Calamity Before Jane
A TOON Graphic
Published on 23. December 2025
Book
Hardback
96 pages
978-1-6626-6540-0 (ISBN)
Description
Calamity Jane and the stories surrounding her are famous, but this graphic novel for young readers 8 and up is here to tell the story of Martha Jane Canary—the real-life survivor, orphan, and storyteller behind the legend.
In 1901, the Pan-American Exposition World's Fair was held in Buffalo, New York. Amongst spectacles like advancements in electricity and new inventions like the X-ray machine is a woman with a story—but not the one you’ve heard. Calamity Jane’s life is shrouded in exaggerations and lies told to sell a more marketable version of reality, but cartoonist Noah Van Sciver is here to tell the truth: Martha Jane Cannary struggled throughout her life, from her childhood as a destitute orphan to her bitter adulthood as she watched the West she loved disappear before her eyes.
In 1901, the Pan-American Exposition World's Fair was held in Buffalo, New York. Amongst spectacles like advancements in electricity and new inventions like the X-ray machine is a woman with a story—but not the one you’ve heard. Calamity Jane’s life is shrouded in exaggerations and lies told to sell a more marketable version of reality, but cartoonist Noah Van Sciver is here to tell the truth: Martha Jane Cannary struggled throughout her life, from her childhood as a destitute orphan to her bitter adulthood as she watched the West she loved disappear before her eyes.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Target group
Children/juvenile
US School Grade: From Third Grade to Seventh Grade, Interest Age: From 8 to 12 years
Dimensions
Height: 259 mm
Width: 200 mm
Thickness: 11 mm
Weight
335 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-6626-6540-0 (9781662665400)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Noah Van Sciver is a multiple award-winning cartoonist who first came to comic readers’ attention with his critically acclaimed, Eisner-nominated comic book series Blammo. His work has appeared in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the Best American Comics, Kramers Ergot, as well as countless graphic anthologies. Van Sciver was a regular contributor to MAD Magazine and has written and drawn numerous bestselling graphic novels including Joseph Smith and the Mormons, One Dirty Tree, Saint Cole and the Fante Bukowski: Struggling Writer series for Fantagraphics books. In 2015 he was the Artist in Residence/fellow at The Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, Vermont. His books and comics are translated into more than 6 different languages around the world.