Bloom County "Loose Tails" [Paperback]

Berke Breathed (Author), Steve Dallas (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1983

this is a book in cartoon form

Product Details

• Paperback: 148 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1st edition (April 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316107107
• ISBN-13: 978-0316107105
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #808,122 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Berkeley Breathed lives and works in Santa Barbara, California and is the proud owner of a gentle pit bull named Ridley, a deaf dachshund named Milly, and a refugee mutt from the Puerto Rican streets named Pilar--splendidly flawed dogs, every one.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bloom County: The Beginning, June 14, 2004

By 

Mark J. Fowler "Let's Play Two!" (Jacksonville, Florida) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Bloom County "Loose Tails" (Paperback)

Here you will find the beginning of one of the most inspired comic strips ever put to paper. No other strip made me laugh as hard, or as often, as "Bloom County". In fact, pretty much nothing else in the whole wide world made me laugh as hard as this divine creation of Mr. Berke Breathed. Here we are introduced to the Milo Bloom, Steve Dallas, Cutter John and by far the best-known comic Penguin ever - Opus.

Here we can see that Bloom County was just crackling with creativity and a real desire to "cut loose" from the beginning. Some of the strips covered "current events" and were topical, meaning circa 1980, but if you were around for any of that time it's a nostalgic trip back to the days of Boy George and when Ozzy Osbourne was best known as a singer. But the vast majority of the strips ring very true today as they deal with the absurdities of the human animal.

A word about the format: Bloom County in it's original form included both the standard "3 panel" strips that appear in your every day newspaper in black and white, plus a larger full page color version for the Sunday paper. The other Bloom County volumes (as well as Bloom's sequel "Outland") were in a larger physical book form. (Similar to what you may have seen if you're a collector of, say, Calvin and Hobbes, or Dilbert). This first volume is a smaller book (similar in format to the endless volumes of Garfield which became available). But this is where it all began, and it includes much of the "best stuff".

If you want to know what America was laughing at in 1980, this is it. But you know what? I reread these strips every so often, and they STILL make me laugh that loud, roll on the floor, tears streaming down my face, people coming into the room to see WHAT are you laughing at kind of laugh. We don't get that kind of laugh often enough. Thank you, Mr. Breathed.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Berke Breathed's Glory Days!, January 27, 2000

By 

John Peter O'connor - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bloom County "Loose Tails" (Paperback)

Bloom County had something special, more than just the jokes. As you read the strip, you cannot help but get involved with the characters.

Bloom County fans don't just laugh at the jokes, they care about Opus and the rest. Even Steve Dallas, the ruthless but inept lawyer, wins sympathy.

The humour tends to the wit and satire end of the cartoon spectrum with only occasional bursts of slapstick. The satire is aimed mainly at lifestyles and steroetypes rather than current events which makes it still sharp as it ages.

It is a very male-centric book. Female characters are introduced in order to give the main players a romantic interlude or to prop up some situation.

Bloom County was one of the best cartoons of its time and Loose Tails is a real gem.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Graphic SF Reader, September 2, 2007

By 

Blue Tyson "- Research Finished" (Legion clubhouse) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bloom County "Loose Tails" (Paperback)

It is very hard not to a like a cute talking penguin, and Breathed presumably realised this when coming up with Opus. The human characters that surround the odd animal are supposed to come off somewhat loopier. This is a fun look at the period and the politics, and highly entertaining. Aack!