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The Boondocks #1
The Boondocks: Because I Know You Don't Read the Newspaper
The Boondocks took the syndication world by storm. The notoriety landed Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder in publications ranging from Time magazine to People magazine which named him one of the "25 Most Intriguing People of '99." Centered around the experiences of two young African-American boys, Huey and Riley, who move from inner-city Chicago to the suburbs (or the "boondocks" to them), the strip fuses hip-hop sensibilities with Japanese anime-style drawings and a candid discussion of race. In this first collection of Boondocks cartoons, you'll discover the funny yet revealing combination of superb art and envelope-pushing content in one of the most unique strips ever.
128 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2000
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826 people want to read
About the author
Aaron McGruder
12 books165 followersAaron McGruder is an American cartoonist best known for writing and drawing The Boondocks, a Universal Press Syndicate comic strip about two young African American brothers from inner-city Chicago now living with their grandfather in a sedate suburb. Through the leftist Huey (named after Huey P. Newton) and his younger brother Riley, a young want-to-be gangsta, the strip explores issues involving African American culture and American politics.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 74 reviews
July 4, 2020
Witty and controversial with people from all over the political spectrum
I am a man of the right rather than the left. Aaron McGruder is definitely a man of the left. However, I like his work because what he really is, is a pretty honest and very funny observer of American culture and politics. I most certainly don't always agree with him. For instance I don't believe that George Bush had anything to do with the 9/11 attacks. I do believe that when McGruder made that charge, he honestly believed it. I would be very disappointed to discover that he was intellectually dishonest.
Here is some dialogue from a recent comic strip,
"I heard they're going to add bling-bling to the New Oxford English Dictionary."
"It appears our ultimate revenge against the white man will be to make him as ignorant as he has made us."
I wonder how many people and groups from all across the political spectrum that one annoyed.
I am a man of the right rather than the left. Aaron McGruder is definitely a man of the left. However, I like his work because what he really is, is a pretty honest and very funny observer of American culture and politics. I most certainly don't always agree with him. For instance I don't believe that George Bush had anything to do with the 9/11 attacks. I do believe that when McGruder made that charge, he honestly believed it. I would be very disappointed to discover that he was intellectually dishonest.
Here is some dialogue from a recent comic strip,
"I heard they're going to add bling-bling to the New Oxford English Dictionary."
"It appears our ultimate revenge against the white man will be to make him as ignorant as he has made us."
I wonder how many people and groups from all across the political spectrum that one annoyed.
September 26, 2010
SIX WORD REVIEW: A very dangerous cartoon, good sir.
July 11, 2012
The Boondocks is one of those creative ideas that have graced multiple broadcasting outlets. There’s the television show, the Sunday comic strip, and the novel. I was first introduced to them in the Sunday papers. I’ll admit I only looked at the pictures, happy that there’s a “brown people” cartoon. (Don’t judge me. Hey, we were all young and oblivious once.) I watched one episode of this television show back when it first aired. It was a big deal at the time in my neighborhood, because very few “all African American” portrayed cartoons were available. I absolutely despised Uncle Ruckus and the repeated use of the N-word. While there are episodes that are hilarious, I can’t help but wonder the morals behind the mockery. Recently a co-worker asked me if I’ve read the novels and offered to lend them to me. I was reluctant at first, but NOW I SEE! There is so much more then what’s on the surface.
This installment of the series combines all the segments from the Sunday Paper. The title says it all. I took an African American studies course in High School; and this is reminiscent of that. This author fuses the sociology of black people with comedy 101. He found a way to create a character that’s representation of the most common generalization of personality’s psychological mechanics. It’s funny and sad at the same time. Funny because I can see many people I know depicted in the mannerisms of the fictional characters. It sad because it chastises ALL RACES at the same time; Yet many view this comic as “just a black thing”. The Boondocks is political cartoon tackling issues on religion, social, current events, and self reflection. The brutal harsh comedy may turn people away from the real message, but without the voices and antics, the moral can be found in the novels. I don’t agree with every strip or every episode, but the bold & brave bravado tenacity begs to be recognized. I look forward to reading the next novel; because this is the kind of controversial stuff too frowned upon to air on television.
This installment of the series combines all the segments from the Sunday Paper. The title says it all. I took an African American studies course in High School; and this is reminiscent of that. This author fuses the sociology of black people with comedy 101. He found a way to create a character that’s representation of the most common generalization of personality’s psychological mechanics. It’s funny and sad at the same time. Funny because I can see many people I know depicted in the mannerisms of the fictional characters. It sad because it chastises ALL RACES at the same time; Yet many view this comic as “just a black thing”. The Boondocks is political cartoon tackling issues on religion, social, current events, and self reflection. The brutal harsh comedy may turn people away from the real message, but without the voices and antics, the moral can be found in the novels. I don’t agree with every strip or every episode, but the bold & brave bravado tenacity begs to be recognized. I look forward to reading the next novel; because this is the kind of controversial stuff too frowned upon to air on television.
August 16, 2022
Satire at its best
Oh how I miss the show. I thank my cousin for introducing me to the world of the Freemans. I've watched the series many times and when it went of the air completely, I purchased the complete series on dvd. This graphic novel is excellent. I laughed out loud many times. Huey, Riley and Granddad are hilarious. I'm so pleased to own this informative and yet amusing book.
Oh how I miss the show. I thank my cousin for introducing me to the world of the Freemans. I've watched the series many times and when it went of the air completely, I purchased the complete series on dvd. This graphic novel is excellent. I laughed out loud many times. Huey, Riley and Granddad are hilarious. I'm so pleased to own this informative and yet amusing book.
December 31, 2014
McGruder is an absolute genius, a fresh voice in as many frames and sub genres as you can put him - not afraid to say what is on his mind regardless of the stake of his image, brand, or position in any of the communities he seems to be a member of.
But perhaps what is most interesting about reading this book of strips again is their position in 2014. The collected works in this book are mainly from the beginning of Boondocks, where we are learning the characters and universe that they live in - a hyper-consumer pre-9/11, pre-Trayvon, pre-Ferguson America. It is shockingly accurate and shockingly brutal in its assessment of race, our education system, entertainment, values, and the variety of philosophies on all accounts. Simply put, when I first read these I was entertained and shocked at the material that I would find in the Boston Phoenix (or was it the Dig? Or which free publication?), but then today I recognize even more deeply its importance, its message, and the beauty of the almost naive approach to many of the issues that are surprisingly still dogging and terrorizing us around every corner in the United States. The eighteen year old me in 1999 would certainly not believe what I told him about what happened through 2014.
But his sharp and biting social satire is needed on the gigantic national scale that he has so desperately tried to perfect in creating the comic strip. Banned, revived, transmuted, ‘trans-mediaed,’ and remixed, his work is one of the most important and visionary works in revisiting, reinterpreting, and refining our culture from what it is into what it should be. The strips located in its pages do not hold anything back. Brilliant work by a fearless genius that holds up a decade and a half later.
But perhaps what is most interesting about reading this book of strips again is their position in 2014. The collected works in this book are mainly from the beginning of Boondocks, where we are learning the characters and universe that they live in - a hyper-consumer pre-9/11, pre-Trayvon, pre-Ferguson America. It is shockingly accurate and shockingly brutal in its assessment of race, our education system, entertainment, values, and the variety of philosophies on all accounts. Simply put, when I first read these I was entertained and shocked at the material that I would find in the Boston Phoenix (or was it the Dig? Or which free publication?), but then today I recognize even more deeply its importance, its message, and the beauty of the almost naive approach to many of the issues that are surprisingly still dogging and terrorizing us around every corner in the United States. The eighteen year old me in 1999 would certainly not believe what I told him about what happened through 2014.
But his sharp and biting social satire is needed on the gigantic national scale that he has so desperately tried to perfect in creating the comic strip. Banned, revived, transmuted, ‘trans-mediaed,’ and remixed, his work is one of the most important and visionary works in revisiting, reinterpreting, and refining our culture from what it is into what it should be. The strips located in its pages do not hold anything back. Brilliant work by a fearless genius that holds up a decade and a half later.
April 24, 2021
Aaron really out here doing the Lord's work😌😌
We love to see it!!
We love to see it!!
April 19, 2025
Wow just wow it’s so crazy how relatable this was for me and I’m not even African American.
I have been seeing the clips of the show The Boondocks on TikTok but I haven’t watched the show yet but that is going to change soon.
I love Huey , he is the character that I relate to the most , he is the character that acts true to himself not to any stereotypes/internalized racism that a lot of the the other characters have and it’s just crazy to think that he is only just 10 years old and has so much knowledge and stands for what he knows is right.
I honestly felt so bad for Jazmine I’m happy that she is trying to be friends with Huey because he is the only person being honest with her about her blackness. I’m so disappointed in her for making her thinking there is anything wrong with her hair and like suggesting burning it straight 🤨and even his obsession with white women even his wife’s obsession with black men and her telling people to call Jazmine “multiracial” instead of the black that she is.
I have a lot of things I could say about this book but it all boils down to this is a book I feel black people should give their kids to read and have discussions about . To teach them their roots especially African Americans who their culture and history is always erased to suit white supremacy.
I have been seeing the clips of the show The Boondocks on TikTok but I haven’t watched the show yet but that is going to change soon.
I love Huey , he is the character that I relate to the most , he is the character that acts true to himself not to any stereotypes/internalized racism that a lot of the the other characters have and it’s just crazy to think that he is only just 10 years old and has so much knowledge and stands for what he knows is right.
I honestly felt so bad for Jazmine I’m happy that she is trying to be friends with Huey because he is the only person being honest with her about her blackness. I’m so disappointed in her for making her thinking there is anything wrong with her hair and like suggesting burning it straight 🤨and even his obsession with white women even his wife’s obsession with black men and her telling people to call Jazmine “multiracial” instead of the black that she is.
I have a lot of things I could say about this book but it all boils down to this is a book I feel black people should give their kids to read and have discussions about . To teach them their roots especially African Americans who their culture and history is always erased to suit white supremacy.
January 20, 2020
Cindy, do you know if there were slaves in America during Independence Day?
I think there were... but then Will Smith you know, that black guy from “Wild, Wild West” He, like, killed the aliens and totally saved the day! So everything’s fine now.
I love reading books that piss off white people.
If you do too, look no further to this brilliant work of satire.
I started re-watching season one of the show on Hulu, so I was curious to see if the comic origins were merely drafts of episodes, or a refreshing complement to the show. It’s definitely the latter.
I think reading The Boondocks should be as popular and required to read as Calvin and Hobbes. Obviously, not for the same reasons, but as far as artistic integrity in the comic-strip medium goes: this is definitely up there.
Although the comic is more family-friendly, Aaron McGruder doesn’t dial the edginess back at all. The comic strips are even more politically charged than the show itself, which is a daunting accomplishment to say the least.
If you love the show, definitely check this out. If you don’t love the show, then you’re either stupid, white, or both (most likely both), but still, check this out.
A
I think there were... but then Will Smith you know, that black guy from “Wild, Wild West” He, like, killed the aliens and totally saved the day! So everything’s fine now.
I love reading books that piss off white people.
If you do too, look no further to this brilliant work of satire.
I started re-watching season one of the show on Hulu, so I was curious to see if the comic origins were merely drafts of episodes, or a refreshing complement to the show. It’s definitely the latter.
I think reading The Boondocks should be as popular and required to read as Calvin and Hobbes. Obviously, not for the same reasons, but as far as artistic integrity in the comic-strip medium goes: this is definitely up there.
Although the comic is more family-friendly, Aaron McGruder doesn’t dial the edginess back at all. The comic strips are even more politically charged than the show itself, which is a daunting accomplishment to say the least.
If you love the show, definitely check this out. If you don’t love the show, then you’re either stupid, white, or both (most likely both), but still, check this out.
A
December 12, 2018
The Book I read was The Boondocks by Aaron McGruder and the book was overall pretty good. The book was about two kids that left chicago and go live with their grandpa in a good neighborhood but the kids didn’t want to leave because they left all their friends and family. One of the kids Huey Freeman which is the intelligent one does very good in school and is very polite to everybody but the other brother Riley Freeman is a bad ass he doesn’t listen at all and does very bad in school. In the book the boondocks it shows a lot of graphic stuff like shooting guns and cussing a lot and fighting. It is funny because it’s a comic book but I would recommend this book to kids over 15 because they are mature at that age but adult could read this any time because they will understand the stuff in the book and the jokes as well because they got some rated R type jokes. Overall the book was pretty good it was only like 100 pages so I read it really fast I would want to read the other books they have on this topic but I can’t find them but I will keep looking.
September 5, 2021
This is one of the best things I've read in a while. I am so glad I finally started watching the cartoon and Amazon had the comics available on Kindle. Obviously, Huey is my favorite.
April 13, 2023
genuinely so iconic— huey is the best sunday strip character to ever exist 4.5
January 12, 2025
Lmfao this book was funny until the end Tom and his family , and Cindy are more annoying in the book than in the show ! I miss the boondocks it’s always timeless !
January 23, 2008
This was the first Boondocks book that I owed. I really enjoy Aaron McGruder and his illustrations. Witty, sarcastic, intelligent, political, and critical while entertaining and educational. I remember I even wrote the date in my planner to when the first cartoon episode hit cartoon network. I still can't get over the voices to the characters and prefer the comic strip though both are enjoyable, in my opinion.
June 9, 2007
The comic strip that kicked up so much fuss that it got banned from most newspapers. And all just for keeping it real! Think Peanuts meets the ghetto, and you have the adventures of brothers Riley and Huey, two black kids who move into middle class white America.
March 11, 2015
Boondocks was a fun comic strip with a point of view not often represented in newspaper comics. These strips were a lot of fun to read. The only downside is that the strip often focused on current events, so some of the jokes about Y2K and Star Wars Episode 1 will feel a little dated.
June 20, 2011
Absolutely hilarious. I love the boondocks. I love the cartoon and the tv show. I can't wait for season 4 of the show to finally premiere. Huey and Uncle Ruckus are definitely my favorite characters.
December 31, 2021
As always, Aaron’s characters and writing steal your breath away. Amazing humour and commentary.
December 23, 2019
Fantastic first collection of comics.
The Boondocks remains one of the best strips out there, and it's easy to see how it gained that reputation from the first collection alone. Aaron McGruder fearlessly dives into issues that other writers wouldn't dare touch with a ten foot pole. Race and biracial identity, politics and religion - nothing is sacred and all are addressed through the measured idealism and cynicism of Huey Freeman and his erstwhile brother Riley.
I fell in love with the television show, but honestly the comics are even better. It's amazing what McGruder can accomplish in only four panels. This collection was laugh out loud funny, while also making me think and consider perspectives I'd previously not been exposed to. I'm happy to call these comics a must read and can't wait to tackle more of the collections as time goes on.
For an overview I'd recommend A Right to be Hostile, but there's nothing wrong with the more completionist approach...
The Boondocks remains one of the best strips out there, and it's easy to see how it gained that reputation from the first collection alone. Aaron McGruder fearlessly dives into issues that other writers wouldn't dare touch with a ten foot pole. Race and biracial identity, politics and religion - nothing is sacred and all are addressed through the measured idealism and cynicism of Huey Freeman and his erstwhile brother Riley.
I fell in love with the television show, but honestly the comics are even better. It's amazing what McGruder can accomplish in only four panels. This collection was laugh out loud funny, while also making me think and consider perspectives I'd previously not been exposed to. I'm happy to call these comics a must read and can't wait to tackle more of the collections as time goes on.
For an overview I'd recommend A Right to be Hostile, but there's nothing wrong with the more completionist approach...
February 6, 2024
I mostly knew about The Boondocks from the animated series that I just never ended up watching much of. (Maybe 1-2 episodes?)
I worried that going back to the source material would be disappointing, because a lot of comedy from roughly this time period does not age well at all.
This doesn't have that problem! I really loved reading it.
It's insightful and funny, and there's a degree of grounded sincerity to it, which I kind of always assumed wouldn't be there from my impressions of the TV show (which seemed more exaggerated, but I'm sure I'm being unfair based on my limited impression).
This volume is so easy to just keep reading, strip after strip. I love spending time with these characters. Huey's interactions with Jazmine and her family are especially good.
Also, one of my absolute favorite things about these comics are how great McGruder is at punchlines. Few if any of them are cheap and--for this subgenre of comics--you really need a confident grasp on how to make that final panel stick the landing. McGruder does a brilliant job with it!
Excited to read the rest of the collections!
I worried that going back to the source material would be disappointing, because a lot of comedy from roughly this time period does not age well at all.
This doesn't have that problem! I really loved reading it.
It's insightful and funny, and there's a degree of grounded sincerity to it, which I kind of always assumed wouldn't be there from my impressions of the TV show (which seemed more exaggerated, but I'm sure I'm being unfair based on my limited impression).
This volume is so easy to just keep reading, strip after strip. I love spending time with these characters. Huey's interactions with Jazmine and her family are especially good.
Also, one of my absolute favorite things about these comics are how great McGruder is at punchlines. Few if any of them are cheap and--for this subgenre of comics--you really need a confident grasp on how to make that final panel stick the landing. McGruder does a brilliant job with it!
Excited to read the rest of the collections!
December 6, 2025
Giving this a 4.25/5!
Definitely not as outrageous as the classic cartoon, but still very fun! I feel the characters in the comic are a bit different to their roles when compared to the show. Ie, Jazmine is more insecure, Cindy as well with her obsession with African American culture is more naive, and Huey isn’t the terrorist (I suppose not yet!) he’s labeled to be in the show, though of course still very radical and more vocal I feel than in the show. This comic begins in ‘99 I believe and starts when Grandpa, Riley and Huey move from Chicago to the suburbs Woodcrest, in the summer, and it continues up to the New Year 2000. As a result the political and social commentary does have some references to that time period. Nevertheless, not necessary to know all of course.
First comic of the series and definitely looking forward to reading the next!
Definitely not as outrageous as the classic cartoon, but still very fun! I feel the characters in the comic are a bit different to their roles when compared to the show. Ie, Jazmine is more insecure, Cindy as well with her obsession with African American culture is more naive, and Huey isn’t the terrorist (I suppose not yet!) he’s labeled to be in the show, though of course still very radical and more vocal I feel than in the show. This comic begins in ‘99 I believe and starts when Grandpa, Riley and Huey move from Chicago to the suburbs Woodcrest, in the summer, and it continues up to the New Year 2000. As a result the political and social commentary does have some references to that time period. Nevertheless, not necessary to know all of course.
First comic of the series and definitely looking forward to reading the next!
March 5, 2017
I think I first read The Boondocks in high school, not that long after these strips were first published in newspapers. Rereading this volume as an adult brought back a ton of memories. I recently saw an exhibit at a local museum about the Black Panther Party and even though I knew that I didn't know that history, I had the nagging feeling that I had heard many of the names before. I think those activists were among the many pop culture references that I missed when I first read The Boondocks. Anyway, after all these years, I still love this comic.
February 9, 2019
I used to love watching this show when I was younger. After I heard the creator put out a few more strips recently, I decided to check out the originals, because I never had before. This was so funny. Laughter is medicine and it cheered me up a little bit while I was feeling low. The parts with Jazmine hit me right in the childhood. I want to read the other books, but I would also love to see more of this series set in the world of 2019. It's still so relevant. I really hope they put more stuff out in the near future.
May 26, 2020
I'm just now getting around to reading this, and I loved every panel of it. Sadly, some of the stereotypes it pokes fun of still exist today, but provides some excellent satire of race relations in the suburbs (particularly in this case, between white people and black people). A solid recommendation for people who like satirical works and want to explore this series. Looking forward to reading more in this series.
February 2, 2023
Honestly, I like these comics more than the show. The satire is more subtle and biting (at the same time!) and Huey is a better character here. I like how more of his own views are expressed more clearly with appropriate exaggeration. Plus he's more of a leftist here then he is in the show which is more appreciated (at least we understand more clearly his political views). The writing is just much more clever and hilarious, with really great jokes (the Santa bit was really funny to me lmaooo)
April 19, 2025
não lembro se eu parei especificamente na última strip desse coleção mas eu devo ter lido todo o primeiro ano de boondocks em sua completude, e eu posso dizer que eu amo as comics mto mais do que eu amo o desenho, Aaron McGruder é realmente alguém afiado e muitas das coisas que fazem dessas strips especiais não estão presentes na animação (ou até mesmo nos anos seguintes das comics, honestamente).
February 11, 2019
Cuento corto, me encanta, black culture siempre me ha interesado, especialmente entre el humor y la sátira de su historia, y en este caso creo que la serie es un de los puntos mas altos de esta.
Es inevitable no comparar, y si Huey es mas irritante acá que en la serie, ya que son muy distintos, pero uno no puede negar que aquí calidad y cantidad están en grandes proporciones.
Es inevitable no comparar, y si Huey es mas irritante acá que en la serie, ya que son muy distintos, pero uno no puede negar que aquí calidad y cantidad están en grandes proporciones.
August 24, 2019
A collection of Aaron McGuder's The Boondocks comics. Grandpa Freeman moves his two grandsons Huey and Riley to the small town of Woodcrest from the South Side of Chicago and it's a culture shock for the boys and the neighborhood. Full of humor and witty social commentary from revolutionary in training Huey and commentary on black culture from Riley. Still holds up 20 years later.
May 24, 2020
I haven’t closely followed newspaper comics in years but it’s amazing this A) got made and B) became as huge as it did. Using three positive pull quotes alongside a scathing personal attack from the BET founder on the back cover makes me smile every time.
July 17, 2018
Takes some time to find it’s feet and full of dated references that probably weren’t that funny when they were relevant. But when the satire works, it’s really funny.
March 31, 2019
Great laugh
I am happy I finally made time to read this book. It was Great laugh and an easy read. I will buy more work from him.
I am happy I finally made time to read this book. It was Great laugh and an easy read. I will buy more work from him.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 74 reviews