Showing posts with label Comics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Comics. Show all posts

Monday, February 13, 2017

March, Book 1: Civil Rights history in comics

“Congressman John Lewis (GA-5) is an American icon, one of the key figures of the civil rights movement. His commitment to justice and nonviolence has taken him from an Alabama sharecropper’s farm to the halls of Congress, from a segregated schoolroom to the 1963 March on Washington, and from receiving beatings from state troopers to receiving the Medal of Freedom from the first African-American president.” (…)

March is a vivid first-hand account of John Lewis’ lifelong struggle for civil and human rights, meditating in the modern age on the distance traveled since the days of Jim Crow and segregation. Rooted in Lewis’ personal story, it also reflects on the highs and lows of the broader civil rights movement. Book One spans John Lewis’ youth in rural Alabama, his life-changing meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr., the birth of the Nashville Student Movement, and their battle to tear down segregation through nonviolent lunch counter sit-ins, building to a stunning climax on the steps of City Hall.”

(Text from the publisher's website; see also the back cover)

Congressman John Lewis wanted to be a preacher. He grew up on his parents' farm in rural Alabama taking care of the family chickens (to whom he was practising preaching!). The story starts in his congressional office as he is preparing to go assist at Obama's inauguration. A black lady comes into the office with her children to show them up a place where history was made. Instead they meet with the Congressman himself who takes this opportunity to tell them a little about himself and the history of the civil rights movement. With the help of his uncle Otis and Martin Luther King, Jr., to whom he wrote a letter, he succeed to go to college in Nashville. There, he contributed to the Student Movement and, inspired by Gandhi's nonviolent protest, took many actions to fight against segregation.


The storytelling is excellent and the art is pretty good. It is a superb idea to bring back to life Congressman Lewis' memories, such as his actions of civil disobedience, for a new generation to understand what the civil rights movement was all about. It is very educational and it is probably even more relevant today than when it was first published (considering the “Black Lives Matter” movement and the fact that I discovered this book through a CNN report about President Trump insulting Congressman Lewis, saying he was “all talk and no action” !).

All in all, it's a nice way to teach the history of an important moment of our Western Civilization, but also an excellent occasion to talk about good moral values. The life of great role models like Congressman Lewis need to be recorded for the posterity, but not only in history books or museums but also as part of our popular culture. It's a good reading for the Black History Month and I cannot recommend it more strongly.

March: Book One, by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell. Marietta GA: Top Shelf Productions, August 2013. 128 pg., Softcover, 6.5" x 9.5", 14.95 US / $19.99 Can. ISBN: 978-1-60309-300-2.

For more information you can check the following websites:

[ Traduire ]

Sunday, July 31, 2016

Weekly notable news [week 31]

Here are a few notable news & links that I came across this week:


Funnies

Non Sequitur: Monday, March 21, 2016 (The two-party detour)

Dilbert: Tuesday, March 22, 2016 (The Elbonian Religion)

[ Traduire ]

Monday, July 04, 2016

Funnies forever

Here (after the break) are a few notably funny comic strips that I found in the last few months…

Starting with Unshelved, the web comics about the staff (and patrons) of a rather dysfunctional library. I caught up on several months of strips to realize that artist Bill Barnes decided to take a break and was replaced by occasional contributor Chris Hallbeck. It doesn't change anything. Here are a few of my favourites (believe it or not I've experienced many of those situations):

Sunday, September 20, 2015

Unshelved 11: Reads well with others

“Our very first full-color collection, Reads Well With Others features stirring tales of library derring-do, often inspired by, and occasionally blatantly documenting, true stories from librarians around the world. In this volume you'll find strips about: unattended children, creeps, staff trainings, website redesigns, reading levels, confidentiality, bookstores, coffee… and much more, including Conference Tips never seen on our site.”

“It's the same compact size as our last three collections, but this time around every strip is in full color!”

[ Text from the publisher's website; the back cover is also a must-read ]


Thursday, February 26, 2015

Schulz's Youth

You love Charles Schulz's cartoon kids. Now it's time to meet his teens!

“Using the same wit and empathy that made his Peanuts cartoons popular worldwide. Charles Schulz turns his sights on the lives of teenagers. He finds the humor in teen attitudes toward spirituality, family, dating, and life. All their youthful enthusiasm, exuberence, passion, flaws, and faibles are on display with the hilarious drawings and sharp insights that made Schulz the most influential cartoonist ever."

"During the 1950s and 60s, while his work was exploding in popularity, Schulz created hundreds of these cartoons for Youth magazine and other publications. Here they are, including ones never before collected and unseen in decades. It’s a treasure trove for any true Schulz fan.” [ Text from the back cover ]

Monday, November 18, 2013

Quelques nouvelles en BD

Calvin & Hobbes en livrel


Presque trente ans après que Bill Watterson eu lancé sa fameuse série Calvin & Hobbes, trois compilations rassemblant une bonne partie de son oeuvre sont maintenant disponible en format électronique: The Essential Calvin and Hobbes, The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes, et The Indispensable Calvin and Hobbes. Ces collections se vendent pour $12.99 sur la plupart des sites de livrels comme celui pour le Kindle d'Amazon, le Nook de Barnes & Noble et, bien sûr, pour l'iBooks d'Apple [ quoique le lien vers l'iBook store ne semble plus fonctionner... :( ].

[Sources (en anglais): Cult of Mac, The Verge]


La Pastèque au musée


La BD s'expose au Musée: 15 artistes de La Pastèque inspirés par la collection. Dans le cadre du 15e anniversaire de la maison d'édition La Pastèque, le Musée présente une exposition gratuite et originale mettant en vedette quinze des bédéistes qui ont fait le succès de l'éditeur au fil des ans : La BD s'expose au Musée - 15 artistes de La Pastèque inspirés par la collection. Après une visite au MBAM et des recherches dans sa base de données, Isabelle Arsenault, Pascal Blanchet, Paul Bordeleau, Pascal Colpron, Cyril Doisneau, Patrick Doyon, Jean-Paul Eid, Pascal Girard, Réal Godbout, Janice Nadeau, Michel Rabagliati, Marc Simard, Rémy Simard, Siris et Leif Tande ont chacun choisi une œuvre de la collection dont ils se sont ensuite inspirés pour créer un récit inédit.”

L'exposition se tient du 6 novembre 2013 au 30 mars 2014 au Pavillon Jean-Noël Desmarais (Niveau 3). L'entrée est libre en tout temps.

[Source: MBA]


Hayao Miyazaki de retour sur la planche à dessin!


Hayao Miyazaki avait pourtant annoncé sa retraite, mais deux mois plus tard on le surprend à travailler sur un manga! Je suppose qu'il prenait sa retraite de production d'animation seulement et que, maintenant qu'il du temps à lui, il se remet sur les choses qu'il voulait vraiment produire.

L'émission de télé de la NHK Professional Shigoto no Ryūgi (style de travail professionnel) a montré Miyazaki en train de dessiner un manga de samurai! “Miyazaki a affirmer vouloir dessiner des histoires sur la période des Royaumes combattants du Japon (Sengoku) et autres histoires qui ne peuvent être classifiées”. Cette histoire sera prépublié dans un magazine qui n'a pas encore été identifié [MàJ 12/09: il s'agirait de Model Graphix] et Miyazaki le fait sur une base bénévole, c'est-à-dire qu'il ne désire pas être rémunéré. Le style du manga ressemble beaucoup au style riche et chargé qu'il a utilisé pour son vieux manga de Nausicaä de la vallée du vent.

[Source (en anglais): ANN]


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Sunday, November 17, 2013

Unshelved 10: Bibliovores

bib•li•o•vore | 'biblēǝ,vôr | noun : a person whose primary form of nourishment is books.

The tenth Unshelved collections, Bibliovores, “begins where Too Much Information left off, with the birth of Dewey's adorable daughter, Trillian. It also features: The on-the-job education of Mallville Public Library's newest employee, Dyna the clerk; Dewey explaining plagiarism to an unrepentant Merv; The mystery patron who won't leave the bathroom; Dewey's NDA review copy of a hot new YA novel by his favorite author; Library Day Camp; Staff self-assessments; and much more!”

“In addition to daily comic strips [published on the website between December 5th 2011 and March 28th 2013], Bibliovores features Dewey's Secret Origin, Conference Tips, and the 12 page classic comic epic What Would Dewey Do @ BEA? It's the same compact size as Too Much Information and Large Print, but this time around [there's] six months worth of color strips.” [Text from the publisher's website]

Sunday, June 02, 2013

Bibliovores

Today, Overdue Media announced on their Unshelved web site the coming release of the tenth Unshelved compilation, titled Bibliovores.

Unshelved is a web comic that tells the daily misadventures of Dewey and his co-workers at an American dysfunctional library. Most of the time, it's quite hilarious (particularly if you KNOW a little about the library world). This compilation picks up where the previous one left off.

It will includes previously unpublished comics strips and six month worth of color strips. It's published in the same compact format than the previous two compilations, and will ship in early July for $11.95 US. For now you can order it directly from Overdue Media web site (but it should eventually be also available on Amazon).

Click for a preview after the jump >>

Sunday, October 07, 2012

“Unshelved” marathon

I just finished catching up on a few months worth of my favourite web comics: Unshelved. This year they're celebrating their tenth anniversary and there's already eight annual compilations available. Oh, did I mentioned that it is the story of a dysfunctional library and its staff ? I just feel at home. (See previous reviews).

See my latest favourites strips after the jump:

Friday, January 20, 2012

Bibliography

After reading my bio/bibliography in the DALIAF, it reminded me that I published more than just fiction (or a few sci-fi short stories). So I decided to gather my own bibliography, a list as exhaustive as I could of all the major texts I've written. Here it is, right after the jump:

Thursday, January 12, 2012

A New “Unshelved” compilation!

I just read this morning on the Unshelved website that their ninth and latest comic strip compilation is finally out! (if you are wondering what's Unshelved you can check the “About” page of the website or read my previous comments on this hillarious comic strip).

You can read the latest daily misadventures of a dysfunctional library's staff in Too Much Information. Published in the same smaller format than Large Print, the previous book, it “contains eighteen months of daily strips and never-published-on-the-web Conference Tips, plus selected author commentary and a foreword by Babymouse author Jennifer Holm”. The books ship in February but can be already ordered from the website's store (it's not yet listed on Amazon). It's a must-read if you work (or spend lots of time) in a library! Check after the jump for a page sample of the book.

Sunday, January 02, 2011

The Walking Dead

I don't really know what made me want to watch The Walking Dead TV series. I never was a big fan of horror and even less of zombies movies, finding them rather ridiculous and disgusting. Being amused by the idea of a feature-quality TV series about zombies, I guess I took notice of the web punditocracy announcing it as something worth watching and there was probably nothing else on TV that night... The fact is that, after watching the first episode, I was intrigued enough to follow the entire first season (six episodes).

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Unshelved #8: Large Print

Unshelved makes me appreciate those busy librarians of my school days even more. They were my best friends no matter where I went, and I worshipped them. Seeing what they had to deal with only notches up my love for them! —Tamora Pierce”

“What do you get when you mix adults, teenagers, children, babies, seniors, professionals, parents, teachers, students, homeschoolers, and the homeless? That very funniest of places, your local public library, home of the hugely popular Web comic Unshelved.” [texts from the back cover]

Everything in this comic is eerily familiar: it tells the daily life of the staff from a dysfunctional library. Large Print is the eighth yearly compilation of Unshelved, a daily online comic strip originally published on the Unshelved website from February 16, 2009 to April 26, 2010, and ALA CogNotes newspapers in June 2009 and January 2010 (CogNotes is the daily paper of the American Library Association Midwinter Meeting and ALA Annual Conference, where the famous Unshelved “Conference Tips” are published). I have already reviewed the previous volumes in the blog entries “Unshelved” and “Unshelved #7: Reader's Advisory”. You can also find more information in the Wikipedia entry, the Official Unshelved Facebook page or the Unshelved Readers Facebook group.

This volume is noticeably more hillarious than the previous one. Everyone will laugh at the funny and often absurd situations happening in the Mallville public library. I am probably laughing even harder because I recognize myself a lot in there, since I experienced first-hand many of those situations. It's written by a real-life librarian and it shows. Of course, the art is a little crude and cartoony, but —as I often say— it's the story that counts.

This volume has something new: it has a few comments from the writers underneath the strips. It's interesting to read and I would have liked to have more of those. Also, this time the book is in a smaller format and in b&w only. However, since part of the book deals with how the library is coping with the recession, I think this downsizing is befitting the story. Large Print is compiling 313 daily strips (mostly in their original publishing order), 16 “Library Tips”, and 9 ALA “Conference Tips”. Unfortunately, the color “Book Club” pages (where the authors illustrate book recommendations) are absent and I am quite disappointed with this (however you can still read them online). But I guess it was necessary if they wanted the book to be only in b&w. All in all, Large Print offers a good laugh, particularly if you have ever spent some time in a public library. Highly recommended.

One of my favourite strips (from 2009/10/26):
My top 25 strips (in the order they appear in the book): 2009/03/02, 2009/03/07, 2009/03/25, 2009/04/01, 2009/04/13, 2009/05/02, 2009/05/12, 2009/06/09, 2009/06/06, 2009/07/17, 2009/07/22, 2009/08/05, 2009/10/26, 2009/10/17, 2009/10/06, 2009/10/08, 2009/10/19, 2009/12/08, 2009/12/29, 2009/12/31, 2010/03/03, 2010/03/22, 2010/04/01, 2010/04/22, and 2010/04/20.

Unshelved Vol. 8: Large Print, by Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes. Seattle, Overdue Media, 2010. 21.8 x 17 cm, 128 pgs., $11.95 US / $14.95 CDN. ISBN-13: 978-09740353-7-6.

Unshelved: Large Print © 2009 & 2010 Overdue Media LLC. All rights reserved.

P.S.: I pre-ordered this book via amazon.ca in january 2010. It was due to be released in mid-July, but it was only delivered in mid-September even if it had been available through the publisher's web site since july... Go figure! It is also disappointing that this book is not available at all through my local libraries network (where I work)!

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Unshelved #7: Reader's Advisory

“BREAKING LITERARY NEWS FROM THE AWARD-WINNING STAFF OF THE MALLVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY. Whether it's a Paranormal Romance front coming in from the North, colliding Low-carb and Low-fat Cookbooks causing a whirlwind in the South, or a high-pressure Get Rich Quick system building in the Tri-State area, our news team is there with the reading recommendations you need. Featuring the latest daily and Sunday comic strips from Unshelved, your trusted source for library humor.” [text from the back cover] “Follow the adventures of a young librarian named Dewey, his dysfunctional coworkers, and the people they're supposed to be helping.” [Amazon.com]

Reader's Advisory is the seventh yearly compilation of Unshelved, a daily online comic strip set in an american library. It was originally published on the Unshelved website from February 17, 2008 to February 15, 2009, and ALA CogNotes newspapers in June 2008 and January 2009 (CogNotes is the daily paper of the American Library Association Midwinter Meeting and ALA Annual Conference, where the famous Unshelved “Conference Tips” are published). I have already reviewed the previous six volumes. You can also find more information in the Wikipedia entry, the Official Unshelved Facebook page or the Unshelved Readers Facebook group.

Written (under a pen name) by a real-life librarian who works in an undisclosed library in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.A., Unshelved is a rather funny comic strip. The art is a little crude and it's probably of a greater interest to me because I work in a library (although it made me laugh even before I started working there). Also, I admit that this particular volume feels a little less funny to me, maybe because the novelty of a witty librarian in riduculous situations is wearing off and previous volumes had more continuity in the story of each strip as they were more or less following a general theme. I don't see that in Reader's Advisory as you have some stories or themes that go on only for two or three strips. However, after seven volumes it still makes me laugh, so I recommend it without hesitation (even more so to my fellow assistant-librarians, for whom it should be a mandatory reading)!

This volume compiles the daily strips (unfortunately not in their original publishing order), some “Library Tips”, the ALA “Conference Tips” as well as the color “Book Club” pages (where the authors illustrate book recommendations). The beauty of it is that you can always read it on the Unshelved website: it's free.

Strip from 2008/03/01:
Some of my favourites: 2008/02/18, 2008/03/03, 2008/03/17, 2008/04/01, 2008/04/02, 2008/04/24, 2008/05/30, 2008/08/23, 2008/09/16, 2008/10/24, 2008/11/11, 2008/11/13, 2008/11/22, 2008/12/26, and 2009/01/30.

Unshelved Vol. 7: Reader's Advisory, by Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes. Overdue Media, 2009. 10.7 x 8.2 in, 128 pgs., $17.95 US / $22.95 CDN. ISBN-13: 978-0-9740353-6-9.

Unshelved: Reader's Advisory © 2009 Overdue Media LLC. All rights reserved.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Unshelved

My latest reading (well, beside the daily newspaper and Time magazine) was pretty funny. It's a daily web comic strip created by Gene Ambaum (writer) and Bill Barnes (co-writer & artist) that I discovered by chance a few years ago. It has been published daily since 2002 and has been compiled, so far, in six volumes (and a seventh should be released in spring 2009). In 2006, I ordered from the publisher, Overdue Media (www.unshelved.com), the first three compilations: Vol. 1: Unshelved (2003); Vol. 2: What Would Dewey Do? (2004); Vol. 3: Library Mascot Cage Match (2005). I liked it a lot.

Written by a real-life librarian (but Gene Ambaum is not his real name) and illustrated by his friend, Bill Barnes, Unshelved tells the story of the people surrounding the Mallville Public Library. The main character is named Dewey! (for more details see the story primer or the Wikipedia entry). The art is rather simple, but the story is hilarious, educating and profess a great love for books. Despite the humorous situations that develop between the characters, it gives a good idea of the inner workings of a library. It could be a librarian training manual... Unshelved seems pretty popular: over 26,000 email subscribers. It's also published on its own website, as well as on the American Library Association website and CogNotes newspapers. The creators must be quite busy because (beside having day jobs) they tour lots of bookfairs, conferences and conventions!

Last month I found out that three more compilations had been published since I first discovered the series. Here they are:

“What happens in the library stays in the library. But oh, what happens in the library! Dewey has a book club, and you do not talk about Book Club. Colleen has a blog, but she doesn't know everyone can read it. Someone gave vegan Tamara a membership to the ham-of-the-month-club. And Merv reserved every copy of the new Harry Potter for purposes nefarious. This fourth Unshelved collection also features dozens of full-page full-color comic-format book talks, plus a very special storytime zombie nursery rhyme.” (From Amazon.com)

This volume includes the usual strips, plus some Library conference tips, but the most interesting feature is the dozens of full-color “Unshelved Book Club” book talks where the library staff introduce on each page a new book. A kind of weekly book review, in color and often hilarious!

Unshelved Vol. 4: Book Club, by Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes. Overdue Media, 2006. 10.9 x 8.3 in, 120 pgs., $17.95 US / $22.42 CDN. ISBN-13: 978-0974035338.

“The fifth year of strips includes the famous "Pimp My Bookcart" sequence and a year's worth of full-color full-page "Unshelved Book Clubs" featuring the greatest books every written. Plus, never-before published strips and more!” (From Amazon.com)

Unshelved Vol. 5: Read Responsibly, by Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes. Overdue Media, 2007. 10.9 x 8.2 in, 144 pgs., $17.95 US / $22.42 CDN. ISBN-13: 978-0974035345.

“No one gets asked questions more frequently than a librarian, and no librarian answers them with more attitude than Dewey! The latest Unshelved collection features a year's worth of daily comics and Conference Tips, plus the full-color Unshelved Book Club. Also features the Great Plastic Coffee Cup Lid Challenge between Unshelved and Sheldon, refereed by comics journalist Gary Tyrrell.” (From Amazon.com)

Unshelved Vol. 6: Frequently Asked Questions, by Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes. Overdue Media, 2008. 10.9 x 8.2 in, 136 pgs., $17.95 US / $22.42 CDN. ISBN-13: 978-0974035352.

Unshelved © 2002-2008 Overdue Media LLC, all rights reserved.

If you are a fan, you can sign up for “Unshelved Readers,” the Facebook group.