Caricature Books

Great book. He displays how to cartoon men, women, children, elderly and many types of animals. He does it in an extremely visual way that even a child could follow along. This book is packed with 95% illustrations and 5% text. To me, that's a winner. The 5% text that is in there is invaluable. The print is nice and large and easy to read. I am very happy I bought this book. It is a keeper.

From the beginning of this book to the end, it is filled with (finally) basic, step-by-step instructions on drawing cartoon people, body parts, the "action line", body language and style. And then it starts all over again with animals! Mostly dogs, cats, and different fowl, it also includes less common animals, like beaver, porcupine, raccoon and many sea animals. Can't forget the great alligators and dragon. Finally, the book spends time on placing the characters, reference lines and specialty shots and the all-important "balloon". Another great one by C. Hart. I think I own most of his books and they are all worth great merit, better than the other books I've seen out there by far.

A few years ago, on a whim, I decided to start drawing. I didn't know where to begin so I bought this book. I really believed I couldn't draw. The techniques in this book were so easy to learn that soon I went from drawing stick figures to expressive cartoon characters. My confidence went up and I took on more complicated projects. Now, I work part-time doing illustrations and it all started here!

Christopher Hart has truly done an excellent job with this book. Filled to the rim with illustrations, techniques, explanations and inside information, if you've ever wanted to learn about humorous illustration or cartooning, put this on your list. You'll be glad you did. :o)

This is an excellent book for any beginning artist or anyone else wanting to learn cartooning. Chris Hart publishes some of the best books on art that I've ever seen. This book gives good details on drawing that is easy to follow and understand. All in all, this is one book that should be in every artist's library.

Where were YOU on the morning of September 11th, 2001? I was at work when Howard Stern reported that a plane had crashed into one of the World Trade Center Towers. Having been born and raised in The Bronx before moving to Rochester, N.Y., my workday immediately ended as I focused my full attention on Howard's show; He became my only link to the city I loved and would always call home. Later on came the TV reports and the images that will never leave my mind, but for those first few hours, I sat listening in shock as the man who makes me laugh every workday became my only connection to family, friends, and loved ones who were suddenly living in a war-zone.

9-11: Emergency Relief is a benefit book that is filled with true stories from September 11th. They range from touching, to infuriating, to thought-provoking, and the list of creators reads like a who's who of Indy Comics: James Kochalka, Will Eisner, Tony Millionaire, Harvey Pekar, Tom Hart, Joyce Brabner, Ted Rall, and literally DOZENS of others. Besides being entertaining, and raising money for the Red Cross, the book fulfills another important purpose: It stands as a reminder of a day we must NEVER forget. God Bless America!

9-11: Emergency Relief puts a unique perspective on a shared tragedy. Taking the events out of the cold realism of news photography and video and into the pen and ink world of the comix artist lets the reader share the emotions of another individual on a highly personalized level.

Do not let the genre keep you from reading this book! Even if you are not a comix afficionado, the images and storytelling technique of each artist/author are fascinating and deeply moving.

Like any good book, it is well structured. Stories lead up to the event, there are on-site accounts, the aftermath, and the realization that we're living in a changed world. For people having trouble coming to terms with the events of 9-11 -- regardless of their age -- this book provides comfort and insight. We all have stories to tell about 9-11 and most readers have probably wished they could express their own feelings so well. Fortuntely, this group of artists says it for us.

Easily the best of the comics industry's myriad responses to the tragedy of September 11th, this book gets down into the nitty-gritty of human experiences and reactions to tragedy. No superheroes. No larger-than-life expostulation. Just real people - talented artists - telling amazing stories. Higlights include Gregory Benton's "Treasure," an untitled Hutch Owen story by Tom Hart that manages to toe the fine line between rage and sentiment and "Citadel Of The Night" by K. Thor Jensen and Chris Knowle. Honestly, though, the book is so full of great material that nobody should be without it.

After the September 11th terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and in the skies over Pennsylvania, some 50 graphic novelists and cartoonist ranging from such legendary names as Will Eisner and Harvey Pekar, to newer talents such as Frank Cho and James Kochalka, came together in a very special project as a way of expressing their grief, patriotism, and support of the American people in the face of naked, lethal, ideologically driven aggression. The result is 9-11: Emergency Relief, a powerful graphic novel. The proceeds will go to benefit the American Red Cross. Simply put, every school and every community library in the country should acquire a copy of 9-11: Emergency Relief for the edification of their students and their patrons.

Everyone has a dark side--it's that frightening part of our personalities that drives
you to root for something to blow up and hurt James Bond. It's what makes us "root
for the bad guy" at Mel Gibson films. It's what drove us to watch with rapt attention
on September 11, as the Civilized World crumbled before our eyes.

This, happily, is not the part of us that forces us onward through "9-11," a graphic
novel that tells nearly fifty stories by respected creators from the comic-book industry
about the terrorist attacks and their implications. "9-11" is, with rare exception
like Ashley Wood's obscenity-laden two page monologue, a labor of profound love.

Here, comics legend Will Eisner--who literally invented the concept of "sequential
art," the name by which the academic community now refers to comics--joins virtually
ever major creator in the comics industry in donating his time, money, energy and
artwork to charities benefiting the victims of the September 11 terror attacks.

Marvel Comics lead the pack, their magazine-format "Heroes" book being the first
released (in late October) and best-promoted of all benefit books. The first week
in January, they followed up with "Moment of Silence," another comics-for-charity
project to which Hollywood director and comics guru Kevin Smith contributed a story.
"9-11" was released on January 9 by Alternative Comics, a small, independent publisher.
It contains mostly works done by small-press of self-published comics creators who
are not under contract to a major publisher. Contributors include Phil Hester of
DC Comics' best-selling "Green Arrow," Michael Avon Oeming of "Powers" and "Bluntman
and Chronic" fame, Eisner and "Bone" scribe Jeff Smith. Sixty-two stories featuring
more than 75 creators are collected in the 200-page book, which costs [price]. All
profits from the sale of "9-11" go to the American Red Cross.

Especially notable in the "9-11" tribute book are several pieces by non-legends,
who have been largely overlooked even in the comics press due to names like Harvey
Pekar, Will Eisner and Tony Millionaire being attached to the project. A. David Lewis'
11-page "Alabaster Cities" details his exploits on the morning of September 11, which
are refreshingly non-dynamic. Rather than depicting himself running out the door
to help, as is the temptation when writing a story about your personal reaction to
great tragedy, Lewis and many other creators in the book simply paint a picture of
desperate phone calls, frantic e-mails and great personal reflection and fear. Despite
a medical condition that precludes him from Armed Services duty, Lewis confesses
to ever-so-briefly worrying about being drafted on September 11--a thought that surely
crossed the mind of every young male in the country in the hours following the attacks
on America.

John "Bean" Hastings has a short but poignant story about the importance of art and
popular culture in troubled times--it's clear that he put a lot of himself in a small
amount of pages, and the result is stellar. Keith Knight's indictment of middle America's
closedminded attacks against Arab-Americans and Danny Donovan's disappointment that
the heroes of comic books and movies weren't there to save us when it was truly needed,
hit home in witty and well-thought-out stories designed to make readers take a break
from the seemingly endless pages of grieving and think about their own attitudes.

All in all, "9-11" is a beautiful book, put together by truly talented people and
well-executed; it can do no person harm to buy a copy. Or two--the money, after all,
is going to charity.

My wife bought a used copy of this book for me.....she wasn't sure if I would like it but since it was related to architecture, she thought she would take a chance...She was right on. It has a fresh take on a lot of the issues in the design and construction world. The author is not afraid to take on all disciplines and he is very successful. Some are a little "Far-Side-ish" but there is a lot of insight in the humor. And the drawings are really well done. I loved it. If you aren't sure this is for you, the author has an [...] website you can use for a test drive. My recommendation: This is a good book to have.

Great illustrations, Great Wit. Nicely packaged. The "Architect's Dream Sequence" cartoons resonated with me too. I didn't buy it but I would now- (It was a summer party gift to all employees from one of the principals in my office.)

I laughed and laughed! These cartoons are histerical! Every person who has ever built or designed a home or constructed any building whatsoever will enjoy this book! Its unique size and cover makes a great socking stuffer for all my "construction clients."

I think it is great that a professional can make fun of his profession and make other people laugh. It is all done in a very "non-bashing" way and should be read by all architects and design workers. They will learn a few things about their profession from Archi-Toons that they did not know.

What a delightful and humorus approach by an architect about his own profession. I am sure that everyone in the architectual and design profession or anyone in a family associated with someone in this profession will enjoy the humor in these delightful cartoons.

I love writers like the Sills, who can write with humor, tongue-in-cheek comments, and illustrate with equally supurb drawings. Even my husband laughed, and he usually doesn't pick up such books. The Sills take a serious topic - at least most birders I know seem so serious about their "lists" - and turn it into a very fun read. (I plan to use it in language arts classes this year for examples of many literary terms, especially alliteration.)

This book was not written for bird watchers, but for those people who are looking for subtle and intelligent humor. The authors start with the characteristics of birds and then add features of other items. My favorite bird was the White-Lined Roadrunner or Geococcys Alba-linearis, whose habitat is a series of interstate highways, primarily in the southwest United States. The last two sentences in the description are "Feet have a unique radial tread pattern. Environmental noise can obscure the call, which is an occasional beep."
Each bird is given English then "Latin" names, followed by a description, and then hints for better observation. You must read the descriptions carefully to catch all of the subtlety of the humor, but if you do, it will amuse you.

I have been a fan of these exquisite little bird guides since I first stumbled on volume 1 at Hearthside Books in Juneau, Alaska in 1988. At that time, I decided to purchase a raft of these guides and they became excellent gifts for other lovers of wildlife over the years.

Since then I have passed both volumes around to our guests when I do tours as a naturalist in Haines, (SE) Alaska. The drawingsare so realistc, even the Elderhostlers think they are real birds...and laugh as they figure out the joke...Highly recommended for all those with a sense of humor and love of birds. Thank you Sills!!!!

I highly recommend this book as a gift for any birder. Anyone who has attempted to find a way to tell a "greater" from a "lesser" or who has tried to learn those hard to recall Latin names will appreciate it!

I have been afflicted with Serious Birders Disease. You know the symptoms, flitting from Peterson to Stokes to Sibley and beyond, memory fading. Was it a yellow bill, blue legs, black feet or was it black bill, yellow feet? It gets worse and worse with each passing hour. They all begin to look alike. I was becoming frantic.

Finally a friend came to the rescue with the best antidote yet - the little field guide by Ben, Cathryn and John Sill "A Field Guide to Little-Known & Seldom-Seen Birds. Symptoms disappear within 24 hours. Laughter, after all, is the best medicine. Never again will I venture into the field with quite the same driven attitudes - unless, of course, I think I have finally happened upon the elusive ringed gimpy (see pp 26-27).

The Garfield comic strip about a male loser who owns a fat cat and an ignorant, slobbery dog strikes a responsive chord in cat owners everywhere. It is not because they identify with a man who cannot do anything right or recognize their pet dog. It is because Garfield is the exaggerated epitome of a cat whose life revolves around eating, sleeping and getting into things. I have owned approximately ten cats in my life and I recognized a bit of Garfield in every one of them. I enjoyed this book, even though the actions of his owner reach beyond the absurd.

Unfortunatly, this was actually when Garfield books were starting to fall a bit flat on ideas and the 1990's books weren't as good compared to the mid to late 1980's books but this book is still very funny, but overall if you're a Garfield fan, this book is highly recommended.

"Garfield Says a Mouthful, No 21" wasn't the funniest Garfield book I've read, but it's still entertaining. I nice addition to a collection and a must for Garfield fans. I recommend.

Out of all the Garfield books I think I liked this one the most. But still I give all of them 5 big gold stars! -Kacey 5th grade

Everybody out there keep buying Garfield books! They can be worth a lot of money someday and can become collector's items! I'm always going to keep all of mine so when I have kids they can read them!

This book is as good as Garfield has always been. I could only afford to buy the first 4 books as a kid. I never was able to by any of the others during their original run. I remember reading parts of this book in K-Mart as a kid wishing I could get it. I also read these strips in the newspaper.

Is Jim Davis trying to pull a George Lucas on us? All of these re-released full-color books are missing the final page of the original release books.

This re-release Fifth Book (Takes The Cake) is missing the "Garfield Characters That Didn't Make It" special page that was the final page of the original release.

It would be a shame to have the special comic lost to time. Luckily I have all the originals.

Normally I should give a 1-Star rating to show my displeasure with the missing content of this release. However, I simply can't bring myself to give a poor rating to a Garfield book.

Garfield Takes the Cake (#5) contains all daily comics from November 3, 1980 through June 7, 1981. Garfield's Second Tresury contains the color version of all the sunday comics held within #5.

I don't know what it is about Garfield that still gets me to buy his books ever year. I have been a fan since I was in second grade, will be 22 years in September. I think what appeals me to the lazy fat cat is his sharp wit and cynicism. Just like Garfield, I hate Mondays with an immense passion and I love lasagna. One of my personal favorite books in the entire series is "Garfield Takes the Cake", the fifth volume of Garfield comic strips. I loved it when Garfield's grandfather pays Garfield a visit. I thought it was a nice touch. I got to see where Garfield got his looks from. I also loved it when Garfield met Arlene. Talk about oil and water. Arlene is definitely Garfield's equal when she is able to match wits with the fat cat. And I love all the fat jokes Jon makes and Garfield's reaction. The camping expedition is a definite classic Garfield moment. No matter how old I get, I can never get tired of reading Garfield. He is my escape from a crazy world known as reality.

Garfield is the best! Buy this book and ALL of his other books today cuz he is hilarious and every single one of his books are great!

Jon:Oh great. A new mouse hole.Sound:plit Jon:what's that? Garfield:Standard lease agreement.That's a comic from ton's of fun.

This book was about a cat named Garfield, a dog named Odie and Jon, Garfield's owner.They are very funny but some jokes are not.I'd give it four stars. I liked it a lot. I recommend it.

It's the funniest Garfield yet!!!

This book is great! He even goes on a trip to a island called Guano-Guano!And makes Odie have peanut butter,peforming on the fence is in this book tons of fun! A garfiled book that you will enjoy!

Everybody out there keep buying Garfield books! They can be worth a lot of money someday and can become collector's items! I'm always going to keep all of mine so when I have kids they can read them!

I thought I was getting a paperback version of the original hardback book of cartoons. It is the same book but the paperback version is much smaller than the hardback.

The New Yorker has all these things, and the combination of cats and The New Yorker is a felicitious one. These witty, wonderful cartoons are just the thing to bring a sparkle to even the most glazed of eyes.

Two ladies sipping tea, a cat strolling past tail in the air. "Whe she was little," one says "we had a very close relationship, but now we're just friends."

And a hundred others. A book is not as good as a cat, but this one is halfway there.

Cats you say? Take a look at the cover. Take a good look. Nobody does it like THE NEW YORKER. 101 cartons and 65 years later, the cats still have the last laugh. High level stuff and highly recommended!

I rated this book based on the hardcover version, but I do want to put in a word against the miniature paperback version in the beginning. Avoid the miniature paperback: It is very tiny, reproduced poorly, the paper quality is not good, and some of the material cannot be seen without a magnifying glass.

The only drawback I saw to the hardcover version was the lack of a witty introduction. I graded it down one star for that lack. The New Yorker cartoon books on business and money have wonderful introductions, unlike this one.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I must admit that I do not have a cat. Yet I have many friends who do, and I tried to view these cartoons through their eyes.

The main cartoonists of these 102 cartoons are Charles Addams, Tom Cheney, Helen Hokinson, Frank Modell, Mischa Richter, Danny Shanahan, William Steig, and Saul Steinberg.

The cartoons generally follow one of the following styles: juxtaposing cats for dogs; anthropomorphizing cats; and treating humans like cats. These formats were predictable enough that the humor worked best when one of the categories was not followed, such as in a cartoon with no words where a cat is seen scratching against an arm chair while a man sits in it reading the newspaper -- chair, man, and newspaper all bear the same scratch marks everywhere.

Here are a few of my favorites:

A woman letting a large number of cats out of the back door: "Everyone be home by two o'clock."

No words: A man sits in a chair reading with his feet on a bear skin run. Behind him, a cat lies in a bed with a mouseskin rug on the floor in front.

A man receiving a call at work: "Your wife feels that your cat needs to hear an authoritative male voice."

One mouse to another: "Miss Egan, bring me everything we have on cats."

Dog to cat: "Hey, pal, let's hear 'Doggie in the Window' again, and this time play it like you mean it!"

Cat to cat in bow tie: "I'm sorry, but I think it's uncatlike."

Cat in casts to another cat in casts in vet's office: "I tried to make it from the windowsill to the top of the refrigerator. How about you?"

Cat behind loan officer desk in bank to dog: "Beg."

Man to cat: "The fact that you cats were considered sacred in ancient Egypt cuts no ice with me."

Person shouting through the window to a woman in a roomful of cats: "Glendora Hogan got another load of cats, Elinor honey. Can you take a couple?"

Let this good-natured look at one of our favorite animal friends liven up your day, and remind you of the humor behind everything. It's only our stalled thinking that denies us a good laugh at everything!

If you live with a cat, you'll want to read it before you give it to another feline lover; it makes a wonderful present.

When I first picked up SHAKESPEARE CATS by the British artist Susan Herbert, I was struck by the cute and colorful illustrations showing cats, my favorite animals, as Shakespearean characters. I bought the book, and as I went through it page by page I found it educational, too. Herbert has accompanied each one of her drawings -- works of art in themselves -- with a short synopsis and the relevant quotation from the play. The trouble with cats, however, is that it is not always possible to do much more than suggest emotions in their faces, which are fairly "blank." This poses a problem with the more extreme emotions in Shakespeare: Herbert's Othello (a black cat) does not look enraged nor her Macbeth (a red-orange tabby) particularly horrified. Additionally, Herbert depicts mostly tabby (striped) cats, which will probably disappoint readers who like other kinds of cats. But if these are drawbacks, they are minor ones; Herbert is a gifted artist. Her scene-composition and her bright color-choices make each illustration a feast for the eyes. There are some subtly clever facial expressions, too, like Malvolio's (TWELFTH NIGHT) self-satisfied grin or Jacques (AS YOU LIKE IT) cynical smirk. And art enthusiasts will see Herbert's drawings of Romeo leaving Juliet's balcony or the sleeping princes from RICHARD III as homages to celebrated paintings by the nineteenth century artists Dicksee and Northcote; her crazed Ophelia (with tongue hanging out) might stand beside the famous depictions of that heroine by Waterhouse or Millais! I am happy to have discovered SHAKESPEARE CATS and Herbert and will seek out more of her books.

I hoped this was a story, but I will find a way to use the pretty pictures. The book isn't constructed in a way that I can encourage its use as a picture book for young children. I do like the fact that there is a passage beside each picture. That will be of some use.

I love this book, it's so adorable and beautiful, Susan Herbert is a great artist, I admire her a lot. You see wonderful pictures of cats playing roles of some of Shakespeare plays. It's a great book for kids and also for adult too.:) If you love cats your going to love this book.

Shakespeare people also tend to be cat people: why is that? In this case, Susan Herbert has created a beautiful book for cat fans and Bard fans alike. I have all of Herbert's books, and "Shakespeare Cats" is definitely my favorite. It depicts famous moments from many of Shakespeare's plays with intricate detail, and the cats look like they're in the most natural settings in the world! It's hard to pick out my favorite illustrations, but the "Midsummer Night's Dream" picture stands out, as does the humorous painting from "The Taming of the Shrew." All of the paintings are wonderful, and this is an adorable book that you will treasure forever.

Susan Herbert is, first and foremost, a truly gifted artist. Her style, talent, color choices, all show a mastery of skill. Aside from that, though, she's also an imaginative woman who tryle appreciates the feline, as evidenced by her series of wonderful illustrated cat books.

This book, "Shakespeare Cats", functions firstly as simply an enjoyable coffee-table book for frequent perusal. On another level, though, Herbert has cleverly illustrated 32 of Shakespeare's works, and with detail. The setting of each piece, the costumes, the detail of scene-setting -- all of this shows that in addition to being a cat-lover and an artist, Herbert is also not too shabby as a Shakespearean scholar as well.

This is the best drawing book I have ever encountered! The steps are easy and Mr. Yamamoto has rated the characters 1,2,or 3 from easiest to hardest. I love it!

Ok... So I'm teeerrrrrrriiiiibbbbbblleeeeeee @ drawing. I checked this book out from the library. It has easy steps that help you draw. My favorite characters to draw are the penguin and the baby dragon. This book is awesome! The cute characters are fun and easy to draw! Thanx Neal!!!

This Book IS GREAT! It features many simmple drawings in which their style is easy to catch on to. After a little while You can take some style from one drawing and some styles from another and put the m together to make your own cartoon characters

I can't really draw that good, and I was looking for some book that I could use to help me with drawing. So I tried the 50 nifty Cartoon book. It's cool! They have cute characters that even I can draw! Thanks alot Neal for writing this!

My 6 year old daughter began taking a cartoon drawing class. She is no better at drawing than any average 6 year old. The instructor uses this book. In the 2 classes she has had so far, this book has taught her how to draw some amazing cartoon characters! People who see her drawings cannot believe they were done by a 6 year old. If I hadn't seen it for myself - I'm not sure I would have believed it. This book is easy to use and very effective for teaching you how to drawing using simple shapes. I HIGHLY recommend it!