I had hoped to review everything that I read this year and with all the graphic novels and comic strip books I have read recently (went on a library binge for a few weeks), plus books I read awhile back and hadn’t reviewed, I decided that the only way I could catch up was to do a baker’s dozen, plus one, of mini-reviews.

Thankfully my graphic novel reading ties in with Dewey’s Graphic Novel Challenge. If you are looking for something to read, hopefully you’ll find some inspiration here.

1. 2 Sisters ~Matt Kindt

–2004
–336 pages, Top Shelf Productions
— 3.75/5 stars

“There’s enough swashbuckling, pen guns, cyanide teeth, buried treasure and nail-biting suspense to grip the interest of all readers.” — Wizard Magazine

I became a fan of the art and storytelling abilities of Matt Kindt when I read his Harvey-award-winning graphic novel, Super Spy. Super Spy is a complex interweaving of the threads of the lives of various spies during WWII. 2 Sisters is a companion volume of sorts…

2 Sisters tells a concurrent tale of a WWII female spy and a female pirate from a former century. The story is told with very few words which allows Kindt to display his mastery of the sequential art form in telling a story. I love Matt Kindt’s art style and the effect achieved by his slight use of color. At times the story can be a bit confusing but overall it is another powerful entry in Matt Kindt’s WWII spy world. I strongly recommend reading Super Spy first…and it is a must read in my opinion.
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2. The Adventuress ~Audrey Niffenegger

–2006
–144 pages, Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
–3.75/5 stars

I am not alone in loving Audrey Niffenegger’s debut novel, The Time Traveler’s Wife. It continues to rank as one of my most loved reading experiences. One of the many things I enjoyed about Niffenegger’s novel is that the characters were imbued with some of the author’s own interests. While Audrey is still allegedly at work on her second novel, she did make a series of small print runs of illustrated stories that have seen their way into larger print runs. One of these is The Adventuress.

This is a bizarre story with few words that tells the tale of the created daughter of an alchemist and the adventures that occur when she is kidnapped by a lusting baron. Transformation and the appearance of Napolean Bonaparte also play a role in this intriguing tale.

If you come to this looking for something similar to TTW, you might be disappointed. Taken for what it is it is quite an interesting story. The look of the illustrations shares a deep kinship with the work of Edward Gorey, which sold me right away. They are really well done. What interested me even more than the story was Niffenegger’s description of how the art was made which occurs in the afterward of the book.

I certainly recommend looking for this in your local library. It is an interesting experience. And if you are interested, there is an interesting interview with Audrey Niffenegger online here.
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3. Nighthogs: A Pearls Before Swine Collection ~Stephan Pastis

–2006
–128 pages, Andrews McMeel Publishing
–3.75/5 stars

I have caught Pearls Before Swine on occasion in the paper but didn’t have any strong feelings about it one way or the other before checking this collection out from the library. It is safe to say that I am now a fan. As is common with day to day newspaper comic strips, there is a degree of hit-and-miss to these, but the groan-worthy pun-ish humor of many of Pastis’ strips had me giggling more often than not. There is also a degree of violence reminiscent of what I like about the online strip Her![Girl Vs. Pig] done by former Friday Favorite Chris Bishop.

When he is on, Stephan Pastis is well worth checking out.
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4. The New York Four ~Brian Wood,Ryan Kelly

–2008
–176 pages, Minx
–3.75/5 stars

The Minx company has been a pleasant addition to the comics industry. They have been putting out books with quality talent in the writing and art department to varying levels of success. The New York Four is one I would consider a success. Ryan Kelly’s art is fantastic. His characters are unique and interesting, attractive without fitting in to any of the comic book stereotypes regarding how women are drawn. This story is as much a love story/tour guide of New York City as it is a story of Riley’s first adventures as a college student in the city. Brian Wood’s story was terrific right up to the end. It was there that things derailed for me a bit. I found the pacing excellent and though I had some idea of where he was going with the story I didn’t mind as it was a very interesting ride. Unfortunately I was not prepared for what I consider to be an abrupt and mildly dissatisfying end. The caveat to all this is whether or not there will be a sequel. If there is, the ending of this graphic novel could turn out to be perfect. I’ll reserve judgment and still recommend picking this up.
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5. Orlando Bloom Has Ruined Everything ~Bill Amend

–2005
–128 pages, Andrews McMeel
–3.75/5 stars

I seem to go through periods every so many years where I want to pick up and read collections of Foxtrot. My recent immersion into Lord of the Rings while reading the Peter Jackson bio ensured that this title leaped out at me as I perused the library selection of comic strip collections. I had hoped for more LOTR-related goodness but what little was included was very fun. I enjoy the geek nature of the Foxtrot series and, for some inexplicable reason, have always enjoyed that Peter had a blind girlfriend. I don’t know what about that was interesting, but it did make for some fun jokes. Nothing ground-breaking here, but if you like Foxtrot this is a good collection.
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6. What Now? Mutts: Vol. 7 ~Patrick McDonnell

–2002
–127 pages, Andrews McMeel
–3.75/5 stars

I couldn’t recall why Patrick McDonnell’s work seemed so familiar until I read that he did the Bad Baby strip in Parents magazine. That was big a little over 16 years ago when my wife was pregnant with our daughter Tori. Wow, that seems like forever ago! McDonnell is one of those ‘deceptively simple’ cartoonists. With a minimal amount of detail McDonnell creates the most interesting characters. The hit-and-miss idea is true here as well, but several of the strips in this book were laugh out loud funny and I absolutely love his art style. I would be thrilled to see these characters animated if they could somehow pull off McDonnell’s style. There are many, many Mutts collections out there. If this is a relative sample, I recommend them all.
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7. Hug Time ~Patrick McDonnell

–2007
–44 pages, Little, Brown
–5/5 stars

This is actually a children’s picture book and not a comic strip collection and I have to admit that it is wonderful! It is a brief but touching little story about love and hugs and is truly a perfect gift for a baby shower, a child’s first birthday, or for anyone who just loves a warm-hearted kid’s book (and if you are someone named Madelyn, and are my niece, you may be getting one of these someday!). The colored illustrations are marvelous and the story is just perfect. This would be a great read aloud book to a little one and will no doubt touch your heart if you just choose to read it to yourself.
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8. Just Like Heaven ~Patrick McDonnell

–2006
–44 pages, Little, Brown
–4.5/5 stars

Another picture book by McDonnell. While not as great as Hug Time it is just barely off the pace and had I not read both back-to-back I might have rated this one even higher. Just Like Heaven is another life-affirming book with delightful illustrations. It will give you warm fuzzies in your heart and it too would make a perfect baby gift.
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9. Good-bye, Chunky Rice ~Craig Thompson

–1999
–128 pages, Top Shelf Books
–2.0/5 stars

Craig Thompson is another artist whose artwork really catches my eye. There is something unique about his line work that makes him stand out from a crowd of similar artists. I have sampled his work before and enjoyed it. Good-bye, Chunky Rice was a disappointment for me and I’ll have to admit that my judgment of this is more ‘opinion’ than ‘review’, it is based on my emotional reaction to the story. For one it is a very child-friendly looking book and is not child friendly at all. It is very dark and emotionally draining and while I sometimes love that in a book I just didn’t expect that out of this book and was very disappointed when it ended. My opinion of it is primarily based on where it ended. I just didn’t understand why it ended the way it did. As it exists I am not sure what Thompson was trying to say with the book. I never did really and truly get why the main character, Chunky Rice, decided to leave in the first place. It all seemed unnecessarily sad to me…which may actually be praise for what Thompson did here–it all depends on what he was trying to accomplish.

I have his graphic novel, Blankets, on a hold list at the library and have a bit of Carnet Voyage to finish (which I am enjoying). Take my criticism of this book for what it is–not so much a criticism for the Craig Thompson as a writer but as an expression of the chasm between my expectations and what the graphic novel was meant to be.
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10. Lobster Johnson Volume 1: Iron Prometheus ~Mignola, Armstrong

–2008
–140 pages, Dark Horse Books
–3.75/5 stars

Lobster Johnson is a favorite character in the early Hellboy stories of Mike Mignola. He hearkens back to the golden age of comic book heroes and although little has been revealed about him and his history, he is a comic book character that I really enjoy. His first stand-alone graphic novel is an adequate, if not outstanding, outing. I really enjoyed the art. Jason Armstrong’s style, colored by Hellboy colorist Dave Stewart, fits in well with the Hellboy universe while maintaining a degree of uniqueness that sets this book apart. It is the story, sadly, that disappoints at times. Overall I enjoyed the story but there are gaps present that ultimately left me wanting a more cohesive, intricate tale. I am hoping that subsequent chapters to the Lobster Johnson mythos improve on the foundation of this graphic novel. If you are a fan of the Hellboy universe I do recommend checking this out. You may want to try your local library first or try to pick up a cheap used copy, though, rather than paying full price for this.
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11. Modern Masters Volume 14: Frank Cho ~Eric Nolen-Weathington

–published 2007
–120 pages, TwoMorrows Publishing
–5/5 stars

The Modern Masters series are fantastic. Relatively slim but packed with the kind of detailed interviews that fanboys and fangirls love, I highly recommend any of these books that feature artists you may be interested in. They truly do introduced masters in the illustration/graphic novel field and what makes them doubly exciting is that the interviews also bring classic illustrators to the forefront. Reading one of these books could have you searching out artists for days!

(Uncolored cover to Liberty Meadows collection, Eden)

If you have not read Frank Cho’s Liberty Meadows comic strips I cannot recommend strongly enough that you get to the library, the bookstore, or the local comic shop and snag each and every one of the collections…and read them in order. There is an ongoing storyline with scrawny-Star Wars-obsessed veterinarian Frank and the voluptuous assistant Brandy that is the stuff of story-telling legend. In addition the menagerie of rescued circus animals and other crazed humans and creatures that make up Liberty Meadows make it a must-read. Seriously…it is that good! Not only is it funny but Frank Cho is a true Master. The man can draw! And that is an understatement.

(cover image for issue 3 of Shanna the She-Devil)

In addition to his own creations Frank Cho has done an enormous amount of stellar cover art for any number of comic books over the years as well as illustrating some of Marvel’s finest. Frank Cho is an artist who I can never get enough of and I really hope to see him continue his Liberty Meadows series as well as do some more book illustration in the future.
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12. Modern Masters Volume 15: Mark Schultz ~Fred Perry, Eric Nolen-Weathington

–published 2007
–128 pages, TwoMorrows Publishing
–5/5 stars

And then there is Mark Schultz, another true illustration Master. Schultz certainly could be accused of channeling the spirits of former classic illustrators who have gone before while at the same time putting his own unique stamp on his work.

Mark Schultz created his own comic book series, Xenozoic Tales, that was briefly turned into an animated series back called Cadillacs and Dinosaurs. Xenozoic Tales are, at the very least, a boys’ dream come true: classic muscle cars, dinosaurs, a dashing hero, a gorgeous heroine…this series has it all. Except an end! The current series is collected in two graphic novels that are well worth picking up.

In addition Flesk Publications has produced 3 books collecting the illustrations of Mark Schultz, all of which have a habit of selling out. I have all three volumes and they are amazing, truly amazing!
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13. Modern Masters Volume 16: Mike Allred ~Eric Nolen-Weathington

–published 2008
–120 pages, TwoMorrows Publishing
–5/5 stars

Mike Allred, and his comic creation Madman, is another artist whose work I really go nuts over. Credit also has to be given to his wife, Laura Allred, who colors all his work, giving it a unique look that really makes it stand out. Images online just don’t do it justice, there is an almost tangibly soft aura to the coloring that is amazing and compliments Mike’s work so well. Talk about a match made in creative heaven! There is something about Allred’s work that, in perhaps my mind only, has a kinship to the work of Dan DeCarlo on the Archie comics. When I look at his work I have a nostalgic reaction to it that calls to mind my love of the Archie series when I was younger (and though I rarely read it now I still would consider myself a fan).

Allred’s stories tend to take on an existential quality that sometimes makes reading them an exercise in brain power one wouldn’t expect when reading a comic book and yet there is enough grounded, average-joe-superhero stuff that goes on in the series that I really enjoy it.

All three artists featured here in the Modern Masters’ series were a joy to read. There is so much detail in the questions about their influences that reading these provides a level of art history that was an unexpectedly pleasant surprise.

I have a Charles Vess Modern Master’s volume still to read and will definitely be keeping an eye out for other artists in the series. These books are an absolute steal for the amount of art and information in them.
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14. Robot Dreams ~Sara Varon

–published 2007
–208 pages, First Second Books
–4.25/5 stars

This is another book I snagged from my library recently and it was a delight. I think it goes to show that how you feel about a book certainly depends on your mood. While I didn’t like the melancholy aspects of Good-bye, Chunky Rice, I did enjoy them in Robot Dreams. Part of that certainly is the fact that Chunky Rice is much more sad and melancholic than Robot Dreams. Robot Dreams has a beginning, middle and end that feel more like a journey and has equal parts sadness, joy, and humor. I really enjoyed this. There are no words in the story, it is told in a series of quiet panels that speak volumes and is a story on the nature of friendship and loneliness and the tenuous bond that holds us together. Check it out!
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Well, I hope you enjoyed allowing me to catch up on some of my past-due reviews and I hope you have found a number of things to check out from your local library or purchase for yourself. There is a great deal of entertaining and heartwarming fun in these books. Have a great weekend everyone!