An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories (Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, & True Stories, Volume 1) [Hardcover]

Ivan Brunetti (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 23, 2006

Comic artist Ivan Brunetti, the creator of Schizo, offers a best-of anthology of contemporary art comics, along with some classic comic strips and other historical materials that have retained a “modern” sensibility. As with Chris Ware’s selections for his best-selling McSweeney’s anthology, Brunetti’s choices make for a highly personal book (“my criteria were simple: these are comics that I savor and often revisit”) that serves as a broad historical overview of the medium and a round-up of some of today’s best and most interesting North American comic artists. Included here are works from such well-known artists as Robert Crumb, Kim Deitch, Art Spiegelman, Chris Ware, Ben Katchor, Charles Burns, Gary Panter, Seth, Phoebe Gloeckner, Daniel Clowes, Lynda Barry, Joe Sacco, and Jaime and Gilbert Hernandez, as well as many other pioneers whose names may be less familiar.
Brunetti offers selections from the works of more than seventy-five avant-garde comic artists.  His selections are arranged by genre and grouped thematically. Luxuriously produced and printed in four-color throughout, the book is a must-have for collectors, aficionados, readers of comics, and those generally interested in cutting-edge art and literature.

(20080901)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Brunetti's stated criteria for what made the cut for this hearty and hefty volume comes in his refreshingly honest introduction: "Ultimately... these are comics that I savor and often revisit." Luckily Brunetti's got a fabulous eye for an artist's signature work. The selections are difficult to argue with, hitting not just the expected luminaries (Chris Ware, Daniel Clowes) but lesser-knowns like surrealist Mark Beyer and Richard McGuire, whose "Here" breaks down the time-space continuum with mind-bending ease. Brunetti includes usually just one work from each artist, but makes exceptions for the likes of R. Crumb, and he isn't above putting his own work in, a move that's somehow more charming than obnoxious. Any fallow patches are more than made up for by, say, Jaime Hernandez's cinematic miniepic "Flies on the Ceiling." Unlike other recent anthologies, women cartoonists are represented with some of the best work in the book, like Debbie Drechsler's horrific "Visitors in the Night." While one may question the need for another comics anthology in a year unusually heavy with them, Brunetti has gone beyond the obvious to create an anthology of what is truly the finest in comics. (Oct.)
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From Booklist

Editor Brunetti sets himself a daunting task: an overview of the art-comics movement, complete with a handful of the classic newspaper strips that informed today's creators. He finds room for such established veterans as R. Crumb, Lynda Barry, Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez, Daniel Clowes, Gary Panter, and Chester Brown as well as many less-familiar creators. Given the stellar lineup, high points are hard to isolate, yet a consistently brilliant set of tributes to Peanuts creator Charles Schulz by Art Spiegelman, Chris Ware, Seth, and Robert Sikoryak is especially impressive. Brunetti admits that his selection criteria are highly personal, but as a cartoonist himself, whose work combines a socially transgressive spirit and impressive formal capability, his idiosyncratic approach is based in professional expertise. If his choices are sometimes arguable, his iconoclasm makes the book livelier and less predictable than such anthologies are wont to be. Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press; 1St Edition edition (October 23, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300111703
• ISBN-13: 978-0300111705
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.7 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #278,597 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Holy Moley!!, October 15, 2006

By 

Frank Mallis - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories (Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, & True Stories, Volume 1) (Hardcover)

I knew this book would be great, but I didn't quite imagine it would be THIS amazing.

Perfect choices of stellar material from the cream of the 'alt' comics creators (or insert buzzword of choice here). Beautifully packaged, enticingly laid out, just an amazing confection of visuals presented in a treasure of a book.

Perfect for the newcomer hoping to investigate this convoluted 'new' graphic novel phenomenon, and a necessary teaser to entice further investigation. Just right for the dabbler or anyone returning to comix after laying them down however many years ago. - - And a 'must-have' for aging life-long comics nerds like me.

Over the years I'd already seen much of the stuff reprinted here, but was very pleased by both the choices of material and the choices of how to sequence them. There's also some amazing pieces by newer, younger creators that I wasn't familiar with at all.

There is a flow of subject matter, styles or 'schools' that make this a difficult book to put down. Also the choices of the more vintage material and where they're placed, the placement of the colored pages, and the pages that require you to turn the book sideways. The occasional thoughtful text pieces & Ivan Brunetti's compelling introduction - - Just enough, not too much in a book that remains visual. The particular choices for material excerpted from longer stories - - where in the story it brings you in, how it sucks you in, and the way it ends leaving you wanting more...

...and the printing! The end papers, the dust jacket!

It doesn't stop. The choices for how much of a page count certain artists receive are also significant, as well as who gets omitted alltogether. These are all choices that must have been painstaking for editor Brunetti, but I feel they show the book as labor of love imbued with personality, rather than a potentially dryer completist encyclopedia.

An important look at the comics scene, every inch crammed with eye candy.

Can't say enough good things about this book! (Had you noticed?) It knocked me out, I think anyone who sees it will be recommending it to others for years to come.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Indispensible, But Pretty Darned Close, February 23, 2007

By 

Brendan Collins (Tulsa, OK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories (Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, & True Stories, Volume 1) (Hardcover)

Ivan Brunetti, best known for his simplistic Misery Loves Comedy series from the 1980s, has compiled one of the more compelling tomes of graphic fiction in recent days. But what is it that differentiates this book from the dozens of similarly-themed books available? There are a number of things...

First of all, most of the artists and writers featured in An Anthology of Graphic Fiction are cream-of-the-crop when it comes to independent (read: mainly self-produced) material. A cursory glance through this book will expose the eye to the free-flowing styles of James Kochalka, Mark Beyer, and John Porcellino mingling merrily alongside the relatively more stringent Seth, Chester Brown, and R. Crumb. However, there are a few wild cards, such as the unknown "secret" (almost pornographic) work of reclusive Henry Darver, discovered in his cluttered apartment shortly after the deranged man's death, and a dated magazine cover illustration by the late Gene Deitch. Though much rarer amongst the bigger name talent, these "outsiders" add a definite flavour to the more popularly known artists.

Secondly, the book itself is quite stylishly designed. An elegant tri-colour dust jacket by Canada's own Seth graciously invites the reader to investigate the outside of the book as well as the inside. For a book of its size compiled by one of the big names in the business, one might expect to pay a premium, yet it retails for less than $30 (American).

And thirdly, while Mr. Brunetti makes no bones about this not being a "definitive" collection of independent cartoonists and comics, he (along with the likes of Tom Devlin, Kim Thompson, Chris Ware, Fantagraphics' Gary Groth, and several others) does a fine job of selecting some of the best pieces and excerpts by the artists featured therein. Many of the excerpts are from significantly larger sources, yet (for the most part) work perfectly for the format in which they are offered.

There are, of course, a few instances where a snippet feels incomplete (due to exactly this issue), however this does not hurt the book's appeal.

In fact, a few of the stories seem at a glance to be thematically linked (the disturbing nature of Phoebe Gloeckner's "Fun Things to Do with Little Girls" is introduced by an excerpt from Justin Green's equally dysfunctional Binky Brown Meets the Holy Virgin Mary, and glides into a moving passage from Chester Brown's I Never Liked You). A coincidence, perhaps? Nobody's giving away any secrets.

On a down note, the table of contents for this book is lacking (nor was there an index). Comprised of miniature (yet not unattractive) caricatures of a primary character from each story or comic, with a numeral below signifying the page on which said character can be found, this book presumes some familiarity with the artists or stories. In fact, very few of these selections were "new" to me - but in this new context, I felt as if I had been re-introduced to some of my old favourites, as well.

For a book that could be considered Mr. Brunetti's personal collection of favourites, it is fortunate for the reader that - should this, in fact, be the case - Mr. Brunetti has a fine eye for selection.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars FANtastic!!, November 22, 2006

By 

Shannon E. Dickey "EZZ" (Denver, CO. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories (Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, & True Stories, Volume 1) (Hardcover)

The only reason I give this a 4 out of 5 rating, is that I personally own most of the material collected here. That said, Brunetti, (a HUGE talent in the 'underground' Comix scene) has wisely selected a wonderfully diverse selection of the classic's, but also, some new talent that really deserves to be seen. Thank you Ivan Brunetti for including the zen like genius John Porcellino (King Kat Komix)!!
Very Handsomely bound and designed, this is a real treat! A perfect gift for the budding 'Comix' enthusiast or even the jaded old school 'Comix' lover!!
Thumbs way up!!!