Cartoons Books

Thi book, is really good for all,
with simple exercises it teach about a character, from modeling to animation.

This is a very good book! I really like it. I am still reading and find it very helpful.

Both beginners and intermediate designers and 3D artists who want to learn the basics of character modeling and animation with Maya will relish the blend of step-by-step instruction, an accompanying cd-rom filled with chapter-oriented details and backup movies and presentations, and an attention to clear explanations of the animation process from start to finish. Screen shots and step-by-step examples on building a character model make MAYA CHARACTER MODELING & ANIMATION a top pick, especially for college-level art and computer libraries strong in Maya references.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Designed for the beginning to intermediate user, this book is aimed at the artist who want to learn 3D character modeling and animation using Maya. It is suitable for either classroom or individual use.

This book has an interesting combination between a theoretical/reference book and a tutorial book. Each chapter starts with a theory or reference section that gives the basic concepts for that chapter. This is followed by a detailed tutorial or two. For instance Chapter 2 is entitled 'Fundamentals of Computer Animation.' The theory section goes into the physics of how things move. This is important because people have an instinctive understanding of movement. The first tutorial then is on making a light and then a heavy ball bounce on the screen. Then the second tutorial makes the ball squash as it hits and then stretch as it bounces back into shape.

At the end of the book you won't be quite up to Pixar standards, but you'll be well on your way.

The CD-ROM supplied with the book contain project files including all of the figures from the book, organized into folders by chapter, all of the movies, organized by chapter and contained in folders called movies, and all of the Maya working files.

The pictures in this book were phenomenal. Nathan Tremlin is a very talented artist. The use of bright vivd colors and distorted imagery really keeps the adult reader and child captivated. It will be very interesting to watch his career unfold. Mookie is a definite must have.

when you dive into this book, your heart will be filled with excitement. It's something the whole family can enjoy.

This book expands into the minds of your children, and even your self. It was brilliantly painted to appeal to any audience. A Friend writes "Joe and Nate are Amazing. Accomplishing so much at such a young age". All in All this book is a book of love for children. It is something that you will want to keep and pass on for generations to come..

wonderful! great for the imagination. The pictures are fantastic! our whole family loves it. Can't wait for the next one.

This is a great look at the life and loves of the lesbian community. I truly enjoyed it!

I stumbled across this series and have been delighted ever since. Lots of PC discussion, argument, worry and neuroses. Just plain fun and an interesting look at a different perspective. Well drawn and at times just plain funny.

The Mo tale, episodes 1-23, rounds out this book, which is a transition between the disconnected, but funny, strips of the original "Dykes to Watch Out For", and the saga of Mo. The book contains both, as well as Mo and Harriet's first night together

This was the second Bechdel book I purchased and it hooked me for life. Her earlier works were bits and commentaries on life, but this one takes a group of characters and builds a web of stories and community. Each character is unique and interesting as a character, something you just don't often see in comics.

For example, although Watterson's "Calvin and Hobbes" series has some wonderful characters in it, they never change. He took a moment in a child's life, froze it, and riffed on that. Bechdel starts at a time in her characters' lifes, shows a lot of personality within one or two panels, and moves them forward through time. Their characters have an arc and they do change.

These strips are all from a series published as she went along. So, it's all rather Dickensian, isn't it? I wonder sometimes how she decides how things will go. Given that they are published in real time, she has an opportinity to map the character's lives to those of her community and to current events.

I view this as the only "soap opera" worth following.

For those unfamiliar with her work, be advised that the subject matter (certainly in the supplemental bit added to the end of the book) is on the mature side.

Lynda Barry comics are the best. That's it. This whole book (and also Come Over, Come Over) blew my mind when I read them and made me really happy that someone could make the horible crap I was feeling seem actually funny, sometimes in a kind of sick way, but I read the books over and over and they never failed to please

Much like the content of her "ernie pook's comeek", Lynda Barry's "My Perfect Life" is more than just a cartoon, it is literature. The book sucks you into the lives of its complex and appealing characters until you are experiencing and caring about what happens to them. Sometimes hilarious and sometimes sad, this is a wonderful book.

Thank you, Lynda, for sharing your talent and emotion with us. This book let me know I was not insane when I felt like crap and let me (no MADE me) cry about it. I also shared Maybonne's recovery and continued confusion and frustration with the jerks of the world. Read this book and everything else Lynda Barry does!

You will think that Lynda has been reading your diary, when you were sure you had the key in your locket. You will see that she understands your every whim because she has been through childhood as her reincarnated self so many times that she can see the inside of your skin and learned how to draw all the veins, the fascinating glorious horror of them, of popping pimples and peeling glue from your palms, falling in like and off your bike, she will make you shudder as earwax, scabs, and floating fish, with the same feeling as the urge you get to colour everything around you in, even in your office pants. In this way reading her work is like being becoming absorbed in a page of someone's first scribbles. You will know that Lynda has been reading your diary, and then you might actually smile, at how she deserves access to it becuase you just have to admit that she can make more out of it than you can

As expected, Volume 2 of Monster continuues the story from Volume 1. Excellent art and story. Definately a must-buy

Sorry I'm exploitive and I wanted you to read my review from the title. That said, Monster Vol.2 is a slow burn. Unlike #1 where it exploded at the very end of that volume with horror, tension and true suspense--Vol. 2 is the continuation of an 18-volume (in Japan work) and it shows. This volume leaves the horror from 1 and focuses more on more tension and more suspense as it tightens the noose grip on Dr. Tenma's life and we begin to realize that this book is moving more from murder mystery to conspiracy and 'fugitive' style storytelling mechanics. I'm pretty awed by the craftmanship of this book as under lesser hands it would quickly fall apart into disbelief and silliness of characterization but all the while we continue to learn more about the character (in this volume) of Tenma, the sister and even Tenma's ex (which is a surprising turn for her character although the ending in this volume may not seem it). This is a grand series--highly recommended to fans of true mystery books, adult fiction or true lovers of manga (if you can read a manga on cooking just as well as Naruto then this is for you). Finally, One Piece and Monster both have a very cartoony style. It's hard to see if you're not reading many different types of manga (or I could just be crazy) but I've come to have an appreciation of both styles which have more of a true cartoony storytelling in the effectiveness of its' draftmanship, panel design and overall approach to characters...while One Piece is very cartoony..the similarities I find refreshing as this is not anime style just to fit the oppotunities for easy transition into animation like many manga has become nowadays. Great book...pick up both volumes.

Dr. Tenma, a neurosurgeon who finds himself caught in a moral quagmire, chose to execute what he believed was right when he ignored the hospital's orders and instead operated on a boy who had been shot through the head.

The series then brings us down a horrifying trail of serial murders as Dr Tenma goes down his path in search of the serial murder - the boy whom he resurrected. He accumulates clues and evidences, which ultimately point towards a greater, more horrifying social experiment.

While the series may be slow in pace, its intensive execution of emotions is well-played: there is enough time for transition between multitudes of emotions. This is important and lends the story depth, for as the story progresses, characters are fleshed out, like multi-faceted gems. Therefore, though it may be slow, it is certainly not boring; the psychological aspects of small characters bring to life the conspiracy and makes it a very real experience for the reader.

Urasawa's art is also competantly executed and highly dynamic in its own right.

The storyline itself brings us face-to-face with death and the darkest aspects of human nature. It goes beyond its genre and dishes out very poignant, but illuminating questions about human nature and what it means to be human.

If you are looking for easy entertainment, don't bother reading this series. On the other hand, if you want to learn more about life, finish this series. It is a ride through the kindest and the cruellest aspects of human nature, a ride which began and culminated with this fundamental question: The value of life.

(This review was written solely for vol. 2 of Monster, not vol. 3, where this review is also posted. I had no control over this; it was mistakinly posted as a review for vol. 3 by Amazon.com.)

Once I finished this second volume of Monster, I was amazed at how such a simple manga could achieve what this one did. The multi-tiered plot continues to get thicker, and the tension builds as the characters interact. Plus, the simple art style seems to add rather than take away, and in many ways legitimizes this story by taking away some of the exaggerated models found in most manga. And, as if I didn't have enough to make this good, the dialogue is top-notch and believable, which is key to me when reading manga as matching the words to the art is often mishandled, especially in translated manga.

The story, continuing from volume one, follows Tenma as he searches for the twin of the boy Tenma saved. But he's having a difficult time digging up information, and finding people to take him seriously. That's mostly because the twin does not have her memories from that time, and even goes by a different name... Later on, we also get to see how desperate Tenma becomes during his search for the killer of the families. He changes drastically, almost to the point of inhumanity, all in the efforts to stop a plague he believes he released on Germany.

To be honest, the continuing story in this volume slows a bit from the previous volume, which was slow itself. Though the first few chapters where Tenma searches for the twin is dramatic and in direct correlation with the last volume, it gets away from that when old characters are reintroduced and new ones are brought in. It doesn't make it bad in any way, but it seems to lengthen an already massive story, and it leaves me hungering for the third volume in this series so that things can get back to normal.

I can still recommend this manga above any other right now, though, as the story is as intelligent as I've ever found in manga. The technical details and nonchalant style of art doesn't weigh the plot down in any way, and the constantly building suspense makes you wish that they released graphic novels in larger formats (say four-hundred page hardbacks). To compare, Monster goes well alongside Death Note in terms of suspense, but because it has no fantasy elements, there is something about the horror in Monster that puts it above Death Note.

Every bit as sick and twistedas you could hope for. Your friends will think less of you for owning it.

This is really a 4-1/2 star review. I'm okay with grossness, perversity, foul language and such when it's this funny. But I'm very put off by ... the bad spelling! Doesn't anybody edit these things?

By the way, this might not be the best choice of reading matter for the exercycle at the gym. Especially if there are people sitting on exercycles to either side. As I learned this morning.

The chronicles of Neil & Mr. Wiggles is pure genius. I was first introduced to Mr. Wiggles from Real Detroit Weekly, and it's a shame this comic doesn't get more coverage and publicity. This is by far the only reason I open up the paper in the first place. I pass this comic onto anyone I can, and everyone gives the same responce...they laugh. The definate trademark art style and cut-throat akward pause humor is dead on.

Mr. Wiggles is the perfect character. Since he is a teddy bear, you can't help but find him very loveable despite the sickest acts and statements that come from his stuffed body.

Get volume 1 as well. It's interesting to see Neil's comic to continuously evolve. Besides, you need the whole collection right? Support good humor when you see it. Something like this is rare cause I haven't read a Mr. Wiggles comic I didn't love.

and no...Neil has not paid me off to say this...I have never even met him.

If you haven't gotten into Mr. Wiggles yet, you NEED to. He is the sickest, most demented little bear and he will be your new hero. He is the shizznit!! Pure comic genius! No comic has EVER mad me laugh out loud as much as this! Not for the easily offended (a.k.a. people with no sense of humor) Get this if you want to laugh your arse off!

Sadamoto let's us peek a bit more into each character's mindset, and the addition of scenes that weren't in the anime version give fans (especially Rei and Asuka ones) a bit more to smile about. All in all, a good read and an exciting addition to the evangelion storyline.

The evangelion manga series just gets better and better! This is my favorite volume! The art is awesome! The story is good! Its all great! I recommend this book/series out of any Manga Series out there! Best manga ever! Buy it and you will like it!

I picked up the anime 3 years ago, I have and will not let go.
If you have any intrest in anime you should at lest read the first valume.
Sinji is starting cope with his life, he tries to conect with his father but (I think you know what will happen). Shinji incuers Rei on how to talk with his father but she seems not to help. Faceing abandement Sinji(Asuka,and Rei) have to face the seventh angel!

I had long been a fan of the Neon Genesis Evangelion Anime, but the manga is not a simple retelling of your favorite episodes. Events have been reordered, and entirely new threads and stories are coming to pass in the manga version of the fan favorite series.
More cannot be said without spoiling the surprises that wait inside the book. The art is superb, coming from the artist who designed the look of the series itself. I can't wait to see how it will all end.

The short and simple review. If youve read the other volumes this will not disapoint. Continues the manga story and introduces some new insights into the story you dont get from the anime along with some new scenes and information to shed light on ALOT of unanswered questions from the anime. Overall I wish they would fit more on one volume but they all are pretty much standard so cant complain too much. Also a good section on the sound effects and a great article on the New EVA movies coming out from Gainax with alot of information.

This Manga was great. As it nears the ending of the series it just gets better and better. For those of you who have seen the anime it is very nice to be able to read/see the difference between the manga and the anime. I liked the manga a lot better. It keeps your attention and in the end leaves you wanting more. It was a very enjoyable book!

I'd been waiting forever for this latest volume to come out, and it did not disappoint! Shinji experiences more creepy, (to him, at least) yaoi-ish encounters with the mysterious boy, Kaworu, Ryoko remembers her dark past and decides to go against Gendo's will, and Misato and Shinji learn the terrible and horrifying secret behind the first child's identity. Will Shinji ever be able to think of Rei the same way again...?

We who have followed this series have waited a long time for this installment of the manga version of the Evangelion saga. Similarities to the anime are still there, but differences make themselves felt. In some ways, we get a greater view into the psyches of the characters -- what they are thinking and feeling at points in the story. The focus on the relationships between Shinji, Rei, Asuka, and even Kaworu, even as they battle the latest Angel, underplays the action. Oh, yes, and deep secrets of Nerv and the Evangelions are revealed.

The artwork continues to be outstanding, and my anticipation for the next volume grows. To fans of the anime and manga, I hardly need recommend it - to the curious, please give it a reading... but start at the beginning to enjoy it all. Having torn through this volume to see what happened, I will probably reread from the start to enjoy it all again.

Almost anyone familiar with publishing will enjoy this book. It may be a little too painful if you are still a midlist author.

This group of 104 cartoons features works by Charles Barsotti, Roz Chast, J.B. Handelsman, Ed Koren, Victoria Roberts, and Jack Ziegler. The cartoons capture the wittiest New Yorker views, and leave you with a wry taste in your mouth. Selected by Bob Mankoff (cartoon editor of The New Yorker since 1997), this collection is one of the best that has been produced recently from the past offerings of that venerable publication. If you like authors, books, and reading, you'll love this book!

I graded down the book because of the inexplicable lack of an introduction. What better subject for one than literary cartoons? The books in the series which featured such introductions are clearly more interesting than the ones that don't.

It was hard for me to pick a few cartoons to feature for you. I was tempted to include all but a few.

Author humor

(1) Man leaving home wearing suit and carrying a brief case: 'Wait a minute. Where am I going? I'm a writer.'

(2) James Joyce's refrigerator to-do list: 'Forge in the smithy of my soul the uncreated conscience of my race.'

(3) Raven says to Poe: 'Nevermore. And you can quote me.'

Publisher humor

(1) Editor to Dickens: 'I wish you would make up your mind, Mr. Dickens. Was it the best of times or the worst of times? It could scarecely have been both.'

(2) 'It doesn't work as a novel. But we're willing to publish it as a desk calendar.'

(3) 'Chicken Vindaloo for the Hindu Soul is but the tip of the iceberg in our initial strategy of global expansion.'

Book Seller Humor

(1) 'Let me get you another copy. Someone left a slice of salami in this one.'

(2) Book shelves organized by length of attention span.

(3) Book shelves organized by size of author advance.

Reader humor

(1) 'I do want to solve all my problems, but I'll wait till it comes out in soft cover.'

(2) 'Lately, I've been reading Jane Austen -- just to clear my palate.'

(3) Fan to author: 'I really enjoyed your hype.'

Media humor

(1) Talk show host holding enormous tome, addressing author: 'If you were to boil your book down to a few words, what would be its message?'

(2) 'Oprah is definite, Barnes and Noble is giving you front windows and Norman Mailer has agreed to a feud.'

The others are just as good or better. These are just samples to whet your appetite.

After you have read, chuckled, and enjoyed these wonderful cartoons, consider why we find these cartoons to be funny. Is it because books have become a commodity, rather than works of important ideas and art? Is that really so funny? What should we do about that? If you find these questions provocative, read The Business of Books.

I purchased this book for my favorite english professor in college and took a glance in it myself and fell in love with it! You do not have to be a professor to get this--the humor is for all!

No matter how jaded, how cynical, how hard-boiled you may think yourself to be, at least one of these cartoons from the archives of The New Yorker will make you smile! Mr. Bob Mankoff, cartoon editor of The New Yorker since 1997, has put together a classic assortment of 104 drawings from the archives. "The New Yorker Book of Literary Cartoons" captures the cachet of the City, while poking fun at writers, editors, publishers, booksellers, and, most of all, at books, and those who read them. From the bookstore browsing Bibliophile Bikers Club to Mme Sartre's empty mailbox ("Sacré bleu! Again with the nothingness, and on my birthday yet!") to the hilarious note magnetized on "James Joyce's Refrigerator," one will find sterling examples of the wonderful satirical wit which has graced the pages of this magazine for 75 years. Buy this book for yourself! (Highly recommended for writer's block.) Better yet, buy this book for your editor or for your bookworm friends!

"The New Yorker Book of Political Cartoons," edited by Robert Mankoff, brings together an excellent collection of cartoons on the title subject. The work of more than 40 cartoonists, from Ed Arno to Jack Ziegler, is represented; each contributor has from one to seven pieces in the book.

The book starts out with an interesting introduction by William Buckley. Yes, Buckley's opening line is a bit pretentious; he declares, "Most people have an absolute all time favorite 'New Yorker' cartoon that they came across at some crucial moment in their lives [. . .]." Actually, I think that "most people" don't even read "New Yorker". Still, Buckley's contribution overall is witty and humorous.

The cartoons themselves are rich in ironic humor; they are often quite incisive, and occasionally contain touches of the grotesque, absurd, or macabre. Typical subject matter includes political doublespeak and spinmeistership; relationships between politicians and their constituents, their staff, and/or the media; the campaign trail; and more.

This book is full of memorable cartoons. Some of my favorites: an aide, helping a queasy campaigning politician, says to another individual, "It was either the knish at Coney Island, the cannoli in Little Italy, or that divinity fudge in Westchester" (p. 4); one campaign official says to another, "On the other hand, if we backpedal too much, we'll lose the hate vote" (p. 36); one cow, discussing a political race with another, complains of the candidates, "They're both carnivores" (p. 97).

Curiously, very few of these cartoons deal with real, specific political figures; often, they mock invented archetypal characters. I found the flavor of the book overall to be rather safe and middle-of-the road; I don't think there's much "meat" in here for political radicals of either a left or right orientation. Still, this is an entertaining, and often thought-provoking, look at an American institution.

Hello Bob, Political cartoons are the best way. If we can laugh, then we can work it out rationally. Perhaps, in this election period, the mag might consider doing a long-form piece on some of the greatest polical cartoonists in (these parlous) recent times. Ogden Nash (and in his spare time he invented Santa Claus), Daumier, and Picasso. There is a lot more to it than just poking fun at the accent. Let's get a grip. Jeanne

The wit and wisdom of Christopher Buckley get this wonderful collection off to a good start. He recounts his experiences of writing political speeches, and ties that to his favorite New Yorker cartoon about politics. Unfortunately, the cartoon did not make this collection, but at least you'll have Buckley's perspective on it. He also shares with you his favorite cartoons in the collection.

There are 110 cartoons in the collection. None of them directly point at a specific politician (but a few come close, such as the one of a man knocking on a door with the presidential seal on it and asking "Are you decent?"). Many of the cartoons are about spin or campaigning. Republicans take more than their share of lumps. Buckley (who is a Republican) says that this is because Republicans are funnier than Democrats. Who knows?

Here are a few of my favorites (page number in parentheses):

(2) Man on telephone: "I'm undecided, but that doesn't mean I'm apathetic or uninformed."

(7) 2 men at rostra, while one answers a questioner in the audience: "That's an excellent prescreened question, but before I give you my stock answer I'd like to try to disarm everyone with a carefully rehearsed joke."

(8) Man in phone booth to people in line outside of it: "I may be awhile. I'm soliciting funds for my reelection campaign."

(13) 2 men looking at bird feeder that has a sign saying "squirrels welcome": "Liberals!"

(21) Man to pollster at door: "I like Ike, period."

(47) "Good God! He's giving the white collar voters' speech to the blue collars."

(67) "Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman from Small Firearms yield the floor to the gentleman from Big Tobacco."

(100) "I'll go out on a limb and say time will tell."

(110) "I want everyone to shake hands with some of the cleanest money in the whole campaign."

The quality of the cartoons and the humor level are unsually high. You'll probably like this book better than almost any other of the New Yorker's books of cartoons.

During the remainder of the political campaign for the presidency, you can keep yourself amused with these cartoons.

The only criticism I have of the collection was that the reproduction of the cartoons was not always clear.

Enjoy a good laugh, and start thinking of ways to overcome the bureaucracy stall!

Donald Mitchell

In his Introduction to this volume, Christopher Buckley quotes the Chicago Tribune's Jeff MacNelly's comment that many cartoonists "would be hired assassins if they couldn't draw." Pat Oliphant explains his objective as "stirring up the animals." Obviously, style and perspective vary significantly among the best of the political cartoonists. The same is true of the publications which feature their work. Back to Buckley: "The New Yorker cartoonists may too, deep down, be spitting mad, but they do a good job of transforming that specific anger and disappointment into exquisite generic commentary on the old human condition....If a newspaper editorial cartoon shouts its opinion at you over the scrambled eggs, The New Yorker cartoon hands you a Scotch and nudges you toward whatever truth it has in its sights."

Credit Robert Mankoff with selecting and editing the 110 presented in this volume. Unlike Thomas Nast's cartoons which attack William Marcy ("Boss") Tweed and his corrupt Tammany Hall organization, few of the 110 require an historical context to have meaning, much less impact. That is what Buckley has in mind when using the word "generic." I can think of only one or two which may eventually become "dated." Hence the relevance of Buckley's reference to "the old human condition."

The captions of the cartoons are so clever that it is easy (perhaps too easy) to underestimate the quality of their creators' draftsmanship. (In contrast, few of Oliphant's cartoons even have a caption.) Without being able to see many of the drawings, you already get the point. For example:

"In the midst of chaos, Larry is the clear voice of reason. Get him the hell out of here." (James Stevenson, page 1)

"People of North Dakota! Or possibly South Dakota!" (J.B. Handelsman, page 23)

"On the other hand, if we backpedal too much, we'll lose the hate vote." (Frank Modell, Page 36)

"Grayson is a liberal in social matters, a conservative in economic matters, and a homicidal psychopath in political matters." (James Stevenson, page 91)

"Great. You touched all the bases without getting bogged down in constitutionality." (Bernard Schoenbaum, page 96)

Perhaps only cartoons featured in The New Yorker could be praised by Buckley for "distilling" fury "into a tone of gentle wit and piquancy." Here are 110 of the best. By all means enjoy this book but take good care of it for those in future generations who also appreciate "exquisite generic commentary on the old human condition."

Those who share my high regard for this volume are urged to check out Roger A. Fischer's Them Damned Pictures: Explorations in American Political Cartoon Art as well as Attack of the Political Cartoonists edited by J.P. Trostle, various collections of Pat Oliphant's work (e.g. Oliphant's Anthem and Oliphant's Presidents), and The Best Political Cartoons of the Year (2005 Edition) co-edited by Daryl Cagle and Brian Fairrington.