Wally's World: The Brilliant Life and Tragic Death of Wally Wood, the World's 2nd Best Comic Book Artist [Paperback]

Steve Starger (Author), J. David Spurlock (Author), Wallace Wood (Illustrator), Peter Max (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 22, 2006

A dramatic illustrated biography of legendary cartoonist Wallace Wood. Journalist Steve Starger and historian J. David Spurlock tell a concise but sweeping tale of Wood's life and times and offer a brisk, colorful history of the comic book industry and the American century from the Depression through the early 1980s.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This is a serious and sensitive look at an important artist, recommended for larger collections. --Library Journal, 01/15/2007

About the Author

Steve Starger, a journalist and editor, J. David Spurlock, a writer and illustrator

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Vanguard Productions; 1st edition (November 22, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 188759180X
• ISBN-13: 978-1887591805
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 6.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,416,714 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed bag with duds, worth the money, February 18, 2007

By 

Joakim Braun (Stockholm, Sweden) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Wally's World: The Brilliant Life and Tragic Death of Wally Wood, the World's 2nd Best Comic Book Artist (Paperback)

As with all Vanguard books, this production is an uncertain mix of intriguing material and immature editorial judgment. You will find more information on Wallace Wood's life here than in any other text, and on that account the book is worth the money. But while much interesting original art is reproduced - mostly with excellent reproduction, though a few low-resolution files made it into print - there's very little technical information about Wood's working methods. And then there are those routine Vanguard lapses in taste: pedestrian and occasionally awful journalese prose, colourless and interminable asides or capsule biographies on popular culture icons remotely associated with Wood (to legitimize him), and those dumb labels: everyone and everything is "noted", "award-winning", "prize-winning", "a major film" (meaning "Daredevil"), and so on. The layout is awkward: a two-column format reinforces the impression that the creators got lost half-way between making a real book and a long popular-culture magazine feature (which goes for the text, too, of course). Read along with Bhob Stewarts "Against the Grain" interview anthology this is still a fairly interesting and not too bad book.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting subject - Not so good layout, January 5, 2007

By 

Burton Pressboard "Roving Book Gang" (Hollywood, California United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wally's World: The Brilliant Life and Tragic Death of Wally Wood, the World's 2nd Best Comic Book Artist (Paperback)

While I find the life of Wally Wood an interesting and worthy subject, this particular book is not the easiest thing to read. I'm speaking of the paperback version. Perhaps the hardcover book is better. But the text in this book runs right into the gutter and it wraps around endless photos and pull-quotes. Although the photos are noteworthy, they shouldn't be smack in the middle of the page, shoving the text into different shapes. It looks like someone designed this on a very tight deadline. Also, someone forgot to proof this book carefully. There are numerous type errors and paragraphs that begin in the middle of sentences. Oh well. It's still a good read, you just have to work the book a little.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Wood's Story Fascinates, But The Book Is Poorly Produced, May 21, 2008

By 

Chris Ward (Costa Rica) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Wally's World: The Brilliant Life and Tragic Death of Wally Wood, the World's 2nd Best Comic Book Artist (Paperback)

Who doesn't love Wally Wood? His MAD parodies are among the best things Western Civilization can point to as a justification for itself (along with Milk Duds and comfortable footwear). So this is a welcome look at "Wally's World," but it's sadly conceived and seemingly unedited. At one point the authors go into a disquisition on Scandinavian mythology for a few pages-- I thought I was in the wrong book. Any editor worth his or her salt would have ripped out at least a quarter of this thing and included more content from those who worked with and knew Wood-- instead we get little snippets from interviews taken out of context. Ah well, it's good to know more about Wood's (mostly sad) life and brilliant work, but this half-hearted effort doesn't do him justice.