Illustration Centric

Nancy Silberkleit, of Archie Comics Publications, will be the featured guest at Hudson Library in Highlands on August 25 at the 1:00 P.M. Books & Bites.

“Nancy’s story of becoming co-CEO, and the power of comics and graphic novels to build literacy and create a love of reading, is fascinating,” said Hudson’s librarian, Carlyn Morenus.

“This will be my first time visiting your community,” Silberkleit told The Laurel during a June interview. “Recently a friend of mine was sharing his visit to Highlands, so I naturally went online to look at your library, with that I reached out to Carlyn and suggested a talk on Everything Archie Comics. It seems whenever I mention Archie Comics, an immediate smile and interest occurs, I was delighted she welcomed my talk.”

Silberkleit is the wife of the late Michael Silberkleit, who was the son of Archie Comics founder Louis Silberkleit, who with his partner John L. Goldwater founded Archie Comics in 1942. She stepped into her role as co-CEO of the company in 2009 with a vision that the comic book as a graphic novel is a valuable tool for developing literacy among first-time readers and instilling a love of reading for everyone.

“My background is in education,” she said. “I was an art teacher before becoming co-CEO at Archie. Engaging children into learning is key and I believe the arts is a powerful way to draw learners into any academic subject! Graphic literacy is not like regular books, and I encourage people to open one and get whisked into the sequential panels. I will be making my point on that as I talk about the iconic Archie Comics and how Archie’s bling is building a love of reading.”

Further, Silberkleit feels strongly that the graphic comic book format helps to enrich and develop the creative mind.

“Reading Archie Comics for 30 minutes is what I like to call ‘Archie Therapy,’” noted Silberkleit. “The light-hearted, humorous stories have appealed to readers for generations, thanks to the talented writers and artists who make Archie a never-ending story.”

Both Hudson Library and Albert Carlton-Cashiers Community Library have plenty of graphic novels for all ages, pointed out Cashiers’ library’s Branch Librarian Serenity Richards. “Starting with beginner readers and going all the way through adults … the collections contain both fiction and non-fiction titles. The Wings of Fire graphic novels are all the rage for the 10-12 set. From Calvin and Hobbes to Wonder Woman, we have graphic novels to suit every taste.”

For more information about the August 25 event, visit fontanalib.org/highlands

by Deena Bouknight