Fantagraphics

Over on his blog, Norwegian superstar Jason has revealed the front and back covers for October's JASON CONQUERS AMERICA, a 32-page tribute to all things Jason:

Fantagraphics announced at their panel Saturday that they will be republishing two comics classics which so far have yet to receive the deluxe treatment: the EC Comics Library and a complete collection of the influential early indie anthology Zap Comix.

So much good stuff! Bestselling author Christopher Moore writes a graphic novel! Ray Bradbury, Grandmaster, has two classics adapted! Grant Morrison writes about superheroes and religion! Disney and Hitler, together again! Girlie comics from Marvel! "Good Girl" comics from Jim Silke, Doug Sneyd, and Dean Yeagle! Great Women comics from Gail Simone, Colleen Coover, Megan Kelso, Jill Thompson, and Corinne Mucha! (Can't find female creators on the newsstands? Check the bookshelves!) And lots of masterful work from Jim Lee, Todd McFarlane, Jim Starlin, and Floyd Gottfredson!

Today's slam dunk interview is Alex Dueben's chat with Fantagraphics' publisher Gary Groth, probably just because on the internet a frank discussion with a knowledgeable comics publishing figure is about as common as a humble moment from LeBron. Throw in that he has stellar vocabulary skills, and you have a winner.

Ah... Memorial Day approaches, and with it, summer vacation. Day after day of nothing which must be done, but full of possibilities! Maybe an escape to the air-conditioned refuge of your local library. Perhaps a day spent on the porch, sipping something cold and sinful (I prefer Brown Cows, served in a large ice tea glass). Or maybe hiding away up in a hayloft, or deep in a cool root cellar, where no one can find you. Whatever your preference, there's nothing like a good book to make you forget the world around you. Below are some suggestions for your summer reading pleasures. (And if you need a nap to avoid the afternoon heat, give your kids something to read. It'll keep them quiet long enough for you to recharge your batteries.)

Fan of the curious antics of Michael Kupperman have been enjoying his "Mark Twain meets Einstein" adventures on his blog for a while, but it turns out that it's turned into a book, Mark Twain’s Autobiography, 1910-2010 which will be published in August from Fantagraphics. The cover hasn't been released yet but a few preview images have.

NOT inked with a giant pen but incredible nonetheless, 10 pages of Jim Woodring's first ever Frank graphic novel, CONGRESS OF THE ANIMALS. For those unfamiliar with Woodring's work, it is set in a strange world of hope and cruelty, where strange creatures enact tales as deep as time, not even needing words. Few artists of any kind have ever limned the subconscious with such terrifying accuracy and beauty.

In an interview that would be notable enough just for talking about his new Frank graphic novel CONGRESS OF THE ANIMALS, Jim Woodring drops even more bombshells, revealing that the giant steel nib pen -- which the world watched created with bated breath -- is not very easy to ink with.

In an interview that would be notable enough just for talking about his new Frank graphic novel CONGRESS OF THE ANIMALS, Jim Woodring drops even more bombshells, revealing that the giant steel nib pen -- which the world watched created with bated breath -- is not very easy to ink with.

The just arrived issue of PW Comics Week has a nice preview of Celluloid, Dave McKean's first graphic novel since Cages. You'd think an undertaking of this sort might have gotten a little but more hoopla. Perhaps when people start looking at the art, it will Celluloid is described as a "pornographic work of art" about a man, a woman and a porn film that all intersect. It's out from from Fantagraphics next month.

Wow! Lots of great books coming out this month!

As long rumored, the much maligned Comics Journal website has re-launched with a new editorial team: Dan Nadel and Tim Hodler, founders of the Comics Comics website and zine, will bring their view of contemporary comics to the hallowed brand of TCJ.com. Hodler started things off with an editorial which, amazingly, did not talk about how crappy websites are; insead it laid out a pretty exciting vision for the new site:

This site is divided into several sections which will continue to grow over the days and weeks and months to come: Feature articles, including lengthy interviews, investigative journalism, and long-form critical and historical essays; regular columns on a variety of subjects; a steady stream of book reviews; thorough and easily navigated event listings; an ever-growing archive of The Comics Journal‘s thirty-plus years as a print magazine (by the end of 2011, each and every issue will be online)—this will be available in full to magazine subscribers only; and of course this daily blog, which will be a catch-all for short items, selective link-blogging, and a forum for guest voices and bad jokes.