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Represent! (2020-) #1
Represent! (2020-) #1: It's a Bird
Jules, a Black teenager, is given a pair of old binoculars as he heads out for a morning of birdwatching in Central Park. He soon learns the binoculars show him a lot more than birds, and maybe they keep him safe, too.
16 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 9, 2020
43 people are currently reading
187 people want to read
About the author
Christian Cooper
15 books142 followers Christian Cooper is a science and comics writer and editor and the host and consulting producer of Extraordinary Birder on National Geographic. One of Marvel’s first openly gay writers and editors, Cooper introduced the first gay male character in Star Trek, in the Starfleet Academy series, which was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award. He also introduced the first openly lesbian character for Marvel and created and authored Queer Nation: The Online Gay Comic. Based in New York City, he is on the board of directors for NYC Audubon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
September 10, 2020
A free download is available via DC Comics:
https://www.readdc.com/Represent-2020...
Christian Cooper shares a short fictionalized version of his encounter while birdwatching in Central Park with a White woman who called 911 to say she was feeling threatened by an African American man. He also pays tribute to the many Black Americans who were killed as a result of such calls or other encounters with police over minor matters.
Inclusion of magic binoculars in the story is a little weird, but does not detract from the power of the message, the need to remember, and the call to act upon these injustices.
https://www.readdc.com/Represent-2020...
Christian Cooper shares a short fictionalized version of his encounter while birdwatching in Central Park with a White woman who called 911 to say she was feeling threatened by an African American man. He also pays tribute to the many Black Americans who were killed as a result of such calls or other encounters with police over minor matters.
Inclusion of magic binoculars in the story is a little weird, but does not detract from the power of the message, the need to remember, and the call to act upon these injustices.
October 21, 2020
Christian Cooper returns to comics sharing a fictionalized version of his encounter bird watching in Central Park when a white woman called the police on him saying she was being attacked. It's a bit of an odd choice to use magic binoculars to show others who weren't as fortunate as he was. Still it's a powerful message.
Free on DC's website. https://www.readdc.com/Represent-2020...
Free on DC's website. https://www.readdc.com/Represent-2020...
September 10, 2020
Represent by Christian Cooper uses his experience of being threatened while bird watching to highlight the number of African-Americans who have been shot, killed, murdered, lynched by the police. It is at once beautifully illustrated and powerfully written.
The only weak part is the representation of the dog walker. She is a dog walker, a white woman as in real life. I just have to wonder why she is depicted as significantly heavier(and in a tracksuit too). Only fat white woman are racist and threatening?
The only weak part is the representation of the dog walker. She is a dog walker, a white woman as in real life. I just have to wonder why she is depicted as significantly heavier(and in a tracksuit too). Only fat white woman are racist and threatening?
September 20, 2020
16 page comic written by Christian Cooper who was bird watching in Central Park and had a white woman threaten to call the cops on him. This is a great short story to share with middle schoolers and above. Contemporary and accessible as a comic.
October 3, 2020
I read this free comic on DC Comics. Illustrations are good. It tells a good story, wish it was longer.
September 9, 2020
Powerful book!
If you included all the names of black folks who were murdered while black, this would be a novel. Rest in Power!
If you included all the names of black folks who were murdered while black, this would be a novel. Rest in Power!
January 2, 2021
What a way to start our comic book club's monthly reading for 2021. This is powerful.
Anyone who paid attention to the American news cycle this year knows the story of Christian Cooper, a Black man who had the police called on him by a white woman while he was birdwatching in a park. He'd advised the woman that her dog should be leashed as per the park's bylaws. She called the cops and told them she was being "threatened" by a thug.
This comic, which by the way is free on ComiXology, literally illustrates that moment in Cooper's life, and uses truly breathtaking imagery to make it real for the rest of us. I knew the story already, and I still found myself tearing up, because the way Cooper has written it (substituting a fictional teenager for himself) and Morales has drawn it (some of the best artwork I've seen in recent memory) it really brought it home in a way no news bulletin can do. The "in memoriam" section at the end will break your heart all over again.
Please, please read this. It's a brisk 16 pages, it's free, and it's important. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the REPRESENT! series, and I'm deeply grateful to our book club leader Lis for asking us to put this at the top of our list.
Anyone who paid attention to the American news cycle this year knows the story of Christian Cooper, a Black man who had the police called on him by a white woman while he was birdwatching in a park. He'd advised the woman that her dog should be leashed as per the park's bylaws. She called the cops and told them she was being "threatened" by a thug.
This comic, which by the way is free on ComiXology, literally illustrates that moment in Cooper's life, and uses truly breathtaking imagery to make it real for the rest of us. I knew the story already, and I still found myself tearing up, because the way Cooper has written it (substituting a fictional teenager for himself) and Morales has drawn it (some of the best artwork I've seen in recent memory) it really brought it home in a way no news bulletin can do. The "in memoriam" section at the end will break your heart all over again.
Please, please read this. It's a brisk 16 pages, it's free, and it's important. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the REPRESENT! series, and I'm deeply grateful to our book club leader Lis for asking us to put this at the top of our list.
September 15, 2020
Very short and free online.
This is written by the man that was the center of the Central Park Birdwatching Incident earlier this year.
This is written by the man that was the center of the Central Park Birdwatching Incident earlier this year.
September 10, 2020
Innocence Interrupted
Beautifully illustrated snapshot. Christian Cooper captured the innocence of our brothers and sisters going about our daily lives all the while being constantly interrupted by the hatred of white men and women for the colour of our skin, our God given gifts, talents and uniqueness. Thank you Mr. Cooper. I anxiously look forward to reading more in this Represent 2020 series.
Beautifully illustrated snapshot. Christian Cooper captured the innocence of our brothers and sisters going about our daily lives all the while being constantly interrupted by the hatred of white men and women for the colour of our skin, our God given gifts, talents and uniqueness. Thank you Mr. Cooper. I anxiously look forward to reading more in this Represent 2020 series.
September 14, 2020
Very short comic available online for free - https://www.readdc.com/Represent-2020...
September 25, 2020
Powerful.
September 11, 2020
Must read. By all humanity.
September 11, 2020
short, excellent, please read - it's free online!
September 17, 2020
An extremely brief glimpse of recognition of some who have lost their lives unfairly.
September 12, 2020
Too short, too rushed... anyhow a relevant point for comics, showing their support for the cause.
September 14, 2020
This is the first in what seems to be a longer series. This comic is everything and extremely needed for those who don't get the BLM movement due to ignorance, age, upbringing, etc. As a beginner in the birding community, I was made aware of racism and discrimination against Christian Cooper quite early as he is well known within the community and shared in some birding groups what happened to him. (I don't want to give it away if you are unfamiliar with the situation).
What I didn't know was that he was a Marvel comic editor...what I also didn't know was that he used his horrible experience as a platform to spread the word about the BLM movement in a very direct and poignant way through this comic. The comic is beautiful and heart-wrenchingly illustrated. It is a short comic but it hits to the heart of BLM. The last few pages of the comic are dedicated to a few of the names of those black lives who have been murdered by the police.
I believe this graphic novel would be suitable for tweens and up.
What I didn't know was that he was a Marvel comic editor...what I also didn't know was that he used his horrible experience as a platform to spread the word about the BLM movement in a very direct and poignant way through this comic. The comic is beautiful and heart-wrenchingly illustrated. It is a short comic but it hits to the heart of BLM. The last few pages of the comic are dedicated to a few of the names of those black lives who have been murdered by the police.
I believe this graphic novel would be suitable for tweens and up.
September 13, 2020
Dcs answer to marvel's voices
A nut shell This is a short story About a young man with magic binoculars that let him see racism And every white person in here is a racist. So yes this book is something about straw man's argument .But it's not all bad the artwork is good and consistent and it was for free. Unlike Marvel voices which initially wasn't. It's also short and coherent unlike marvel voices.
A nut shell This is a short story About a young man with magic binoculars that let him see racism And every white person in here is a racist. So yes this book is something about straw man's argument .But it's not all bad the artwork is good and consistent and it was for free. Unlike Marvel voices which initially wasn't. It's also short and coherent unlike marvel voices.
September 17, 2020
A MUST READ FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS... BUT TIMES MUST CHANGE.
Thank you for writing your book... Sharing yours and so many other's experiences. These never should have happened, but they did. Thank you for bringing continued awareness. Hoping your book is read and shared by all. Be safe.
Thank you for writing your book... Sharing yours and so many other's experiences. These never should have happened, but they did. Thank you for bringing continued awareness. Hoping your book is read and shared by all. Be safe.
September 17, 2020
Food for Thought
I recommend this book to all who will look upon these protest filled months and work to end police violence against persons and communities of color. The subject matter is sobering so the vibrant artwork invites not only the eye but the mind as well to pause and reflect. By all means share this work with family and friends.
I recommend this book to all who will look upon these protest filled months and work to end police violence against persons and communities of color. The subject matter is sobering so the vibrant artwork invites not only the eye but the mind as well to pause and reflect. By all means share this work with family and friends.
September 17, 2020
Christian Cooper uses his experience to craft a powerful statement on racism and the experiences of Black men and women in the United States, evaluating it all through the lens of a teenager birdwatching much like himself. It was a quicker read than expected but since this is numbered like a series, I'm interested to see what Cooper has to say in future issues.
September 18, 2020
This could make a nice short animation as well.
Although those Binoculars were old they told a story that Jules needed to see. Although his intrest was bird watching he kept seeing his people dying all around him and his eyes were being opened to just how much black lives mattered.
Although those Binoculars were old they told a story that Jules needed to see. Although his intrest was bird watching he kept seeing his people dying all around him and his eyes were being opened to just how much black lives mattered.
September 24, 2020
Be an anti-racist!
Same God Almighty made all of us! Compassion comes from each one of us walking in other person's shoes for the understanding and the knowledge of other person's plight! And if you cannot , as a human being, empathize and sympathize, then you are a truly a narcissistic sociopath!
Same God Almighty made all of us! Compassion comes from each one of us walking in other person's shoes for the understanding and the knowledge of other person's plight! And if you cannot , as a human being, empathize and sympathize, then you are a truly a narcissistic sociopath!
December 19, 2020
A simple yet powerful look at racism and police violence through the eyes of a birdwatcher - inspired in part by author Christian Cooper's Central Park experience this past summer. I was left wanting a bit more, but it's free (on Comixology, Amazon, library ebook systems, etc.) and well worth a read.
January 22, 2021
A really powerful memoriam for those killed by racism in this country, with beautiful art. I heard about it at ALA Midwinter and immediately bought it to read on my comiXology app. My only complaint is that it’s too short! The device of the binoculars is so fascinating, I’d love to know more about what the kid makes of those!
June 6, 2023
Having just finished Christian Cooper’s wonderful new book “Better Living Through Birding,” I was hoping this graphic novel would have been a bit longer. Then again, I’m not familiar with the graphic genre, and Cooper is, so I will bow to his knowledge and concede that the writing is tight and creative and the illustrations are powerful.
September 10, 2020
Wow.
Talk about turning a bad situation into something positive!
Christian Cooper's comic book uses the media of comic books/graphic novels to illustrate the murders of black people by police. Well done Christian!
Talk about turning a bad situation into something positive!
Christian Cooper's comic book uses the media of comic books/graphic novels to illustrate the murders of black people by police. Well done Christian!
September 10, 2020
A snapshot into innocence , curiosity, fear and hate
A very special, creative and wonderful book with a powerful message for the times. I love the authors sense of color and messaging.
A very special, creative and wonderful book with a powerful message for the times. I love the authors sense of color and messaging.
September 13, 2020
Emotionally touching and beautiful graphic novel. 🙏🏾💫
It is all too meaningful that this story and book exists. Emotionally touching, sad, and beautiful graphic novel remembrance. 🙏🏾💫
It is all too meaningful that this story and book exists. Emotionally touching, sad, and beautiful graphic novel remembrance. 🙏🏾💫
September 14, 2020
Powerful
Beautiful designed and powerful message portrayed. Hopefully more will listen. We need change! There is a problem and no its not going way on its own. The change come from us the people.
Beautiful designed and powerful message portrayed. Hopefully more will listen. We need change! There is a problem and no its not going way on its own. The change come from us the people.
September 18, 2020
Awesome read. Looking forward to the next book
Too bad there wasn't a 10 rating. Enjoy the animation,very interesting comparing the murder victims as birds. Looking forward to thebooj
Too bad there wasn't a 10 rating. Enjoy the animation,very interesting comparing the murder victims as birds. Looking forward to thebooj
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews