Eddie Campbell has created a graphic novel about the rise and fall of the graphic novel itself, and along the way draws potent conclusions about the very nature of art. It is a graphic novel about becoming an artist and making your way in the world as an artist. The narrative teems with established luminaries as well as "would be" artists. Many are briefly examined while a few have been made the subjects of penetrating case histories in this cavalcade of dreamers, fools and sudden millionaires.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Booklist
Campbell, best known as the illustrator of Alan Moore's acclaimed graphic novel From Hell (2000), has created autobiographical comics featuring his alter ego, Alec MacGarry, for more than two decades. Although this book's intentionally misleading title implies that it tells aspiring artists Campbell's secrets of effectively slinging ink, it is actually the story of his long struggle to survive in the comics business. Simultaneously, it relates his courtship, marriage, and emigration to Australia; details a handful of idealistic artists' ongoing, uphill effort to transform the comics medium from pamphlets produced for kiddies to sophisticated graphic novels for adults; and ruminates on the nature of art. That is a lot for one fairly slim volume to tackle, but Campbell's deceptively simple drawing style and considerable narrative skills enable him to successfully juggle all those disparate balls. Furthermore, his droll playfulness makes the book far more entertaining than such an ambitious effort has any right to be. Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
From the Publisher
Eddie Campbell is the illustrator and publisher of the enormously successful graphic novel FROM HELL, the gripping piece of crime fiction about Jack the Ripper that details the course of events that led up to the White Chapel Murders. FROM HELL will be released later this year as a major motion picture from 20th Century Fox, starring Johnny Depp, Heather Graham, Ian Holm, and Robbie Coltrane. Directed by the Hughes Brothers.
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3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By "x100270741"
With other great works like Graffiti Kitchen and Alec: the King Canute Crowd, Eddie Campbell's autobiographical works are very refreshing and very unique to the comic book genre. Those that are not familiar with Eddie's works may not like his sketchy drawings but after familiarizing one's self to his works you'll see that his art is a very personal signature and works very well in his books.
In Alec: How to be an Artist, Eddie tells his story of his experiences as a comic book artist. He goes from how he first got into the business to meeting such characters as Alan Moore and also goes into how his personal life was effected: "There will come a phase in your life when you move in and out of flats so fast you're already measuring them up for a nostalgic effect on your way in." This graphic novel gives such an interesting glance at the comic book industry, and Eddie likes to "tell-all" with very personal aspects of his life that you feel very humble to be given the privilege of reading his story.(or maybe I'm just an Eddie-Campbell/ComicBook-Industry fanatic.)
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