University Libraries

• Annotation:
• Abina and the Important men is a graphic history based on a 1876 court transcript of a West African woman named Abina, who was wrongfully enslaved and took her case to court. The book is divided into five sections: the graphic history, the court transcript, historical context, reading guide, and Abina in the classroom. The book is intended to do more than simply depict an event in the past, but to also convey important themes in world history and to reveal the processes by which history is made.
• Creators:
• Illustrator - Liz Clarke
• Author - Trevor R. Getz
• Publication Information:
• Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2012
• Color or Black & White:
• 
• Genres:
• Historical Fiction
• Semi-Biographical
• Bibliography Available:
• No
• Original Language:
• English
• Historical Topic/Event:
• Late nineteenth-century colonialism
• Geographic Setting:
• Cape Coast -- Ghana
• Date Range:
• 1876 - 1876
• Tags:
• slavery, colonialism, imperialism, gender
• Notes:
• • Find this book on WorldCat

Copyright 2026

Funded in part by a Carnegie-Whitney Grant from the American Library Association.

Graphic History is a database of available/in-print graphic novels dealing with historical settings, events, or people. It is hosted by the University of Iowa Libraries.
Learn more at http://guides.lib.uiowa.edu/graphichistory.