SIUE’s Howard Rambsy II, PhD, Releases New Book, “Writing Black Panther: Ta-Nehisi Coates and Representation Struggles”

SIUE's Howard Rambsy II, PhD, Releases New Book, "Writing Black Panther: Ta-Nehisi Coates and Representation Struggles"

When best-selling author and cultural commentator Ta-Nehisi Coates was closing his run on the comic book "Black Panther" in May 2021, Howard Rambsy II, PhD, Distinguished Research Professor in Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Department of English Language and Literature, was already thinking about the larger significance of Coates's contributions to comics and Black literary culture.

"Writing Black Panther: Ta-Nehisi Coates and Representation Struggles," Rambsy's third book, was published this May by Bloomsbury Academic. The book explores Coates's impact on Marvel Comics while also examining larger questions about African American writers and representations of Black people in contemporary popular culture.

"Coates's work on 'Black Panther' expanded conversations about race, representation and Black storytelling within comic books and popular culture," wrote Rambsy. "I was interested in how a journalist and notable author became a comic book writer whose remarkable reception helped shape discussions about African American artistic production."

Every semester since 2018, Rambsy has co-taught a diversity and comic book course with writing center director Stephyn Phillips. For his part of the course, Rambsy continually covered aspects of Coates's work on "Black Panther."

As Rambsy studied and taught African American literature, he became fascinated with questions concerning cultural visibility and the ways Black writers gain broader audiences across different media. He blended that scholarly interest with his longtime enthusiasm for comic books and study of the literary genre.

"Coates produced a landmark run on 'Black Panther,'" he explained. "His stature as a major Black writer led to extensive media attention that contributed to increasing recognition for Black writers in comics."

Rambsy is especially excited about the broader readership opportunities made possible by his publisher.

"For one, Bloomsbury made the price slightly lower than most academic titles so that it will be available in bookstores and to a larger number of readers," he said. "The other thing they did was make the book available as an audiobook. That means that readers too busy to read the print version, or who simply enjoy audiobooks, can now listen."

Rambsy hopes the book will appeal to readers interested in African American literature, comic books, media studies and contemporary popular culture.

PHOTOS: Howard Rambsy II, PhD, Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of English Language and Literature; "Writing Black Panther: Ta-Nehisi Coates and Representation Struggles," published by Bloomsbury Academic