9 Best African Comics and Graphic Novels

If you are curious about the Best African Comics and Graphic Novels, in this article we listed 9 Books to Start Discovering this World

We are used to hearing about comic book publishers such as Marvel or DC, with their endless number of highly recognized superheroes, antiheroes and villains that over the years have been instilled in us and are simply an essential part of our own being, but there is a lot more in the world of comics than those two titans of the industry.

Even knowing that the universe of comics is quite extensive and wonderful, this time I come to open your mind a little bit and take you out of the comfort zone that they have already established for all of us and, pretty far from Marvel and DC, and other countries also have created editorials of really good comics and graphic novels.

This time we’re going to talk about a lot of countries in Africa that are owners of an incredible talent that, without knowing it, has gained followers little by little around the world.

It should be noted that the fact that Africans gave rise to the creation of their own characters was mainly with the purpose of making their culture and traditions known as they really are.

People outside this countries have created, on different occasions, African characters that for Africans themselves can be considered as an insult and an offense to their own population and that is why they are tired of being portrayed in a wrong way.

Thanks to African publisher ad Cosmic Prime, Kugali or similar, here we have the best African Comics and Graphic Novels.

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1. Kwezi

by Loyiso Mkize

This character is an ordinary 19-year-old boy, attracted by technology and social media, nothing different from a normal teenager. However, Kwezi is a superhero, with powers that were inherited from his ancestors, which are a species that was formed directly from the stars.

His mission on the planet is to save the human race, just as his predecessors did in the past. Interesting fact is that the character’s name “Kwezi” actually means “star” in the Zulu and Zhosa languages.

2. The Forgotten Slaves of Tromelin

By Sylvain Savoia

From the hand of Sylvain Savoia we received a lesson of dignity, humanity, and a vision of slavery and the inequality of the Africans of that time, with unfortunately the vast majority going through that reality.

This graphic novel is set in the 60s and 70s, where a ship full of African slaves sinks and they are left to their own devices. The misfortune was so great that fifteen years later, the few survivors who remained, including seven women and a small baby, were rescued.

Sylvain not only tells the story in a painful way, where misery is in every corner of it, but also in a smart way and full of creativity, mix this story with a second plot, set in the present, where Max Guérot, a French archaeologist , has been in charge of tracking down these castaways.

3. Kwaku Ananse

By Kiaski Donkor

She is a heroine with supernatural powers such as climbing like a spider and on many occasions this allowed the viewer to believe that she was a real spider.

Unlike Spider-Man, who gets his powers through a spider bite, Ananse is born with these abilities.

She has a divine physiology typical of an African god and that is why she is has lived for so long: when she reached adulthood, her aging became very slow.

She is not immortal, but due to the type of skin she has, she is pretty resistant to injuries and blows and not only that, she is also capable of magically manipulating the energies of the environment. A heroine without comparison.

4. Aya de Yopougon

by Marguerite Abouet

This is a series of comic books that reveal the story of Aya, a traditional young woman who, at 19, her only dream is to become a doctor. Thanks to its creator Marguerite Abouet and the illustrious images by Clément Oubrerie, we can genuinely appreciate this story set in the 70s in Ivory Coast, specifically in Yopoungon.

Like many other stories that show us a bit of the reality of Africa, Aya de Yopougon is very far from the traditional war and confrontations that you might be used to. With a colorful and fun tone, we see that most young women were instilled that they should find a husband to serve while having friends whom, on the other hand, all that they want is to go out and have fun, Aya, with a totally different ideology, it is very difficult for her to get out of the common stereotype of a woman and at the same time fulfill her dream of being a doctor.

This is a funny story that instantly grabs you and has also been widely recognized and applauded, so much so that it was featured at the Cali Book Fair. The bad news about this is that, sadly, you can only find this Graphic Novel in a French Edition on Amazon, the DVD is available on Booksamillion.

5. The Pack

By Paul Louise-Julie

It is a graphic novel created by Paul Louise-Julie with splendid artwork. This novel is based on a werewolf civilization from Nubia and Egypt, where the journey of the characters who spend their lives fleeing from humanity is told, as well as the missions they must fulfill trough the history.

6. Alpha: Abidjan to Paris

by Bessora

We know from previous references that Africans love to give us a real-life lesson, and this time is no exception. Alpha: Abidjan to Paris is a graphic novel that deals with the subject of mass migration.

After an event where his wife and son must leave the country to go to Paris, Alpha is left alone with the uncertainty that he will not know what will happen to their lives. No matter what, Alpha decides against all odds to go after his family.

Facing the desert and stumbling upon smugglers, as well as refugee and migrant camps fleeing misfortune, and with only a photo of his loved ones beside him, he crosses continents to reunite with them.

This is a really touching story and with quite strong illustrations, it shows the illusions and suffering of those emigrants go through, not only from this country, but from any other.

7. Yohancé

By Paul Louise-Julie

Again from the hand of Paul Louise-Julie we meet the character Yohancé.

This is an intergalactic story that tells the story of a clever thief named Yohancé, who is in search of a mysterious old artifact, unleashing an intergalactic conflict bigger than herself behind.

Unlike Star Wars, this story has nods and great references to African culture and aesthetics.

8. Malika

Although the above characters come from Cosmic Prime publishing house, Malika’s character comes from Youneek Studios.

This story is based on West Africa in the 15th century to be more specific. Malika is considered a warrior queen, commander of her own army.

Her mission is to fight in a war that takes place on the walls of her own empire trying to destroy her own population, and she has nothing left to learn from the hard-earned teachings to bring peace to her dynasty.

9. Oro

It is a Nigerian comic published by y based on the story of Oro, a young prince who learned the ways of magic thanks to beings and spirits of the forest who took care of him after his father sent him there to die.

The turns of life made him immortal, and in the village near the forest where he lived, death begins to haunt in the form of a demon known as Omooku which Oro must take care of, however also after many years Oro must face a mysterious man called The Doctor, who returns from the dead after being assassinated in 1973.