Back matter provides further context about the time period, polio, and the artist’s process. The story nevertheless maintains a strong tempo throughout, mixing polished Tintin–style characterizations with a feel of classic comic noir to communicate the era’s unease. Red Scare: A Graphic Novel Hardcover 6 April 2022 by Liam Francis Walsh(Author) 4. Red Scare: A Graphic Novel by Liam Francis Walsh (Goodreads Author) 3.73 Rating details 246 ratings 53 reviews A page-turning adventure featuring a clever 11-year-old girl who must, against all odds, protect her family and town during the height of the communist 'red scare. Walsh takes on complex themes, but a lack of nuanced characterization undercuts key scenes, as when Peggy’s largely off-page veteran father, who lives with PTSD after losing two legs and an eye in the Korean War, defends Jess’s father from a mob with a sudden monologue about the dangers of abandoning American principles-one that paints violence as inconsistent with U.S. Government emissaries pursue a purported Russian agent locally, and tensions rise when new kid Jess is outed as being the daughter of a communist. Alongside her family’s struggle to make ends meet and the bullying that she endures at school, Peggy’s white-presenting community obsessively fears communism’s potential impact. But Peggy has bigger problems: Shes struggling to recover. Set in 1953, Walsh’s debut is an action-packed, period-oriented thriller thatįollows student Peggy, who is recovering from polio and uses forearm crutches, as she finds a glowing red object that allows her to fly-and draws FBI interest. In the aftermath of the Korean War, Peggys small hometown is rife with anti-Communist hysteria.

Red scare liam francis walsh