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And that just about wraps it up here! With new books by Horrocks, Rickheit, Schrauwen, Knisley, James Romberger and Marguerite van Cook, and a little item called The Complete ZAP! I think Fanta is kinda….ruling. Get these REALY kids because they will go FAST FAST FAST.

Arsene Schrauwen by Olivier Schrauwen

Follow along as Olivier’s grandfather traveled to a remote colony to help build a utopia in the wilderness, fell in love with his cousin’s wife, and then into delirium – but is it love or jungle virus-induced fever, reality or imagination? You’ll come undone by Olivier’s first full-length graphic novel: part-biography, part-surrealscape, all fantastic.  $34.99 Out in November 2014 but get your copied SIGNED by Olivier at CAB.

Cochlea & Eustachia by Hans Rickheit

Cochlea & Eustachia appear to be twin human girls, but this has yet to be confirmed. Their actions seem to be motivated less by curiosity than boredom and an inclination towards purposeless destruction. This new graphic novel from the author of the acclaimed Squirrel Machine is lighter in tone than his previous works, yet its myriad charms remain as sinister as Rickheit fans would expect. $19.99 Out in stores December but pick up an advance at the Fantagraphics table at CAB.

Displacement by Lucy Knisley
A travel memoir recounting the artist’s experience of caring for her frail grandparents aboard a cruise ship, while reflecting on her own fears on mortality, her age, ageism in America and her family’s relationships and history. $19.99 In stores January 2015 but pick up an advance copy at the Fantagraphics table at CAB.

Foolbert Funnies by Frank Stack, edited by Kristy Valenti

A “best of the rest” tribute collecting Stack’s work under his pseudonym, “Foolbert Sturgeon”. Includes appearances by Dirty Diana, time traveler Frank Crankcase, Dr. Feelgood, and others. A tribute to a Texan who’s been quietly creating observational, iconoclastic art for more than forty years. $24.99 In stores January 2015 but pick up an advance copy at the Fantagraphics table at CAB.

The Complete ZAP Comix by R. Crumb, Rick Griffin, Paul Mavrides, Victor Moscoso, Spain Rodriguez, Gilbert Shelton, Robert Williams, S. Clay Wilson

The most historically and aesthetically important comics series ever, finally collected. 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. It will also include the 17th unpublished issue with work by Crumb, Moscoco, Wilson, Rodriguez, Shelton, Mavrides, and Williams. We’ll have one set for you to paw over. $500.00 In stores November but pick up this ONE copy at CAB.

The Late Child and Other Animals by Marguerite Van Cook and James Romberger

A generational autobiography written by legendary punk diva and award-winning poet Van Cook, adapted by artist Romberger. The journeys and struggles over decades of this mother and daughter are linked in five episodes that veer between lyricism, wry wit, and harrowing suspense. $29.99 In stores November but pick up an advance copy and get it SIGNED at the Fantagraphics table at CAB.

Massive: Gay Erotic Manga and the Men Who Make It, various artists, edited by Anne Ishii and Graham Kohlbeins

Big, burly, lascivious, and soft around the edges: welcome to the hyper-masculine world of Japanese gay comics. The first English-language anthology of its kind: a collection of manga from the most talented and influential artists in the gei komi genre. $35.99 In stores late December but pick up this a copy at CAB and get it signed by Anne Ishii and designer Chip Kidd.

Michael Jordan: Bull on Parade by Wilfred Santiago

A thrilling, kinetic bio-epic about Michael “Air” Jordan, the greatest basketball player of all time and most influential athlete in history. This tour de force explores Jordan’s public successes and private struggles. $24.99 In stores February 2015 but pick up an advance copy at the Fantagraphics table at CAB.

Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen by Dylan Horrocks
www.fantagraphics.com/samzabel
A creatively blocked cartoonist finds a mysterious old comic book and is thrown into a fantastic journey through centuries of comics, stories, and imaginary worlds. Funny, erotic, and thoughtful, Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen explores the pleasures, dangers, and moral consequences of fantasy. Horrocks’s first new graphic novel since Hicksville. $29.99 In stores late December but pick up an advance copy at the Fantagraphics table at CAB.

Treasury of Mini-Comics Vol. 2 edited by Michael Dowers
www.fantagraphics.com/treasuryofminicomics2
Four decades of deliberate DIY cartoon rebellion! Collecting some of the best mini comics ever produced by some of the most creative artists in the world. Edited by Michael Dowers. $29.99 In stores January 2015 but pick up an advance copy at the Fantagraphics table at CAB.


HARBINGER: FAITH #0 – Cover A by Joe Quinones

In a world where complains about overly idealized heroines are common, Faith, a member of Valiant’s Harbinger teen superhero group is a nice break: a normal young woman who is learning to deal with her powers just like every other superbeing. And now she’s getting her own one shot by Joshua Dysart and Robert Gill, with variant covers by Joe Quinones, Lucy KNisley and Brian Level. Valiant continues to branch out with their superhero line — because it’s a more diverse world and comics market out there.

Valiant is proud to announce HARBINGER: FAITH #0 – a brand new one-shot exploration of Valiant’s high-flying teenage Renegade and Unity’s newest team member!

Coming in December from New York Times best-selling writer Joshua Dysart (Harbinger, Harbinger Wars) and rising star Robert Gill (Armor Hunters: Harbinger), start reading here to discover how Harbinger’s high-spirited teenage fangirl went from the heart and soul of Peter Stanchek’s teenage Renegades to the newest member of the world’s most elite super-team – UNITY!

As Faith recuperates from the events of Armor Hunters: Harbinger, jump on board and discover the complete, never-before-revealed tale of her origin – just as she steps into the limelight for a brand new story arc beginning in November’s UNITY #12!

Her first and only boyfriend to date is a little bit of a douche, her friends are all gone, and, after her insane adventure in Mexico City, Faith Hebert is feeling a little frustrated with the direction of her life. She’s just a normal super-powered young woman in an increasingly crazy world. Here’s the story of a true innocent and a kind heart in a hard world. From the comic shop of her youth to the moment she found out that she was actually light as feather, Zephyr is the western wind. Warm and kind, she blows across us all. 

“She may not be physically strong, or brilliantly tactical, but her emotional intelligence and psychological strength are unparalleled among the other Renegades,” writer Joshua Dysart told Multiversity Comics. “I think some part of her understands that her light is needed even more in a world where you can lose your friends and face down horrible swarming alien insects. I think she sees a dark and violent world all around her and instead of that corrupting her, it reinforces her. Again, there’s a hint of that in this issue, but it’s also about a question we all ask ourselves, where do we go from here?”

This is HARBINGER: FAITH #0! Featuring covers by all-star artists Joe Quinones (Wednesday Comics), Lucy Knisley (Harbinger #25), and Brian Level (Lazarus), be here this December as one of the most unique, most sincere super-heroines anywhere in comics today takes on her very first solo adventure!

And don’t miss UNITY #12 by New York Times best-selling writer Matt Kindt and red-hot artist CAFU – the FIRST ISSUE of an all-new story arc recruiting Faith into the ranks of Valiant’s unbreakable all-star superteam, just as they go toe-to-toe with a brand new threat known only as The United!

HARBINGER: FAITH #0 – Cover B by Lucy Knisley

HARBINGER: FAITH #0 – Variant Cover by Brian Level

UNITY #12 – Cover by Brian Level

Live from San Diego Comic Con, it’s More To Come! Publishers Weekly’s podcast of comics news, interviews and discussion with Calvin Reid, Kate Fitzsimons and The Beat’s own Heidi MacDonald.

In part two of More To Come’s San Diego Comic-Con special, Calvin Reid talks to Don Rosa about Scrooge McDuck, European fans and Carl Barks; Eleanor Davis on her new book How to Be Happy; and Lucy Knisley about her new book An Age of License. Meanwhile, Heidi MacDonald interviews Archie Comics President Mike Pellerito and sr. v-p Alex Segura about Life With Archie, dead Archie and zombie Archie. All this and more from Publishers Weekly’s More To Come!

Listen to this episode in streaming here, download it direct here and catch up with our previous podcasts on the PublishersWeekly website, or subscribe to More To Come on iTunes

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Relish by Lucy Knisley

First Second

A few years ago, if you were told about the rise of the Internet and asked to predict one of the top things that people would blog and post about, can you honestly say food would have been up there as a contender? And by food, I don’t mean cookery, recipes and dedicated food sites, but Facebook statuses, Tweets, Instagram photos, all that jazz. Out of all the little banalities of life, who would’ve thunk that narrating what we eat would be the common denominator of web sharing, and in such a wholly ubiquitous fashion.

Telling strangers on the net what you’re eating isn’t groundbreaking, constructive or thrilling to others in any way- by and large it reflects a personal enjoyment of consumption that has or is about to take place, made more understandable, I think, if you’re of the view that food is one of life’s true pleasures, and not of my sister’s mindset; she who see food as fuel and a necessity to survive, not caring  particularly about taste as long as it’s not detrimental to her health and fulfills her needs (yes, she really is my sister).

Lucy Knisley, it’s safe to say is, is firmly in the former camp. Knisley’s Relish, a book that follows her through various periods and moments in her life framing them in relation to her culinary experiences, has been one of the most anticipated releases of the year for many- not least myself. For Knisley, these ‘taste-memories’ are no tenuous associations: she has been immersed in food culture in some form or manner since she was born- her mother a chef, her father himself a cook and discerning consoeur, her uncle owner of a food-shop selling gourmet comestibles and homemade food-  and has generally been raised in an environment filled with ‘cooks and bakers, eaters and critics.’

Growing up, food remained a strong presence in different ways; working in cheese shops, farmer’s markets, growing and sourcing ingredients, getting involved in the business side of things. So Knisley’s relationship with food is much deeper than your average persons, and despite feeling a little different for being a cartoonist, it’s a theme that turns up  naturally and with happy regularity in her work. They marry well, do food and comics.

The book is divided into chapters, with each one recounting a specific food-related memory and a recipe for that food then given at chapter’s close. Both the experiences and foods are diverse in range, from a trip to Mexico where her friend Drew learns about the penalties for smuggling porn across the border, backpacking through Europe and discovering the world’s best croissants in Venice and feverishly attempting to recreate them to no avail, to navigating horrible lemonade chicken cooked by good friends.

As someone who salivated over Enid Blyton’s terse descriptions of hard-boiled eggs and cold ginger beer, Knisley’s recollections paired with her drawings are almost a sensory overload (her move to the country with its ripe, colourful fruits and freshly plucked produce left me feeling a little light-headed).  That said, what I particularly enjoyed here wasn’t what I expected. And that’s the way in which each memory, each anecdote genuinely tells you a little about the author and her life- it’s not just ‘hey, delicious food art!’, it’s much more thoughtful and reflective than the bright colours and subject matter belie. In between food chopped and dishes cooked, there are insights into her close relationship with her mother, attempts at bonding with her father over dinners, queasy coming of age experiences shared with friends who are still friends, the developing of a cook’s resilience and tenacity.

Having said that (paradoxically) -and this is my sole criticism of the book- there is a strange sense of remove and disconnect of Knisley as a character. The reader is reading about her without any strong emotional investment or relatability on her behalf. Relish arrived in the post the same day I got Christophe Blain’s In The Kitchen with Alain Passard; in that book, a charming and effusive Blain slings an arm around the readers shoulder and guides him around, managing to thoroughly absorb him, as a novice, into the life of a Michelin-starred chef. This may have something to do with the first person narration, planted in the present but talking about the past, making it difficult to get a sense of Knisley as a person today.

I’ve always been a big fan of Knisleys cartooning and it’s as accomplished and attractive as ever here, with line and expression on point. To my mind, she’s the only cartoonist who controls the art so deftly in terms of what it conveys emotionally, perfectly straddling the realms of cartoony while maintaining an aspect of brevity. Make no mistake, Relish is a great achievement, pulling off a truly tricky combination of genres and tones to produce a book that will not only make you want to get into the kitchen and fondling food at the farmer’s market, but one I am confident will be a highlight of the comics year.

Oh, and a top tip for when you’re reading this: surround yourself with tasty snacks because you will be needing them.

TweetHello and welcome! We are starting a weekly art thingy and have -rather thoughtfully- set it for Friday, that interminable day where the weekend is within touching distance and yet you still have to be at work. Hence, pretty and cool stuff that will help tide you over- forget words, just feast your eyes. This [...]

Life is the Story, a super charming 20 minute presentation by Lucy Knisley on travelogue comics.

(via @erikamoen)

Nursery Rhyme Comics
Edited by Chris Duffy
Introduction by Leonard S. Marcus
$18.99
ISBN: 978-1-59643-600-8
Ages 9-12
On shelves October 11, 2011

Nursery rhymes. What’s up with that? (I feel like a stand up comedian when I put it that way). They’re ubiquitous but nonsensical. Culturally relevant but often of unknown origins. Children’s literary scholar Leonard Marcus ponders the amazing shelf life of nursery rhymes himself and comes up with some answers. Why is it that they last as long as they do in the public consciousness? Marcus speculates that “the old-chestnut rhymes that beguile in part by sounding so emphatically clear about themselves while in fact leaving almost everything to our imagination” leave themselves open to interpretation. And who better to do a little interpreting than cartoonists? Including as many variegated styles as could be conceivably collected in a single 128-page book, editor Chris Duffy plucks from the cream of the children’s graphic novel crop (and beyond!) to create a collection so packed with detail and delight that you’ll find yourself flipping to the beginning to read it all over again after you’re done. Mind you, I wouldn’t go handing this to a three-year-old any time soon, but for a certain kind of child, this crazy little concoction is going to just the right bit of weirdness they require.

Fifty artists are handed a nursery rhyme apiece. The goal? Illustrate said poem. Give it a bit of flair. Put in a plot if you have to. So it is that a breed of all new comics, those of the nursery ilk, fill this book. Here at last you can see David Macaulay bring his architectural genius to “London Bridge is Falling Down” or Roz Chast give “There Was a Crooked Man” a positive spin. Leonard Marcus offers an introduction giving credence to this all new coming together of text and image while in the back of the book editor Chris Duffy discusses the rhymes’ history and meaning. And as he says in the end, “We’re just letting history take its course.”

In the interest of public scrutiny, the complete list of artists on this book consists of Nick Abadzis, Andrew Arnold, Kate Beaton, Vera Brosgol, Nick Bruel, Scott Campbell, Lilli Carre, Roz Chast, JP Coovert, Jordan Crane, Rebecca Dart, Eleanor Davis, Vanessa Davis, Theo Ellsworth, Matt Forsythe, Jules Feiffer, Bob Flynn, Alexis Frederick-Frost, Ben Hatke, Gilbert Hernandez, Jaime Hernandez, Lucy Knisley, David Macaulay, Mark Martin, Patrick McDonnell, Mike Mignola, Tony Millionaire, Tao Nyeu, George O’Connor, Mo Oh, Eric Orchard, Laura Park, Cyril Pedrosa, Lark Pien, Aaron Renier, Dave Roman, Marc Rosenthal, Stan Sakai, Richard Sala, Mark Siegel, James Sturm, Raina Telgemeier, Craig Thompson, Richard Thompson, Sara Varon, Jen Wang, Drew Weing, Gahan Wilson, Gene Luen Yang, and Stephanie Yue (whew!). And as with any collection, some of the inclusions are going to be stronger than others. Generally speaking if fifty people do something, some of them are going to have a better grasp on the process than others. That said, only a few of these versions didn’t do it for me. At worst the versions were mediocre. At best they went in a new direction with their mat

Over at The Burrow’s Studio Blog, artist Lucy Knisley has published a massive poster that summarizes the complete plot of the Harry Potter series in a single poster. Follow this link to download and print the free poster.

Knisley has created intricate cartoon stories recapping the story in eight posters (one poster for each film). If you are interested in printing a “Summharry” for a single book in the series, visit this page for individual links.

Here’s more about the art: “For a limited time, I’m offering free downloads of large-format printable versions of all 9 comics, for your own use, and to print a copy for your pleasure at home/at a print shop. Barring stumbling into me in person and asking if I have a bunch of leftover copies (which I do), this will be the only way you can get print versions of these. Please PLEASE don’t use these large-format images in any commercial way (IE: printing them in your publication without my permission, selling posters or t-shirts or lunchboxes using any part or the whole of them).” (Via io9)

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

National Post books editor Mark Medley (pictured, via) labeled himself a “book hoarder” in a new essay.

Here’s an excerpt: “I am unable to get rid of any of them. I own some terrible, terrible books — you wouldn’t believe how many crap books get published in this country — but cannot, for the life of me, part with a single one. I am a book hoarder, which, in my line of work, is a troublesome problem to have … Just now, I walked over to the part of the office where mail to me is delivered and counted 15 large containers filled with packages; these have come in the past three or four days. My first impression, upon seeing so many new books in one place, is to dive into them headfirst, like Scrooge McDuck into his vault of gold bullions.”

Do you share his affliction? Twitter research revealed that Medley is not alone. Author Robert Wiersema admitted that he rented a basement suite to use as a study and it now contains “piles of books on the floor and every horizontal surface.” Freehand Books editor Robyn Read regularly shops at garage sales to add to her collection.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Lucy Knisley is working on a series of posters covering the world of Harry Potter.

IF you like that you might check out her Heartbroekn in Hogwarts! Kickstarter project as well!

Phil McAndrew is offering this up as a contest to win minicomics, original art, and other swag, but it’s as fun an art meme as any other I’ve seen: Draw Yourself at 100.

Shown here: Lucy Knisley’s entry.

Previously:
Draw Yourself as a Teenager
Lucy Knisley

I should be working, but I can’t stop reading the wonderful, wonderful comics of Lucy Knisley. Her marriage of ligne claire drawing style, the minutiae of daily life, and a just-wry-enough sense of humour has me hooked.

In addition to her website, you’ll find plenty more comics at her journal.