Chester Comix - Comic books and graphic novels that bring history to life!

Welcome to Chester Comix! Inside this site you'll find fun samples of the way Bentley Boyd uses comix to spark interest in history for reluctant readers! Check what he's drawing now, go with him to weird historical sites across the country, or download a coloring page and put your own words into his drawings! This home page features my most recent news/blog entries. Learn more about my blog. Have fun! --Bentley Boyd

The First Remainder.

September 30th, 2010

Wow. A milestone! The First Time I Saw One of My Books in a Used Bookstore.

Today, at the popular Book Exchange on Jamestown Road in Williamsburg.

Maybe a good thing? It means my stuff is out there, people are trying them. Not everyone will like what they read. Comix are a hard art form to navigate if you haven’t read any since Archie and Jughead when you were 7.

But I couldn’t stop staring — like finding one of my homemade cupcakes in the trash at the company picnic, with one bite out of it. I know in my head that used Chester Comix are out there — you can see them advertised on Amazon. But I’ve never physically come face-to-cover with one in all the used bookstores I love to cruise.

I resisted the urge to pull a Paddington and write a note to stick inside it: “Please take care of this book.”

Tags: Author's Purpose, Bentley Boyd, bookstore, Chester Comix, Revolutionary City
Posted in Author's Purpose | 4 Comments »

Bacon’s Rebellion on Jamestown Island

September 28th, 2010

A week ago I found myself on Jamestown Island on a Saturday night for the annual telling of the story of Bacon’s Rebellion. Of course I’ve been out to the island many times in the 18 years that I’ve lived in the Historic Triangle, but I had never been there for this event. What a cool and calm feeling watching the sun set over the church and then watching the moon rise over the fields where some experts made it feel like 1678!

Willie Balderson was the leader of the crew that night. He is one of the best actors in the Williamsburg area, in part because he can range so widely across the timeline. For years he has led groups on this annual walk through Bacon’s Rebellion — the first major uprising of American colonists against British royal authority (a century before the Declaration of Independence). He has a deft touch in making the story understandable to modern audiences but still making them feel he was a participant in that story. (It helps that the crowd’s interest mirrors what actually happened: after the rebellion the king sent investigators to Virginia to interview people to find out what went so haywire.)

It’s a dramatic story that very few Americans know about — probably the biggest adventure that is untold to modern audiences. Well, except for my own version of it in my Founding Fathers book. 😉

Jamestown Island is great example of how I can do what I do for a living. It is a favorite among locals because it has beautiful hiking and biking just a few minutes away from our community. It is amazing that we have such historic ground so nearby, where we can see the marshes at sunset, watch a bald eagle eat dinner on the James River seawall, or hear the archaeologists tell us what they’ve learned about Jamestown Fort today that they didn’t know a month ago. It’s getting harder to find those unique pieces of ground in America, but this is easy to get to and there’s no Wal-Mart around!

Tags: Bacon's Rebellion, Bentley Boyd, Chester Comix, Jamestown Island, Virginia, Willie Balderson
Posted in Author's Purpose, Historical Travel, History Teacher | No Comments »

The Power of Reading . . . Testimonials

September 16th, 2010

No, no — there’s NOT a lot of money in selling history comic books. It’s a niche business. I had good friends this summer brainstorm with me ways I could be the next “Diary of a Wimpy Kid.” But I’m not just doing comix — I am committed to doing comix that boost reading and a love for American history. I can’t jump to a superhero book or a pure comedy comic because I actually care about my content.

So testimonials keep me going between bank deposits. I hope it’s fun for you to see different testimonials pop up in those explosions on the right side of my web pages; my webmaster Brian Korte has done a fantastic job making those work. But more and more testimonials to Chester Comix are popping up elsewhere — such as the website for the Homeschool Buyers Co-op.

The Co-op has sold my books for two years now and was the push behind the publication of my Homeschool All-Stars hardcover comic last holiday season. Its community has been great to me. Seeing all that warm feedback gathered in one spot is humbling. And reinforcing. I’ve never had time or resources to do a proper study to measure the impact of my books in the classroom, but I’ve had so many teachers and parents and kids say the same specific things that I know the books work for reluctant readers.

My favorites in a beautiful list:

“My boys, 9 and 12, enjoyed reading it. It’s funny and the author inserts other characters with side comments that my boys find hilarious. As for me, I love that it is historically accurate and entertaining at the same time. It brings history to life! What a rare find.”

“They have all the flavor of comic books (colorful and funny), but they are also chock full of historical information. When we get into historical discussions, my kids will say, “No, remember it was the…” and they really remember the facts as well as the fun!”

“As a historian, I’m always on the lookout for things that might make my kids like history. I was reluctant to try these unseen, but am so glad I did. I figured these might be useful when my boys got older, but at 3.5 and 7, they’re both completely in love with the Chester Comix series. There must be something seriously compelling in the art, because I can’t imagine the three-year-old is understanding a word I read him of the ideas behind the Constitution! But for less abstract ideas, they really can absorb something even at this young age. Nothing warms a historian mom’s heart like hearing kids discuss Rosa Parks or argue about the Mayflower. We hope the author will do many more! We bought a second set to give away.”

Posted in Author's Purpose, History Teacher, literacy | No Comments »

Comic books that bring history to life!