Posts filed under 'Graphic Novel'
Who knew there was an intersection between romance, rock-and-roll, video games, and fighting? Well, there is: Scott Pilgrim. Here’s the summary from author Bryan Lee O’Malley’s own website: “Scott Pilgrim is 23 years old, living in the big city with his gay roommate, just trying to get by in this crazy world. He’s in a band. He’s lazy. He likes video games. Scott Pilgrim likes the new girl in town, Ramona Flowers, but to win her heart, he has to defeat her seven evil ex-boyfriends. Seven! Evil! Ex! Boyfriends! Lucas has muscles! Todd plays bass with his psychic powers! The Twins are twins! Matthew Patel is an Indian guy! AND MORE!”
The “more” that O’Malley promises mostly turns out to be jokes at Scott’s expense, asides to the reader and other meta moments, and video game references. The band Scott plays in is called “Sex Bob-omb,” a pretty funny allusion for anyone who grew up playing Super Mario Brothers. I have to admit that many of the references may have been lost on me, but some of them are pretty obvious.
Scott may be the best fighter in the province (it’s a Canadian graphic novel!) but Ramona is no slouch, either, and if she’s in a tight spot she can dig into her subspace bag for a weapon, like a Large Hammer (+2 against girls) or a Titanium Bat (+1 Against Blondes).
The core of the series is Scott and Ramona’s relationship. On the one had, it’s a bit thin: Romana loves Scott because he’s “pleasant and simple-minded.” Scott loves Ramona because she’s “mysterious…you know, alluring.” Not much is developed beyond that. Then again, when it’s love, it’s love, and perhaps no explanation is necessary.
I think this graphic novel is my actual youth, a large part of which was spent playing video games, combined with the youth I wish I had–my life as a video game. I’m not quite sure where to locate the premise. Battling evil bosses to win a pretty girl’s heart might be adolescent male fantasy, or it might be chivalrous romance. Scott Pilgrim is probably something else, and it’s great fun, whatever it is.
The sixth and final volume won’t come out until July, and then in August a film version, starring Michael Cera, will be released.
April 30th, 2010
Jon - Central Library
It had been years since I had seen a comic book featuring Sgt. Rock. The DC Comics World War II era heroic icon had lost much of his appeal by the time the Vietnam War was dragging to a close and he had more or less faded into obscurity. But when I saw the new graphic novel Sgt. Rock: The Lost Battalion by Billy Tucci and read a little about the story I figured it was worth a look. I was right.
Granted, comic book heros are always larger than life, even those like Sgt. Rock and the men of Easy Company. But this particular story introduced me to the real-life heroes of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Comprised of Nisei, Japanese-Americans who fought for their country while many of their families were imprisoned in U.S. based internment camps after the attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into the war, the 442nd became the most decorated unit in U.S. military history for its size and length of service.
This particular story focuses on “the lost battalion” (actually, there have been several) who, late in 1944, were sent into the Vosges mountains of France in pursuit of the German army and found themselves surrounded and under attack by a superior German force. Running low on water, food and ammunition and exposed to the elements as well as enemy fire, the rescue of the troops becomes urgent and eventually the by-now veteran Nisei troops of the 442nd are tasked with trying to break through to their trapped comrades.
The story is occasionally told in dispatches from a combat journalist named Kilroy who first meets (is rescued by) Sgt. Rock during the D-Day invasion of Omaha Beach. After D-Day, Kilroy teams up with the Nisei to write their story while Rock and his men become part of the trapped/lost battalion. It’s Kilroy who sums up the results of the battle and bitterly notes that all the American units who took part in the fight were heralded in the free press–except for the Japanese Americans who were the first to break through and bore the brunt of the casualties.
It’s an expertly crafted piece of work that Billy Tucci has presented here. All the branches of the armed forces are given their due, occasionally with characters given the names of individuals who were there (and other times in the guise of other characters from DC Comics lineup of war comics characters– anybody else remember “The Haunted Tank?”). The artwork is really terrific with rich details and expressive emotions on the characters. The colors are somewhat muted, but that’s to be expected when most of the action takes place in the cold and rain of a combat zone. And the story, well, it’s a war story and some of us still like to believe in heroes. YMMV but I have to admit there was a moment when my emotions nearly overwhelmed me.
Written more than sixty years after the events, it’s not too surprising that hindsight plays a role in the telling of the story. The general who initially puts the lost battalion in harms way then sacrifices the Nisei troops to effect their rescue is portrayed as a bit of a martinet who seems a little too eager to cultivate relationships with the members of the combat press. One may wonder, too, whether the Nisei troops became so highly decorated (they were eventually known as the Purple Heart Battalion) because their commanding officers were more willing to sacrifice them.
There are several works in the catalog that deal with the 442nd if this volume piques your interest. Included are a couple of feature films. (Go For Broke, the 1950 film featuring Van Johnson, shows the Nisei through Johnson’s eyes. The film doesn’t age well, but is probably very much a product of its time. Only the Brave, released in 2007, shows the story from the Nisei point of view)
By the way, that “Make war no more” in the title of this review was uttered by Sgt. Rock at the end of the book to a reporter. That seemed a little uncharacteristic of the character and the times so I googled it.
March 31st, 2010
Dennis - Central
Everybody is Stupid Except for Me and Other Astute Observations: A Decade’s Worth of Cartoon Reporting for Reason Magazine, caught my attention. Cartoon reporting? Actually it’s Peter Bagge using the comic to make social critiques of the various issues that arise in his hometown of Seattle, as well as some observations on the national level. The appeal for me was the similarities between the issues that occur in Seattle and Madison. Gambling casinos? Light rail? Malls? Concealed carry laws? Medical marijuana? Bums? Public art? Bagge looks at all of them– although his reporting doesn’t quite come across as “fair and balanced.” Probably understandable as he’s cartoon reporting for Reason and his libertarian beliefs aren’t hidden. But I’m okay with that.
The stories he provides often present the issues in pretty harsh and unflattering light. With views from those portrayed (what we take to be the “left” and “right”) often coming across as either well-intentioned and dumb, or insensitive and dumb. And if you happen to feel strongly about either side of the issues he introduces, you might find yourself a little chagrined to see how he reframes the issues that he presents. And he asks the questions that don’t really lend themselves to simple answers.
While it isn’t always flattering (and, yes, I did see “myself” in some of these scenes) it does make you aware that the issues have more sides than we usually see in our individual views of our world. Most of the material was previously published in Reason magazine between 2001 and 2008 so don’t expect to find mention of the Obama presidency or the tea party movement. Probably just as well as Mr. Bagge would probably find a way to make you think differently about them. Good cartoon-reporting will do that.
March 16th, 2010
Dennis - Central
He: Liz?
She: Hmm?
He: Will you snuggle with me?
She: If you stop farting.
He: Nevermind.
Now, if you don’t see the humor is that little exchange, then Will You Still Love Me If I Wet the Bed? a collection of comic strips by Liz Prince may not be for you. The comics focus on Liz and Kevin, a co-habitating young couple who are saying and doing the sorts of things that only the young and in love will say and do. And it does have a goofy sort of charm, even if an occasional comic may be a little risque for some readers.
That’s not to say there aren’t problems with the book. The art comes off as pretty crude, and seems practically unfinished with parts that appear to be rough drafts rather than completed art. That picture of the cover art is as good as it gets. That may or may not explain why the book was printed on such tiny pages. And at 71 pages, it’s not really a book that’s likely to be lingered over (although there were some comics I kept flipping back to). Like I said, it has goofy charm.
So, even though Valentine’s Day has already passed, this may give you a few ideas about keeping the fun in your relationship (or let you know what you could be missing). Rest assured, there’s more snuggling than sex, more kissing than crudity, more badinage than bare-naked and more fun than anything. It probably won’t change your world (or save a bad relationship) but it just might give you a smile or two.
And for you foodies out there, may I suggest starting out with the corn on the cob kiss? What’s that? Sorry, you’ll have to read the book.
February 25th, 2010
Dennis - Central
Daisuke Igarashi’s Children of the Sea is a two-part manga mystery that combines magical realism with the natural world in a very curious, yet peaceful way. Set in Tokyo, the story features Ruka, whose father works at a large research aquarium, and two boys of the sea who were raised by dugongs. In the “I learn something new every day” category, dugongs are large marine mammals on the order of the manatee or sea cow. They’re somewhat familiar, but I still had to look them up. I mean, when was the last time you read about a dugong? As for the boys of the sea who were raised by the dugongs, that is where the magic comes in.
Something big is brewing worldwide in Volume One. Fish are vanishing from large aquariums across Europe and North America, other water creatures are washing ashore and meteorites are being spotted over the sea. The boys, Umi and Sora, are in danger and currently under the protection of the aquarium staff, but the ghost of the sea keeps calling to them. The ghost of the sea also calls to Ruka, which is very mysterious. It becomes apparent that Ruka is connected to the boys AND the sea and the reader uncovers more and more of this intrigue as the story progresses.
While the plot is magical, the illustrations are very realistic in depicting the sea life, aquarium and Tokyo Bay surroundings. The storytelling is compelling on its own, but this story might also appeal to fans of Japanese culture as well as those interested in sea life. And in addition to the dugong, something else about this book was very new to me. Children of the Sea is my first unflipped graphic novel translation. Unflipped translations read as they were originally published in Japanese format, from back to front and right to left and this took quite a bit of time for my brain to get used to. I read a fair amount of graphic novels, but all have been published in the U.S., UK or France or translated and flipped, so I have never experienced this before. It’s a bit trippy! But once you get used to it, you won’t even think about it.
If you like graphic novels and are looking for something new, I highly recommend this series. Volume Two is currently on order in LINKcat, so you won’t have to wait long to read the conclusion.
December 8th, 2009
Molly - Central
Judging from David Small’s award-winning children’s books illustrations, it’s hard to imagine that the same man is behind the dark tale recounted in the graphic novel memoir Stitches. Best known for his work with wife Sarah Stewart and his Caldecott Award-winning artwork in So You Want to be President?, Stitches reveals a painful past, yet one that Small somehow weaves a sense of hopefulness through with his art.
It’s no easy feat. Small grew up in postwar Detroit, the son of an oft-absent radiologist and an emotionally cold mother. A sickly boy with sinus problems, his father treated him with repeated doses of x-ray radiation. By the time he was in his early teens, Small had a lump on his throat that had developed into full-blown cancer, although his parents made a point of never telling him the true nature, or cause, of his condition. Waking up after an operation, Small discovers that not only does he have an ugly row of stitches down his neck, but one of his vocal chords was entirely removed. He was almost completely mute.
Small always found solace in drawing as a child, and his ink-washed artwork captures an extraordinary range of emotions, especially in capturing the subtleties of facial expressions. His use of lighting to strategically shade features and the inclusion of nightmare sequences lends a quasi-Hitchcockian cast to the story. It’s apt for this very internal story, filled with the effects of repression and silence.
Stitches was recently nominated for the National Book Award in the Young People’s Category, a choice that has generated some controversy given the dark subject matter, and the fact that graphic novels rarely get recognition by major awards. It is a haunting story, but there’s nothing that would be objectionable in Small’s story compared to many other modern-day young adult novels. In fact, anyone who hasn’t picked up a graphic novel may find Stitches to be the perfect way to get into the genre. Along with recent graphic memoirs such as Fun Home and Blankets, Stitches demonstrates brilliantly how image and text can blend into a powerful, captivating experience.
(Publisher’s Weekly article via Powell’s)
November 17th, 2009
Katie H.
I wish I had known this before I started reading The Color of Earth by Kim Dong Hwa: the author is a very famous creator of Korean manhwa, which is a general term for comics and cartoons in Korea, and it was a big deal for him to write a graphic novel series about women. I didn’t learn this until I read the afterword, and it really makes a difference in the story, at least for me.
The Color of Earth is the first in a trilogy featuring a young girl named Ehwa and her mother, a widowed tavern owner in a country village around the turn of the century in Korea. Ehwa ages from about seven years to fifteen in the first book and while she is experiencing a sexual awakening, her mother is experiencing a sexual re-awakening. This is where I wish I had known it was a big deal for this author to be writing about women, because I was initially skeptical. Something seemed a little off to me, and I wasn’t sure if it was the translation or the culture or the time period in which the story was set. After reading the very earnest author’s note and learning a little more about him and what he’s all about, I re-read the first book with a heightened sensitivity and it meant a lot more.
The second book in the trilogy, The Color of Water, was released in the U.S. earlier this summer and focuses on a teen-age Ehwa in her first serious love relationship and her mother’s on/off relationship with a traveling salesman. There’s a bit of a cliff-hanger at the end, with both mother and daughter basically left alone and in tears. The third book, The Color of Heaven, was released in September, so you won’t have to wait a long time to find out what happens to Ehwa and her mother, which is good, because you can’t help but want these two to be happy.
The artwork is exceptionally beautiful. There is so much attention to the Korean landscape, flowers and insects in particular, many of which are symbolic, that at times it is hard to keep going with the story. Your eyes will be busy appreciating the illustrations.
And the U.S. publication of the trilogy is tailor made for book groups, (if your book group is cool with sexual content in a graphic novel format). The second book has a reading guide in the back of the book and questions for groups that pertain to the relationships, the location and time period for books one and two. It’s a wonderful story and whether you are new to the genre or a die-hard fan of graphic novels, you won’t want to miss this.
October 1st, 2009
Molly - Central
It seems like Carol Tyler has been kicking around the comics scene since it was referred to as the underground comics scene. In the last few years, she’s turned her attention to the full-length graphic novel. Her latest, You’ll Never Know: A Graphic Memoir begins to tell the story of her father, Chuck Tyler, in words and pictures, with an effort to tell about his time in the army during World War II, as well as her life growing up with him and later with her own family.
Growing up it seems neither Chuck– nor most of the men of his generation who had served– spent much time talking about the war or their experiences. Even the photographs and souvenirs they kept were seldom spoken of, although they were kept and preserved with something like reverence. Carol had tried at various times to get her father to answer questions about the war, only to have him forcefully reject the overtures. Then, one night, forty years after the war, he calls her on the phone and spends two hours talking about the war. The phrase “rivers of blood” fairly leaps off of the page.
It’s a beautifully and cleverly done book, with some charming and imaginative illustrative and narrative techniques that cleverly glide from one era to another using overlapping dialogue and scenes that evolve. A really terrific piece of craftsmanship, it jumps nimbly between eras separated now by almost seventy years. It’s a fairly large-format book, with a cover suggesting it’s been made out of plywood, a sly salute to the working-class, can-do man that was her father. This particular volume is titled Book one: A Good and Decent Man. Her story of her father’s time in the army has only taken him to the shores of north Africa so far. Still, to come: Italy, France, and finally Germany. I’ll certainly be reading any future volumes that come out. But there’s more than a little trepidation about what will eventually be revealed.
At times charming and enthralling, and at other times emotionally wrenching, the story so far leads only to the edge of the war Chuck Tyler experienced. The title, “You’ll never know” appears in the lyrics of a love song from the era and it’s a sweet counterpoint to the scenes where young Chuck is wooing Carol’s mother on the dance floor. But it also hints at the dark side of the war (every war) that never seems to be revealed. Like Carol, I want to know her father’s story, but I’m more than a little afraid of what I’ll find out. The book’s title suggests a many-layered truth, not just about this one man, but about war itself.
If you’re interested in finding out more about author Carol Tyler, her website is here and there are numerous links to newspaper and magazine articles exploring her work as a teacher in the expanding field of “sequential art” (i.e. comics).
September 22nd, 2009
Dennis - Central
After reading Gene Luen Yang’s award-winning graphic novel American Born Chinese and Derek Kirk Kim’s award-winning Same Difference & Other Stories this past spring, I was very excited to read The Eternal Smile: Three Stories The Eternal Smile is a collaborative effort published this year through First Second Books in which Yang contributed the text while Kim provided the illustrations. Together, these two create a work that is divided into three stories that involve fantasy worlds as an escape from the humdrum or painful reality of existence in some way or another. And very much like the stories within Yang’s American Born Chinese, each story has an unexpected twist that manages to give an entirely new dimension and meaning.
In the first story Duncan’s Kingdom, Duncan is a young knight who is out to win the hand of the beautiful princess by avenging her father’s death and obtaining the head of his killer, the Frog King. Through his relationship with Brother Patchwork, he obtains a sword and ends up successfully beheading the Frog King, thereby winning the hand of the beautiful princess. Yet during the ceremony, a bird flies overhead with the Frog King’s “Snappy Cola” in its talons and the entire story shifts to a completely different reality.
In The Eternal Smile, Grandpa Greenbax, a power hungry frog, is constantly in search of the profitable money making adventure in order to build up his “pool o’ cash”. Filbert, Grandpa Greenbax’s right hand man, at one point takes Grandpa Greenbax to the “eternal smile” floating in the clouds in the middle of the desert as a means of calming Greenbax down. Still, Grandpa Greenbax suddenly realizes that such a strange and mysterious spectacle is enough to build a religion on, and hence, a money making escapade indeed! However, after initial success, his plans go awry and he is thrown into a fit of uncontrollable rage. It is at this point that the story takes a totally unexpected turn, and everything the reader thinks about the world of Grandpa Greenbax is completely turned on its head.
In the final story Urgent Request, Janet, a frumpy drone at a tech company, answers a Nigerian scam e-mail to liven up her drab personal and professional life. She creates a fantasy relationship with Prince Henry Alembu, exchanging several emails and sending him almost her entire life savings. Finally, upon a final request from Henry, she requests that they meet, and this proceeds into a series of events that reveals that Janet is not as blatantly naïve as the reader thinks.
Along with Yang’s storytelling, Kim’s drawings for each story are executed in entirely different styles ranging from bright cartoonish figures to light watercolor panels, giving each story a special visual feel. I highly recommend this book to both graphic novel and non-graphic novel enthusiasts as an example of how unique this genre is becoming in terms of both subject matter and aesthetic value. Check it out!
September 10th, 2009
Kathleen - Monroe Street
After first being introduced to Lilli Carre through her short-animated films What Hits The Moon and For the Birds (you can view them on her website), I have had my eyes on this young Chicago artist. Easily identified by the graphic trademark of the black triangle inside each character’s nose, Carre’s work is garnering attention through her features in the MIME series as well as Best American Comics of 2008.
In 2006, Top Shelf Productions put out Carre’s Tales of Woodsman Pete, a collection of stories featuring the solitary, thoughtful Woodsman Pete and the giant, sexually frustrated Paul Bunyan and his companion Babe, the blue ox. The stories are hilarious and disturbing, including Paul Bunyan accidentally engulfing Ms. Woodson while engaged in a passionate kiss while Woodsman Pete conducts endless conversations with his stuffed moose heads.
Still, most are considering her recent book The Lagoon to be her official debut graphic novel. In this tale, a family of four- a grandfather, his daughter, her husband and their daughter- live in a house near a black lagoon where an amphibious creature sings a beautiful song on certain summer nights. This deeply seductive song awakens people out of their sleep and leads them to the lagoon where they listen to and watch the creature intently until the song’s end. The listeners then safely return to their perspective homes, except on the rare occasion when a listener mysteriously disappears into the dark waters forever.
Throughout the course of the story, each member of the family hears and reacts to the seductive sounds of the lagoon creature in different ways. Zoey, the young girl, thinks the song sounds like “a cat in a bathtub” but then later obsessively plays the tune over and over again on the piano. The grandfather, completely mesmerized by the song, is deeply entranced by the creature and found later by Zoey in the lagoon spewing out such nonsense as “Wet the felines. Only in July, when it’s hot.” Zoey’s mother, who has apparently formed an intimate friendship with the lagoon creature, whispers to him over a cigarette, “I want to hear it tonight!” and then later is discovered by her husband shoulder-deep in the lagoon and in danger of disappearing forever.
Along with the lagoon creature’s song, other sounds continuously creep in and out of Carre’s story. The “tap tap tap” on the window, a cat’s “plank” over the piano keys, a metronome’s “tic tic tic”, the “zzzz” of night insects, and the “crunch” and “rustle” of dry leaves and reeds all lingered in my head long after closing the book. And the fact that each reader must imagine his or her own unique versions of each of these sounds, including the creature’s seductive song, gives this graphic novel an expansive, rather mysterious quality. This together with the strange, obscure storyline keeps the reader constantly wondering what lies beneath such simple, spooky situations.
For the most part, I found the book’s ambiguity extremely tantalizing. Still, parts of the story felt unnecessarily abbreviated, and I yearned for more of Carre’s playful details and action. It is perhaps obvious that this is her first major graphic novel, and I think it is reasonable to hope that her storytelling will expand and improve over time. On the other hand, her rich black and white ink drawings seem perfectly realized, reminiscent of old German woodblock prints in their density of tone and their use of negative/positive space. And the overall tone of the drawings has an equally eery as well as playful quality, perfectly mirroring the quirky, yet haunted story line.
I’d venture to guess that Carre’s popularity will increase over the next decade. And if The Lagoon is any indication of her appreciation of sound, I also think it is a probable guess that her work will likely veer more towards animation and film. However, in the meanwhile, I recommend you check out this graphic novel and take advantage of the unique opportunity to attempt your very own spooky soundtrack to Carre’s rich artwork.
August 19th, 2009
Kathleen - Monroe Street
If, like me, you’re a fan of last summer’s Iron Man movie (on DVD and Blu-Ray), writer Matt Fraction and artist Salvador Larroca have crafted a follow-up graphic novel that builds on some of the same themes and characters of the movie. It’s called The Invincible Iron Man : The Five Nightmares and deals with a question the movie had me thinking about after I saw it: Why isn’t Tony Stark building more Iron Man suits for others to use?
Turns out, Tony’s afraid of what could happen if someone else gets their hands on the technology– and his five nightmares are all variations on that theme. Because others wouldn’t be as trustworthy as billionaire, womanizing, recovering-alcoholics apparently. Not even the government Tony seems to slavishly serve (see the Marvel Civil War) nor the members of S.H.I.E.L.D., where he also serves as director, deserve that kind of power. No, there’s only one man who can wear the Iron Man suit.
Oh, but technology keeps moving forward, and what has been invented, can be re-invented/improved. Tony finds himself facing a new menace, Advanced Genocide Mechanics, a more-or-less one-man show with a familiar name running it, which is outfitting any and all suicide bombers with portable weapons of mass destruction– for a price. And all based on technology gleaned from developments of Stark Enterprises, Tony’s company. (Although, granted, this is comic book technology we’re talking here.)
Familiar faces returning from the movie include Tony’s right-hand woman Pepper Potts, and Jim Rhodes (in his “War Machine” persona), and bad guy Obadiah Stane (via flashback).
The bad news is Robert Downey Jr. doesn’t play Tony Stark/Iron Man in the graphic novel. The playfulness he brought to the role is missing, and the torment he feels knowing that his work is bringing death and destruction is somewhat lacking as well, at least compared to Downey’s performance. But Salvador Larroca’s artwork here is really spectacular, with rich colors and exquisite detail. This is one of the Marvel premiere edition volumes that really lives up to the name.
If you are a fan of the movie, or superhero comics in general, you should definitely give this one a try.
June 26th, 2009
Dennis - Central
Do you develop crushes on your favorite authors? I suppose it’s hard not to, especially if they write the kind of intimate memoirs of graphic novelist Jeffrey Brown. I’ve been a fan of Brown’s stories since I picked up his first novel, Clumsy, a few years ago. In a series of seemingly simple, yet expressive vignettes, Brown illustrates the highs, lows, and funny moments of his first love. What’s so impressive about this, his first book, and subsequent relationship-themed novels like Unlikely, AEIOU, and Every Girl is the End of the World for Me, is his ability to convey these private relationship moments with such candor, self-deprecation, and charming humor. His raw, almost shaky, drawing style lends to the feeling of reading someone’s quickly scribbled diary. It’s hard not to fall in love.
I was so delighted to see a new Jeffrey Brown book in our “Don’t Miss Lists” recently. Funny Misshapen Body largely departs from the girlfriend chronicles to focus on Brown’s career development as an artist and his struggle with Crohn’s disease. As a kid, Brown loved to draw but didn’t know comics would be the outlet for his art. The journey to write Clumsy involved painting thousands of wooden shoes in college, enduring critiques as an MFA student at the Art Institute of Chicago, befriending legendary graphic novelist Chris Ware, and stumbling upon Quimby’s bookstore in Chicago. For the best context to the story, it’s worth reading Clumsy or any of his other books first before picking up this one.
Perhaps most impressive in Funny Misshapen Body is Brown’s detailing of his life with Crohn’s disease. The hospital scenes are quite personal, but he portrays these experiences with honesty, sensitivity, and an endearing wide-eyed curiosity. This was refreshing after I recently struggled through Charlotte Roche’s Wetlands–see Dennis’ smart review here– which tackles similar medical descriptions with far less heart and poignancy. Jeffrey was certainly an unlucky kid to have to endure these procedures, but such experiences clearly made him a more empathetic writer.
Despite this being his 8th graphic novel, Jeffrey Brown seems to be overlooked by many graphic novel readers. If you’re a fan of Craig Thompson, Adrian Tomine, Dan Clowes, or Harvey Pekar, and haven’t read any Jeffrey Brown, do yourself a favor and pick up his books. But I’ll warn you ahead of time: his most recent author bio says he’s already taken.
June 18th, 2009
Rebecca - Monroe Street
Previous Posts