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We're like Navin Johnson on new phone book day over here! Advance copies of these two highly-anticipated beauties arrived at the office yesterday: the first two volumes in our EC Comics Library series, Came the Dawn and Other Stories illustrated by Wallace Wood and Corpse on the Imjin! and Other Stories by Harvey Kurtzman et al. Came the Dawn features thrilling crime and suspense stories drawn by Wood (written mostly by Al Feldstein), and Corpse on the Imjin! contains Kurtzman's masterful and influential war stories illustrated by himself and others. If you didn't know and hadn't gathered, the volumes in…

Time to catch up with our busy, busy release schedule! As always, we have a slew of new books out with something for everyone, whether your tastes run to the literary, historical or just plain fun — or any combination thereof — and whatever your brow elevation. As a quick reminder, here's a rundown of all of last month's arrivals, including a few of our scheduled September releases which showed up a few days early! (Remember, our New Releases page always lists the 20 most recent arrivals, and our Upcoming Arrivals page has dozens of future releases available for pre-order.)…

 The sing-song-i-est new Online Commentaries & Diversions:   • Review: Drawn Blog features a review of Steven Weissman's Barack Hussein Obama. Dustin Harbin says, "[the comics] seem less humorous and more like the slow aggregation of a large portrait, maybe not of the man, but of the time the man is living in."  • Review: The Comics Reporter confirms that Dal Tokyo by Gary Panter is THE book to buy this week. Tom Spurgeon states, "This is really the only book you need this week . . . I've been wanting to read a collected version of Gary Panter's strip for a…

Ralph Azham Vol. 1: Why Would You Lie to Someone You Love? by Lewis Trondheim 96-page full-color 8.5" x 6.625" hardcover • $14.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-593-8 Ships in: September 2012 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now Within his tiny village, Ralph Azham is considered an insolent good-for-nothing layabout, a virtual pariah — particularly since he was supposed to be a Chosen One. (Things didn’t work out.) Yet his odd azure coloration and a few unique abilities (he can predict births and deaths) suggest that there may be more to him than meets the eye. And when the terrifying Horde stages one of…

Thanks to our special SPX friend Warren Bernard for sending photos of some of our book titles given to the Enoch Pratt Library of Baltimore, MD. Above, CEO of the library, Dr. Carla Hayden, holds 21: Roberto Clemente by Wilfred Santiago and a staff favorite. The total gift was "$5000 of books, 240 books, 40 titles, part of the SPX Graphic Novel Gift Program" targeted and dispersed to public and academic library systems in the DC area. Each book will have a beautiful bookplate as seen on the SPX site. Below the library staff oogles the books including Maggie the…

The 1-2-3-4 color process Online Commentaries & Diversions:    • Interview: Italy's VICE interviewed Josh Simmons on his work like The Furry Trap. Here is a snippet translated by journalist Tim Small, "In comics, I think the good horror cartoonists are few.  But I like Renee French, Junji Ito, Al Columbia, Charles Burns and Suehiro Maruo. Horror directors have probably have the most influence on me of all.  The best movies from John Carpenter, David Cronenberg, George Romero and Tobe Hooper were huge from me as a kid."   • Review: Rob Clough has more coverage than a local news…

You won't believe how many debuts we're bringing with us to Bethesda for  the 2012 Small Press Expo on September 15th & 16th! Here's your SPX shopping list — bring extra bags to carry everything: • The Lost Art of Ah Pook Is Here: Images from the Graphic Novel by Malcolm McNeill (not officially out 'til October!) In 1970, William S. Burroughs and artist Malcolm McNeill agreed to collaborate on a book-length meditation on time, power, control, and corruption that evoked the Mayan codices and specifically, the Mayan god of death, Ah Pook. McNeill created nearly a hundred paintings, illustrations,…

Continuing right along with Wednesday digital comic releases Fantagraphics and comiXology are very proud and quite frankly, a little frightened, to give you Richard Sala's dangerous and deliciously frightening The Grave Robber's Daughter. Sold out in print, you can now enjoy this 97-page SCREAM of graphic novel for only 4.99 at comiXology. The mystery starts out a little like this. Judy Drood, the highly strung and short-tempered girl sleuthomething can tell that something very wrong in the town of Obadiah's Glen. The streets are empty. The phones don't work. The cars are all gone ? and so are the people,…

Wednesday, September 5th • Seattle, WA: Our exhibit Game Over: Failed Alternative Video Games is finally, well, over at the Fantagraphics Bookstore and Gallery! It's your last chance to see these hilarious adaptations for yourself! (more info) Friday, September 7th • Dallas, TX: Josh Alan Friedman will be signing copies of the newly-reissued Any Similarity to Persons Living or Dead Is Purely Coincidental, as well as playing some blues at The Mason Bar! Despite being a bar, it's an all-ages shindig! (more info) Saturday, September 8th • Seattle, WA: Help us welcome the great Gary Panter to the Fantagraphics Bookstore…

This week's comic shop shipment is slated to include the following new titles. Read on to see what comics-blog commentators and web-savvy comic shops are saying about them (more to be added as they appear), check out our previews at the links, and contact your local shop to confirm availability. Dal Tokyo by Gary Panter 220-page black & white 16.25" x 6.25" hardcover • $35.00ISBN: 978-1-56097-886-2 "…I’d definitely splurge on Dal Tokyo, Gary Panter’s wonderful sci-fi/punk comic strip, now lovingly collected by Fantagraphics." – Chris Mautner, Robot 6 "Is there a greater splurge purchase this week that Dal Tokyo, the…