#tabula idem

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edited by Iris Jay and Hye M

What it is: The full title is Tabula Idem: a queer tarot comic anthology. And that’s what it is, with a short comic for each of the Major Arcana. Some stories are more fantastic, some are closer to scifi, each one of them is gorgeous.

Why it’s on this list: This collection has 22 stories, all of them featuring queer characters. You have girls in love, boys in love, trans characters both binary and nonbinary. Characters defying what’s expected of their gender, alone or with a lover. It really does capture the spectrum of identities that our community has to offer.

Where you can find it: You can purchase the book or the ebook at their gumroad, and you can also find more information about the editors, the project, and the contributors on their blog @tabulaidemanthology.

Full List of the Contributors

Sometimes, a book sits on your shelf, waiting for you to need it.

That’s exactly what happened with the comic anthology Tabula Idem.

You know it’s the right time to read something when you’re crying only a few pages in. Even the introduction had my heart aching.

“The history of queerness is a history of adaption, of using creativity and community to flourish…. We design our own destinies, and then fight to protect and realize them.”

- Iris Jay, from the Introduction

With some anthologies, I am tempted to read them out of order, flipping around until something catches my eye. It is rare that I sit down and read one from front to back, but like the Major Arcana itself these anthology transitions expertly from one story to the next, each story building on the one that came before it. It was an experience, and a journey, which really speaks to how successful they were in keeping to their theme. I laughed, I cried, and I even caught myself repeating lines out loud just so I could hear them spoken.

It is very obvious that this project was put together when it was, because there is a defiance and a hopefulness in these pages. These characters face first meetings and the threat of a goodbye, they stare down evil and their own anxieties. And to watch these characters overcome, find their own versions of a triumph, is so powerful.

“Maybe it’s nice to imagine that things can be different… But they’re not really. But I think it’s okay to feel a bit helpless… Because I’m not alone, and never will be. You’re still the same… No matter what, I love you.”

- from XII The Hanged One, by Alain Helmers

You don’t have to understand Tarot to enjoy the symbolism of each story. At the beginning of each story you’re given a few lines of what the card means, and each story is capped by a beautiful tarot card featuring the characters of the story, in full colour.

Have I mentioned yet just how beautiful this book is? Not just the stories, but the whole book. So well done.

If I start trying to go in detail about each story, this will get ridiculously long, so I’ll just give you a bit of a taste from each. A coffee shop meetcute between two different kinds of artists. A dreamt connection turned tangible. An empath and their potion-making partner falling in love. A coming-of-age journey. A knight and their charge. Two lovers remembering together. A chariot racer and his carpenter. Two art thieves and a scandal. A light being restored. A ghost arcade and a new friend. A big move. A change in perspective. A necromancer and a transformation. Two rival gang members working together. Rio De Janeiro, 1927. “Fear holds no power over me for I am at peace and I am loved.” A scientist in space realizing there is always something more to discover. Magic and realizations in the rain. The winter solstice. Music and a burning conversation. And to finish off the collection, a merman shows a newcomer a new world.

Anthologies are often tricky, because there are always stories we like more or less and ones we wish were longer and ones we could have done without. I’ve never read an anthology that was this cohesive, where each story really did feel like part of a bigger whole that was the path this collection was leading us down.

It was the perfect thing to read at one am after a few days of feeling directionless. If you like comics, short stories, tarot, or if any of the little snippets above grabbed your attention, I highly recommend you get your hands on this anthology and give it a read.