Ten Days in a Mad-House: A Graphic Adaptation

(Paperback)

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A NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY BEST NEW COMIC OF 2022 FOR ADULTS

Beautifully adapted and rendered through piercing illustrations by acclaimed creators Brad Ricca and Courtney Sieh, Nellie Blys complete, true-to-life 19th-century investigation of Blackwell Asylum captures a groundbreaking moment in history and reveals a haunting and timely glimpse at the starting point for conversations on mental health.

I said I could and I would. And I did.

While working for Joseph Pulitzers newspaper in 1887, Nellie Bly began an undercover investigation into the local Womens Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell Island. Intent on seeing what life was like on the inside, Bly fooled trained physicians into thinking she was insanea task too easily achievedand had herself committed. In her ten days at the asylum, Bly witnessed horrifying conditions: the food was inedible, the women were forced into labor for the staff, the nurses and doctors were cruel or indifferent, and many of the women held there had no mental disorder of any kind.

Now adapted into graphic novel form by Brad Ricca and vividly rendered with beautiful and haunting illustrations by Courtney Sieh, Blys bold venture is given new life and meaning. Her fearless investigation into the living conditions at the Blackwell Asylum forever changed the field of journalism. A timely reminder to take notice of forgotten populations, Ten Days in a Mad-House warns us what happens when we look away.

Reviews

Siehs detailed ink drawings, reminiscent of 19th-century etchings, coupled with a hard-boiled adaptation by Ricca, retell the groundbreaking journalism of Bly, a reporter who went undercover to expose abuses at Blackwells Asylum in 1887.this history bears repeating. Publishers Weekly
A beautifullyhand-drawn adaptation.Siehs black-and-white drawings heighten the tension of Blackwells by casting all the doctors and nurses in imperious shadow. Nellie and her fellow patients wide, expressive eyes communicate the terror they feel within the institution. This graphic adaptation of reportage would appeal to fans of Joe Sacco and Sarah Glidden. Booklist
"An important and vital piece of journalism... We need vivid works such as Nellie Blys." Medium

There should be no doubt in any historians mind that Nellie Bly was a pioneer. Paste Magazine

Author Bio

BradRiccais the Edgar-nominated author of five books, includingTrue Raiders, Olive the Lionheart, Mrs. Sherlock Holmes,and the award-winningSuper Boys.His independent filmLast Sonwon a Silver Ace Award. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

CourtneySiehgraduated from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 2016 with aBFAin illustration and an emphasis in interior architecture.Currently sheis freelancing out of a swamp near Minneapolis, kept company at her drafting table by her two cats.

Nellie Bly (18641922), born Elizabeth Cochran Seaman, was an American journalist, industrialist, inventor, and charity worker who was widely known for her record-breaking trip around the world in seventy-twodays, in emulation of Jules Vernes fictional characterPhileasFogg, and anexposin which sheworked undercover to report on a mental institution from within. She was a pioneer in herfield andlaunched a new kind of investigative journalism.