Obviously, I could only include so many comics in this quiz, so first I had to establish some ground rules for what I would and would not include. First, I decided to stick with nonfiction comics. There are plenty of great historical fiction comics out there — books like Salt Magic or Superman Smashes the Klan — but this quiz is for nonfiction recs only. Second, I tried to avoid the really famous titles. Maus and Persepolis are the gold standards when it comes to historical comics, and you should absolutely read them if you haven’t, but I wanted to spotlight books that maybe haven’t gotten as much publicity. This is also why I excluded comics written by celebrities, like March and They Called Us Enemy, which got a boost from their famous co-authors. I also tried to be as diverse as possible in terms of time periods, settings, and the creators’ backgrounds. This meant cutting a lot of really interesting comics about American history, including Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio and Redbone: The True Story of a Native American Rock Band. Otherwise, the whole quiz would focus on one country while excluding fascinating stories from and/or based in other nations. Why does this quiz focus on museums, you ask? Because they keep history alive. Just like these comics. So let’s get learning right now — or, if you want to skip the quiz and just get some great recs, keep a-scrolling and pick out the comics you want to read on your own.
