Mike Davis on a page-turning drama
This Slavery by Scarlett & Sophie Rickard published by Self Made Hero
This stunning graphic novel is adapted from the story by Ethel Carnie Holdsworth, published by the Labour Press in 1925. Holdsworth was a feminist and socialist with a prolific output of at least ten novels and many short stories, and other works. She is little known today, and her work has been out of print for decades. This was probably her most political novel, interweaving themes of romance, exploitation and militancy and set in a textile town in the industrial north around the early 20thC.
The Rickard sisters have produced a beautifully drawn and coloured work, following in the footsteps of their graphic take on Robert Tressell’s Ragged Trousered Philanthropists andConstance Maud’s No Surrender. The artwork is as powerful as the story of two sisters radicalised by the injustices and oppression of industrial capitalism, who take different paths to upend the system. The chapter heading pages are clearly inspired by William Morris, while some of the aerial view double page strips contain breathtaking detail of the town, its shops, factories and people in revolt.
This is a must for any lovers of the graphic novel format with an unputdownable page-turning drama at its heart.