Skin Deep [Paperback]

Charles Burns (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 8, 2009

Classic stories starring Dog Boy and Mister Blister, as well as several tales of doomed romance and creepy revulsion, plus a selection of sketchbook excerpts, covers and illustrations.

Charles Burns is the creator of the landmark horror graphic novel Black Hole (in development as a major motion picture directed by David Fincher). Skin Deep is the third (following El Borbah and Big Baby) of a series of three volumes reprinting his acclaimed oeuvre up to Black Hole. Skin Deep includes Burns's popular character Dog Boy (a red-blooded all-American boy with the transplanted heart of a dog) and the classic strip "Dog Days," in which a hash-slinging vixen wags her tail at our fearful hero. The book also collects "Burn Again," which features a strange fella named Bliss Blister, claiming to bring the Word of God, but some fear he brings something evil and profane. In "A Marriage Made in Hell," a young wife's flesh tingled with passion, but the sight of her made her husband's skin crawl. Was the love-knot she tied really a hangman's noose? These tales of doomed romance set a tone for the rest of Skin Deep. In addition to the comics, Skin Deep includes several pages of new illustrations reprinted from Burns's sketchbooks as well as covers and other pieces from foreign editions of Burns's work. 96 pages of b/w comics

Editorial Reviews

Review

I love the streak of darkness that permeates Burns' work. I mean that both figuratively and literally, as his one-of-a-kind illustration style is at-a-glance recognizable because of his heavy use of black ink... That starkness emphasizes the cruel features on the faces of his characters—deep wrinkles, harsh teeth, beady eyes and unflattering noses, to say nothing of the occasional freak. Like the look of his characters, Burns is one of a kind, and Skin Deep is a good introduction to the man's singular vision - a good way to get your toe wet before diving in. (Rod Lott - Bookgasm )

A master of the unearthly atmosphere—David Lynch has nothing on him ... At once cautionary, creepy and curious, Burns is consistently one of comics’ deepest thinkers. (John Seven - Worcester Magazine )

About the Author

Charles Burns is the award-winning creator of the graphic novel, Black Hole, currently in production as a major motion picture directed by David Fincher. He lives in Philadelphia, PA.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (September 8, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1606991671
• ISBN-13: 978-1606991671
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 9.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,078,095 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dark, Twisted and Funny, July 6, 2002

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Skin Deep (Hardcover)

I confess to being a Burns freak, owning everything I can find of his - even if he only has one or two pages in a book, I will buy it. This doesn't disappoint if you are a fan of Burns, or just enjoy comix that are deeply twisted, some sort of hell from the inside of a demented mind. Burns has a distinctive way with the pen and the comix themselves are also enjoyable.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Film-Noir Meets The Outer Limits At Midnight, June 18, 1998

By 

Myron S. Johnson "DJ" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Skin Deep: Tales of Doomed Romance (Penguin Graphic Fiction) (Paperback)

Distinctly creepy with a great deal of reality placed in a blender with some bad speed.Think of the images left in your mind when you wake up from a bad dream right before you get the shades open!!First rate story telling and art.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Charles Burns lays the ink, touches the dark heart of Americ, October 20, 1997

By 

[e-mail] (Culleoka, TX, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Skin Deep: Tales of Doomed Romance (Penguin Graphic Fiction) (Paperback)

My wife doesn't like this book. That's all you need to know. Go for it. Well, I'll vouchsafe a bit more. A cartoonist I was talking to once put it very neatly. Speaking of his education by another cartoonist, he said "he taught me the art of knowing where to put the ink." Sounds silly, I know, but think about that next time you look at a B&W comic book. To me, Charles Burns might well be the first book I'd hand to someone, as Exhibit A of knowing where to put the ink. And I haven't even gotten around to discussing his subject matter, yet! You need to know that Burns' work is very emotional, more than a little surreal, peopled by montrous humanoids, a little too familiar for my tastes; most people would say ugly, the rest, beautiful. Themes of doglike love, the rampage of spirituality gone hopelessly awry, the pieces of passion exploded beyond recognition, and stitched together like a calico cat. It's all here. Good luck.