Re/Read is an occasional column by Fantagraphics Bookstore curator Larry Reid drawing attention to backlist books you might have missed or are worthy of another read. This time we’ll break with tradition and look at the recent title, Take That, Adolf!: The Fighting Comic Books of the Second World War, edited by Mark Fertig. Art historian Mark Fertig explores the geopolitical underpinnings of World War II through the colorful covers of Golden Age comic books. With surprising sophistication, these images reflect the complexities of that global conflict. Chapters on Building Towards War, She Can Do It!, Pulling Together, Kids Can…
Re/Read: Four Color Fear
Re/Read in a recurring column by Fantagraphics Bookstore curator Larry Reid that examines backlist titles you may have missed or are worthy of another look. This time we’ll feature Four Color Fear: Forgotten Horror Comics of the 1950s. The sensational success of EC horror comics in midcentury America gave rise to a multitude of imitators. Four Color Fear collects the most compelling of these much-maligned comics. The book includes acknowledged masters of the medium, including Jack Cole, Basil Wolverton, Al Williamson, Wallace Wood, Reed Crandall, and Joe Kubert, but it’s the back bench artists and anonymous writers that make this anthology…
What’s in Store: Wood Work
The enduring influence of the late Wallace Wood can’t be overstated. From his work at EC, MAD, Marvel, and beyond, Wood left an indelible mark on American culture that resonates to this day. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery celebrates the legacy of this amazing artist through February 9. Wallace Wood came to prominence with his work for EC comic books, which enjoyed circulation in the millions, but were vilified by politicians, preachers, and crusading child psychologist Dr. Fredric Wertham. Together, they convinced the public that these comics were the cause of juvenile delinquency and social deviance. The establishment of the Comics…
Today’s Massive Bulk of Digital Books
Is your personal reading device plugged in? Good, because it’s going to need all the juice to handle our digital offerings this week! First up is our next grisly gathering of EC stories by Reed Crandall. The High Cost of Dying and Other Stories captures Crandall’s fine line detail and collects stories such as “The Silent Towns,” a Ray Bradbury story about the last man and woman on Mars; “Carrion Death,” a stark horror story about man struggling through the desert with a corpse handcuffed to his wrist; and “Sweetie-Pie,” about a ghoul who sets up roadside hazards to procure…
