The Best American Comics 2008
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Book Summary Information
Editor: Lynda BarryEditor: Jessica Abel
Editor: Matt Madden
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-10-08
ISBN: 0618989765
Number of pages: 352
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Book Reviews of The Best American Comics 2008
Book Review: A Collection of 26 Amazing American Comics
Summary: 5 Stars
The Best American Comics 2008 is the third book in the series and presents, I think, an excellent cross section of today's alternative, web, self-published, and graphic novel artists, Twenty-six very different comics are represented in this book, each showing a different style, viewpoint, and attitude. If your experience with comics is only from the last few pages of your local newspaper, or the Sunday editions, this anthology will show you that this medium is alive, well, and pushing the boundaries of your knowledge of "comics." I don't think that I actually laughed out loud at any of the entries in this book, but, rather, many of them made me consider what I had just read and seen. Unlike your "normal" novels, there is power in both word and art in this book.
The authors did an amazing job of selecting the first and last comics. Starting the book is "Burden," by Graham Annable. As you move through the panels, David is visiting a few people, on his brother's Charlie behalf, "taking care of his loose ends." The last couple of panels make you re-examine what you have just witnessed. Ending the book is "American Born Chinese," by Gene Luen Yang, an examination of the trials and tribulations of a young Chinese-American in a public school system. Very personal, very moving. In between are more wonderful comics, including Derf (as he lives in Cleveland, I am extremely familiar with his work) and Matt Groening, But what I really appreciate is that you will probably find someone that piques your interest to search out more from a particular artist. For me, that person is Rick Geary, who's contribution is "Part II. The Bender's Arrive," a historical comic focusing on a family of serial killers in 1870 Kansas.
The Best American Comics 2008 is an excellent collection of some of the finest comic artists. While the entries could speak for themselves, the authors include Contributor's Notes to allow for some background on the individual artists as well as for the motivation for the particular artwork. The Notes make for entertaining and enlightening reading.
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