Graphic Novels Prepub Alert: Archie, Anne Frank & Gossip Girls
Featuring L.A. Banks, Gossip Girls & Anne Frank
By Martha Cornog -- Library Journal, 04/15/2010
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Remember our favorite bigamist, Archie Andrews? Last year, the red-headed Everyguy got to marry both Veronica and Betty in imaginary futures. Why not? Like in a game narrative, we can choose the outcome. Now the poor schlub has to not just actually grow up but live double wedlocked futures in twin plotlines starting in comics books this August: Life with Archie: The Married Life. The Archie wedding stories were the most successful Archie issues in recent memory, so readers will totally stay tuned for the follow-up soap opera(s).
Speaking of strong women, this summer look for Heralds, a team-up of mighty Marvel women to include She-Hulk, Emma Frost, and Hellcat from a femme creator team. A readalike to DC’s Birds of Prey? (See last month’s Prepub Alert.) Graphic novel collections of both series will surely appear eventually.
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Banks, L.A. The Vampire Huntress Legends: Dawn and Darkness. St. Martin’s. Aug. 2010. 176p. ISBN 978-0-312-58137-4. $19.99. F
Which is the more hair-raising—caring for newborn twins or facing down a deadly demon? Vampire hunters Damali and Carlos are about to find out. A prequel to the 13-book "Vampire Huntress Legend" series from this Philadelphia resident, a regular guest star at the East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention. Damali has been dubbed the "Black Buffy," and all 13 books are still in print.
Baek, Hyekyung & Cecily Von Ziegesar. Gossip Girl: For Your Eyes Only. Vol. 1. Yen Pr. Aug. 2010. 192p. ISBN 978-0-7595-3026-3. pap. $12.99. F
This Gossip Girl is not an adaptation of the enormously popular novels, but a new plotline with the same characters. And this time around, high schoolers Blair and Vanessa become unlikely roomies.
Bravo, Émile. Goldilocks and the Seven Squat Bears. Yen Pr. Aug. 2010. 32p. ISBN 978-0-316-08358-4. $14.99. F
So the bears come home to find this giant Goldilocks sprawled all over their beds. What to do? Why, find a prince, of course. But it can’t be a giant-killer-type prince! A French import with color art, for all ages.
Bushmiller, Ernie. Nancy Is Happy: Complete Dailies, 1942–1945. Fantagraphics. Aug. 2010. 432p. ISBN 978-1-60699-360-6. pap. $24.99. F
Bushmiller’s iconic strip originally starred the Aunt Fritzi character as a ditzy glamour girl. But after her eight-year-old niece Nancy was introduced, the cheerful moppet took over. Nancy has inspired numerous pop culture variations and tributes as well as a forthcoming serious analysis: How To Read Nancy (Karasik & Newgarden, Fantagraphics, Aug. 2010). The who’s who among Nancy Revivalists includes Art Spiegelman and Dan Clowes—who wrote the introduction. This first reprint volume collects the second four-year span of the run. The first four years will appear later, since the archival material is more sparse and difficult to collate.
Chankhamma, Shari. Sisters' Luck. SLG Pub. Aug. 2010. 144p. ISBN 978-1-59362-190-2. pap. $12.95. F
Twin girls with different powers over luck: one sucks up good luck, the other oozes bad luck. Together, their gifts remain invisible. But when they go to separate universities, one’s living in clover, while the other’s deep in la merde. With sibling conflict assuming supernatural proportions, one sister fights to bring them back together and restore the balance of luck in the universe. In attractive, graceful art with an edge of tension.
Dante & Seymour Chwast. Dante's Divine Comedy: A Graphic Adaptation. Bloomsbury USA. 128p. ISBN 978-1-60819-084-3. $20. LIT
Illustrator and artiste extraordinaire Chwast reimagines hell, purgatory, and paradise for a distinctive take on this classic satire. With Dante and his guide Virgil in fedoras.
Jacobson, Sid (text) & Ernie Colón (illus.). Anne Frank: The Anne Frank House Authorized Graphic Biography. Hill & Wang. Jul. 2010. 160p. ISBN 978-0-8090-2685-2. pap. $16.95. BIOG
From the team that brought you the comics version of The 9/11 Report. This biography draws on resources available through the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, now celebrating its 50th anniversary, and covers the lives of Anne’s parents as well as historical background about the Nazis. Clearly a must-buy. Several other Anne Frank comics exist, but they’re pitched for tweens or younger.
Johnson, Mat (text) & Simon Gane (illus.). Dark Rain: A New Orleans Story. Vertigo. Aug. 2010. 160p. ISBN 978-1-4012-2160-7. $24.99. F
In the Katrina-ravaged city, a couple of lowlifes try to pull off a mega-bank heist. Can they beat the system, even though there’s not much left of it? Can they even make it through alive? Oh, and there’s competition—heavily armed. Vertigo describes this as an exploration of social issues with a page-turning plot. Johnson wrote the well-received Incognegro (2008).
Ohba, Tsugumi (text) & Takeshi Obata (illus.). Bakuman. Vol. 1. VIZ Media. Aug. 2010. 208p. ISBN 978-1-4215-3513-5. pap. $9.99. F
The manga team known for the megahit Death Note explores the angst of high schoolers Akito and Moritaka when they team up to make manga. The carrot: Moritaka’s crush will marry him if he succeeds. A slice-of-life story, not a thriller, but it has done well in Japan, running seven volumes so far, and an anime has been announced.
Schauer, Mitch (text) & Mike Vosburg (illus.). RIP, M.D. Fantagraphics. Aug. 2010. 88p. ISBN 978-1-60699-369-9. pap. $12.99. F
While messing in the graveyard behind his house, 11-year-old Ripley rescues a tiny bat. Whoops—he’s just saved the life—er, unlife—of a vampire! Word spreads, and pretty soon paranormal critters from around the world are begging him for help. So RIP, M.D. means Rip, Monster Doctor. A "full-color, all-ages adventure" with an animated cartoon series in development, a promising bet for reluctant readers. While Fantagraphics is known for adult material, they’ve been open to doing comics for kids.
Sniegoski, Tom (text) & Jeff Smith (illus.). Tall Tales. GRAPHIX: Scholastic. 2010. 128p. ISBN 978-0-545-14095-9. $22.99. F
How Big Johnson Bone founded Boneville, and how the (stupid stupid) rat creatures lost their tails. Originally published as Stupid, Stupid Rat-Tails, this Bone prequel collection reappears in color with new stories added. Buy multiple copies, natch.
Stevenson, Robert Louis (text) & Jason Ho (illus.). Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Franklin Watts. (Edge: Graphic Chillers). Aug. 2010. 32p. ISBN 978-0-7496-9686-3. pap. Price TBA. F
Two newbies join the Adaptor Publishers’ Club: Franklin Watts and Steerforth (see under Wells, below). "The Edge: Graphic Chillers" series is designed to engage reluctant readers roughly ages 7 to 13, and The Invisible Man starts off the series this May. For titles, sample pages, and info, access http://www.franklinwatts.co.uk and plug "Graphic Chillers" into the Book Search box.
Tadano, Nobuaki. 7 Billion Needles. Vol. 1. Vertical. Aug. 2010. 192p. ISBN 978-1-934287-87-3. pap. $10.95. F
Hal Clement’s classic sci-fi thriller Needle (1950) put a positive spin on the notion of alien possession, with an extra-terrestrial hunter working synergistically with his boy host to find and kill a criminal of the same species. In Tadano’s version, the hunter takes up residence inside a reclusive teen girl, communicating with her through her omnipresent headphones—and the life-form it’s chasing is out to destroy all seven billion humans on earth. This should interest sci-fi fans of the original story as well as the manga crowd.
Wells, H.G. (text) & Rajesh Nagulakonda (illus.). The Time Machine. Steerforth: Campfire. Aug. 2010. 72p. adapted by Lewis Helfand. ISBN 978-93-80028-26-2. pap. $9.99. F
Steerforth Press in New Hampshire is reissuing classic literature and adventure stories adapted by Campfire, an India-based publisher. English-native expats do the adapting, while local comics veterans supply the graphics. In July, Alice in Wonderland launches the series outside India. With some 70 titles in the pipeline, the series will have promotions soon hitting the North American social media—an approach that in India has led to several reprintings. To see what’s coming, access http://www.steerforth.com/campfire or http://www.campfire.co.
Wertz, Julia. Drinking at the Movies. Three Rivers: Crown. Aug. 2010. 192p. ISBN 978-0-307-59183-8. pap. $15. HUMOR
Autobiographical humor "with serious parts," a more linear continuation of Wertz’s webcomic The Fart Party—which isn’t as outrageous as it sounds. Wertz’s irreverent cynicism about "the worst part of my 20’s" suggests a less savage Lynda Barry with art somewhere between Penny Arcade and Unshelved. Love the title.
Women of Marvel: Celebrating Seven Decades. Marvel. Aug. 2010. 344p. ISBN 978-0-7851-4324-6 pap. $24.99. F
A collection of reprints showcasing Spider-Woman, Sue Storm from the Fantastic Four, Kitty Pryde from the X-Men, She-Hulk, and other heroines, with retrospective essays and extras. Part of Marvel’s 70th anniversary celebration.
About Comics (sort-of)
Ashcraft, Brian & Shoko Ueda. Japanese Schoolgirl Confidential: How Teenage Girls Made a Nation Cool. Kodansha. Aug. 2010. 192p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-47700-3115-0. pap. $16.95. POPULAR CULTURE
Japanese schoolgirls star in manga, anime, and other pop culture products. So where did those sailor suits come from, and how have Japanese girly fashions become the icon of cool get-ups? Ashcroft writes the "Japanese Schoolgirl Watch" column for Wired magazine, and he interviewed Japanese gals and culture watchers across the spectrum. With loads of color pics and a long list of sources.
