Holler: A Graphic Memoir of Rural Resistance

by Denali Sai Nalamalapu

Overview

An "important piece of activist art", this beautiful graphic memoir tells the story of six hopeful activists in Appalachia who had the courage to resist against a threat to their community (Margaret Killjoy).

Drawing from original interviews with the author, Holler is an illustrated look at six inspiring changemakers. Denali Nalamalapu, a climate organizer in their own right, introduces readers to the ordinary people who became resisters of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a project that spans approximately 300 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia—a teacher, a single mother, a nurse, an organizer, a photographer, and a seed keeper. 

In West Virginia, Becky Crabtree, grandmother of five, chains herself to her 1970s Ford Pinto to stop construction from destroying her farm. Farther south, in Virginia, young organizer Michael James-Deramo organizes mutual aid to support community members showing up to protest the pipeline expansion. These (and more) are the stories of everyday resistance that show what difference we can make when we stand up for what we love, and stand together in community. When the world tells these resisters to sit down and back off, they refuse to give up. 

More than anything, Holler is an invitation to readers everywhere searching for their own path to activism: sending the message that no matter how small your action is, it’s impactful. The story of the Mountain Valley Pipeline is one we can all relate to, as each and every one of our communities faces the increasing threats of the climate crisis, and the corporations that benefit from the destruction of our natural resources. Holler is a moving and deeply accessible—and beautifully visual—story about change, hope, and humanity.  

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781643266190
Publisher:	Timber Press, Incorporated
Publication date:	05/13/2025
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	160
File size:	68 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Denali Sai Nalamalapu is a climate organizer from Southern Maine and Southern India. Denali lives in Southwest Virginia. They have written for Truthout, Prism, and Mergoat Magazine, and their climate activism has been covered in Shondaland, Vogue India, Self, The Independent, and elsewhere. They studied English Literature at Bates College and completed a Fulbright grant in Malaysia. You can find them at @DenaliSai on Instagram.

Editorial Reviews

Within the simplicity of this format lie so many beautiful complexities—the motives that make someone an activist, the skills that make them good at it, the intersectionality of the issues that motivate this book's protagonists, the politics and peril of pipelines, the nature of campaigns…. Holler is an engrossing introduction to one pipeline struggle and valuable for thinking about many things beyond it.” —Rebecca Solnit, author of Orwell’s Roses

"Holler is a truly beautiful account of the beautiful people who have waged a beautiful fight for a beautiful piece of a beautiful planet. Read it and learn how to fight!"
 —Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature

"Denali Nalamalapu’s Holler is a crucial contribution to contemporary visual storytelling and a stellar guide for all seeking change in their community and the world. The art is accomplished and assured, the use of interviews deft and effective. Holler tells a gentle, hopeful tale that neither ends happily nor ends. The work goes on, and Holler reminds us of the joy inherent to that work."—Robert Gipe, author of Trampoline

“Central to survival during these troubled times is the art of listening. In Holler, Denali Sai Nalamalapu invites readers into the living rooms of those who have been heartfully fighting the construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline for years. Few books illustrate what collective resistance looks like––the pain that sparks it, and the love that fuels it––Holler is a thoughtful addition to this growing, and necessary, canon.” —Elizabeth Rush, Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of Rising

“Denali Nalamalapu’s debut graphic novel tells the inspiring story of a community’s courageous resistance to the fossil fuel industry. Through heartfelt, accessible journalism and charming illustrations, Holler explores the work of six individuals fighting to stop a dangerous pipeline in Appalachia. It is a powerful account of the efforts of ordinary people to slow the climate crisis in the face of corporate greed and government indifference.” —Danica Novgorodoff, author of Alexander von Humboldt

“Denali beautifully and plainly presents the truth of activism: that it takes all of us, that we all have something to bring to the movement. I sat down to read it and didn’t get up until I was done. Holler is earnest, clear, and moving without every becoming pedantic, and is an important piece of activist art.”—Margaret Killjoy, author of The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion

“In Holler, Denali Sai Nalamalapu introduces us to Appalachians who refuse to accept the destruction of their homes as a simple given. Paula, Karolyn, Becky, Crystal, Michael, and Desiree believe a better world is possible for us all, and use their art, their voices, and their wisdom to fight the forces of extractive capitalism behind the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Through clear prose and stunning visuals, Nalamalapu shows us how we, too, might build something new from the cinders of our burning world.”—Neema Avashia, author of Another Appalachia

“Denali Sai Nalamalapu’s beautiful illustration of the Appalachian hillsides and forests offers a thoughtful introduction to the history of and activism around the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Nalamalapu made me care deeply about this important landscape and the varied personal stories of community members working for change there. I am grateful for their organizing work, for their education, and for inviting us to join them.”—Will Betke-Brunswick, author of A Pros and Cons List for Strong Feelings

“In deft strokes, Holler tells the compelling story of the people resisting pipeline construction in Appalachia, with great narrative and ethical clarity. Simple black lines and block color narrate interviews that will help readers, especially young readers, understand not only the importance of fighting against extractive economies and for a green future, but how to do it.”—Solomon J. Brager, author of Heavyweight

“Original, informative, and compassionate, Nalamalapu’s primer on pipeline resistance is a necessary addition to climate change literature. I highly recommend it. Holler’s clear facts and stories of courage and humanity speak to readers of all ages. While the book must document failures, it also teaches us not to despair by offering real-life examples of the gifts each of us have for creating a post-fossil fuel future.”
 —Ann Pancake, author of Strange as this Weather Has Been

“Full of heart, this beautifully illustrated book tells a devastating story. A poignant portrait of an Appalachian environmental movement.”—Kirkus

“Holler makes plain what’s at stake, not just for these organizers, and not just with the pipeline, but what’s at stake for all of us if we don’t make radical changes now…above all else, what strikes me about both Nalamalapu and the activists they profile is their ability to embody a kind of radical hope in the face of corporate greed, political corruption, and climate devastation.”—AWP The Writer's Chronicle

“In Nalamalapu’s debut comic, readers are introduced to organized resistance against the Mountain Valley Pipeline in the form of interviews with six activists from across Appalachia. These six chapters invite the reader to consider their own positionality, to think about what they could or would do to protect their (literal) homeland. This will appeal to fans of comics journalism, comics about place, and histories of Appalachian resistance to fossil fuel extraction.”
 —Booklist

“A moving account and tribute to the local Virginia and West Virginia activists fighting to protect their land from the ravages of the Mountain Valley Pipeline project.” —Publishers Weekly

“This debut graphic memoir tells the stories of six activists fighting against the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Appalachia, providing a vivid illustration of what a rural resistance movement looks like. Through their interviews with the individuals and accompanying artwork, Denali Sai Nalamalapu offers both information and inspiration.” —Ms. Magazine

“A moving and deeply accessible — and beautifully visual — story about change, hope, and humanity."—The Good Men Project

From the Publisher

2025-02-01
When citizens fought the construction of a pipeline in Appalachia.

Growing up in coastal Maine, Nalamalapu felt an intense pull to do good. “My mom and her dad,” the author writes, “encouraged me to learn about why injustice happens and how to fix it.” This drive led the child of South Asian American immigrants to the climate justice movement, which, in 2021, had them joining the effort to block the construction of a proposed mountain valley gas pipeline in Appalachia. By the time Nalamalapu became a part of the movement, local citizens had spent a decade trying to halt its construction. The author of this graphic memoir profiles six activists whose work preceded her involvement in the movement, including Indigenous seed keeper Desirée Shelley, nurse Karolyn Givens, photographer Paula Mann, single mother Crystal Mello, and high school science teacher Becky Crabtree. Her science class, Crabtree says, “is my quiet resistance to those people who put money above everything.” In the end, Nalamalapu and their peers lose the fight, and the sight of the pipeline scarring her beloved mountains puts the author into a depression that leaves them bedridden for weeks. The author writes, “It was impossible to see a path forward. And yet…what choice did I have? To give up on the soft mountain breeze and warm, worn hands of a place and people who have come to define a part of me?” Full of heart, this beautifully illustrated book tells a devastating story.

A poignant portrait of an Appalachian environmental movement.

Kirkus Reviews