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| MOLLY BARKER |
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SECRET
LANGUAGE |
| by Molly Barker |
Hardcover: 200 pages
City Lights Books
ISBN: 087286328X |
$12.95
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| A brilliant
graphic novel, part Spiegleman, part Gorey. Ms. Barker's landscapes are
eerie and dark, reminiscent of Poe. They describe the alienation of the
human condition with poetry and beautiful illustrations. |
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| Brian
Michael Bendis |
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FIRE |
| by Brian Michael Bendis |
Paperback: 120 pages
Image Comics
ISBN: 1582400717 |
$9.95
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| Your government
does not want you to read this book!
Imagine that you are a shy,
quiet college student. Just an average guy trying to get through each day
as best he can. Then your government contacts you. They want you to be
part of an experiment in the art of human covert operations. Instead of
creating an agent from someone within their own ranks, they want to create
an agent from nobody--from scratch- you! |
| Loosely based
on events in the American intelligence community during the Reagan administration,
FIRE tells the unique and powerful story of a young man's journey through
the complex world of international intelligence. Fire was Bendis' first
major work and helped him attract and develop a new audience for crime
graphic novels that he would further challenge in later works such as Jinx,
Goldfish, Torso, and Powers.
From the Publisher
Brian Michael Bendis is
the EISNER award-winning creator (The Comic Industry's Oscar) of several
crime graphic novels published by Image Comics. His other Image works include
TORSO, GOLDFISH, JINX, and FIRE. Fortune And Glory, his Hollywood tell
all from Oni Press, was given an "A" by Entertainment Weekly. He is also
the recipient of the Cleveland Press Excellence in Journalism Award.
.
Dimensions (in inches): 0.35 x 10.28 x 6.68
Click
here for our complete Brian Michael Bendis selection |
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| BLAB |
Edited by Monte Beauchamp
&
Chris Ware |
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BLAB
#9 |
| Edited by Monte Beauchamp & Chris Ware |
Paperback: 144 pages
Fantagraphics Books
ISBN: 156097284X |
$18.95
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| "No
comics anthology currently in production shows as wide a variety of the
medium's potential as BLAB!"
--The
Onion
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"Neither
periodical or book, BLAB! is quite obviously a work of art."
--Comic
Buyer's Guide
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| Two years after
the multiple-award winning Blab #8 comes editor Monte Beauchamp's
next installment of America's premiere comics anthology. The front and
back covers are by Gary Baseman, and you'll find new comics stories by
Richard Sala, Doug Allen, Spain, Terry Laban, Peter Kuper, Chris Ware,
and others. Plus there are essays on America's first serial killer, Howard
Unruh (by Jeffrey Steele), and the cover art of Dell mystery paperbacks
(by Beauchamp). The cornerstone of this issue is an amazing 13-page retrospective
of the art of Boris Artsybasheff, an expatriate Russian designer/illustrator
who created more than 200 covers for Time. His images of war and industry
influenced a generation of artists.
From
Booklist:
From
the modest digest size of its first eight numbers, Blab has evolved into
a square, oversize affair. The elaborate ninth edition includes strips
from Richard Sala, Spain Rodriguez, Peter Kuper, and Chris Ware (the latter
two's stories appear in vibrant color, and they are not the only ones that
do). Nearly as impressive are newcomers Archer Prewitt, Brad Johnson, and
Peter Hoey, and editor Beauchamp casts his net beyond the comics world
to gather work by Tony Fitzpatrick and Christian Northeast. All these artists'
contributions are enjoyable, but those of some cartoonists who work in
more conventional modes, such as Terry LaBan and Doug Allen, don't particularly
benefit from the lavish packaging, careful production, and cutting-edge
design. A retrospective of illustrator Boris Artzybasheff's work and a
portfolio of vintage Dell paperback mystery bookcover art round out the
volume. With the demise of Art (Maus) Spiegelman's Raw, Blab is the leading
showcase for contemporary cartoonists; may its new publisher publish it
more regularly.
Gordon
Flagg
Copyright©
1998, American Library Association. All rights reserved.
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| BLAB
# 10 |
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"At
its peak, it's like The New Yorker--
for
mutants."
--LA
Reader
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| Edited by Monte Beauchamp & Chris Ware |
Paperback: 112 pages
Fantagraphics Books
ISBN: 1560973234 |
$19.95
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| "It
is, simply, a great book."
--Chicago
Tribune Magazine
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From
Booklist:
Since
the demise of the groundbreaking Raw nearly a decade ago, the vaguely annual
Blab has become the premier showcase for comics as art. The latest edition
features leading names in the field and some promising newcomers. Standouts
include Peter Kuper's paean to porn, Al Columbia's vision of the Apocalypse
that resembles an old black-and-white Max Fleischer film cartoon, Spain's
autobiographical story of a visit to a degenerate carny, Richard Sala's
take on German expressionistic film, Pamela Butler's feverishly sexual
Red Riding Hood drawings (mature readers only here), and a Rocket Sam tale
by Chris Ware, who does more in two pages than most artists can accomplish
in an entire graphic novel. Raw mainstay Gary Panter makes his Blab debut
with an uncharacteristic, rather inconsequential illustration. But why
does editor Beauchamp fill the volume out with mundane essays on boxer
Jack Johnson and R & B singer Jackie Wilson? (Drew Friedman's caricature
almost redeems the latter, though.) Aside from such prose miscues, the
only bad thing about Blab is the long wait between volumes.
Gordon
Flagg
Copyright©
1999, American Library Association. All rights reserved.
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| BLAB
#11 |
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| by Monte Beauchamp (Editor) |
Paperback: 120 pages
Fantagraphics Books
ISBN: 1560974079 |
$19.95
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| America's premier
anthology of cutting-edge comics and illustration art is back with its
most spectacular volume yet. Sporting all-new covers by acclaimed painter
Mark Ryden, Vol. 11 features the return of comics giants Richard Sala,
Peter Kuper, Drew Friedman, as well as illustration legends David Goldin
and Jonathan Rosen. Newcomers include American Illustration award-winner
Greg Clarke and Lou Brooks. With the cream of the crop of comics and illustration
talent from around the world, BLAB! is a fan-favorite in both comics circles
and the world of graphic design. |
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From Booklist
The latest edition of the
roughly annual anthology Blab is always welcome. Originally an elegantly
packaged showcase for alternative cartoonists, Blab now includes cutting-edge
graphics of all forms. New-to-Blab talents--notably the Clayton brothers
and cover painter Mark Ryden, all known for their appearances in the alternative-art
magazine Juxtapose --appear alongside Blab regulars, who are among the
brightest luminaries in the comics-as-art world. Standout contributions
include a droll story by American Illustration Award-winner Greg Clarke,
David Goldin's tale of nautical child abuse, and disquieting visual fairy
tales from Blanquet and Pamela Butler. Strong contributions from relative
traditionalists Richard Sala, Peter Kuper, and Spain Rodriguez prompt regret
that Blab has largely turned away from its comic-strip roots. Letdowns
include a one-page toss-off from Drew Friedman and an inconsequential prose
story by illustrator Lou Brooks (such occasional prose pieces are Blab'
s Achilles' heel). Editor Beauchamp's contribution is an assortment of
vintage German postcards depicting Krumpus, a Satanic anti-Santa who punishes
wicked children. Sharply designed and attractively assembled, Blab belongs
in libraries' graphic novel and fine-art collections.
Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American
Library Association. All rights reserved.
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| CHESTER BROWN |
|
THE
LITTLE MAN
SHORT
STRIPS 1980-1995 |
| by Chester Brown |
Paperback: 172 pages
Drawn & Quarterly Publications
ISBN: 1896597130 |
$14.95
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| "...a
note of pure genius."
--Rain
Taxi Review of Books
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| At last, Chester
Brown's short strips have been collected in one edition. Featuring material
produced over a fifteen year period, this book contains numerous rare and
otherwise impossible to find gems that appeared in long-out-of-print anthologies
and early issues of YUMMY FUR. Virtually all of the stages in Brown's development
are represented here, along with a comprehensive fourteen-page section
of notes.
Chester Brown is one of the
greatest comics artist ever and in this book you'll see why. He never fails
to confound, delight, shock, nauseate, charm and confound-- and all the
while somehow keeping one gnarled claw rooted in the sacred and the other
hoof equally grounded in the scatological. This book collects various stories
from Brown's acclaimed comic YUMMY FUR and some stories done for now defunct
anthology titles, including some of his earliest works. The stories range
from sci-fi to horror to religous to autobiographical. Almost all of the
stories are superb. But the real value of the book is in the way it shows
Chester Brown's growth and development into a master of his artform. Now
if only he'd reprint ED THE HAPPY CLOWN... Anyway, THE LITTLE MAN is priceless. |
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