphic memoir of rural resistance, is a story for exactly these times.
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