I Saw You...: Comics Inspired by Real-Life Missed Connections [Paperback]

Julia Wertz (Editor)

Book Description

Release date: February 3, 2009

This anthology of comics inspired by real-life missed connection ads posted on Craigslist and in local papers around the country will tug at your heartstrings and make you think. Lonely hearts, romantics, and even cynics pore over missed connection ads in search of love, to gawk and giggle, or out of curiosity. These posted stranger sightings and chance encounters lay bare the truths and oddities of real-life loneliness and attractions and bring out the voyeur in the best of us. I Saw You takes this phenomenon and makes it even better.

Julia Wertz has gathered the stars and soon-to-be-stars of the graphic art world, including Peter Bagge, Jesse Reklaw, Tom Hart, Sam Henderson, Laura Park, Emily Flake, Keith Knight, Janelle Hessig, Gabrielle Bell, Aaron Renier, Austin English, Corinne Mucha, Jeffrey Brown, Alec Longstreth, Minty Lewis, Joey Sayers, David Malki, Kazimir Strzepek, Ken Dahl, Shannon Wheeler, Shaenon Garrity, Rodd Perry, Abby Denson, Damien Jay, Sarah Glidden, and dozens more, to interpret these plaintive, hopeful postings in drawings that range from laugh-out-loud funny to disarmingly strange.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

It seems like a simple enough premise: short comics based on the missed-connections ads from newspapers and Craigslist, drawn by a host of cartoonists. Despite thematically arranged chapters (coffee shops, travel), this anthology doesn't quite hang together—in part because the contributors have interpreted the assignment in so many different ways. Some draw literal or metaphorical interpretations of actual ads; some make up their own; some mock the entire concept; a few simply address the idea of missed connections but don't deal with personal ads. The book's real value is as a snapshot of the current state of the mini-comics scene, in which editor Wertz is something of a star. Nearly every significant mini-comics artist of the moment is represented here, including Lucy Knisley, Kazimir Strzepek, Sarah Glidden, Alec Longstreth, and, best of all, Laura Park, who contributes a few splendid, cruelly funny pieces. There are a few bigger names in the collection (like Peter Bagge and Jeffrey Brown), but the roster will probably look a lot more impressive in a few years. (Feb.)
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About the Author

JULIA WERTZ is a cartoonist and writer and the creator of the autobiographical comic The Fart Party. She lives in Brooklyn.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press; Original edition (February 3, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307408531
• ISBN-13: 978-0307408532
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.4 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #398,848 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Quirky and charming April 16, 2009

By Vinod Babu

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

A book of short comics based on missed connections, sidelong glances and secret trysts, as reported by the anonymous multitudes on Craigslist and the personals columns in newspapers.

Ranging from the hopelessly romantic to the definitely bizarre, these fleeting encounters are brought to vivid life by a variety of artists.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars For more [...] June 16, 2009

By Alexandro C. Telander

Format:Paperback

I SAW YOU . . . EDITED BY JULIA WERTZ: The next time you pay a visit to Craigslist (and I'm sure you check it every day now for the job postings), look under the "Personals" column and you'll see a option titled "Missed Connections." It's where men and women seeking women or men recount a recent chance meeting with someone who captured their heart in the blink of an eye. Perhaps it was a short but sweet conversation over the purchase of a latte; or gazing into one another's eyes on the train to the work; or even the smile from a distance. We all see people each day, strangers whom we wonder might be; strangers who might even be the one. But then the opposite of serendipity blocks your path and you never see the person again. If this is the case, then Missed Connections is for you; where you can pour out your heart to that human who stopped you in your tracks for a second, with the lone hope that he or she may one day read it and somehow find you.

In the fall of 2006, Julia Wertz, cartoonist and creator of The Fart Party, put up a blog requesting comic strips from volunteers inspired by "Missed Connections". Soon her inbox was overflowing! In I Saw You . . ., Wertz collects them together, providing a short introduction to why and how she did this. The result is a very entertaining book featuring a wonderful variety of artwork from some of today's finest graphic artists as they take a sentence or two and turn it into something happy, or something sad, but always entertaining piece of art.

So whether you're looking for a laugh, or for your heart strings to be pulled by some sad words and some sad eyes, I Saw You . . . is the book for you. A perfect paperback to read through in your spare time, while on the bus to work in the morning, as you glance up at that special someone looking right back at you, never to see them again.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A few misses but overall a fun read March 26, 2011

By ChibiNeko TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I ended up buying this book after having read most of Wertz' other work. I knew that this book was compiling work from several authors, so I knew that the artwork & storytelling abilities would differ from person to person. For the most part this is actually a pretty good book.

The listings in this are pulled from craigslist as well as other venues, but seems to be predominantly craigslist. The stories run from funny to sad to downright tragic. We see possible reactions to these listings running from the embarrassing to the joyous. Some of the more memorable strips (to me anyway) had to have been the librarian strip as well as the "cute girl in the diner" mixup.

The artwork in here ranges from the cutesy to the elaborate to the surreal. Sorry I'm not more descriptive, but you'll find all types in this book. For this reason there might be some readers who will adore one style, only to be turned off by another. The overall impression I had of this book was favorable. It's a nice cute read that's perfect for picking up & flipping through at random. I'm sure you'll find your favorite but overall most of the excerpts were gems.