Emil Ferris: My Favorite Thing Is Monsters

My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Emil Ferris' debut graphic novel, is the diary of a ten-year-old girl obsessed with monsters who also believes she is a werewolf. Ferris talks about werewolfism as the stand-in for a lesbianism her young protagonist has no words for – all she knows is that being a werewolf allows her the freedom to feel wildly different. In this way, the novel (and the girl) treats the monsters compassionately as creatures who were born into their lot and who "conduct themselves with monstrous dignity." It makes for a beautiful book that was, incredibly, rejected 48 times before it took flight.

Photo by Sean Dellorco