Comic book and cartoon artwork Books

Book SynopsisIn The Fixer Joe Sacco returns to Bosnia, the setting for his first masterpiece, Safe Area Gorazde. In 2001 he went back to Sarajevo to meet up with his old ''fixer'', an army veteran called Neven who, for the right price, could arrange anything for the visiting journalist. Sacco gradually realized that Neven''s own story - a microcosm of the Balkan conflict itself - might be the most compelling of all. Through Neven, Sacco tells the story of the warlords and gangsters who ran the country during the war, but all the time he - and the reader - never know whether Neven is telling the truth.Trade ReviewThis tightly wound, humane and suspenseful non-fiction graphic novella employs visual devices from the best traditions of film noir. Sacco's finely wrought, expressively rendered black and white drawings perfectly capture the emotional character of Sarajevo and the people who struggle to live there. This superlative and important story is easily one of the best comics non-fiction works of the year * Publishers Weekly *Sacco is formidably talented. A meticulous reporter...and a gifted artist whose richly nuanced drawings tread a delicate path between cartoonishness and naturalism -- Charles Shaar Murray * Independent *Sacco's greatest achievement is to have so poignantly depicted oppression and horror in a form that manages to be both disarming and disquieting -- David Thompson * Observer *One of the most original cartoonists of the past two decades -- Duncan Campbell * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisThe last twelve months seen through the eyes of the award-winning, bestselling cartoonist Matt!'The master of the pocket cartoon. You can't be better than the best' Gyles Brandreth'He's a genius' Jeremy VineTrade ReviewLike a sunrise, he lifts the heart. He's so touching and achingly funny -- Jilly CooperMatt is the Don Bradman of daily cartoonists - so much greater than his nearest rivals it's almost embarrassing -- Stephen FryHowever bad the day's news, there'll still be a Matt cartoon the morning after, and we'll still laugh - he's a genius -- Jeremy VineLike a sunrise, he lifts the heart. He's so touching and achingly funny -- Jilly CooperMatt is the Don Bradman of daily cartoonists - so much greater than his nearest rivals it's almost embarrassing -- Stephen FryHowever bad the day's news, there'll still be a Matt cartoon the morning after, and we'll still laugh - he's a genius -- Jeremy VineThe master of the pocket cartoon. You can't be better than the best -- Gyles BrandrethA magical mix of school boy giggles and satirical schadenfraude. * SOUTH WALES ARGUS *His distinctive chuckle friendly, slightly rushed style makes this collection a must * BELFAST TELEGRAPH *

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Book SynopsisA guided sketchbook with templates for telling stories like a graphic novelist, with tips and tricks from ten comic artists. This guided journal is both template and mini-course in graphic storytelling. The notebook includes 160 pages of comic templates and is filled with exercises and insider tips from ten established comic artists. With differing styles and backgrounds, the artists offer illuminating and insightful ideas to expand anyone's drawing and storytelling skills. The book includes funny & engaging exercises for how to convey emotion, time, and perspective through drawing, sequencing and storytelling.

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Book Synopsis'Wombat' is a cartoon strip from Vancouver artist Rod Filbrandt and the precursor to his long-lived and much loved strip, 'Dry Shave'. In 'Wombat: The Collected Comic Strip' the reader witnesses the development of a cartoon strip and the characters that fill its frames, from its nascent, raw stages, when it first ran in Discorder-a UBC Campus paper- in the late 1980s, on through numerous growth spurts, to the amazingly polished strides of the early 1990s, and finally to its sad and noirish end in 1994. One can easily see where the artist is going with his extensive cast of louts, drunkards, grifters, drifters, and wannabes of every stripe. You can almost smell the cast of 'Dry Shave' through the blue smoke and beer mist. "In the mid-'90s underground, there was a hard-drinking, heavy-smoking private eye who went on seedy, hallucinatory journeys in black-and-white - navigating hellish terrains and nastier people. It was written and drawn by Vancouver cartoonist Rod Filbrandt, and the character was named Wombat. An incredibly stylish and unique series ..." - Fast Forward Weekly (Calgary) "Running from the mid '80s until 1994, 'Wombat' showcased Rod Filbrandt's wry and jaded views on modern society and his incredible growth and progression as a cartoonist. ... a great representation of the formative years of one of the best cartoonists this country has produced." - Broken Pencil

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Book SynopsisThis book calls for an investigation of the "borderlands of narrativity" the complex and culturally productive area where the symbolic form of narrative meets other symbolic logics, such as data(base), play, spectacle, or ritual. It opens up a conversation about the "beyond" of narrative, about the myriad constellations in which narrativity interlaces with, rubs against, or morphs into the principles of other forms. To conceptualise these borderlands, the book introduces the notion of "narrative liminality", which the 16 articles utilize to engage literature, popular culture, digital technology, historical artifacts, and other kinds of texts from a time span of close to 200 years.Table of ContentsOverview; Borderlands of Narrativity; Numbers, Literature, Aesthetics; The Data of Life and the Life of Data; The Potentialities of Data; Unnecessary Complications?; Narrative Liminality, Ambient Operations, and the Database Western in Rockstar Games' Red Dead Redemption Videogames; Detecting Liminality; "To Live Your Life Again, Turn to Page 1"; Multimodality as a Limit of Narrative in Mark Z. Danielewski's The Familiar; The Poetics and Politics of Staring; "No Show Dissed Quite Like This One"; Repetition, Rhythm, and Recital; Home Front Autobiographies of the 'War on Terror'; Form and/in Modernity; Embodying Narrative, Staging Icons; Narrating Authorship; Endings and Sustainability; Contributors.

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Book SynopsisFrench artist Zabo arrived in Hong Kong in 1967, and condensed his year-long stay into a book of cartoons which has come to be known as an emblem of the era. Hong Kongs street scenes, people and fashions are humorously illustrated with sharp satire, covering popular pastimes, social etiquette, age-old traditions and the customs of local people as well as foreign residents. Even half a century later, Zabos portrayal of Hong Kong still rings true, and his take on local life will resonate with everyone who lived through the Swinging Sixties or wishes they had.

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Book SynopsisThis is the straight-talking, fascinating story of Viz magazine, founded in 1979 by Chris Donald – editor until 1999. Chris tells the remarkable story of the magazine, from the tatty rag produced in his Newcastle bedroom to becoming one of the bestselling magazines in the UK.Trade Review‘Donald is lucid and engaging, and he’s affably disrespectful to the celebrities he meets when his life turns (relatively) showbiz.’ Q Magazine ‘Chris fires out jokes and anecdotes with the rapid-fire intensity and lewdness of Sid the Sexist downing seven like Newkie Broons.’ Front Magazine '…a very good read. It is briskly executed in the Viz house style: a rude and brutally accurate tabloidese.' New Statesman

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Book SynopsisSuddenly, comics are everywhere: a newly matured art form, filling bookshelves with brilliant, innovative work and shaping the ideas and images of the rest of contemporary culture. In Reading Comics, critic Douglas Wolk shows us why this is and how it came to be. Wolk illuminates the most dazzling creators of modern comics-from Alan Moore to Alison Bechdel to Dave Sim to Chris Ware -- and introduces a critical theory that explains where each fits into the pantheon of art. Reading Comics is accessible to the hardcore fan and the curious newcomer; it is the first book for people who want to know not just what comics are worth reading, but also the ways to think and talk and argue about them.Trade Review"(A) welcome contribution to the field." Metro "(Douglas Wolk) writes sensitively about the awe-inspiring amount of time and effort it takes to write and draw a graphic novel, an ill-rewarded job that's only ever done for the love of it". Sunday Telegraph "(Douglas Wolk's) writing style is breezy and engaging... This enthusiasm is Reading Comics' main selling-point. It should do well among a twenty-something demographic that is starting to explore the field for the first time..." Observer "Douglas Wolk is an evangelist for comic books. In his authoritative, passionately argued Reading Comics, he draws our attention to a spectrum of creations that promise at least the equal of that of much contemporary literature. Wolk makes a likeable and unpretentious guide, never hectoring or waxing polemical, and his enthusiastically imparted knowledge should ensure that readers go on to investigate his recommendations." TLS "Critics in any artistic field could learn from Wolk's willingness to express not just appreciation but joy. His enthusiasm is as infectious as it is refreshing... Wolk knows comics as well as he loves them. He has a keen eye for both the surface appeal that makes the reading of comics enjoyable and the underlying patterns that make it rewarding; he is open-minded, bending over backwards to ensure that his own opinions are not mistaken fro facts, yet not lacking the courage of his convictions... Wolk's contribution is intelligent, discerning, incisive and terrifically engaging: not the last word, but a very good place to start." Irish Times "(s)ubsidiary literature is beginning to appear - most obviously Douglas Wolk's Reading Comics, which wears its learning lightly and entertainingly..." Glasgow Herald"

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Book SynopsisIn the years between the end of World War II and the mid-1950s, American popular culture was first created in the pulpy, boldly illustrated pages of comic books. But no sooner had comics emerged than they were beaten down by mass bonfires, and congressional hearings. This book describes the rise, fall, and rise again of comics.Trade Review"* "Marvellous... a staggering well-reported account of the men and women who created the comic book, and the backlash of the 1950's that nearly destroyed it....Hajdu's important book dramatizes an early long forgotten skirmish in the culture wars that half a century later, continue to roil." Jennifer Reese, Entertainment Weekly "To those who think rock 'n' roll created the postwar generation gap, David Hajdu says: Think again. - Wendy Smith, Chicago Tribune"

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Book SynopsisAlan Moore''s Watchmen is set in 1985 and chronicles the alternative history of the United States where the US edges dangerously closer to nuclear war with the Soviet Union. Within this world exists a group of crime busters, who don elaborate costumes to conceal their identity and fight crime, and an intricate plot to kill and discredit these superheroes. Alan Moore''s Watchmen popularized the graphic novel format, has been named one of Time magazine''s top 100 novels, and is now being made into a highly anticipated movie adaptation. This latest book in the popular Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series peers into Moore''s deeply philosophical work to parse and deconstruct the ethical issues raised by Watchmen''s costumed adventurers, their actions, and their world. From nuclear destruction to utopia, from governmental authority to human morality and social responsibility, it answers questions fans have had for years about Watchmen''s ethical quandaries, themes, and cTable of ContentsAcknowledgments: They Left It Entirely in My Hands ix Introduction: A Rorschach Test 1 Part One The Politics of Power: Who Watches The Watchmen? 1 The Superman Exists, and He’s American: Morality in the Face of Absolute Power5 Christopher Robichaud 2 Can We Steer This Rudderless World? Kant, Rorschach, Retributivism, and Honor 19 Jacob M. Held 3 Super-Vigilantes and the Keene Act 33 Tony Spanakos 4 Superheroes and Supermen: Finding Nietzsche’s Übermensch in Watchmen 47 J. Keeping Part Two The Veidt Plan: Watchmen and Ethics 5 Means, Ends, and the Critique of Pure Superheroes 63 J. Robert Loftis 6 The Virtues of Nite Owl’s Potbelly 79 Mark D. White 7 Rorschach: When Telling the Truth Is Wrong 91 Alex Nuttall Part Three The Metaphysics of Dr. Manhattan 8 Dr. Manhattan, I Presume? 103 James DiGiovanna 9 A Timely Encounter: Dr. Manhattan and Henri Bergson 115 Christopher M. Drohan 10 Free Will and Foreknowledge: Does Jon Really Know What Laurie Will Do Next, and Can She DoOtherwise? 125 Arthur Ward 11 I’m Just a Puppet Who Can See the Strings: Dr. Manhattan as a Stoic Sage 137 Andrew Terjesen Part Four This Is Not Your Father’s Comic Book 12 “Why Don’t You Go Read a Book or Something?” Watchmen as Literature 157 Aaron Meskin 13 Watchwomen 173 Sarah Donovan and Nick Richardson 14 Hooded Justice and Captain Metropolis: The Ambiguously Gay Duo 185 Robert Arp 15 What’s So Goddamned Funny? The Comedian and Rorschach on Life’s Way 197 Taneli Kukkonen Contributors: Who Writes about the Watchmen? 215 Index: After the Masquerade 221

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Book SynopsisA collection of cartoons about the Fox family, featuring parents Roger and Andy, siblings Peter, Paige, and Jason, Quincy the pet iguana, and other friends.

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Book SynopsisAndrew J. Kunka is Professor of English at University of South Carolina Sumter, USA. He is co-editor of May Sinclair: Moving Towards the Modern (2006).Trade ReviewBloomsbury has launched a Comics Studies Series that has kicked off with Andrew Kunka's Autobiographical Comics ... It's an excellent resource, combining a brief history of this sub-genre with critical questions, key texts and a glossary. Kunka shows us that you can learn a lot about comics by how cartoonists organize their lives on the page. * Times Literary Supplement *Kunka offers a useful overview of the subject, with an inclusive approach that includes everything from "proto-autobiographical comics" (such as Winsor McCay's inclusion of a cartoonist character in his early strips) to the latest web comics, and scrupulously cites his sources, making it easy to locate relevant literature on any of the topics he discusses … [The book] offer[s] insightful and specific analysis that can be comprehended without requiring total immersion in the latest and trendiest academic jargon. * PopMatters *Autobiographical Comics is a well-informed, highly readable, and perceptive overview that will be extremely useful for students and teachers looking for introductory material and bibliographic references for further study … Kunka balances depth and brevity with skill … The endnotes, glossary, and extensive bibliography highlight the author’s deep knowledge of the field and are indispensable tools for further scholarship. As a studying and teaching tool, Autobiographical Comics is a superb introduction to the field that achieves accessibility without diminishing scholarly rigor … Autobiographical Comics is the best study guide available, and Kunka’s generosity of scholarship and tone provides a robust platform for teaching and researching graphic life narratives. * Biography *As an introduction to a genre, a reference guide, and a critical study, Andrew J. Kunka’s Autobiographical Comics represents a necessary foray into the particulars of autobiographical graphic narratives. His book contributes to the Bloomsbury Comics Studies series, upholding its commitment to expansive and accessible introductions to comics and Comics Studies. Kunka deftly juggles concepts new and familiar to Comics Studies, as his thorough survey of this genre takes up questions of reliability, authenticity, and objectivity … A tremendous resource for anyone crafting a syllabus and hoping to include popular or lesser known works. Kunka’s introduction guides and helps us interrogate the genre of autobiographical comics. His careful survey and his attention to texts and critical questions both popular and lesser known make this book a clear and compelling resource for readers of comics who might wonder about the narrative, stylistic, or thematic questions behind comics that represent, in so many different ways, autobiographical experiences. * Studies in Twentieth & Twenty-First Century Literature *Table of ContentsList of Figures Acknowledgements 1. Introduction: What Are Autobiographical Comics? 2. The History of Autobiographical Comics 3. Critical Questions 4. Social and Cultural Impact Trauma Adolescence The Quotidian and the Confessional Gender and Sexuality Race and Ethnicity Graphic Medicine Censorship and Controversy Self-Publishing and Web Comics 5. Key Texts Justin Green, Binky Brown Meets the Holy Virgin Mary Robert Crumb and Aline Kominsky-Crumb Harvey Pekar, et al, American Splendor Keiji Nakazawa, Barefoot Gen: A Cartoon Story of Hiroshima Art Spiegelman, Maus and In the Shadow of No Towers Phoebe Gloeckner, A Child’s Life and The Diary of a Teenage Girl Joe Matt, Chester Brown, and Seth Lynda Barry, One Hundred Demons Craig Thompson, Blankets Marjane Satrapi, Persepolis Alison Bechdel, Fun Home 6. Appendix Appendix 1: Autobiographical Comics Panel Appendix 2: Interview with Jennifer Hayden Appendix 3: David Chelsea Appendix 4: Ryan Claytor 7. Glossary 8. Resources Primary Texts Critical Bibliography 9. Index

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Book SynopsisIn Britain's Best Political Cartoons 2022 the nation's finest satirists turn their eyes and their pens to the biggest, funniest and most poignant news stories of the year so far. Bringing much needed humour to a tumultuous year in politics, this companion features the work of Peter Brookes, Steve Bell, Morten Morland, Nicola Jennings, Christian Adams, Dave Brown, Brian Adcock and many more, alongside captions from Britain's leading cartoon expert. The result is a razor-sharp, witty and essential companion to another year like no other.__________________________________________________________________'A wonderful book . . . A beautiful thing to look at . . . Our brilliant cartoonists show there is still something to satirise . . . A great stocking filler.' Giles Coren'A blockbuster collection of the year's funniest political cartoons . . . [compiled by] Britain's leading authority on political cartoons . . . It made us chuckle.' Eamonn Holmes

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