The Lives Behind the Lines: 20 Years of For Better or For Worse (Paperback)

~ (Author) "When I started For Better or For Worse twenty years ago, it was with a certain amount of youthful blase..." (more)
Key Phrases: Connie Poirier, Elly Patterson, Michael Patterson (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

It's hard to believe we've known and loved the Pattersons for two decades. This lively family-Elly and John and their kids, Michael, Elizabeth, and April-has grown and changed, yet always retained its heartwarming combination of wit and wisdom. Through the years, this extraordinary clan has become like treasured relatives to millions of devoted fans. In Behind the Lines-the new collection that celebrates the strip's 20-year anniversary-For Better or For Worse creator Lynn Johnston takes us on a trip down memory lane, looking back over some of the strip's most memorable moments: Farley's heroics and death. Elly's concerns about aging. Michael's early days at college. Presented as a scrapbook, Behind the Lines includes a chapter for Elly, John, Michael, Elizabeth, and April, highlighting formative times in their lives. Johnston's commentary adds a behind-the-scenes element, as she describes some of her thoughts about the strip over the years. An abundance of her favorite color and black-and-white cartoons makes this must-have book a guaranteed winner with the strip's most ardent fans.

About the Author

Cartoonist Lynn Johnston was born in Collingwood, Ontario, and grew up in British Columbia. The first woman to win the National Cartoonists Society's Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year in 1985, Johnson also received a Best Syndicated Comic Strip for For Better or For Worse in 1992. Among her best-selling books are Middle Age Spread, Starting from Scratch, and Remembering Farley: A Tribute to the Life of Our Favorite Cartoon Dog. Johnston lives in northern Manitoba with her husband and two children.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0740701991
• ISBN-13: 978-0740701993
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 8.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #586,072 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic, February 28, 2000

By	Carol Dickman (Chicago) - See all my reviews

When I found this book, I at first thought that it might be an autobiography of sorts of the Johnston family. I wasn't thrilled, but I love For Better or For Worse so much, that anything about the comic strip will interest me. What I found was a treasure, not an autobiography, but a volume on the autobiographical Pattersons, including a discussion about the evolution of the strip, an examination of the major characters and their friends, and a synopsis of events that occurred to the Pattersons prior to the first strip published 21 years ago. Ms. Johnston does an admirable job of showing how she has developed characters that often seem so real that I now think of them as members of my family. I learned things that I have missed through the years, including Connie's South American adventure which resulted in the birth of Lawrence. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of the Pattersons, Lynn Johnston, and For Better or For Worse.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great behind-the-scenes book!, December 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Lives Behind the Lines : 20 Years of For Better or For Worse (Hardcover)

This book really fills in the details (with words and new drawings) that Lynn Johnston could not squeeze into a daily comic strip. For example, I learned a lot about Elly's past, how she and John met, more about Lawrence's 'coming out' situation, and what she sees for the future of these characters. Every major character in the show is given this "behind the scenes" treatment, which is great (I never knew the entire history of Elly's best friend Connie, for example). Of course, there are lots of old cartoon strips where appropriate -- but this is much more than a book full of cartoon strips. My only "complaint" is that there is no table of contents for the characters and things are not necessarily in chronological order. When I wanted to look up info on a particular character or situation, I'd have to flip through the pages for a while.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Essential Guide to one of the best daily strips, March 15, 2000

By	Myke Predko (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

"For Better or For Worse" is not a typical comic strip; the characters get older, some die, some get new friends; it is an ongoing saga about life. Lynn's work can be outrageously funny, sad and, as some other reviewers have pointed out, schmaltzy.

I have tried to read the strip every day since I first discovered it (twenty years ago). I can't guarantee a belly laugh every day, but you will think about the characters and worry about them. This is the difference between FBOFW and other strips - who cares about Dilbert or BC?

Even with my long history with the strip, this introduction to the characters was perfect to reflect on what has happened and who all the characters (some of whom don't show up for months on end). In the book Lynn says she has more story lines than panels to hold them - let's hope this is true for a very long time.