Birth of a Comical Black Nation

by Calvin Reid -- Publishers Weekly, 6/21/2004

There's more than one way to get a film project off the ground. In July Crown will publish Birth of a Nation, a political farce detailing how East St. Louis, a poor black section of St. Louis, decides to secede from the U.S. and set up a free and independent black nation.

The book is a collaboration by three acclaimed black creators. The story was written by Aaron McGruder, the outspoken creator of the Boondocks daily newspaper strip, and Reginald Hudlin, the former producer of hit films like House Party, who is actually from East St. Louis. Veteran comics artist Kyle Baker did the illustrations.

Crown's Chris Jackson acquired the book and he explained that McGruder and Hudlin originally hoped to produce a film about a black neighborhood that is so pissed off after their votes go uncounted in a presidential election—sound familiar?—that the residents decide to secede and set up their own country, the nation of Blackland. "They couldn't get backing for the film," said Jackson, "so they decided to adapt the screenplay into a graphic novel."

In the sovereign nation of Blackland, James Brown's and Tupac's faces are on the money and Jesus's face is on the flag—turns out only Jesus-loving black seniors bothered to show up for the flag meeting. The book will have a 60,000-copy first printing, with blurbs by comedian Chris Rock and hip-hop artist and actor Ice Cube. Crown will be pushing the book at Comic-Con, and the authors will do a panel focusing on the book.

"It was a stroke of luck to get Kyle to do the drawings," said Jackson. "There's a joke in every detail in every panel. And they still hope to get a film made."