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Andrews McM
eel is the publishing division of what was once known as the Universal Press Syndicate. If one ignores the various archival publishers of comicstrips, then AMU is the predominant publisher of comicstrip collections in the United States.
This Fall, AMU launches a line aimed at kids, known as AMP!. Diary of a Wimpy Kid encouraged Lincoln Peirce to publish a hybrid book of Big Nate (which pioneered the cartoon diary in that comicstrip back in the 1990s). Based on the success of those prose novels, AMU is using Big Nate as a foundation to launch a series of large reprint paperbacks featuring Big Nate, Fox Trot, and Lio. (Old school comics fans will recall the old Holt, Rinehart and Winston Peanuts collections. These are similar, except each page features one strip, instead of the two-per-page of Peanuts.) 224 pages for $9.99 is quite affordable, and all three strips are quite enjoyable. (Although Lio can be a bit dark at times.)
Covers have not yet been set yet for the Spring titles. All information is tentative. If you’re not familiar with these strips, they can be read for free over at their Uclick website, along with a lot of other great strips!
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AAAA!: A FoxTrot Kids Edition
Summary:
AAAA! That’s the sound heard often from the the Fox siblings as only sister Paige discovers Quincy the iguana has eaten her homework, older brother Peter applies permanent marker on his face drawing a fake goatee, and younger brother and expert video gamer Jason loses to Paige. Throw in the AAAAs as mother Andy exclaims while dodging thrown balls in the house and backyard-grilling disaster dad Roger blows up another grill, and you have the perfect equation for a family that every kid can relate to.
Including cartoons from previously published books, this kid-targeted book portrays a not so typical look at how a year unfolds in the Fox family.
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Lio: There’s a Monster in My Socks
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Big Nate All Work and No Play: A Collection of Sundays
Summary:
Already a New York Times best-seller, it’s two firsts in one for a Big Nate book! The first Sundays-only and first full-color Big Nate collection both debut in Big Nate All Work and No Play. Enjoy more than two years of Sunday cartoons, portraying the colorful life of Nate Wright. This spunky eleven-year-old holds the school record for detentions and is in little chance of losing that distinction, but that doesn’t stop him from dreaming big!
He’s a self-described genius, a sixth-grade renaissance man, and a full-fledged believer in his future as a cartoonist. Equipped with a No. 2 pencil and the unshakable belief that he is No. 1, Nate fights a daily battle against overzealous teachers, undercooked cafeteria food, and all-around conventionality.
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Think Like a Shark: Avoiding a Porpoise-Driven Life
Summary:
Collecting more than 42 weeks of Jim Toomey’s Sherman’s Lagoon, this collection transports readers to an imaginary lagoon near the South Pacific island of Kapupu, where a cast of coral-reef critters battles the encroachment of the hairless beach apes (a.k.a. humans).
Commenting on such timely issues as rising sea levels and changing weather patterns, inhabitants of Toomey’s nautical neighborhood include Sherman, an always-hungry but otherwise typical great white shark; his witty pearl-wearing wife, Megan; friendly Fillmore the turtle; geeky fish Ernest; macho hermit crab Hawthorne; and salty old Captain Quigley. Inside Sherman’s Lagoon, these bottom-dwelling denizens offer under-the-sea hilarity, along with a real-life call to action in relation to protecting our environment, oceans, and all marine life.
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BONK!: A Mutts Treasury
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Enjoy the day-to-day adventures of two animal buddies, a small mutt with a big heart named Earl, and Mooch, a cat with his own way of thinking and talking (yesh!).
Mutts explores the special bond between animals and their guardians, and the endearing friendship of Earl and Mooch. It strikes a delicate balance between joy and fun and responsible social commentary. Mutts has been recognized for its distinctive style, heartwarming humor, and compassionate advocacy for animal issues.
In this 16th chronological collection of Mutts strips, a year’s worth of color Sunday strips and black-and-white daily strips are included, along with pop-art splash pages that highlight McDonnell’s imaginative artwork and distinctive style.
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How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You
Summary:
Jesus Rollerblading Christ–another helping of TheOatmeal! Mrow, MOAR kitty comics. Mr. Oats delivers a sidesplitting serving of cat comics in his new book, How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You.
If your cat is kneading you, that’s not a sign of affection. Your cat is actually checking your internal organs for weakness. If your cat brings you a dead animal, this isn’t a gift. It’s a warning. How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You is a hilarious, brilliant offering of cat comics, facts, and instructional guides from the creative wonderland at TheOatmeal.com.
How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You presents fan favorites, such as “Cat vs. Internet,” “How to Pet a Kitty,” and “The Bobcats,” plus 17 brand-new, never-before-seen cat jokes. This Oatmeal collection is a must-have from Mr. Oats! A pullout poster is included at the back of the book.
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A Shtinky Little Christmas
Summary:
As Christmas approaches, Shtinky Puddin’ grows ever more homesick and decides to depart the comfort and safety of Earl and Mooch’s protection in hopes of finding home. With uncommunicative snowmen and zero luck, Shtinky Puddin’ gets lost in a blizzard, only to be found by Earl and Mooch, who then get lost themselves. Just in the Nick of time, a jolly rotund, red suit–wearing, white-bearded human approaches and delivers the traveling trio straight to their peoples’ doorstep—only to learn that Shtinky Puddin’s peoples have come to claim their lost tiger-striped kitty named Jules.
With caviar rewards, Christmas naps, and New Year’s resolutions to “do less,” this emotive Mutts gift book reminds us that there is indeed a reason for the season with themes of friendship, thankfulness, family, home, and hearth.
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I Can’t Remember If We’re Cheap or Smart
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Making Ends Meet: For Better or For Worse 3rd Treasury
Summary:
As creator Lynn Johnston illustrates inside this special treasury of America’s most popular family comic strip, For Better of For Worse, life moves quickly in the Patterson household. From car pools and coffee klatches to life lessons for all, Johnston combines strips from her fifth, sixth, and seventh cartoon collections–The Last Straw, Keep the Home Fries Burning, and It’s All Downhill From Here–inside this specially annotated edition.
Reflecting Johnston’s longstanding tradition of portraying family life with warmth, humor, and honesty, this treasury features Johnston’s original commentary, which offers firsthand insight into the development and inspiration behind her strips. Candid personal photos and newspaper clippings from the early days are also included and provide a behind-the-scenes glimpse for fans of For Better or For Worse.
Join the Patterson family as they find humor in life’s everyday challenges and triumphs; and discover why this endearing foursome is North America’s favorite funny-page family inside this reflective retrospective.
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Jasotron: 2012: A FoxTrot Collection
Summary:
Jason continues to craft exploits at Paige’s expense, while Peter suits up for the next big game. Parents Roger and Andy keep up with their children’s antics, as Roger vigilantly monitors his hairline and his burrito intake, along with Andy’s attempts to create Peeps from tofu and saffron. With appearances in the New York Times crossword puzzle and on television’s Jeopardy! and The Sopranos, FoxTrot frequently finds itself an integral part of the popular culture that it so often critiques.
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BBXX: Baby Blues: Decades 1 & 2
Summary:
BBXX is a hefty, hardcover treasury highlighting 20 years of Baby Blues, one of the most popular comic strips in history. A comprehensive and commemorative edition of all things Baby Blues, creators Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott share personal reflections and never-before-published essays, drawings, and photographs, along with almost 800 of the best Baby Blues strips from the last two decades.
Named Best Comic Strip of the Year in 1995, Baby Blues follows young parents Darryl and Wanda MacPherson as they raise children Zoe, Hammie, and Baby Wren. From temper tantrums to toilet training, everyday experiences that all parents agonize over and laugh about serve as fertile comedic ground as BBXX takes readers on a relevant and timeless journey through twenty years of Baby Blues. What results is a truthfully fulfilling romp through the daily aspects of family life as well as a carefully nuanced tug at the heartstrings.
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The Stinking: A Get Fuzzy Treasury
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Big Nate: Game On!
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Lio Kids Book #2
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Pearls Before Swine Collection # 19: A Pearls Before Swine Collection
Summary:
Smart, sharp, and sometimes painfully honest, Pearls Before Swine mocks the flaws and shortcomings of human nature with cynical humor.
Pearls Before Swine is the hilarious comic strip tale of two friends: arrogant, egotistical Rat who thinks he knows it all and slow-witted Pig who is painfully naive. Together with Zebra, the activist, Goat, the reluctant brain, and the carnivorous Crocs, it offers pointed commentary on humanity’s pitiable plight.
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Get Fuzzy Collection # 19
Summary:
Bucky, Satchel, and Rob are back for more madness and mayhem. And the world couldn’t be happier! Darby Conley’s previous titles include two New York Times best-sellers. Bucky Katt is a rather obstinate Siamese who constantly battles his “owner” Rob for control of their home. Satchel Pooch, the Labrador-Shar-pei mix who’s sweet and lovable, makes a nice lackey for Bucky. Bucky knows he’s smarter than everyone else; it’s just a matter of convincing the rest of the world. Satchel always tries to do the right thing but very often ends up the brunt of Bucky’s antics. Rob Wilco is a bachelor trying to regain household domesticity. Together, this seemingly typical threesome gets into some less-than-typical but hilarious situations. There’s never a dull moment at the Wilco residence.
Get Fuzzy, featured in over 650 newspapers worldwide, is one of the most highly lauded cartoons in the country. The National Cartoonists Society named it Best Comic Strip of 2002. Its sidesplitting humor and hilariously illustrated facial nuances appeal to animal lovers everywhere. Bucky and Satchel’s words and expressions are what we all picture our beloved pets saying and doing.
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Get Fuzzy, Lio, and Pearls Before Swine are great comic strips. And I kinda want to get that For Better or For Worse book.
I like that they are repackaging the FBOFW into nice bookshelf editions. Also I wonder while it states some of the material in AAAA! will be reprinted if that means some it will be new then for FoxTrot.