The Gift - Print Comic

With Ghibliesque art and storytelling, “The Gift” by Jamila Rowser and Sam Wade takes the reader on a fantastical journey that will give them a new perspective on ancestry.

The comic follows 10-year-old Kenya and her father visiting an African art museum. At the museum, Kenya meets a mysterious visitor who takes her on an unexpected journey that leaves her with a new perspective on her roots. 

"The Gift" is a 32-page color comic about ancestry and identity by award-winning writer Jamila Rowser (Wash Day Dairies) and artist Sam Wade (Stoke). It also includes 10 bonus pages of process pages and an essay about the meaning and making of the comic. 

Comic Specs

• 42 pages total, 32-page color comic with 10 bonus pages of back matter
• 7 x 9.5 inches
• Perfect bound
• Print ISBN: ISBN: 979-8-9873070-3-8
• Digital ISBN: 979-8-9873070-4-5

THE TEAM

Writer

• Jamila Rowser (She/Her)
• Jamilarowser.com
• IG + Twitter: @jamilarowser

Artist

• Sam Wade (She/They)
• IG + Twitter: @bysamwade 

Editor

• J. A. Micheline (She/Her)
• Twitter: @elevenafter

Culture Editor

• Aurelis Troncoso (She/They)
• Ph.D. Candidate, writer, and educator
• IG: @sunflowrbruja

Culture Editor

• Maryam Kazeem (She/Her)
• Maryamkazeem.com

Copy Editor

• Victoria Johnson (She/Her) 
• sailormoonfanclub.com
• T & IG: @missoldskool
• TikTok: @sailorvictoria

BIOS  

Jamila Rowser (she/her) is a Queer Black, Puerto Rican, and Dominican award-winning writer, editor, and publisher (Black Josei Press). She is known for her debut graphic novel, Wash Day Diaries, co-created with Robyn Smith (Nubia: Real One), which won the LA Times Book Prize and Ignatz Award and was nominated for an Eisner Award. 

Sam Wade (she/they) is a software engineer and artist based out of Long Beach. She loves horror, sci-fi, and a good mystery. 

Black Josei Press is an award-winning and critically acclaimed indie comic publisher launched in 2018. It is known for the award-winning comics Wash Day, The Saddest Angriest Black Girl in Town, Gordita: Built Like This, and Ignatz nominated Ode to Keisha and Arrive In My Hands. 

Questions, interview requests, wholesale orders? Email hey@blackjoseipress.com.

ACCOLADES 

Nominated for an Ignatz Award for Outstanding Story

2023 Broken Frontier Awards Nominee for Best One Shot

PRESS

Broken Frontier Review: Jamila Rowser and Sam Wade’s Thoughtful and Unforgettable Reflection on Black Identity and Heritage

Carrie McClain Review: My Favorite Comics of 2023