Proma Hassan Q (she/her)

Teacher, mom, introvert pretending to be extrovert.

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

The “F” word (the other one) and the punishments delivered to anyone considered to be homosexual in early European & American history. I believe Curato is trying to change the narrative with the decisions he makes. #hongcomics

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

I really appreciated that Mike Curato’s Flamer is written from the perspective of a middle school child forced to deal with very real and very “adult” dilemmas of identity and self-love. As a middle school educator, I know how real these experiences are for our children…

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

Often dismissed/ignored by most adults, they are forced to navigate their identity and sexuality on their own while facing constant judgement and questioning every step. Curato’s choice in the title and cover is especially intriguing to me as it makes me think of the history of..

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@Thvringwethil I agree! I love the ways Gharib is able to weave in interactive pages to engage the reader in a whole new way of reading comics. We get a real sense of who Malaka is through the (sometimes sarcastic/sometimes self/deprecating) humor she employs throughout these pages.

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

By the end of the book, Gharib is making sure we’re keeping up. Instead of continuing to translate for us, she adds the footnote: “a Tagalog word I taught Darren, remember?” In this way, Gharib makes sure we are paying attention.

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

What I adored most about the graphic memoir, I Was Their American Dream, is how Gharib is able to tell a very personal story, while also making it an interactive learning experience for the reader; and by the end of it, holding us accountable for our learning. #hongcomics

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@ProfCKHong Daal Bhaat and Goro Mangsho~ rice with Bengali lentils and beef curry 🤤

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@Joreneariel I agree, Jorene. Childbirth in Bui’s work is not represented as joyful and easy. I haven’t quite seen any other work display childbirth in this way. The red coloring of all of the panels add depth to the mood throughout the memoir. I think of blood, pain and loss. #hongcomics

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

feels obligated to make sense of her past in order to make room for her future generation. #hongcomics

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

Reading Bui’s TBWCD a second time, this time in proximity to Vietnamerica, drew my attention more to Bui’s decisions as an author. I wonder what Bui was thinking when deciding to open with labor and childbirth (in such a raw way). The work Tran is doing in his graphic…

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

memoir, as he travels to Vietnam catapulted by death to learn about his ancestral past is especially intriguing juxtaposed against Bui’s childbirth forcing her to dig up her own. In one, the author contends with the past because of death and loss, while in the other, the author…

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@JasonAltmanQC First of all, Jason, congratulations!! This was also my second read of TBWCD and the opening pages always does a number on me. Bui is able to depict labor/childbirth in such a real and raw way, like nothing else I’ve seen. It brings me back to being in the delivery room (all 3x)

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

…which I believe is representative of the overwhelming nature of connecting the past to the present and the characters trying to make sense of their history. At times, it feels overwhelming even for us as the narrator changes throughout the graphic novel.

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

GB Trans’ “Vietnamerica” felt like art in my hands. I was enamored by how Trans makes use of every single page. The art throughout depicts the precarious feelings the characters are dealing with through war, displacement, and loss. There are no page numbers… #hongcomics

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@Joreneariel That’s such a great point! I didn’t think of that- how Tran uses borderless panels as a commentary on borders and displacement.

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@JasonAltmanQC I felt the same way, Jason. Vietnamerica felt like a mixed art piece we were reading. I loved every end page before a break. Tran makes use of all the elements. Even the texture of the paper changed from page to page. #hongcomics

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@Joreneariel That’s such a great point, Jorene! The gutters do end up taking up more space. Tamaki is able to capture how overwhelmed we all were together and apart.

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

I love how Tamaki uses space in Pandemic Diary. She makes full use of the “daunting blankness” and is strategic about what is in the panels and what is in the white spaces, showing the lingering and overwhelming thoughts that many of us were navigating through. #hongcomics

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

@ProfCKHong One of my students put me onto this song a couple days ago: "Free Mind", Tems
Have been listening on repeat.

[Proma Hassan Q (she/her) @MissHasssaan]

I appreciate Silady's take defining comics in his essay, "Panel", contending McCloud's definition that a comic cannot be a single panel. I like the idea of the panel and the relationship. I think I see an example of this in p18 of Secret Asian Man. #hongcomics