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The Incredible Nellie Bly: Journalist, Investigator, Feminist, and Philanthropist
A visual biography of the groundbreaking investigative journalist
Born in 1864, Nellie Bly was a woman who did not allow herself to be defined by the time she lived in, she rewrote the narrative and made her own way.
Luciana Cimino’s meticulously researched graphic-novel biography tells Bly’s story through Miriam, a fictionalized female student at the Columbia School of Journalism in 1921. While interviewing the famous journalist, Miriam learns not only about Bly's more sensational adventures, but also about her focus on self-reliance from an early age, the scathing letter to the editor that jump-started her career as a newspaper columnist, and her dedication to the empowerment of women. In fact, in 1884, Bly was one of the few journalists who interviewed Belva Ann Lockwood, who was the first woman candidate for a presidential election—a contest that was ultimately won by Grover Cleveland—and Bly predicted correctly that women would not get the vote until 1920.
Of course Bly’s most well-known exploits are also covered—how she pretended to be mad in order to get institutionalized so she could carry out an undercover investigation in an insane asylum, and Bly's greatest feat of all, her journey around the world in 72 days—alone—which was unthinkable for a woman in the late 19th century. As Miriam learns more of Bly's story, she realizes that the most important stories are necessarily the ones with the most dramatic headlines, but the ones that, in Nellie’s words, “come from a deep feeling.”
This beautifully executed graphic novel paints a portrait of a woman who defied societal expectations—not only with her investigative journalism, but with her keen mind for industry, and her original inventions.
Born in 1864, Nellie Bly was a woman who did not allow herself to be defined by the time she lived in, she rewrote the narrative and made her own way.
Luciana Cimino’s meticulously researched graphic-novel biography tells Bly’s story through Miriam, a fictionalized female student at the Columbia School of Journalism in 1921. While interviewing the famous journalist, Miriam learns not only about Bly's more sensational adventures, but also about her focus on self-reliance from an early age, the scathing letter to the editor that jump-started her career as a newspaper columnist, and her dedication to the empowerment of women. In fact, in 1884, Bly was one of the few journalists who interviewed Belva Ann Lockwood, who was the first woman candidate for a presidential election—a contest that was ultimately won by Grover Cleveland—and Bly predicted correctly that women would not get the vote until 1920.
Of course Bly’s most well-known exploits are also covered—how she pretended to be mad in order to get institutionalized so she could carry out an undercover investigation in an insane asylum, and Bly's greatest feat of all, her journey around the world in 72 days—alone—which was unthinkable for a woman in the late 19th century. As Miriam learns more of Bly's story, she realizes that the most important stories are necessarily the ones with the most dramatic headlines, but the ones that, in Nellie’s words, “come from a deep feeling.”
This beautifully executed graphic novel paints a portrait of a woman who defied societal expectations—not only with her investigative journalism, but with her keen mind for industry, and her original inventions.
144 pages, Hardcover
First published August 19, 2019
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3167 people want to read
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September 6, 2025
In a Nutshell: A graphic novel focussing on Nellie Bly. Had tremendous potential considering the impactful life of the investigative journalist who was so far ahead of her times, but the execution didn’t work well for me. Offered just a cursory glance at her achievements. The illustrations were somewhat good. But the overall result was a disappointment.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This graphic novel was originally published in Italian in 2019 under the title ‘Nellie Bly’. This English translation was published in 2021.
Many of you might already be aware of the legendary Nellie Bly. Ever since I heard of her, I have been in awe of her spirit, determination and courage. One of the pioneering female investigative journalists, she is most known for two things: her solo journey around the world following Jules Verne’s novel “Around the World in Eighty Days”, and her pretence of being mad so as to get institutionalised in an insane asylum, thereby carrying out a first-hand undercover sting operation on the malpractices of the staff. However, her exploits go far beyond these two achievements.
This graphic novel attempts to tell us Nellie’s story using an interview as a framing device, with Miriam, a fictional female student at the Columbia School of Journalism in 1921, trying to get Bly to offer her life story in her own words, such that Miriam can prove to naysayers how female journalists also make a difference. On paper, this idea sounds good. However, the execution of this idea is somewhat disjointed.
The story comes to us from 1921, thirty years after Nellie Bly’s undercover assignment at the mental asylum and just one year before her premature death from pneumonia. The interactions between Miriam and Bly show how women’s rights are still in their primitive stages in those years, and Miriam’s frustrations are easily visible. However, considering the title of the book, I didn’t anticipate the fictional content.
Because the story depends on Miriam, we don’t get to see a structured presentation of Bly’s life. Her reveals don’t follow any particular order, so they go all over the timeline. We learn Bly’s family background only somewhere in between the book. Her numerous achievements receive mention, but as there is so much to include, many of the events don’t get in-depth coverage. Her two biggest accomplishments – the solo world trip and the asylum expose – get just a few pages; quite an odd decision as these are what make her a admirable name even today. In fact, we don’t even learn in detail about her personal experiences and learnings during the world trip. The planning of her trip outfit gets almost as many pages as the trip itself.
Then again, the above two topics get at least some pages. The rest of Nellie Bly’s professional endeavours are excessively hurried, with barely any introduction to the characters depicted, and hardly any personal detailing. Further, the challenging aspects of Bly’s life are mostly brushed aside. Her sudden marriage to a much older man right after her journalistic successes, her takeover and conversion of his business into a profit-making enterprise, her being cheated of the business at the hands of a fraudulent employee, and her subsequent return to journalism… All of these are either glossed over or revealed just minimally. What’s the point to a semi-biographical book if it just lists out the person’s work achievements and sanitises their more questionable life choices without offering their personal observations of and reasons for the same?
At just 144 pages, this graphic novel is anyway quite short for the lengthy list of triumphs notched up by Nellie Bly during her life. This limited page space is further restricted thanks to the fictional Miriam’s storyline about her professional pursuits and personal challenges. I think I would have liked the book better had it functioned more like a biography, culling out the fictional and focussing only on Nellie Bly.
Even after reading the whole thing, I feel like I know bits and pieces of Bly’s life but I still don't know her. This was the case even before I opened the book. So there was not much for me to gain from the book. I barely learnt anything new and didn’t even get much insight into her thinking as this diluted plot was more about the whats than the whys. One might assume that the book would work better with those who don’t know about her achievements, but even in this case, a chronological structure would have been far easier to grasp than this jumpy, super-rushed narrative. The outstanding introductory write-up by author David Randall is more insightful about Ms. Bly than the actual graphical story.
The illustrations are the only aspect of this graphic novel that worked somewhat positively for me. Made with digital art, every character’s facial expression and physical stance was carefully carved. I rarely see graphic novels where the faces are so realistic in their expressions right down to their eyebrows and lips. However, with the back-and-forth timeline and the standardised colour scheme throughout, it is sometimes tricky to guess the identity of the characters (Miriam and the younger Nellie Bly look quite similar at times) and the change in timeline. The illustrator’s note at the end of the book reveals some aspects of their artistic choices – very interesting to read.
Overall, I expected far better from a graphic novel looking at such a legendary journalist’s life. The interview structure and the somewhat haphazard plot structuring failed to do justice to Nellie Bly’s feats as every event felt just surface-level. Then again, if you aren’t looking for a biography and just want to know some basic details about this amazing woman achiever, please do feel free to give this graphic novel a go. It should work for readers aged 16+.
Nellie Bly deserves 5 stars, but the book earns just 2 stars.
This was a library read.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connect with me through:
My Blog || The StoryGraph || Instagram || Facebook ||
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This graphic novel was originally published in Italian in 2019 under the title ‘Nellie Bly’. This English translation was published in 2021.
Many of you might already be aware of the legendary Nellie Bly. Ever since I heard of her, I have been in awe of her spirit, determination and courage. One of the pioneering female investigative journalists, she is most known for two things: her solo journey around the world following Jules Verne’s novel “Around the World in Eighty Days”, and her pretence of being mad so as to get institutionalised in an insane asylum, thereby carrying out a first-hand undercover sting operation on the malpractices of the staff. However, her exploits go far beyond these two achievements.
This graphic novel attempts to tell us Nellie’s story using an interview as a framing device, with Miriam, a fictional female student at the Columbia School of Journalism in 1921, trying to get Bly to offer her life story in her own words, such that Miriam can prove to naysayers how female journalists also make a difference. On paper, this idea sounds good. However, the execution of this idea is somewhat disjointed.
The story comes to us from 1921, thirty years after Nellie Bly’s undercover assignment at the mental asylum and just one year before her premature death from pneumonia. The interactions between Miriam and Bly show how women’s rights are still in their primitive stages in those years, and Miriam’s frustrations are easily visible. However, considering the title of the book, I didn’t anticipate the fictional content.
Because the story depends on Miriam, we don’t get to see a structured presentation of Bly’s life. Her reveals don’t follow any particular order, so they go all over the timeline. We learn Bly’s family background only somewhere in between the book. Her numerous achievements receive mention, but as there is so much to include, many of the events don’t get in-depth coverage. Her two biggest accomplishments – the solo world trip and the asylum expose – get just a few pages; quite an odd decision as these are what make her a admirable name even today. In fact, we don’t even learn in detail about her personal experiences and learnings during the world trip. The planning of her trip outfit gets almost as many pages as the trip itself.
Then again, the above two topics get at least some pages. The rest of Nellie Bly’s professional endeavours are excessively hurried, with barely any introduction to the characters depicted, and hardly any personal detailing. Further, the challenging aspects of Bly’s life are mostly brushed aside. Her sudden marriage to a much older man right after her journalistic successes, her takeover and conversion of his business into a profit-making enterprise, her being cheated of the business at the hands of a fraudulent employee, and her subsequent return to journalism… All of these are either glossed over or revealed just minimally. What’s the point to a semi-biographical book if it just lists out the person’s work achievements and sanitises their more questionable life choices without offering their personal observations of and reasons for the same?
At just 144 pages, this graphic novel is anyway quite short for the lengthy list of triumphs notched up by Nellie Bly during her life. This limited page space is further restricted thanks to the fictional Miriam’s storyline about her professional pursuits and personal challenges. I think I would have liked the book better had it functioned more like a biography, culling out the fictional and focussing only on Nellie Bly.
Even after reading the whole thing, I feel like I know bits and pieces of Bly’s life but I still don't know her. This was the case even before I opened the book. So there was not much for me to gain from the book. I barely learnt anything new and didn’t even get much insight into her thinking as this diluted plot was more about the whats than the whys. One might assume that the book would work better with those who don’t know about her achievements, but even in this case, a chronological structure would have been far easier to grasp than this jumpy, super-rushed narrative. The outstanding introductory write-up by author David Randall is more insightful about Ms. Bly than the actual graphical story.
The illustrations are the only aspect of this graphic novel that worked somewhat positively for me. Made with digital art, every character’s facial expression and physical stance was carefully carved. I rarely see graphic novels where the faces are so realistic in their expressions right down to their eyebrows and lips. However, with the back-and-forth timeline and the standardised colour scheme throughout, it is sometimes tricky to guess the identity of the characters (Miriam and the younger Nellie Bly look quite similar at times) and the change in timeline. The illustrator’s note at the end of the book reveals some aspects of their artistic choices – very interesting to read.
Overall, I expected far better from a graphic novel looking at such a legendary journalist’s life. The interview structure and the somewhat haphazard plot structuring failed to do justice to Nellie Bly’s feats as every event felt just surface-level. Then again, if you aren’t looking for a biography and just want to know some basic details about this amazing woman achiever, please do feel free to give this graphic novel a go. It should work for readers aged 16+.
Nellie Bly deserves 5 stars, but the book earns just 2 stars.
This was a library read.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connect with me through:
My Blog || The StoryGraph || Instagram || Facebook ||
December 8, 2020
Reviewing digital arcs of graphic novels is often tricky because often they are not in colour and/or the text is hard to read. Still, I think this book is amazing and highly recommend putting it on your radar for when it comes out in March 2021. Translated from the Italian, it is the story of Nellie Bly seen through the eyes of a student Miriam called Miriam who interviews Nellie in 1921 and so discovers her amazing life. I thought, this was just a neat touch to tackle this biography. Definitely shall be getting this one when it comes out.
January 11, 2021
It's 1921, thirty some odd years after Nellie Bly's expose on mental institutions and 1 year before her death. A young student from Columbia's School of Journalism dares to ring Nellie Bly's door pleading for an interview.
I believe that Cimino chose to use this device to show that although Nellie Bly may have opened the door for women in journalism that it still needed to be pushed even wider open for others to follow behind her. That there still existed many obstacles for women in the workforce.
In this graphic novel we learn about Nellie Bly's childhood, her voyage around the world and her coverage of corruption in politics.
As an ARC, it was quite difficult to read the print. I downloaded different versions - pdf, epub - but the results were the same. Pixelated fonts that become more blurry as you zoomed in. Conversation bubbles with darker backgrounds were for the most part indecipherable. I do not know if this is a problem inherent with graphic novels, but at this point I will reserve my galley requests of graphic novels to print copies only.
As a novel, I found that there were as many pages dedicated to Nellie Bly's outfit as there was to her time on Blackwell Island. I know that Cimino was trying to point out how the world judges women based on appearance but feel there should have been a better use of space. In covering Nellie Bly's life Cimino jumps around touching on too many topics. None of these are discussed in enough detail to give the reader perspective. On some topics I took the liberty of looking them up. Belva Lockwood - second woman to run for the office of President of the united States. The Teapot Dome Scandal and bribery in the Harding Administration. Edward Phelps, the "Lobby King". All of these are subjects that could be whole novels in their own right. By skimming the surface I am not sure Cimino does history or her readers any justice.
The graphics of the galley were in black and white. I do not take issue with this. Sergio Algozzino's artwork and attention to the fashion of the times is still clear.
I believe that Cimino chose to use this device to show that although Nellie Bly may have opened the door for women in journalism that it still needed to be pushed even wider open for others to follow behind her. That there still existed many obstacles for women in the workforce.
In this graphic novel we learn about Nellie Bly's childhood, her voyage around the world and her coverage of corruption in politics.
As an ARC, it was quite difficult to read the print. I downloaded different versions - pdf, epub - but the results were the same. Pixelated fonts that become more blurry as you zoomed in. Conversation bubbles with darker backgrounds were for the most part indecipherable. I do not know if this is a problem inherent with graphic novels, but at this point I will reserve my galley requests of graphic novels to print copies only.
As a novel, I found that there were as many pages dedicated to Nellie Bly's outfit as there was to her time on Blackwell Island. I know that Cimino was trying to point out how the world judges women based on appearance but feel there should have been a better use of space. In covering Nellie Bly's life Cimino jumps around touching on too many topics. None of these are discussed in enough detail to give the reader perspective. On some topics I took the liberty of looking them up. Belva Lockwood - second woman to run for the office of President of the united States. The Teapot Dome Scandal and bribery in the Harding Administration. Edward Phelps, the "Lobby King". All of these are subjects that could be whole novels in their own right. By skimming the surface I am not sure Cimino does history or her readers any justice.
The graphics of the galley were in black and white. I do not take issue with this. Sergio Algozzino's artwork and attention to the fashion of the times is still clear.
March 20, 2025
La naturalezza con cui Elizabeth Jane Cochran (1864-1922), al secolo Nellie Bly, affrontò le convenzioni sociali colpisce anche per l’energia che dedicò a tutte le sue imprese.
Non a caso, nel 1998 il suo nome è stato inserito nel National Women's Hall of Fame.
La caparbietà con cui s’inserì nel settore giornalistico dove ben presto s’intuì quanto fosse sprecata per le sole pagine di moda e società.
La Bly condusse vere e proprie azioni investigative perché il suo scrivere non era mai fine a se stesso ma mirava a smuovere quel macigno d’ingiustizie che schiacciava quotidianamente le donne povere.
Questa meravigliosa biografia grafica, edita dalla casa editrice tunué ci accompagna nei momenti salienti di questa vita tumultuosa come, ad esempio quando s’infiltrò tra le internate del manicomio di Blackwell (vedi "Dieci giorni in manicomio)e alternando la sua storia a quella di Miriam, una ragazza degli anni ’20 che vorrebbe intraprendere la carriera giornalistica scontrandosi con i molti ostacoli.
La sua svolta potrebbe essere quella di intervistare la famosa Nellie Bly, pioniera del giornalismo. Negli anni ’20 le donne, nonostante il suo esempio, sono di nuovo relegate alle tematiche più frivole.
Un’ottima graphic novel per conoscere le imprese di questa meravigliosa donna
Non a caso, nel 1998 il suo nome è stato inserito nel National Women's Hall of Fame.
La caparbietà con cui s’inserì nel settore giornalistico dove ben presto s’intuì quanto fosse sprecata per le sole pagine di moda e società.
La Bly condusse vere e proprie azioni investigative perché il suo scrivere non era mai fine a se stesso ma mirava a smuovere quel macigno d’ingiustizie che schiacciava quotidianamente le donne povere.
Questa meravigliosa biografia grafica, edita dalla casa editrice tunué ci accompagna nei momenti salienti di questa vita tumultuosa come, ad esempio quando s’infiltrò tra le internate del manicomio di Blackwell (vedi "Dieci giorni in manicomio)e alternando la sua storia a quella di Miriam, una ragazza degli anni ’20 che vorrebbe intraprendere la carriera giornalistica scontrandosi con i molti ostacoli.
La sua svolta potrebbe essere quella di intervistare la famosa Nellie Bly, pioniera del giornalismo. Negli anni ’20 le donne, nonostante il suo esempio, sono di nuovo relegate alle tematiche più frivole.
Un’ottima graphic novel per conoscere le imprese di questa meravigliosa donna
October 10, 2020
Like others here I received an ARC on NetGalley, and whilst it sounded promising this copy at least was disappointing. Like others I found the text impossible to decipher at times, and whilst I don’t think it lost much it would have been nice to see even some of it in colour given that is the format for the completed book. I also found that for me the format detracted somewhat from the story, particularly at the start. I requested this title for Nellie’s story yet for the first 20 odd pages she barely makes an appearance.
December 17, 2020
I was really excited to read this graphic novel on Nellie Bly because her story is really inspirational. I wanted to know more about her life, her struggles and accomplishments.
I think this book has covered her life's journey. in the most amazing way possible. The author has done extensive research which is remarkable and the artwork is also good.
Unfortunately the the state of the digital copy I received wasn't good. There were issues in clarity which did cause problems while reading. I really do hope those issues are rectified.
Thank You NetGalley and ABRAMS for this e-ARC!
I think this book has covered her life's journey. in the most amazing way possible. The author has done extensive research which is remarkable and the artwork is also good.
Unfortunately the the state of the digital copy I received wasn't good. There were issues in clarity which did cause problems while reading. I really do hope those issues are rectified.
Thank You NetGalley and ABRAMS for this e-ARC!
November 26, 2019
Davvero una bellissima graphic novel che racconta la vita avventurosa, femminista e potente della giornalista Nellie Bly.
E' famosa per la sua inchiesta sotto copertura in un manicomio, come 'malata', per documentarne le drammatiche condizioni ma questa non è che UNA delle sue molteplici avventure, tra cui il giro del mondo. Una figura storica che sembra una leggenda, e forse lo è.
Perfetto per amiche e ragazzine, bello anche il tratto.
E' famosa per la sua inchiesta sotto copertura in un manicomio, come 'malata', per documentarne le drammatiche condizioni ma questa non è che UNA delle sue molteplici avventure, tra cui il giro del mondo. Una figura storica che sembra una leggenda, e forse lo è.
Perfetto per amiche e ragazzine, bello anche il tratto.
February 18, 2021
*I received an e-ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The Incredible Nellie Bly is set to be published March 2, 2021*
3. 5 stars
If you are looking for a graphic novel that is both historical and feminist, this is the one for you. Nellie Bly’s story is one of female empowerment, breaking barriers as a journalist who fought for the oppressed, and for her own adventures, in the late 1800s. While I’m aware of the women who came before me and fought for my rights, Nellie’s story served as a reminder of the things I can now take for granted, such as travelling alone as a modern woman.
Because this was an e-arc, it was hard to decipher the text at times, but the illustrations were beautiful and, I imagine, will be even more so when printed in colour.
3. 5 stars
If you are looking for a graphic novel that is both historical and feminist, this is the one for you. Nellie Bly’s story is one of female empowerment, breaking barriers as a journalist who fought for the oppressed, and for her own adventures, in the late 1800s. While I’m aware of the women who came before me and fought for my rights, Nellie’s story served as a reminder of the things I can now take for granted, such as travelling alone as a modern woman.
Because this was an e-arc, it was hard to decipher the text at times, but the illustrations were beautiful and, I imagine, will be even more so when printed in colour.
June 16, 2022
Una figura storica femminile estremamente interessante!
I disegni ben fatti e la storia sono coinvolgenti! Sempre più curiosa di conoscere in modo più approfondito la storia di Nellie Bly!
I disegni ben fatti e la storia sono coinvolgenti! Sempre più curiosa di conoscere in modo più approfondito la storia di Nellie Bly!
August 12, 2022
📚 Hello Book Friends! THE INCREDIBLE NELLIE BLY by Luciana Cimino and Sergio Algozzino is an extraordinary graphic novel about the life of exceptional life of one of the most interesting women who lived in in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries: Nellie Bly. Ms. Bly was a pioneer journalist, investigator, feminist, and philanthropist who proved to a male centric society that women are more than just vessels to bring forth children, keep the house clean, and look pretty. Her investigative journalism work has been recognised as the best and most innovative. She is a force to be reconned with. This beautifully illustrated graphic novel gives an overview of her greatest accomplishments.
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January 12, 2021
I really wanted to love this graphic novel. Its focus on pioneering investigative journalist Nellie Bly is an important one. But the translation to both Kindle and NetGalley Shelf apps made it impossible to read. Also, color appeared on the covers only, making the black and white interior pages even harder to peruse. But don’t despair if Nellie intrigues you, as she should. The entire comic will be in full color once published this March, adding vibrance to match its extraordinary subject. Until then ...
3 of 5 Stars
Pub Date 02 Mar 2021
#TheIncredibleNellieBly #NetGalley
Thanks to the authors, Abrams ComicArts, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are mine.
3 of 5 Stars
Pub Date 02 Mar 2021
#TheIncredibleNellieBly #NetGalley
Thanks to the authors, Abrams ComicArts, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are mine.
October 2, 2022
Sadly I wasn’t totally won over by the way this was written and set out but I loved learning more about the force that is Nellie Bly.
October 4, 2020
Thank you to the publisher for giving me a free copy of this comic in exchange for an honest review.
I quite enjoyed this. I think the story had a lot of potential but failed in the execution of it all. i thought the story got quite dull even though I should actually be intrigued at the time of reading this. Also it didn't help with the fact that the text was really hard to read after I downloaded the copy it was pretty blurry and ruined the flow of reading.
I liked the art style but I can't rate a book high purely on the art style the book has to have a good story too. I found it lacking in aspects hence the sad rating. Hope to see a better copy from this author in the future
I quite enjoyed this. I think the story had a lot of potential but failed in the execution of it all. i thought the story got quite dull even though I should actually be intrigued at the time of reading this. Also it didn't help with the fact that the text was really hard to read after I downloaded the copy it was pretty blurry and ruined the flow of reading.
I liked the art style but I can't rate a book high purely on the art style the book has to have a good story too. I found it lacking in aspects hence the sad rating. Hope to see a better copy from this author in the future
April 14, 2021
A pedestrian but serviceable introduction to the life of Nellie Bly. Too many pages are given over to a fictional character who interviews Bly near the end of her life in the 1920s and reflects on Bly's legacy near the end of her own life in the 1990s.
Read
May 24, 2021I've read a number of books about Nellie Bly, so my knowledge of her is pretty solid. I think that made me underwhelmed by this particular take, especially as it's framed with a fictional character named Miriam, who is interviewing Bly as a means of getting courage to stand up for women's rights at the Columbia School of Journalism in 1921. It's an uneven look at Bly, with many of the more interesting details and experiences of her actual life underexplored. The focus is on the bigger pieces -- that she did a trip around the world (and it includes an illustration of her with the monkey, but zero explanation for the monkey, which is one of my *favorite* little tid bits about her and here, it offers no reason for the art), that she went to Blackwell Island (without talking about the rampant sexism as the reason for this in the first place, even though it talks about the mistreatment of those there), and so forth. It brushes the surface and leaves out a lot of what makes Bly so compelling. Likewise, now having read Sensational: The Hidden History of America's “Girl Stunt Reporters”, it's really hard for me to buy the narrative of Bly being the first/most recognized female reporter of the time when there were many others doing it, including women of color.
I think the challenge here is this book is in translation from Italian, so a lot of the necessary sociocultural commentary isn't there because it can't quite be there. This might serve as an okay introduction to Bly, though a newcomer to her story and work would get so much more out of Ten Days a Madwoman: The Daring Life and Turbulent Times of the Original "Girl" Reporter, Nellie Bly.
The digital art is nice to look at, though because there aren't good transitions between "now" in 1922 and "then," during Bly's career height in the late 1800s, it is hard to tell who is who many times. The men and women look very similar and it took a few times rereading to get what was going on with the timelines and stories. The final pages display a spread of women who were influenced or had their careers made possible by Bly and at quick blush, they all look white. They aren't; they're quite diverse, but the coloring does not distinguish them well.
A fine book, but not the best Bly book out there. Perhaps it's the kind of book readers who prefer graphic biographies can pick up to get their feet wet with her story, as well as the kind of book for readers who love comics in translation.
I think the challenge here is this book is in translation from Italian, so a lot of the necessary sociocultural commentary isn't there because it can't quite be there. This might serve as an okay introduction to Bly, though a newcomer to her story and work would get so much more out of Ten Days a Madwoman: The Daring Life and Turbulent Times of the Original "Girl" Reporter, Nellie Bly.
The digital art is nice to look at, though because there aren't good transitions between "now" in 1922 and "then," during Bly's career height in the late 1800s, it is hard to tell who is who many times. The men and women look very similar and it took a few times rereading to get what was going on with the timelines and stories. The final pages display a spread of women who were influenced or had their careers made possible by Bly and at quick blush, they all look white. They aren't; they're quite diverse, but the coloring does not distinguish them well.
A fine book, but not the best Bly book out there. Perhaps it's the kind of book readers who prefer graphic biographies can pick up to get their feet wet with her story, as well as the kind of book for readers who love comics in translation.
October 15, 2025
Bly led a pretty incredible life and made a huge impact on journalism and feminism for the time she operated in. We get a nice overview, picking out the highlights of her illustrious career and again we see the many frustrating and ridiculous barriers she had to encounter everyday. The art work did very little for me, but it does its job and this should encourage many to check out Bly's groundbreaking work.
August 15, 2025
Una historia de lo más interesante sobre la vida de esta revolucionaria periodista del siglo XIX.
Una obra perfecta si quieres conocer la historia de superación, valentía y lucha por los derechos humanos de las mujeres de Nellie Bly.
Una obra perfecta si quieres conocer la historia de superación, valentía y lucha por los derechos humanos de las mujeres de Nellie Bly.
February 19, 2020
L'anno scorso ho letto "Dieci giorni in manicomio", interessantissimo resoconto scritto da una giornalista che si era infiltrata in un manicomio femminile alla fine dell'ottocento e che io non conoscevo. Da allora la mia curiosità nei confronti di questa eroina moderna si è accesa; ecco perché ho letto con grande interesse il graphic novel "Nellie Bly." Il libro da spazio anche alla figura privata di Nellie Bly, oltre a raccontare alcune delle sue avventure più importanti. Nata in una famiglia molto modesta, sapeva benissimo cosa fosse la povertà, e per questo motivo tutto il suo lavoro fu ampiamente motivato da un interesse spontaneo per i bisognosi. All'epoca, le poche donne che lavoravano come giornaliste si occupavano di moda, vivevano quel lavoro come un hobby. Nellie Bly - che è lo pseudonimo di Elizabeth Jane Cochran - fece la differenza con la sua tenacia e passione, arrivando persino a lanciarsi in un viaggio intorno al mondo. L'obiettivo era quello di superare il record stabilito da Jules Verne in "Il giro del mondo in ottanta giorni" e l'intrepida giornalista ci riuscì, ottenendo la fama mondiale. Penso che i graphic novel che parlano di personaggi del genere siano un ottimo modo di conoscere persone che possano essere di ispirazione. Sono uno spunto da cui partire. Per quanto riguarda il lato prettamente estetico: ho trovato piacevoli i colori delle tavole, carino e giusto l'inserimento di stralci di giornali d'epoca. Finita la lettura mi è rimasta la voglia di approfondire anche di più su Nellie Bly.
May 10, 2021
Upon reading the NetGalley synopsis, I knew right away this was a book for me. A non-fiction graphic novel based on a female who independently rewrote history. #girlpower
Pushing past the boundaries of the time, Nellie became a well renowned female journalist. She wrote about groundbreaking topics such as corruption, the poor, and unfair treatment of women. Her pivotal journalistic moment came in 1887 when feigning insanity, she committed herself to an Asylum. In this grandiose move, she was then able to expose living conditions and cruelty to patients in such a facility. This precipitated an investigation and brought to light much needed improvements of these institutions and more importantly, patient care.
As if that wasn’t historic enough in its own right, she also made a trip around the world in 72 days. What couldn’t she do? A feminist, a pioneer and one hell of a historical figure.
In regards to this arc, I am a bit distressed at the fact that the speech balloons were extremely hard to read. I tried the iPhone, iPad and Kindle with zero improvement. Ultimately, reading the storyline was impossible.
My rating is based on graphics and what little I could get out of the story.
On a positive note, I will be purchasing the physical copy as Nellie Bly was a force to be reckoned with and someone I’d love to learn more about.
Pushing past the boundaries of the time, Nellie became a well renowned female journalist. She wrote about groundbreaking topics such as corruption, the poor, and unfair treatment of women. Her pivotal journalistic moment came in 1887 when feigning insanity, she committed herself to an Asylum. In this grandiose move, she was then able to expose living conditions and cruelty to patients in such a facility. This precipitated an investigation and brought to light much needed improvements of these institutions and more importantly, patient care.
As if that wasn’t historic enough in its own right, she also made a trip around the world in 72 days. What couldn’t she do? A feminist, a pioneer and one hell of a historical figure.
In regards to this arc, I am a bit distressed at the fact that the speech balloons were extremely hard to read. I tried the iPhone, iPad and Kindle with zero improvement. Ultimately, reading the storyline was impossible.
My rating is based on graphics and what little I could get out of the story.
On a positive note, I will be purchasing the physical copy as Nellie Bly was a force to be reckoned with and someone I’d love to learn more about.
September 20, 2020
I always like picking up these graphic novels which teach me about inspiring people or historical events I don’t know (enough) about. So when I saw this on Netgalley I immediatly requested it.
Nellie Bly truly was an Awesome woman, ‘even’ by today’s standard, let alone in the 19th century. She was one of the first female investigative journalists, got herself locked up in an asylum to write about the horrible treatment (which lead to extra funding), traveled around the world in 72 days, and did so much more… an inspiring story about a talented woman who fought for her goals no matter what other people said.
The story is told as an interview, letting Nellie tell her own story. This in itself I liked, but at times I found the interviewer too present (I just didn’t care for her and any panel dedicated to her life I felt was wasted… I want Nellie’s story). The art is very nice, even in the uncoloured version I received. The font though, was atrocious. At least the e-version I have was impossible to read. It became such a chore to decipher what was written I gave up on this book about halfway through. Such a shame…
Nellie Bly truly was an Awesome woman, ‘even’ by today’s standard, let alone in the 19th century. She was one of the first female investigative journalists, got herself locked up in an asylum to write about the horrible treatment (which lead to extra funding), traveled around the world in 72 days, and did so much more… an inspiring story about a talented woman who fought for her goals no matter what other people said.
The story is told as an interview, letting Nellie tell her own story. This in itself I liked, but at times I found the interviewer too present (I just didn’t care for her and any panel dedicated to her life I felt was wasted… I want Nellie’s story). The art is very nice, even in the uncoloured version I received. The font though, was atrocious. At least the e-version I have was impossible to read. It became such a chore to decipher what was written I gave up on this book about halfway through. Such a shame…
June 6, 2022
Luciana Cimino è riuscita a riassumere la vita di questa donna straordinaria e a renderle giustizia.
Personalmente conoscevo la Bly "semplicemente" come una delle prime giornaliste, diventata famosa per essersi fatta ricoverare in un manicomio per poterne descrivere le brutture dall'interno.
Da Wikipedia: È stata la prima che si è dedicata al giornalismo investigativo e la creatrice del genere di giornalismo sotto copertura. Il suo nome è legato anche ad un giro del mondo da record, completato in soli 72 giorni, emulando Phileas Fogg, protagonista del romanzo di Jules Verne Il giro del mondo in 80 giorni.
( https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nellie_Bly )
Ripercorrere le continue conquiste di questa donna, a cui dobbiamo tutte moltissimo, è stato un viaggio emozionante.
Personalmente conoscevo la Bly "semplicemente" come una delle prime giornaliste, diventata famosa per essersi fatta ricoverare in un manicomio per poterne descrivere le brutture dall'interno.
Da Wikipedia: È stata la prima che si è dedicata al giornalismo investigativo e la creatrice del genere di giornalismo sotto copertura. Il suo nome è legato anche ad un giro del mondo da record, completato in soli 72 giorni, emulando Phileas Fogg, protagonista del romanzo di Jules Verne Il giro del mondo in 80 giorni.
( https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nellie_Bly )
Ripercorrere le continue conquiste di questa donna, a cui dobbiamo tutte moltissimo, è stato un viaggio emozionante.
October 14, 2020
Reviewed as a result of NetGalley. As other readers of the advanced edition have said, the graphic images for text were sometimes too difficult to read so some nuance might have been lost (lost 1 star rating for that). Also, I regret not being able to see the colors to be used in the final edition. The illustrations themselves were lovely with good attention to period dress.
The story is timely, the read coming for me just after the death of RGB—another female rights icon. I had only known about the round-the-world trip and not all her other journalistic accomplishments.
The story is timely, the read coming for me just after the death of RGB—another female rights icon. I had only known about the round-the-world trip and not all her other journalistic accomplishments.
May 6, 2021
I received a digital review copy of this book from the Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, I am leaving this review honestly.
This was an interesting book because, unlike most books I read outside of my university work, it was semi non-fiction. The reason I say it’s semi non-fiction is because while it is about Nellie Bly, it’s told as if she is telling her life story to someone else who is fabricated.
The graphic novel tells the story of Nellie Bly, a woman very much ahead of her time in the 1864. As a working women, in the journalIsm industry, she focused on documenting hotter women who were advancing themselves. The main secondary character was Miriam in the 1920s, a university student who wants to do a project on Nellie Bly as a previous woman in the trade she is learning.
I didn’t find this novel particularly engaging. I thought that the novel had a lot of potential but because of the short length it felt very diluted down, with little time focused on each of Nellie’s achievements. The flicking back and forth between Nellie’s story and Miriam in the 1920s was a little confusing.
The illustrations were nice, and I liked the graphic style. The review copy was in black and white, but the final copy will be in colour, and i think that this will add to the illustrations as they felt a little lacking being in only vexing shades, especially with the beautiful fashions of the two periods.
I did however have issues with the file provided by Netgalley, and reading other reviews it’s clear that this was an issue for the other ARC reviewers. as a result the text was very differently to read. I hope that this isn’t an issue for the published ebook of this Graphic Novel.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, Abrams ComicArts, for my review copy.
Also published to my blog, Three Lonely Clouds
This was an interesting book because, unlike most books I read outside of my university work, it was semi non-fiction. The reason I say it’s semi non-fiction is because while it is about Nellie Bly, it’s told as if she is telling her life story to someone else who is fabricated.
The graphic novel tells the story of Nellie Bly, a woman very much ahead of her time in the 1864. As a working women, in the journalIsm industry, she focused on documenting hotter women who were advancing themselves. The main secondary character was Miriam in the 1920s, a university student who wants to do a project on Nellie Bly as a previous woman in the trade she is learning.
I didn’t find this novel particularly engaging. I thought that the novel had a lot of potential but because of the short length it felt very diluted down, with little time focused on each of Nellie’s achievements. The flicking back and forth between Nellie’s story and Miriam in the 1920s was a little confusing.
The illustrations were nice, and I liked the graphic style. The review copy was in black and white, but the final copy will be in colour, and i think that this will add to the illustrations as they felt a little lacking being in only vexing shades, especially with the beautiful fashions of the two periods.
I did however have issues with the file provided by Netgalley, and reading other reviews it’s clear that this was an issue for the other ARC reviewers. as a result the text was very differently to read. I hope that this isn’t an issue for the published ebook of this Graphic Novel.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, Abrams ComicArts, for my review copy.
Also published to my blog, Three Lonely Clouds
August 22, 2021
The Incredible Nellie Bly offers a solid biography of Nellie Bly, marred only by a lackluster framing story. In the 1920s, a young, female journalism student interviews Nellie about her life. Nellie begrudgingly complies, recalling her amazing exploits (easily the best part of the book - some astonishing stuff here).
The flashbacks aren't separated visually from the framing story, resulting in a mish-mash of confusing timelines. It doesn't help that all the young women look very similar. The Incredible Nellie Bly is easily a worthwhile read, but that's more because of Nellie and not the authors of this book.
The flashbacks aren't separated visually from the framing story, resulting in a mish-mash of confusing timelines. It doesn't help that all the young women look very similar. The Incredible Nellie Bly is easily a worthwhile read, but that's more because of Nellie and not the authors of this book.
March 23, 2021
The Incredible Nellie Bly took me a long time to read because the print was barely legible. The story is told in the form of an interview that moves swiftly from Elizabeth Cochran reply to the chauvinistic “What Girls are Good For.” Column that went so far as to suggest to take a page out of China’s book and consider female-specific infanticide. Her reply under the title “Lonely Orphan Girl.” Got her hired at the Dispatch. She focused in her reply article "The Girl Puzzle" on the struggles of lower class single mothers, which she knew all too well from her own mother. The story moves swiftly into her foray into the Women's Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell's Island near NY.
The book mostly whet my apatite to read more extensively on the subject. Thank you to Netgalley and ABRAMS Publishing for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The book mostly whet my apatite to read more extensively on the subject. Thank you to Netgalley and ABRAMS Publishing for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
January 23, 2021
There are some stories that never lose their impact, and the life and influence of Nelly Bly fall into that category. I teach Ten Days in a Mad House in my first-year college course, and this graphic biography will fit in perfectly. The fact that it is a story by a woman journalist about a woman journalist adds even more to the package. The illustrations are clear and engaging, a thoroughly well-done piece.
Thank you to Abrams ComicArts and NetGalley for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Abrams ComicArts and NetGalley for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
January 4, 2024
The title does this story justice: Nellie Bly is incredible! I'm a little ashamed I didn't know who she was before now, especially considering her impact on the world and women's rights. The artwork has multimedia elements from real historical documents of the time, and it really adds another layer to this story. I wish all biographical graphic novels were like this one.
Read
August 26, 2022Rarely am I specifically grateful to be so behind on book reviews. But in this case, I was. The eARC was completely unreadable, and, since this is long-published, I was able to download it on Hoopla.
The art is thoroughly lovely, and this is a quick read with a nice overview of Bly's life. This is a great option for getting readers interested in her. That said, it's very brief, and it definitely made me wish for more detail and depth. But I think that's probably the goal here anyway.
The art is thoroughly lovely, and this is a quick read with a nice overview of Bly's life. This is a great option for getting readers interested in her. That said, it's very brief, and it definitely made me wish for more detail and depth. But I think that's probably the goal here anyway.
March 24, 2024
Letteralmente divorata!
Una donna che avevo gia conosciuto in un’altra graphic novel.
Una donna che ha rivoluzionato il mondo del giornalismo e ha dato nuove possibilità al lavoro femminile.
Da leggere!
Una donna che avevo gia conosciuto in un’altra graphic novel.
Una donna che ha rivoluzionato il mondo del giornalismo e ha dato nuove possibilità al lavoro femminile.
Da leggere!
November 30, 2020
I am a bit of a Nellie Bly fan, having rad a book about ten years ago about her trip around the world in considerably less than eighties days. This is an Italian graphic novel biography of Nellie, and manages to touch all the core milestones of her life in an accessible if not altogether deep way. The greatest hits are all here, ten days in an asylum, her stints in factories to talk about working conditions of a new class of women in New York. Her trip around the world is possibly the be best presented here, as the art plays nicely with paper dolls to depict her sensible yet feminine attire, and a few of the landmarks along the way.
There is a framing device of a female journalist about thirty years later being inspired by Nellie, and interviewing her. Of course getting tot he twenties and thirties there will be barely any improvement in the rights of women beyond suffrage and plenty of soft discrimination still within journalism. It is interesting to think though that without Nellie Bly there probably isn't a Lois Lane, Bly invented the famous crusading, dare-devil journalist archetype and made her female. Rights notwithstanding, its a link that the format made for me, but not one I have seen explicitly elsewhere. By taking a strictly chronological route as well the narrative flags a touch past around the world as Bly finds herself criticised as attention seeking, and her marriage which the book has little time for (though her influence around women's and workers rights definately continues).
I'm never quite sure how I feel about biographical comics, they are a decent introduction to a subject and Nellie Bly isn't that well known these days. But they rarely get into the meet of motivation. That said the graphical content here isn't just representational, there is some good work down around the asylum part where the ideas of loneliness and the treatment are given a strong visual backing. The artist - Sergio Algozzino - is not credited on the cover which is a great pity as in many ways he is doing the heavy lifting here, and there is a feeling that something that is quite novel in Italian is rendered a little less special in translation. Still it inspired me to go back and read more Bly - most of which is on the web - which was well worth it.
There is a framing device of a female journalist about thirty years later being inspired by Nellie, and interviewing her. Of course getting tot he twenties and thirties there will be barely any improvement in the rights of women beyond suffrage and plenty of soft discrimination still within journalism. It is interesting to think though that without Nellie Bly there probably isn't a Lois Lane, Bly invented the famous crusading, dare-devil journalist archetype and made her female. Rights notwithstanding, its a link that the format made for me, but not one I have seen explicitly elsewhere. By taking a strictly chronological route as well the narrative flags a touch past around the world as Bly finds herself criticised as attention seeking, and her marriage which the book has little time for (though her influence around women's and workers rights definately continues).
I'm never quite sure how I feel about biographical comics, they are a decent introduction to a subject and Nellie Bly isn't that well known these days. But they rarely get into the meet of motivation. That said the graphical content here isn't just representational, there is some good work down around the asylum part where the ideas of loneliness and the treatment are given a strong visual backing. The artist - Sergio Algozzino - is not credited on the cover which is a great pity as in many ways he is doing the heavy lifting here, and there is a feeling that something that is quite novel in Italian is rendered a little less special in translation. Still it inspired me to go back and read more Bly - most of which is on the web - which was well worth it.
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