Cartoons Books

This is a wonderful book for fans of DTWOF with little cartoons from calanders and what not. However, it is not a part of the series, so people looking for additions to the narrative of the books will be disappointed or a bit frustrated. But aside from that, this is a book full of goodies, perfect to savor a little bit at a time.

Even as a white middle class hetero, I enjoy following on an ocassional basis the progress of Ms. Bechdel's cast of characters. It's rare to find a cartoonist who has so sucessfully kept a shtick going so long without becoming hopelessly stale (although perhaps it's a bit easier for a self-consciously running commentary on society and politics wherre the material is a little more dynamic than, say, the antics of Dennis the Menace or Little Jeffrey)....

Bechdel's prose here is as smart and funny as readers of the regular strip would expect. It starts as a memoir as she describes her beginnings and progression as a cartoonist, and includes lots of early drawings and strips. The bulk of the book is made up of stuff never seen in the DTWOF volumes: strips from her calendars, strips made for other magazines or special occasions, and autobiographical work. It's great stuff, always funny, and everyone with a sense of humor should buy it right away.

I first learned about Madam & Eve when taking the African Politics class at my school. When it came time to do term papers, I ended up exploring the issues in Madam & Eve (which meant I read all the books my prof had - and scared my roommates because I kept breaking into laughter). Madam & Eve is a wonderful comic, very smart and VERY funny. I recommend it to anyone who likes political commentary, as well as a good laugh.

The best of the first five years of South Africa's (and a few other places) favourite couple, Madam & Eve. This book provides a history, a deeper look into and of course, their greatest hits. I've got em all, mostly all signed by the authors and i'm told my collection is getting worth a few hundred dollars now! New edition out every year, get em while you can, you won't be disappointed.

All Madam and Eve comic books are great. They are full of comics about things happening in South Africa, toyi toyi, government, hijacking and problems between white and black people. These books are really funny, but you have to know certain things aboutt the country to understand some of the comics.

If you are a South African, former South African, or anyone, this book is a MUST HAVE! These are some of the best comics on Earth. This is the type of book that you pick up and read in one sitting, even though it is a comic book. This book is actually a wonderful collection of most of the comics past, and includes commentary of how the comic has changed and just tid bits of knowledge from the author. This is a must have for any Madam and Eve fans and for anyone who has never heard of Madam and Eve. You will love this book. I gaurantee it.

My daughter loves James, Martha, Sweetie, et al. She loves to quote James, and make up her own "James-isms". One awesome thing I want to mention is that my daughter wrote a fan letter to James and Mark Tonra answered her with an original sketch, written on the letter she sent! That tells me what a good guy he is.

I first fell in love with James over the internet, saving every days' individual strips. It's truely a pleasure to find out that Mark Tonra's work has found it's way to a book. I am so glad to be able to have them in a dead-tree format that I can share with my own little James (we call him "Nathan" ^_^).

If you have a toddler or love kids and how they can seem to be more adult than some adults, you will -love- this book.

I really dig this comic strip. At first glance, you might think it's just about some baby, but James' insight and wisdom on growing up and living a good life is way beyond his years...from friendship to mischief makers to hot baby-sitters, James has a way of working himself into the most unsuspecting hearts.

The word on the street is that a second James collection will be coming out in Spring of 2003...keep your eyes peeled for another whopping dose of James goodness!

When I saw this book I took a look and decided to see what it was worth. I really liked.
James is a unique character. A young kid with a huge personality and a great "dark" side that allows him to pursue new disaster with a smile. It really is a young kid discovering the world.
The drawings are clean and minimal great to read and probably look great on the newspaper too.
I look forward to the next book from Mark Tonra and "James", it muat be great!

What makes "Janet and Me" so beautiful is that it combines all of the complex and conflicting elements that are such an important part of being the caregiver to the person who is the love of your life: the tenderness, the fear, the rage, and the anger at a heartless medical system that turns a deaf ear when people are at their most vulnerable. This is, without a doubt, one of THE most touching books about love, loss, caregiving and true friendship that I have ever read. I can't recommend any book more highly! (A shortened version of "Janet and Me" is also contained in the wonderful book on caregiving, "An Uncertain Inheritance," which is also sold on Amazon.com.)

Julia Schopick
www.HonestMedicine.com

This book describes in both narrative form and cartoons the story of Stan Mack's relationship with his long-time partner, Janet, and how he coped with her illness and subsequent death from cancer. Two primary themes emerged, with the first theme focusing on their love and commitment to each other. You finish the book thinking that they were lucky to have had each other in their lives. Stan's tender and total caregiving of Janet during the terminal phase of her illness was particularly impressive. The second theme concerned the reactions of the medical establishment to terminal disease, and the discomfort medical professionals have in confronting the fact that they will not always be able to cure their patients. One of the most heartrending parts of the book is toward the end, when Stan and Janet try repeatedly, in vain, to contact her physician (who had been wonderfully supportive at the beginning of her treatment) to ask whether her chemotherapy should be discontinued and what could be done instead. It was only when Stan started hospice care that Janet started receiving the home help and other sources of support that she needed to improve the quality of her remaining days.

Indeed, one of the features of this book that cancer patients and their families might find most helpful is that Mack provides a more realistic picture of the day-to-day aspects of caring for a terminally ill loved one. You get the sense that he wants to prevent others the trial-and-error efforts he had to go through to figure out what worked best. A related moral is that persistence is needed in dealing with insurance companies and the medical establishment. Lastly, his is a precautionary tale of the legal difficulties facing unmarried partners. Janet's will, naming Stan as executor, was challenged by her relatives, resulting in a legal battle that took over a year to resolve.

This last paragraph probably makes the book sound like it is cut and dried and concerned only with practical and logistical details. That is not at all the case. It is, first and foremost, a story of love and loss, and you will almost certainly be unable to read this book without being moved to tears by the depth of Mack's love and pain. But perhaps the greatest strength of this book is that Mack points out that, in real life, love and loss doesn't proceed like you see on bad made-for-TV specials, or "Love Story," where the heroine drifts off to sleep after a very short and essentially painless illness. In real life, love and loss are embedded in a host of not-so-pleasant details like "what kind of bedpan is best for the advanced cancer patient?" (answer: full-size bedside commode) and "how can I get her to take her pain medicine if she can no longer swallow?" The beauty of this book is that Mack shows so compellingly how love can shine through and conquer all those messy details.

I could barely put it down. It was painful to read, but worth every minute of the pain. Stan Mack is a person anyone would want to have around in a crisis. He is a rock, exhausted but understanding.
I met Janet Bode briefly twice. She approached me because, as she said, "I recognize your hairstyle!" I was bald at the time, having also undergone chemotherapy for breast cancer. We ended up having a long talk, and I was devastated a year and a half later to run into her again, and see that she was bald again. She was beautiful, not just cute.
This is a wonderful book. I am giving a copy to a friend of mine who has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

This book is a unique, honest, and bravely told story of powerful emotions, true love, beautiful friendship, and perseverance. The author conveys the wide-ranging emotions of Janet, himself, and those around him without dodging a single one--no matter how hard-hitting, no matter how far out in left field. It's all here--the sadness of course, but also the anger, the humor, the desperation, the sarcasm. It's incredibly real and raw. The illustrations and "comic" style, rather than creating a lighter feel, enrich the story and make it even more accessbile to the reader. At the end, you feel you really know Stan and Janet and you really like them. It left me with a renewed faith in love, friendship, and the power of real human connections.

a collection of keiths works, from the beginning to the very end. installations, sculptures, as well as his paintings on buildings and objects grace the pages of this large format book. a definite for every fan of this kutztown boy. describes keiths life through letters and stories from friends, photos, and many beautiful full color works by the artist. bright and bold, just like his life.

A VERY COMPREHENSIVE LOOK AT WORKS FROM THE WHOLE OF KEITH HARING'S RELATIVELY SHORT CAREER, YOU GET A DEFINITE FEELING OF HIS WORK CHANGING BEFORE YOUR EYES. THE TEXT, OF WHICH THERE IS AROUND 20 PAGES, MORE THAN ADEQUATELY SUMS UP THE THEMES AND AIMS OF THE ARTIST . THERE IS ALL YOU COULD WANT REALLY:

· ART HISTORICAL CRITICISM( WITH FREQUENT REFERENCE TO THE ONSUING PLATES) · INTERVIEWS WITH KEITH HARING HIMSELF · A FULL LIST OF ALL THE EXHIBITIONS AND STREET ART HE DID · SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY · 182 PLATES

YOU GET A REAL FEEL FOR WHAT THE ARTIST WAS ABOUT, SO WOULD BE AN IDEAL FIRST BOOK ON KEITH HARING, AND A GOOD REFERENCE BOOK FOR THE ART HISTORY STUDENT!

I know a bargain when I see one. Sussman's book juxtaposes Keith's drawings and paintings alongside interviews with Keith's contemporaries (they even bring in Junior Vasquez), without any attempt at being complete. The price is lowered because of a black Sharpie line on the top of the pages. That's it! If you have any interest in Keith Haring or even art in general, this is a great way to look at a great artist.

This is a book I picked up at the Whitney exhibit in 1997 - it's a great variety of all Keith's work. His style has varied over the years and this book does a great job showing his evolution. My favorite part is the fact that many of his pieces from his youngest years are included. It's always interesting to see where your favorite artist started.

I love this edition. It has my two favorite Kim Possible episodes, "Bueno Nacho" and "Tick Tick Tick". This is a picture book, with images from these two TV adventures. The pictures are very clear, art-like drawings. The book pages are made out of thick, durable paper too. In my opinion, this book is worth the price, and would give satisfaction to any Kim fan. It's the perfect book to have, because with it you can see Kim any time you want.

Wow, this is a first! American TV turned into Tokyopop manga! If you think about it, though, there must have been something great that Tokyopop saw in "Kim Possible" that made it worthy of this enjoyable first.

The art in this book is in color, and looks basically like freeze-frames from the TV series. It does lack some of the usual manga items, such as tiny characters on blank pages, and random words, pictures, and notes here and there. But those things are only for smiling at, and don't affect the story much. The fact that the book was in color was very attractive, and already having an insight to the characters from the show was nice. I finally got tired of waiting for future books to come out, but it looks like there is a nice, long line of them now!

I recommend this book to Kim Possible fans, comic book lovers familiar with the show, or people who like comics and would like a taste of KP. It is the first book, too, so you won't be skipping ahead.

this is a relly cool book I LOVE KIM POSSIBLE and this book is a cartoon of bueno nocho and tick-tick-tick (any magor KP fan will know what eps thouses are) but a must buy for any KP fan

Anyone else out there who loves the infectious Disney show Kim Possible would really dig this cool book. It basicly contains two episodes of the show, Bueno Naco and Tick-tick-tick which are two of my personal favourites, Kim fights Shego in the end of each, it's so cool.

Every single page is beautifully rendered in full color and the printing is top notch. I think that the comic book style layout of the the story has a really fun feel about it and overall this book would be a charming addition to any KP fans collection.

Kitty Nirvana: The First Ginger & Shadow Collection is a webcomic anthology following the (only slightly exaggerated) adventures of author's two cats, who were adopted from an animal shelter when they were 6 week old kittens. Ginger is the queen of cool cats, self-assured, manipulative, suave, while Shadow is more nervous, soft-hearted, sentimental, and unusually pacifistic among carnivores. Their adventures with one another and their family are sure to strike a chord among cat lovers of all walks of life. "'I'm really getting fed up with this diet thing.' 'You're just built for comfort, not speed.'" The charming black-and-white art captures the essence of cartoon felinity in this wonderfully entertaining collection. Highly recommended, especially as a giftbook for fellow feline fanciers.

I can so relate to these two felines. My wife and I have two cats, Tigger and Shadow... look so much like these characters as a matter of fact. I love good humor, especially anthropomorphic style cartoons like Opus, Snoopy, Red & Rover. I put Barry Corbett's characters and his ability to make me laugh right up there with the others. Looking forward to book #3.

Cats. We are useful visitors in a world they are quick to make clear to us belongs to them. Putting two of them with opposite personalities (based on his real life pets) in a hapless family, as cartoonist Barry Corbett says, creates strips that practically write themselves. Some of these are funny. Some insightful and a few are a little self-conscious (and if there is one thing cats are not, it is self-conscious). By the way, I once had a cat that when annoyed with me would hit at the computer keyboard. I would see pages and pages of "nnnnnnnnnnnn...."

I liked the series where Ginger is trying to teach the introverted, people pleasing "Shadow" how to be cool. There's also an interesting parallel when Ralph Garrick, the burly man of the house, tries to clue in the male Shadow on male/female differences. I love it that the rather hip mom is off to a Star-Trek convention and the segment on cats learning "the Zen of sleeping" is inspired. There's a lot to like, even parts that fail (a cat with a black patch in search of the great, white woodchuck that cost him his eye) show cleverness. And, anyone who has a cat (I have four) can attest to the authenticity of lines like this: "I could use a catnap. It's been about 23 minutes." The accomplished drawings are full of energy and cat grace. Yet there is something that still needs to evolve here. And it will.

In a single page of prose, titled "Diary of a Comic Strip," the author tells how his cast of characters and his technique have grown over the years. You can see the same thing in early Peanuts collections. It is as if the personality of each character has to come into its own over time. When that happens, there are more than cute observations about cats and human foibles. There is fresh insight into something shared by both the reader and the cartoonist. It's recognition that is both surprising (we thought we were the only ones who felt it) and reassuring (now we know that others feel this way too). Our reaction when that happens: to laugh.

Cats have been perennial fodder for comic strips from "Krazy Kat" to "Cicero's Cat" to "Heathclif" to "Garfield". Unlike Garfield, "Ginger and Shadow" is funny, beautifully drawn and right on the money when it comes to the not so secret lives of cats. Anyone who's ever owned a cat (if anyone can actually own a cat, I think cats would beg to differ on that point) can relate to the feline follies of Ginger, Shadow and a wide variety of other characters including Patch, Pilferin' Pete, Feral Frankie and the human family that puts up with it all. Barry Corbett, known on the web as the creator of "Rafferty" and "Embrace the Pun", has another winner with this strip. If you're saying to yourself, "Sure, but it's no 'Funky Winkerbean' ", you need to take your meds and curl up with a copy of this book to see what a real comic is all about.

No cats were harmed in the writing of this review. For the record, this reviewer has never seen "Cats", but is pretty sure "Kitty Nirvana" is way better and definitely a lot cheaper.

Over the recent years, I have become a fan of "old-time" comic strips, those that were published in the first half of the 1900s. In that era, the newspaper comics were a far different medium than nowadays. While I am sure there are plenty of forgotten, forgettable strips from that era, on the whole, the comics were treated as a respectable part of the newspaper and in an age when cities often had several competing periodicals, a good comic strip could be a major selling point. Nowadays, the comics are almost an afterthought, scrunched up on some back page.

Among the material I have been reading has been Popeye, Flash Gordon, Dick Tracy, Gasoline Alley and Peanuts (this last, admittedly, a product of the 1950s and not the first half of the century). The one that kicked off my renewed interest in these oldie, however, was Krazy Kat. Krazy & Ignatz: Shifting Sands Dusts Its Cheeks in Powdered Beauty is the poetic title for the seventh volume of republished Sunday strips (all in kaptivating kolor!), this one covering 1937-1938.

If you have not read Krazy Kat, this book is as a good a place to start as any, as continuity is no issue. The three principals are the classic dog-cat-mouse triad, but don't expect Tom-and-Jerry-like antics. Ignatz Mouse loves to bean Krazy Kat in the head with a thrown brick. For Krazy, this brick-beaning is actually a sign of affection. Yes, Krazy loves Ignatz (his "l'il anjil"), and Officer Bull Pupp loves Krazy and hates Ignatz. The typical strip has Ignatz beaning Krazy and then getting run off to jail by Pupp.

Is Krazy male or female? Creator George Herriman tends to keep things ambiguous, but I've always viewed Krazy as the former, a feeling that is justified in the February 14, 1937 strip which Officer Pupp clearly refers to Krazy as male.

For those used to today's gag strips with a punch line in the final panel, Krazy Kat is a change-of-pace that may not appeal to everyone. While humorous, this comic strip relies more on the absurd, the surreal and the poetic. Even the constantly changing landscape of the Southwestern county of Coconino is almost as much of a character as Krazy, Ignatz and Pupp are.

If you think that comic strips like Marmaduke, Heathcliff and Family Circus are the pinnacle of the comics medium, then Krazy Kat is probably not going to be your cup of tea. On the other hand, if you look at today's comics page with a certain lamentation of its fading overall quality, you may enjoy Krazy Kat which shows how wonderful the comics could truly be.

This project of gathering, binding and offering the Sunday Krazy Kat comic strips is such a boon. It is a treat to be able to enjoy a strip that was gone before I was born. The art work, the humor, the perspective on life all go together so perfectly in Herriman's work that it would be a great loss to this generation not to have these books available. I look forward to the next volume when it arrives!

Has the Krazy Kat curse finally lifted? More than a few brave companies have tried to reprint entire runs of this highly acclaimed but very underprinted comic only to end up self destructing. Way back in the hoary old days of the 1990s a company called Eclipse printed all of the Sunday pages from 1916 to 1924. Then something happened. No 1925 volume ever appeared. The curse begins. Not long after, another company, Stinging Monkey, printed volume one of "the complete Krazy Kat Dailies". That bold venture only lasted one mere volume. The curse returns. The small Pacific Comics Company has actually released three entire volumes of Krazy Kat dailies with no sign of stopping, but their market reach remains quite diminutive. Enter Fantagraphics, a company that may finally lift this ignoble curse from one of the best comics ever produced. They exhumed the smoldering Eclipse series and began anew with the year 1925. So far seven volumes have appeared covering the years 1925 - 1938. The last two issues appearing in full color (just as the strip did in 1935). Only three potential volumes remain for the years 1939 - 1944. Fantagraphics now stands well poised to obliterate this vile printing curse forever.

This volume, like its predecessor, displays the Sunday pages in full color throughout. During these two years the strip began to take on an even more surrealistic and esoteric edge. The addition of color heightened the abstraction of Herriman's brilliant backgrounds. Folded moons, impossibly high cacti, and chunky mountains fill in nearly every gap (see the particularly stunning strip from September 12th, 1937). The adobe colored jail becomes a permanent home for Ignatz as it now appears on almost every page. And the incessant love triangle between a Kop, a Kat, and a Mouse kontinues unabated. Signs of the strip's maturity peek out from behind every frame. The humor becomes more subtle, relying less on wordplay and slapstick than earlier strips. The jokes don't reach out and grab like a cattle prod (unlike many of today's strips that thoroughly rub the joke in your face); some require re-reading or reflection. Or a large vocabulary. Regardless, many remain laugh out loud funny despite their age. The March 27, 1938 strip depicts Offica Pupp trying to arrest Ignatz because he misunderstood his verbal fulmination "DUCK!" Pupp examines a book entitled "Law" while murmuring "Maybe - MA-A-AYBE I can arrest him fot it - Let's-s-s-see." Also, Herriman's little cartoon asides begin to appear at the very end of this volume (starting with December 11th, 1938). These small frames appear incongruous but they actually complement the strip as a whole and alter the mood. They harken back to his early "Family Upstairs" strips. Unfortunatley, the strip paid dearly for its waxing maturity and subtlety with plummetting popularity. The 1930s and 1940s saw the inexorable commercial decline of Krazy Kat. It appeared in increasingly fewer papers as irritated editors tried to slash "old man Hearst's" favorite strip. This volume helps preserve Herriman's legacy to the comic form, and it proves once again that commerciality does not always equate with high quality.

Unlike all other Fantagraphics volumes so far, this one does not contain an introductory essay. Nonetheless, some amazing watercolors and photos bookend the strips, including a rare one of Herriman without a hat. And the tradition of the "Ignatz Mouse Debaffler Page" gets upheld.

With each successive volume it appears that Fantagraphics may be well on its way to completing this series. The quality has not waned an iota from the first issue. Impressive. Carry on, please.

We are now, depending on method, between 1/3 & 1/2 way through the republication of Herriman's full-page comic spreads. There is plenty of good discussion of the artistic & literary value of this eccentric comic elsewhere, though perhaps not enough on the underlying philosophical issues it seems to raise, both in the push-&-pull of Kokonino Kounty's animal society, & in the recurrent surreal transformation of landscapes, an endless perceptual pun. But there is also immense & gentle, grace-filled hilarity of a sort we need no less now, than when Herriman was alive. Blessings on Fantagraphics for committing itself to this republication. Advice? Read it. Read them all - good food for the mind & the funnybone, not too common a combination...

This book is filled with some of the greatest portrait art I have ever seen! Kruger uses a wide variety of styles. Some images seem to be caricature in nature, while others are more realistic, and still others are totally unique in style and hard to catagorize. The common thread of all the images in this book is that they portray the character of the subject with unmatched accuracy and ability. The images in this book can best be described by one word, 'WOW'! The high quality of this book's printing also does great justice to these astounding images. All in all I give this book 'two thumbs up' 'way up'! Highly recommended for those interested in art that is innovative and masterful.

No need to say that it is again the collection of Mr Kruger's brilliant caricutures of stars from which you can find out those great brush strokes stand out.

Outstanding illustrations of celebrities in verious fields, such as movie stars, singers... Great reference and resource for character design.

sebastian kruger is the best caricaturist of his generation. i would put him up there with levine and hirshfeld. but unlike those two kruger doesn't have a style. his consistency lies in his constant exploration of other styles. He approaches each celebrity with a fresh eye. No two pictures in this book look the same, but all are done with impeccable skill. This book is wonderful at showing some of his more popular subjects. The reproductions are great except for two blurry images. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in celebrities, caricatures, acrylics, airbrushes, and people with big noses.

How did Mr. Cochran know my lab? This book is PERFECT for any dog lover, but especially lab lovers. I highly recommend it as a gift to someone or for yourself. I'll treasure my copy forever, just as I do my labs!

Do you own a Lab, or know someone that does? If so than you have to read this little book! The little cartoons Bruce Cockran comes up with for lab behavior are so typical that it it is just plain funny. From shedding to stealing your spot on the couch, there is a cartoon for every Labrador trait!

This book is the perfect gift for a Lab owner, it will bring a laugh to anyone who has one of these funny dogs!

Mr. Cochran has another hit to his credit. I'm definately going to get ALL of his books. He really gets into the mind of labs and their owners with this one. I'm on labs #13 and #14 now, and they're as memorable as my first. I've bought several of these for friends, and they've loved them too. Bravo Cochran!

If you have a lab, you will love this little book. It made me laugh, totally the typical traits of lovable, wonderful labs.