Customer Reviews

Daydreams and Nightmares

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Winsor McCay was a brilliant artist and illustrator, a pioneer in cartooning and animation. Fans of Chris Ware, Edward Gorey and A. G. Rizzoli would love to have a copy of "Daydreams and Nightmares" at the ready. Fantagraphics, are you listening?

I was fortunate to have read this book 10 years ago when I was in college and the book was still in print. It's extremely difficult to find. I know. I've been looking to find a copy for myself for the past 10 years without luck. What I do remember about this book is how graphic and evocative Windsor McCay's work was. It's quite obvious that he can transfer a strong emotional and intellectual perspective to paper via drawings. I've read some of his other works which were considered his bread and butter during the height of his popularity such as "Tales of the Rarebit Fiend" and "Remo in Slumberland". I enjoy these works but only in context of when they were done. They don't seem to hold up in today's world. With "Day Dreams and Nightmares", though the subject matter he is drawing relates to issues of his day and therefore historical (he drew these during the first half of the 20th century), it is fascinating to see how precise his perspective can be seen in his work. Because of how expressive the work is, it almost transcends the specific issues of his day. The perspective he uses to make his drawings can be transferred to events in the contemporary world and as I looked at his illustrations I thought that his strong perspective would make for interesting work today if he were still alive. In that way his drawings weren't dated at all. Some of the drawings as I remember were very pertinent to today particularly his subjects of drugs, technology and slavery. Very dark and often morbid the drawings gave off a distinct sense of the man that his other work didn't. He obviously was a liberal thinker at the least if not more left leaning. Visionary and engaging. Just one look through the book 10 years ago has kept me seaching for a copy of it.

Fantagraphics Press:

A reprint edition of this title is long overdue! I'm sure the legion of today's Chris Ware fans would love McKay's "Daydreams and Nightmares." Don't delay!

This is more than just a book of Political/Editorial cartoons. When I first saw this book I thought it was great but over the years I've come across countless refrences to this amazing style and method of expressing a story. This is a gem of inspiration that has come back to me again and again.

I would really like to find and buy a copy of this book.

Highly reccomended.