Fantagraphics Blog

Casual fans of Fantagraphics may not be aware of the close association we have with Seattle's illustrious music scene. I was reminded of this relationship on Friday while attending a sold out Mudhoney and Tom Price Desert Classic concert. Nearly half the musicians on stage that night were former or current Fantagraphics staffers. What a great place to work!    We'll celebrate the legacy of Seattle's early music and comix on Saturday, November 29 as Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery hosts the book launch party for Sub Pop USA: The Subterranean Music Anthology, 1980 -1988. The book documents the formative years of Bruce…

  Jacques Tardi fans: we know you've been waiting ever so patiently for us to import more Tardi books over from Europe. Freshly translated, beautifully designed, and packed with action, Run Like Crazy Run Like Hell is a gritty adaptation of French crime novelist Jean-Patrick Manchette's book, Ô Dingos! Ô Châteaux! And now here it is. These advance copies, with their eye-catching, bright orange spot gloss titles popping out against the dense black and white artwork of Jacques Tardi, are instant can't-put-it-down page turners. We'll have more previews soon to appease your hungry eyes (but, in the meantime, you can…

"Mini comics are like the wild west of the comics world—in this lo-fi, DIY format—it’s anything—and everything—goes." – Benn Ray, Atomic Books Treasury of Mini Comics Vol. 2edited by Michael Dowers 848-page black & white with some color 5" x 6.25" hardcover • $29.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-807-6 Due to arrive in 2-4 weeks. Click on the thumbnails for larger versions; get more info, see more previews, and pre-order your copy here: http://www.fantagraphics.com/treasuryofminicomics2

This week's comic shop shipment is slated to include the following new title. 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.     Aces High by George Evans, Al Feldstein, and Harvey Kurtzman 216-page black & white 7.25" x 10.25" hardcover • $29.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-784-0    "Does anyone draw airplanes better than the late great George Evans? Heck no! And the new Fantagraphics EC spotlight does this craftsman's work proud. Outstanding comics presented in rich detail…

Scene 1: The man named Thompson waits in the shadows for his target to enter his bedroom, then kills the man silently. The job finished, he leaves. The very next morning, he meets a new client for a new job. Scene 2: A sleek black car pulls up to the entrance of the asylum. One Michael Hartog emerges from the car, there to pick up Julie Ballanger, his new nanny. During the drive to her new home, she is questioned by Mr. Hartog on what she knows of him. Thus it begins in the latest crime novel adaptation out of…

The gorgeous Melrose Market Studios is hosting local businesses on Sunday, November 30th for a bazaar called The Seattle Collective. At this creative market and bazaar, Fantagraphics will be tabling and selling our classic and new classic comics directly to you! From 11-6pm browse the businesses while sipping some local coffee from Slate Coffee Roasters all day and some sumptuous cocktails from Still Liquor during Happy Hour time 4-6pm (the poster says 5 but we have the inside scoop!). Find only the best comics and graphic novels for your loved ones this holiday season (that includes YOU too!)   The…

Just arrived and shipping now from our mail-order department: The Complete Zap Comixby R. Crumb, Rick Griffin, Paul Mavrides, Victor Moscoso, Spain Rodriguez, Gilbert Shelton, Robert Williams, and S. Clay Wilson 920-page black & white with color 9.75" x 13.25" x 7" hardcover • $500.00ISBN: 978-1-60699-787-1 See Previews / Order Now There scarcely was an underground comics world before Robert Crumb's classic solo first issue of Zap in 1968. By Zap #2, he had begun assembling a Seven Samurai of the best, the fiercest, and the most stylistically diversified cartoonists to come out of the countercultural kiln. All of them…

Just arrived and shipping now from our mail-order department: The Late Child and Other Animalsby Marguerite Van Cook and James Romberger 180-page full color 8" x 10" hardcover • $29.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-789-5 See Previews / Order Now Hetty survives the bombing of Portsmouth by the Nazis in World War II, only to learn that her soldier husband — with whom she was in the process of adopting a young daughter — has been killed on the way back home from North Africa. She must then complete the adoption alone. A decade later, she gives birth to a bastard daughter, Marguerite. Now…

Just arrived and shipping now from our mail-order department: Nancy Loves Sluggo: Complete Dailies 1949-1951by Ernie Bushmiller 336-page black & white with spot color 8.5" x 8.5" softcover • $39.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-777-2 See Previews / Order Now Many connoisseurs — including Art Spiegelman, Daniel Clowes, Scott McCloud (creator of the "Five-Card Nancy" card game), Joe Brainard, and Andy Warhol — have recognized that Bushmiller's often-corny Nancy approached its own kind of zen-like cartoon perfection. In its own way, it turned out Nancy was in fact the most iconic comic strip of all; The American Heritage Dictionary actually uses a Nancy strip…

Tuesday, November 18th   New York City, NY – Cartoonist super team-up of Marguerite Van Cook and James Romberger (of 7 Miles a Second) will release their newest graphic novel The Late Child and Other Animals complete with a reading at First Person Plural at Silvana (300 W 116th St, New York, NY 10026). Think you're a part of the Literati? If so, your butt will be glued to the seat. The free fun starts at 7pm. (more details)   Los Angeles, CA – The Hip Hop Family Tree Volume 2 tour continues down the West Coast as Ed Piskor heads to Meltdown Comics. BoingBoing Founder Mark Frauenfelder will be in conversation…