Fantagraphics Blog

Next month's issue of Booklist will include reviews of two recent releases by Fantagraphics creators, excerpted below:       The Amazing, Enlightening and Absolutely True Adventures of Katherine Whaley by Deitch, Kim (Starred Review)   "The yarn Deitch spins around that outrageous premise includes surprisingly less of the supernatural and many more words than usual, which wrap around the panels and are carefully chosen to project the heroine's personality-that of a smart but unpretentious woman who once had an utterly fantastic adventure. Even more riveting than Deitch's other spellbinders." –Ray Olson        Fran by Jim Woodring   "the heightened emotional stakes are new: Frank's…

From rock and roll rebel to revered iconoclast, Lou Reed left an indelible mark on international pop culture. His experimental work was influential beyond the standard measure of commercial success. Musician Brian Eno observed, "Only a few thousand people bought the first Velvet Underground, album, but every one of them formed a band. I should know. I was one of those people."   Reed pursued an adventurous aesthetic throughout his storied career. At the turn of this century, Reed's reimagining of Edgar Allen Poe's verse debuted as a theatrical production, POEtry, under the direction of Robert Wilson. A double album…

Praise for other books in the "Fritz B-Movie" series: "I picture Gilbert Hernandez approaching his drawing board these days like Lawrence of Arabia approaching a Turkish convoy: 'NO PRISONERS! NO PRISONERS!'" – Sean T. Collins, Robot 6 "Gilbert Hernandez is one of the great craftsmen of modern comics… Hernandez’s new Fritz book, Love from the Shadows, is as bracing as a slug of bottom-shelf rotgut…." – Douglas Wolk, The New York Times Sunday Book Review "If alternative comics can be equated to independent film, then Hernandez has become the medium's David Lynch or Guy Maddin, rolling his personal obsessions and…

Spend the weekend with the barracuda: not only will author Kipp Friedman be reading on Monday, December 16th, but you can also catch him on Saturday, December 14th in NYC! He'll be reading a chapter from his hilarious new memoir, Barracuda in the Attic, a moving tribute to growing up among a family of creative artists (like brothers Drew and Josh Friedman) — swept up in the whirlwind of the New York arts scene of the 1960s and '70s. So, join Kipp after 7:00 PM at KGB Bar [ 85 E 4th Street ], named best literary venue in New…

Vacancies are available for a brand new Jim Flora art print, released just last week! Titled Tenement K, this limited edition fine art print features residents who are bawdy, musical, criminal, and/or exhibitionistic. Doesn't matter if you're rowdy, serpentine, or headless — the landlord will rent you a room. If you were a mutant miscreant, you'd be home by now. The previously unpublished and uncirculated work, which dates from the 1940s, is owned by a private collector who allowed them to have the work professionally photographed for print reproduction. Although the work is untitled, they have provisionally named it Tenement…

Maria M. Book 1 by Gilbert Hernandez 140-page black & white 5.75" x 8.5" hardcover • $22.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-719-2 Ships in: November 2013 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now A woman comes to the U.S. from Latin America to escape her shady past, only to fall into a new shady life. After a go at the adult entertainment business, Maria marries a drug lord and her dangerous past is nothing compared to her new life in America. The drug lord's son, Gorgo, secretly falls in love with her and he watches over her like a guardian angel. Danger and corruption (and of course…

Austin! Tonight at Mondo Gallery from 7-9 is the opening of "It Didn't Rot Our Brains," an art exhibit in tribute to EC Comics and Tales from the Crypt! The undisputed star of the show: this brand new piece depicting Bill Gaines and the Crypt Keeper palling around by legendary TFTC artist Jack Davis! Also included: work by Jim Rugg, Chris Wright, our pals Eric Skillman and Mark Todd, and numerous others. See more sneak peeks and get more info at Collectors Weekly.

2012 Eisner Award Winner: Best Archival Collection/Project – Strips 2012 Harvey Award Nominee: Best Domestic Reprint Project "Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse… by Floyd Gottfredson will be warmly received by comics aficionados but should also intrigue Disney animation buffs who aren’t necessarily plugged into comic strip history… I have a feeling that this book, crafted with such obvious care, will earn Gottfredson a new legion of admirers." – Leonard Maltin "Gottfredson drew Mickey with a nosy snout and the bright eyes of an adrenalin junkie. The mouse’s diminutive size inspired Gottfredson to have the character attempt daredevil races, leaping stunts, and…

"Great lover, scholar, soldier, sailor, singer, toreador, tycoon, jockey, prizefighter, automobile racer, aviator, farmer. Mickey Mouse lives in a world in which space, time, and the law of physics are nil. He can reach inside of a bull's mouth, pull out his teeth and use them as castanets. He can lead a band or play violin solos; his ingenuity is limitless; he never fails." – Time (1931) Praise for Vol. 1: "What I really took away from this book… was Gottfredson's considerable (and very nuanced) compositional and storytelling skills…an entertaining read and still a thrill to see what Gottfredson work out…

     An Evening with the Hernandez BrothersBilly Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum Grand Opening Festival of Cartoon Art   Sat, Nov 16, 2013 7:30 PMMershon Auditorium  A lot of fun stuff is going down during the weekend of Nov 14th – 17th for the Grand Festival of Cartoon Art, librarian and engagement coordinator Caitlin McGurk gave me the skinny. Join the great folks at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum  for a freewheeling conversation between alternative comics legends Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez as they discuss their groundbreaking series Love & Rockets and their ongoing stories about Latino and Latina life, love, and punk rock…