Today's Online Commentary and Diversions: • Review/Interview: Marc Campbell of Dangerous Minds calls Everything Is an Afterthought: The Life and Writings of Paul Nelson "music book of the year," saying "the thing I really appreciate in reading Paul’s writings is you get to a place where even if you disagree with him you want to really explore why. He challenges you, not outrightly, but through the sheer force of his own enthusiasm and the particulars of why he digs what he digs. That’s what great rock writers do – they send you to the music. Of all the books I’ve…
Up All Night by Michael Kupperman – Time Bum 2
This weekly strip by Snake ‘n’ Bacon and Tales Designed to Thrizzle creator Michael Kupperman runs weekly in the Washington City Paper and here on the Fantagraphics website.
Xaime x Cobra = WOW
This wins the internet today. Photoshop by Alex Kropinak based on words by Sean T. Collins. In posting this on Robot 6 today (and responding to a Jim Rugg comment at TCJ.com), Collins writes "In all seriousness, times when a comic emotionally incapacitates you for however long are times to be treasured. Last night, in prepping for this post, I flipped through the book [L&R: New Stories #4] one more time, and came across pages that made me gasp and swoon. Hey, kids! Comics!"
Oil and Water by Steve Duin and Shannon Wheeler – Previews, Pre-Order
Oil and Water by Steve Duin and Shannon Wheeler 144-page black & white 7.75" x 9.75" hardcover • $19.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-492-4 Ships in: November 2011 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now When ten Oregonians travel to the Gulf Coast in August 2010 to plumb the devastation wrought by the Deepwater Horizon spill, they discover that “Oil and Water” is just the first of the insoluble contradictions. Between the tarred sands of Grand Isle and the fouled waters of the Louisiana bayou, they come to find out that Gulf Coast residents are economically dependent upon the very industry that is wreaking havoc…
Daily OCD: 10/19/11
Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "One of the greatest comic strips of all time and a peak in visual splendor and breath-taking adventure, the story of Prince Valiant's 30+ year odyssey is getting a marvelous presentation in Fantagraphics' series of books, which just reached Volume 4…. What might surprise modern readers is the relative complexity of Valiant, who grows and matures subtly over the years. The strip is violent, sexy, serious, droll and above all eye-catching…. The pleasure of how solidly and carefully [these volumes] are made is part of the pleasure of reading them. You feel like…
Estonia: A Ramble Through the Periphery by Alexander Theroux – Previews, Pre-Order
Estonia: A Ramble Through the Periphery by Alexander Theroux 352-page 6" x 9" hardcover with color illustrations • $24.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-465-8 Ships in: October 2011 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now Any journey with Alexander Theroux is an education. Possessed of a razor-sharp and hyperliterate mind, he stands beside Thomas Pynchon as one of the sharpest cultural commentators of our time. So when he decided to accompany his wife — the artist Sarah Son-Theroux — on her Fulbright Scholarship to Estonia, it occasioned this penetrating examination of a country that, for many, seems alien and distanced from the modern world. For…
Daily OCD: 10/18/11
Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Commentary: The Comics Reporter's Tom Spurgeon responds to The Comics Journal's Love and Rockets love–fest yesterday with some thoughts of his own: "I agree with Nadel, Santoro, Tomine and many of the comment-makers that Jaime Hernandez's new work represents a phenomenal achievement. I'm maybe not as interested in finding its place in the pantheon right this second. There's plenty of time for that down the road. One thing that's exciting and should never be denied about a creative achievement on the level of what Hernandez seems to have given us here is what that…
First Look: Amazing Mysteries: The Bill Everett Archives Vol. 1
Amazing Mysteries: The Bill Everett Archives Vol. 1 went to the printer today and series editor Blake Bell celebrates by revealing the final cover art for the book — a snappy number designed by Alexa Koenings in our art department. At Blake's blog you can see the entire cover spread (front, back and spine) and read Blake's thoughts and background info on the book, which is due in December.
Feast your eyes on Jack Davis: Drawing American Pop Culture
Speaking of gorgeous art books that we just got advance copies of… Jack Davis: Drawing American Pop Culture – A Career Retrospective arrived at the office today. Page after page after page of mouthwatering eye candy from one of the undisputed giants of illustration, all wrapped up in Tony Ong's eye-catching carnival-esque design. Just showing one spread like this does not do the book justice AT ALL, so be on the lookout for our upcoming previews!
One percent of Tony Millionaire’s 500 Portraits
We got our advance copies of Tony Millionaire's 500 Portraits at the office yesterday and man oh man, what a gorgeous little book. Designed by our Art Director Emeritus Jacob Covey and smartly edited by Jacob and Eric Reynolds (Bob Dylan, Billie Holiday, Ian MacKaye, Louis Armstrong and Léon Theremin in one spread? Genius), this is going to be the must-have gift book for the holidays. Stay tuned for more and better previews!
