FASTER THAN A SPEEDING BULLET:
THE RISE OF THE GRAPHIC NOVEL, 2nd Edition
Stephen Weiner
Introduction by Will Eisner, cover by Jeff Smith
Graphic novels have exploded off bookstore shelves and into movies, college courses and the New York Times Book Review, and onto the coffee tables of the cognoscenti. What’s fueling this explosion? Where did all the excitement come from? Stephen Weiner, a comics historian and children’s literature specialist, provides the answers in this groundbreaking book—the first history of graphic novels.
From the agonizing Holocaust vision of Art Spiegelman’s Maus to the teenage angst of Dan Clowes’s Ghost World, this book takes you into the heart of the graphic novel revolution. The author of 101 Best Graphic Novels now tells the whole history of this new medium—from the first modern urban autobiographical graphic novel, Will Eisner’s A Contract with God, to the hip indy comics of the Hernandez Bros.’ Love and Rockets, the dark mysteries of Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, and the postmodern superheroics of Frank Miller’s Batman: The Dark Knight.
It’s all here, in this newly updated edition—the must-reads, the milestones, and what to look for in the future of this exciting new medium..
Read interview of Weiner on Graphic Novel Reporter where he discusses latest trends.
"Does capture the recognized landmarks of the modern graphic novel. Weiner provides a broader view of comics' maturation as a storytelling form." -Seattle Post Intelligencer
"This is a perfect book for anyone trying to wrap her or his head around the field of comics, a quick and smart overview of the field that spans both decades and genres. Whether you're developing a syllabus, improving your library's collection, or just trying to get a better sense of the field and the good stuff you might have missed, Rise is well worth a read, and worth keeping around afterwards for reference."
-Cory Doctorow, BoingBoing
" Mr. Weiner connects all the dots in this amazing evolution of a true art form—an evolution driven as much by artists and writers as by their readers." -New York Journal of Books
6x9, 80pp., B&W hardcover, $14.99, ISBN 9781561637027

TAXES, THE TEA PARTY,
AND THOSE REVOLTING REBELS
A Comics History of the American Revolution
Stan Mack
Here’s the fun way to learn all about the Birth of the United States: in comics! "A cartoonist de-mythologizes the Founding Fathers and makes them more 'like us'"says the New York Times. Uncannily relevant to today'’s world. Learn about the original revolt against taxes: the Boston Tea Party, and the original Occupy movement: the Rebels in revolt against the status quo. A whimsical and informative pictorial history featuring a chubby, insecure King George III, rebellious and misunderstood colonists, loudmouthed and insensitive aristocrats, and more. Updated from the original "Stan Mack’s Real Life American Revolution" published by Avon books in 1994 .
Imprint has a great interview of Mack on this book.
"Mack’s history of the American Revolution strikes just the right balance. It’s packed with names, dates, places, and ideas, but they only come up when they’re needed, as though Mack is giving an enthusiastic, on-the-fly lecture rather than laying out information to be memorized." -Teacher Librarian
"This humanized account of the dawn of the American project is a beautiful piece of work, and a strong tonic against the whitewash of history. There's bravery in this history, and sacrifice, and cunning and resolve. But with the founders' failings and flaws on display, we can see that America's problems have been there since the start."
-Cory Doctorow, BOING BOING
"Endearingly irreverent and well-researched. While excellent for classroom-centered tweens and teens, these revolting rebels should star in all adult collections, too, in displays, and as readers’ advisory fodder." -Library Journal starred review
"Mack's loose cartoony art captures its loudly contentious cast without either mythologizing or condescending to them. Recommended reading for those of us who only hazily remember our public school history classes." -Seattle Post Intelligencer
"A terrific, well-researched look at the events that formed this country. Highly recommended." -Comics Waiting Room
"4 out of 5 stars! This is an effective and quick survey of the American Revolution. Mack tells his story crisply, with just the right touch of irreverence, to be able to strike a chord with kids who have short attention spans -- or with adults like me who want to brush up on our memories of Jefferson, Hamilton and Washington."
Jason Sacks, Comics Bulletin
"Cartoonist and social chronicler Mack's thoroughly researched history of the American Revolution offers a spectacular, unvarnished account that runs counter to the mythology-as-history often taught in American schools."
-Publishers Weekly
"Contains the sort of energy and detail that [other non-fiction comics] lack" -Chris Mautner, Robot 6, Comic Book Resources
"I would grab it!" -Brigid Alverson, Robot 6, Comic Book Resources
"Mack has done his homework, so this is not a retread of the standard story; he brings a new perspective and a lot of hey-I-didn’t-know-that facts to the history we all thought we knew." – School Library Journal
6x9, 176pp., B&W hardcover, $16.99, ISBN 9781561636976

See her latest!

PHILOSOPHY
A DISCOVERY IN COMICS
Margreet de Heer
A fun introduction in comics to deep thinking and the history of Philosophy!
What is Thinking? And how does our thinking set us apart from other animals?
Now that we’re thinking, what is Reality? Is there an objective reality or are there numerous subjective realities? And do we move in it with a free will or is everything predestined?
Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Erasmus, Descartes, Spinoza, Nietzsche: just a few philosophers who have pondered these questions.
Comic artist Margreet de Heer and her husband Yiri travel through the history of Western Philosophy and draw a colorful picture of all these questions.
"This shrewd, engaging graphic primer is very ingratiating."
-Booklist
"The characters and arguments of philosophy come brilliantly to life through a series of quirky, memorable conversations."
-Teacher Librarian
"Avoiding a systematic, scholarly overview, de Heer makes philosophical questions lively, quirky, and enduring through her informal approach and lighthearted color drawings. Her appealing introduction will engage those curious about this "philosophy stuff," teens and up." -Library Journal
"Fun, exuberant exploration…" -Broken Frontier
"... encapsulates the major ideas of Western thought into a simple and honest narrative." -NY Journal of Books
"Any philosophy book that includes both sex and shit has to be a bit different from most books about this subject… Delivers a surprisingly fun and really intriguing look."
-Comics Bulletin
"This is an accessible and fun primer on a topic that too often is considered to be musty and shrouded in academic argot."
-School Library Journal
"De Heer knows her stuff and possesses a charming style."
-Publishers Weekly
"Writer/artist Margreet de Heer takes one of the world’s most ponderous and tedious subjects and breathes real life into it. Pumps energy and intrigue into the topic. Definitely a keeper."
-Comics Waiting Room
A BEA 2012 HOT GRAPHIC NOVEL- Honorable Mention
See more at the author’s site.
8x8, 120pp., full color hardcover, $16.99, ISBN 9781561636983

THE BRISTOL BOARD JUNGLE
Mark Kneece & Bob Pendarvis
A full college class on creating comics... in a graphic novel! Learn the secrets of the trade but also... the secrets of the students who make quite a cast of characters. Can the professors keep up? Hey, life is art! By two professors of the Savannah College of Art & Design with a class of their best seniors.
"Jungle incorporates quite a bit of solid information on comics creation in the telling of its story." -Tony Isabella, Comics Buyers Guide
"Grade: A. The book takes readers through the beginnings of a semester right up to the fledgling artists' first opportunity at landing work. Along the way, it throws in a few how-tos that are of special interest to both would-be comics creators and casual readers." -Comics Buyers Guide
"Belongs in a similar category as Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. A lighthearted complement." - School Library Journal
6x9, 144pp., B&W trade pb., $11.95, ISBN 1-56163-379-8

For a background article and interviews of the authors go to Comicbookbin.com

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