It’s come time for Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery curator Larry Reid to name my choices for the best comix of the past year. This list is customarily limited to the top 10 publications plus a handful of honorable mentions. This being a banner year for contemporary comix, I’ve expanded my subjective selections to an even dozen, together with an equal number of alternatives – any one of which could be included among the best. 12. Chris Ware: Monograph This comprehensive collection of Ware’s art, comix, and ephemera does justice to the remarkable career of one of the most innovative…
Re/Read: Is That All There Is? by Joost Swarte
Re/Read is a recurring column by Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery curator Larry Reid looking back at books you may have missed or are worthy of another read. This time we’ll discuss the stunning collection, Is That All There Is?, by Dutch master Joost Swarte. Like many American comix enthusiasts, I first became aware of Joost Swarte though Art Spiegelman and François Mouly’s RAW anthology. It was a revelation when Fantagraphics Books published Is That All There Is?, the first substantial English edition of his remarkable comix and graphics. While Swarte’s work often references classic American comic strips, his work…
