On November 9th, Toben Racicot (English Language and Literature) and Alaire Racicot were featured in The Record about their latest graphic memoir titled “The Night in Tilly’s Field.” This project focuses on the life of Lieutenant Ernie Phair, who was killed in action in 1944, and the family he left behind. The husband-wife duo took on the project after being connected by GI member Jonathan Baltrusaitis (English Language and Literature) with Faculty of Arts professor Dr. Jay Dolmage’s extended family. This project is being funded by the Dolmage family with the intent of having this memoir be an educational piece that will be available to schools, museums, and the Royal Canadian Legion.
What drew them into this project was that both Toben and Alaire have family members who have served in the armed forces, including both of Toben’s grandfathers, his grandmother, as well as Alaire’s brother and brother-in-law. In approaching the graphic memoir from the subject of history, it challenged Toben and Alaire, whose bread and butter is the creation of fantasy and science fiction comics, to work with historical accuracy, representation, and preservation of memory.
The graphic memoir is now available for preorder and will be completed in early 2025.
