Lions and Tigers and Crocs, Oh My!: A Pearls Before Swine Treasury [Paperback]

Stephan Pastis (Author)

Book Description

Series: Pearls Before Swine | Publication Date: September 1, 2006

The Pearls Before Swine crew are at it again in their new book, Lions and Tigers and Crocs, Oh My! But even the wonderful Wizard of Oz couldn't help this bunch of merry misfits. Collecting strips from his last two books, Nighthogs and The Ratvolution Will Not Be Televised, cartoonist Stephan Pastis takes you on a magically malicious journey over the rainbow and into the rat trap of Lions and Tigers and Crocs, Oh My! As in the previous Pearls treasury collection, Sgt. Piggy's Lonely Hearts Club Comic, the comic strips are annotated, as only the smart-alecky, misanthropic-but-lovable Pastis can do. Following his yellow brick road of notes, readers gain great insights into the making of such classic Pearls bits as Rat's stint as a New York Times reporter, Angry Bob, Pig's plastic surgery, the Mallet o' Understanding, Mrs. Bootyworth, and the fraternal order of the Zeeba Zeeba Eetas.

A special bonus feature included in Lions and Tigers and Crocs is "The Good, the Banned, and the Ugly," a section of never-before-published and unedited Pearls strips.

So go, as fast as lightning, to the Emerald City¿or the cash register¿and buy this book, before a twister drops a Box o' Stupid People on you!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Who says lawyers don't have a sense of humor? Stephan Pastis left that distinguished profession and never looked back (except to laugh at his former colleagues). And a good thing he did, too! Pearls Before Swine is one of the fastest growing comic strips today, appearing in more than 350 newspapers worldwide. Twice nominated for Best Comic Strip of the Year by the National Cartoonists Society, the strip won the award in 2004. Stephan lives with his family in northern California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing (September 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0740761552
• ISBN-13: 978-0740761553
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #68,918 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Stephan Pastis was once a "love me tender" lawyer who created Pearls Before Swine to relieve boredom. He lives in his own Graceland in northern California with his wife, two children, and his blue suede shoes.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Almost every page has cool artist comments on what he was thinking., December 19, 2006

By 

Dean S. Tripodes (Sierra Madre, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lions and Tigers and Crocs, Oh My!: A Pearls Before Swine Treasury (Paperback)

Stephan Pastis' Pearls Before Swine books just keep getting better. One thing I like particularly about his books, is that almost every page has cool artist comments on what he was thinking when he did the strip, the background information, or just interesting Pearl's facts.

For example:
= Rat making fun of the New York Times after the Jayson Blair incident.
= Rat slapping Pig is a tie in to an ancient Zen riddle of what "one hand clapping" sounds like.
= Background pennants for the Cal Bears - he went to Berkeley for his undergrad degree.
= Putting PMS in comic strips generates letters to the editor.
= His philosophy that Larry King is dressed by evil clowns.
= Fish in the tank - "love" and "lust" - they're tough to tell apart!
= Touching upon Internet porn surfing in the workplace
= How Charles Schulz of Snoopy fame influenced him more than any other cartoonist. You can see his tributes to Schulz in several of his strips.
= How certain Rat strips touch fans everywhere - particularly Rat working in the information desk.
= Why he hits the alarm snooze button several times in the morning - comes with a 15 panel Rat strip with Rat dreaming of nude supermodels.
= How the slaughterhouse strips with Pig came after he read Fast Food Nation.
= The censored words for cartoonists
= How he dresses Rat once in awhile to look like James Joyce (the round glasses and bow tie)
= How he liked the dark strip where Rat leaves one of Zebra's relatives mounted head on a plaque in front of his door.
= How Rat and Pig join a monastery! - Hint: The prophetic refrigerator...
= How Rat's problem on showing empathy is his problem - that's why Rat wears his Empathy Hat.
= The reasoning behind Rat's "Giant Book O'Phonies".
= Which strips were edited and are now shown in the back of the book under "The Good, the Banned, and the Ugly" section.

For those who like even more detail, he shows one of his pads that actually contain his cartoon brainstorming. I like his sharing a little bit of his creative mind and it's amazing to see the attention he pays to punch lines.

I look forward to his next book!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lot of laughs, September 19, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Lions and Tigers and Crocs, Oh My!: A Pearls Before Swine Treasury (Paperback)

This had to be great. I mean just the cover made me laugh and with Stephan Pastis's commentary and introduction, it was about the best comic treasury i have ever read. I have forty different comic treasuries and this is the crown of my collection. Thank you Stephan Pastis; you have made me laugh uncontrollably several times! Something that only the sarcasm, exagerration, and satire in Pearles Before Swine can do.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommended to All, January 15, 2007

By 

Y. Tsai - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lions and Tigers and Crocs, Oh My!: A Pearls Before Swine Treasury (Paperback)

This collection is great. My newspaper picked up Pearls Before Swine a little while ago and i've been a huge fan since. Get this book, as it contains previous collections (other books of strips that stephan pastis has already printed). This is the 2nd Treasury by Stephan Pastis and his characters are lovable and strangely dark and humourous. This is a great read for young teens to adults. It provided many hours of reading, including hilarious commentary. I really enjoyed this and would recommend it to anyone, including people who haven't read it before. Pig and Rat are great and adorable. This is a must for any and all fans of comics. Would definetly recommend this to anyone who enjoyed Calvin and Hobbes.