Radiant Comics

I’m back from the comic shop this week and I got two new comics plus a softcover collection:

And now for a review of something I’ve read recently.

”A Treasury of 20th Century Murder: The Lives of Sacco and Vanzetti” by Rick Geary

I have around ten of these historical crime graphic novels by Rick Geary so it’s no surprise that I bought his latest one and no surprise that I like it. I not sure if I have anything new to say about this one except it’s as good as all the others. This is a favorite series of mine.

Sacco and Vanzetti were two Italian immigrants in the early 20th Century who were convicted of and eventually executed for a couple of murders. The crime took place in 1920 and the execution in 1927. Both men were anarchists and caught up in the politics of the time. Their case became an international story with outrage, protests, and even bombings in defense of their cause.

I was somewhat familiar with Sacco and Vanzetti in that I have seen a couple of documentaries over the years about the case but I haven’t seen or read anything about them in a long time. It’s disputed whether they were actually guilty of the crimes they were executed for or not. Both men proclaimed their innocence until the end.

Geary does his usual good job at setting up and telling the story. We get a good visualization of the set up to the crime, the crime itself, some back story on Sacco and Vanzetti, eye witness accounts, the trial, and the appeal. I really like Geary’s storytelling and drawing. He does a good job of bringing to life another time and place. He does it in a straight forward kind of way that appeals to me.

Anarchists, Communists, a red scare, corruption, a world war, world anger, murder, robbery, and an inefficient justice system. The story of Sacco and Vanzetti has it all. It’s not only the small story of two men facing a murder rap but a big story of world events. If you’re into history and into comics then this should be an easy buy for you. Good stuff.