Books with Pictures is a comic book store in Portland, OR. We were built from the ground up to prioritize inclusivity and diverse representation. We want to be the shop where we can say YES! to anyone who walks in and asks “Do you have any stories with someone who’s like me?” Our staff listens closely to each customer’s interests and curiosities to help open new doors.

Our mission is explicitly inclusive; we strive to be a space that is welcoming to people who love good stories without regard to age, race, sexual orientation, gender expression, or disability status. We believe that representation of diverse perspectives is crucial to our mission, and stock content reflecting that belief.

Who Works Here

Katie

She/Her

Katie is a queer single mom who has lived in Portland since 2009. Katie has worked and volunteered in bike advocacy, literary publishing, education, and tech. She has been running Books with Pictures full time since Free Comic Book Day 2016 and is built of enthusiasm and care.

She has two kids who have the coolest mom in the world, and two cats named Maggie and Hopey who also have the coolest mom in the world.

Contact: katie@bookswithpictures.com

Katie’s Favorite Comics:

Bitch Planet by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine De Landro
The Wicked and the Divine by Kieron Gillen and Jamie Mckelvie
Squirrel Girl by Ryan North and Erica Henderson
Love and Rockets by Jaime Hernandez
A-Force by G. Willow Wilson, Marguerite Bennett, and Jorge Molina

Nick

He/Him

Nick is a talented artist with a background in bookselling. He grew up in Florida and came to Portland by way of southern California. He’s been in book retail since 2007, and with Books with Pictures since we opened in 2016.

His original comic, The Prince and the Pea can sometimes be found in the shop with our other zines and comics from local and indie artists. He was also included in the anthology We Belong, An All-Black, All-Queer Sci-Fi and Fantasy Comics Anthology. His art can be found on Instagram @cordelorr.

Contact: nick@bookswithpictures.com

Nick’s Favorite Comics:

House of X / Powers of X by Various Creators
The Many Deaths of Laila Starr by Ram V and Filipe Andrade
Bloom by Kevin Panetta and Savanna Ganucheau
Godshaper by Simon Spurrier and Jonas Goonface
East of West by Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta

Nico

She/They/He/Any

Nico moved up from Reno in 2016 and has been loving Portland ever since. A long time comics lover, she’s the resident YA, Webcomic, and Queer Manga expert. They will infodump about comics for ages if left unattended. Nico also works as a freelance artist, and when she isn’t doing any of those things she’s probably snuggling her two cats or playing video games like Final Fantasy XIV or A Little to the Left.

You can find her and her art around the web as Nicole Alt Delete.

Contact: nicole@bookswithpictures.com

Nico’s Favorite Comics:

Crowded by Chris Sebela, Ro Stein, Ted Brandt, and Triona Farrell
Strange Bedfellows by Ariel Slamet Ries
The Unbelievable Gwenpool by Christopher Hastings and Gurihiru
Once Upon a Time at the End of the World by Jason Aaron, Alexandre Tefenkgi, Lee Loughridge, Laila Del Duca, Tamra Bonvillain, Rico Renzi, and Nick Dragotta
Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

Josue

He/They

Josue is a Wednesday Warrior. Always curious what each publisher is up to, they have you covered with the capes and especially indie selection. When not reading 20+ issues and catching up on their TBRs, Josue also LARPs & podcasts (Jukebox Vertigo & We Have Issues). Moved from AZ in 2013.

Josue’s Favorite Comics:

Blacksad by Juan Díaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido
Moneyshot by Tim Seeley, Sarah Beattie, and Rebekah Isaacs
Suncatcher by Jose Pimienta
Berserk by Kentaro Miura
The High Desert by James Spooner

Cicely

They/She

Cicely moved from Eugene to Portland in 2021 for comic reasons. They’d had the incredible honor to intern with Dark Horse Comics and work as an editorial assistant to Shelly Bond. After volunteering with Books with Pictures for the past few years she’s stoked to take on the role of resident zine and indie publisher enthusiast.

They can usually be found drawing, reading webcomics, or learning about the ocean when not behind the BWP counter. Cicely can be found on Instagram @basicomics_official.

Cicely’s Favorite Comics: