''Tales from the Heart'' is the title of a series of comic books and graphic novels, written by Cindy Goff and

Rafael Nieves Rafael Nieves (born January 24, 1960) is an American comic book writer and designer, with over thirty years experience in the field. He began his career with the publication of '' Tales from the Heart'', first published by Entropy Enterprises bef ...

and illustrated by Seitu Hayden. Told through the eyes of protagonist Cathy Grant, the comics detail the adventures of a

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

volunteer in the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...

in the mid-1980s. The work explores why so much effort by so many volunteers wrought so little change. Later stories delve into the reign of the mad dictator

Jean-Bédel Bokassa Jean-Bédel Bokassa (; 22 February 1921 – 3 November 1996), also known as Bokassa I, was a Central African political and military leader who served as the second president of the Central African Republic (CAR) and as the emperor of its s ...

Publication history

The first two issues of the ongoing series were published by Entropy Enterprises in 1987, with nine later issues published by

Slave Labor Graphics Slave Labor Graphics (SLG) is an independent American comic book publisher, well known for publishing darkly humorous, offbeat comics. Creators associated with SLG over the years include Evan Dorkin, Roman Dirge, Sarah Dyer, Woodrow Phoenix, Jhon ...

(from 1988 to 1994). Slave Labor published ''Tales from the Heart: Hearts of Africa'' in 1994, which collected issues #1-3 and featured an introduction by

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...

. Two color graphic novels, ''Tales from the Heart of Africa: The Temporary Natives'' (1990) and ''A Tale From the Heart of Africa: Bloodlines'' (1992)The Grand Comics Database Project
/ref> were published by the

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

imprint

Epic Comics Epic Comics (also known as the Epic Comics Group)Shooter, Jim. "Bullpen Bulletins: The Truth About the Epic Comics Group!" Marvel comics cover-dated November 1982. was an imprint of Marvel Comics from 1982 to 1996. A spin-off of the publisher's ...

Awards

''A Tale From the Heart of Africa: Bloodlines'' (Epic, 1992) was nominated for two

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

s in 1993, for Best Single Issue, Self-Contained Story; and Best Graphic Album — New.

Notes

References

* * * Slave Labor Graphics titles Epic Comics titles Non-fiction graphic novels Peace Corps in fiction Central African Republic culture {{comics-stub