Fantagraphics Blog Sonia Lei

Inner City Romanceby Guy Colwell 200-page black & white 8" x 10" softcover$24.99 | 978-1-60699-813-7 Ships in: February 2015 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now Guy Colwell's Inner City Romance tread new territory for underground comix, filled with stories about prison, black culture, ghetto life, the sex trade, and radical activism. It portrayed the unpleasant realities of life in the inner city, where opportunities were limited and being on the lowest end of the economic ladder meant that one's vision of the American dream was more about survival than lifestyle choices. Readers wondered who Colwell was, whether he was black or…

  Our lovely, labyrinthine warehouse continues to offer up unexpected gifts now and again. Last night's Seattle windstorm must have shaken some boxes around, because today we discovered a shiny stack of signed, hardcover editions of Hanging Out with the Dream King! This Gaiman-authorized book collects the stories and interviews of over two dozen creators who've collaborated with award-winning author Neil Gaiman, creator of the critically acclaimed comic book series The Sandman. A must-have for any Gaiman fan, this book also helps support the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, as part of all proceeds goes directly to the organization. There…

Here at Fantagraphics headquarters, we're managing to keep our feet dry, plus we've got just-arrived advances of Saint Cole to look forward to! This brand new graphic novel by Noah Van Sciver, author of The Hypo: The Melancholic Young Lincoln, stars a painfully flawed protagonist whose drinking becomes steadily more debilitating with each (rain-soaked) day. Saint Cole is on course for a February delivery date. You can read an 8-page excerpt and pre-order your copy here.

Sweatshopby Peter Bagge 152-page full color 6.75" x 10.25" softcover • $19.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-812-0 Ships in: February 2015 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now Mel Bowling is the unhappy, out-of-touch creator of a very bad daily comic strip called Freddy Ferret (a cross between Dilbert and Garfield). He spends most of his time listening to Rush Limbaugh and coming up with horrible catchphrases to merchandise, while his "sweatshop" cast of studio assistants grind out all the hard work. Sweatshop is a hilarious situational comedy from acclaimed author Peter Bagge (Buddy Does Seattle, Woman Rebel: The Margaret Sanger Story) that ingeniously incorporates…

Run Like Crazy Run Like Hellby Jacques Tardi; adapted from the novel by Jean-Patrick Manchette and translated by Doug Headline 104-page black & white 7.5" x 10.75" hardcover • $19.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-620-1 Due to arrive in 2-4 weeks. Click on thumbnails for larger versions; get more info, see more previews, and pre-order your copy here: http://www.fantagraphics.com/runlikecrazy

Any fan of cartoonist Johnny Ryan's work knows how understated and reserved he is. The truly refined nature of his comics deserves an equally classy cover design, and we think that our talented designer Keeli has outdone herself in creating a cover worthy of such stature.  Angry Youth Comix collects all fourteen issues of Ryan's series-of-the-same-name, as well as all the covers and letters pages, into one 424-page volume of absurdist, taboo-tackling humor! Although it's not out until February 2015, you can place your pre-order now.

Our volume of Guy Colwell's collected work has arrived in our office! Interspersed with commentary by Patrick Rosenkranz and filled with stories of radical activism, inner city life, racial tension, and—as one of our office staff noted—"a whole lot of fucking," Inner City Romance will likely make you uncomfortable while keeping you mesmerized page after page. In addition to every issue of Colwell's Inner City Romance series, this volume has a personal essay by the author, many contextual essays by Rosenkranz to introduce each issue, and full color examples of the paintings Colwell produced in the same era. You won't want to miss adding this book to your underground…

"Gilbert Hernandez created some of the most memorable characters in popular fiction." – Los Angeles Magazine "There's no denying that Beto's comics reflect one of the highest peaks the comics medium has yet achieved." – The A.V. Club "To lovers of alternative comics, Hernandez is something of a saint…" – The Telegraph "In a real world, not the screwed-up world we have now, [Gilbert Hernandez] would be considered one of the greatest American storytellers. It's so hard to do funny, tragic, local and epic, and he does all simultaneously, and with great aplomb." – Junot Diaz Love and Rockets Library…

Love and Rockets: New Stories #7by Los Bros Hernandez 100-page black & white 7.25" x 10.5" softcover • $14.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-770-3 Ships in: January 2015 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now The seventh annual volume of Love and Rockets: New Stories, the most important and enduring alternative comics series in the history of the medium, finds Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez writing and drawing at the top of their game. In Jaime's stories, Maggie and Hopey take a road trip and much-needed break from their humdrum domestic lives and travel to visit a "sick friend." And, when the cat's away, Ray visits…

Inner City Romance collects every issue of the underground comix series drawn by artist Guy Colwell in the '70s, and in previewing this book, we found some of the parallels with our country's current socio-political climate to be a little too close for comfort. The 18-page, 4.6 MB downloadable excerpt we've got for you today features the full introduction by comics historian and journalist, Patrick Rosenkranz, followed by the first five pages of Inner City Romance #1. Pre-order your copy of this book now for a February 2015 delivery!