RE/Read is an occasional column by Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery curator Larry Reid examining books you may have missed or merit more attention. This time we’ll look at I Am Not Okay With This by Charles Forsman. Almost lost in the sensational response to the Netflix adaptation of Forsman’s The End of the Fucking World is the equally compelling graphic novel I Am Not Okay With This. This book explores similar themes of alienation and anxiety among tormented suburban teens. Employing a diary as a narrative device, Forsman follows his female protagonist as she navigates the familiar perils of…
RE/Read: Buddy Buys a Dump by Peter Bagge
RE/Read is an occasional column by Fantagraphics Bookstore curator Larry Reid examining backlist titles you may have missed or are worth another look. This time we’ll revisit Peter Bagge’s classic collection Buddy Buys a Dump. Peter Bagge’s masterful Hate comic book serial concludes with Buddy Buys a Dump. The misadventures of Buddy Bradley and his crew of lovable losers reflected the experiences of a generation of counterculture mavens: from miscreant misfits to semi-respectable members of modern society. The final installment collects the seven issues of Hate Annual, ending with a new chapter that finds our anti-hero confronting a situation familiar…
Re/Read: Last Girl Standing by Trina Robbins
Re/Read is an occasional column by Fantagraphics Bookstore curator Larry Reid examining books you may have missed or are worth another look. In the wake of the second annual woman’s march, we’ll focus this time on Last Girl Standing and other works by Trina Robbins. Last Girl Standing is a fascinating first person account of Robbins’ early years as a counterculture maven in the Hollywood folk rock scene, to her arrival in New York’s East Village as a fashion designer, boutique owner, and model, before becoming an influential member of the underground comix scene. The story chronicles her involvement with…
Book Trailer: Cosplayers by Dash Shaw
Check out the book trailer for Cosplayers by Dash Shaw, debuting at #SDCC2016. Music by Jesse Moynihan. Can’t make it to Comic-Con? Enjoy 20% off all Fantagraphics titles this week. Shop the sale now.
Hip Hop history is American history
Hip Hop Family Tree not only explores the history of a musical genre, but also the socio-political climate from which it emerged. This latest volume explores the racial tensions between Black communities and government agencies in the mid 80’s- from the the war on drugs to the leveling of “crack houses” by LAPD militarized battering ram tanks. Ed Piskor (literally) illustrates how the famous hip hop lyrics “The roof is on fire” were elevated to anthemic status and connects it to the context of the oft-forgotten bombings by West Philadelphia police that destroyed the compound of MOVE activists; taking the lives…
Joe Daly fans- get stoked for the release of Highbone Theater
Coming this summer and available for pre-order now: Highbone Theater by Joe Daly: Following a succession of some of the most quirky and outré graphic albums ever conceived, including the ongoing, award-winning RPG-inspired Dungeon Quest series, cartoonist Joe Daly has drawn his most ambitious stand-alone graphic novel yet — the 544 page Highbone Theater. Our protagonist Palmer — wallflower, mystic seeker and paper mill worker — moves into a new apartment with his outwardly self-assured and womanizing friend, Perry, and begins an epic struggle of love, hate, and self preservation. Events take a peculiar turn as Palmer befriends an iconoclastic co-worker,…
Fantagraphics at 40: History on Our Side
APRIL 28, 2016: SEATTLE, WA — This summer marks the 40th anniversary of Fantagraphics Books, and the publisher will celebrate the occasion with a series of events throughout the rest of 2016. Founded in 1976 by Gary Groth and Mike Catron (soon to be followed by Kim Thompson), the company published over 5,000 comic books and graphic novels over the next four decades, confirming its reputation as the publisher of the world’s greatest cartoonists, and as a champion for cartoonists who don’t fit within the commercial confines of traditional corporate publishing. The highlight of the anniversary celebrations will be the long…
New Comic Book Day: Peanuts, prose, Ducks, Ditko and a new Jessica Farm!
Look for these new releases at your local comic book shop today:
Fantagraphics Exclusive: Sir Alfred No. 3
SIR ALFRED NO. 3 By Tim Hensley $24.99 signed/numbered edition of 1000 The final publication of Pigeon Press In the last months before comics impresario Alvin Buenaventura passed away, he completed publishing Sir Alfred No. 3, an oversized comic book/graphic novel by the brilliant Tim Hensley (author of the acclaimed 200? Fantagraphics release, Wally Gropius). Sir Alfred No. 3 is an oblique biography of the world’s most famous film director, Alfred Hitchcock. In fact, despite being numbered “No. 3,” no other issues exist. The comic book is composed of multiple gag strips based on anecdotes found in tomes of film lore in the…
Fantagraphics Exclusive: Valentina Tribute Art Booklet
Order The Complete Crepax from Fantagraphics.com/crepax and receive a special, numbered, limited edition booklet featuring art created in tribute to the character Valentina, by an international coterie of over a dozen artists including Gilbert Hernandez, Richard Sala, George Pratt and many more! These 6″ x 9″ booklets are printed in full-color on satin finish paper. We’re sharing a few of the images here with quotes from the artists about the inspiration they take from Crepax’s signature character.
