New for March 2006

La Perdida
by Jessica Abel
This hardcover volume collects the entirety of the five-issue series published by Fantagraphics, with ammendations and corrections (and for a price that is 20% less than the cost of the original comics!). La Perdida -- which translates as "The Loss,"  --  presents an in-depth and unflinching look at a group of well-to-do American ex-pats in Mexico and the Mexican locals that they interact with.  The entire tale pivots around Carla, a daughter of divorce whose father was Mexican and who heads to Mexico from her native Chicago "in search of her roots" -- but also because she's at a bit of a loss as to what to do with herself.  The epigraph that opens the work is from Malcolm Lowery's dark and desperate novel, Under the Volcano, and that sets the tone for what follows.  There are no heroes (or heroines) here.  What the reader is confronted with is sin and error:  selfishness; self-righteousness; ignorance; sloth; greed; exploitation; indiscriminate sex, drinking and drug use; and, finally, kidnapping and murder.  Abel has stated more than once that she was initially inspired to try her hand at comics by Love and Rockets, the work of the Mexican-American los hermanos Hernandez.  While her approach to characterization is very NYC -- and reminiscent of the early work of fellow New Yorker, short story writer Deborah Eisenberg (especially Transactions in a Foreign Currency), whose latest collection, Twilight of the Superheroes, is, in an intriguing twist, thematically related to comic books -- La Perdida, by far Jessica Abel's most ambitious work to date, is clearly informed by Jaime's and Gilberto's work (especially the latter's) in Love and Rockets, and is very much her tribute to the inspiration that catalyzed her career as a comics creator.  And we are happy to report that her inspiration is alive and well here:  the characters that populate this work fairly leap off the page, providing the reader with that singular pleasure of feeling that one knows the characters better than they know themselves.  A unique mixture of sensibilities and a challenging work in its own right, La Perdida is a welcome addition to the growing body of literary graphic novels. 
retail price - $19.95  copacetic price - $17.95


Japan as Viewed by 17 Creators
edited by Frédéric Boilet
Our friends at Fanfare/Ponent Mon -- who brought us that understated masterpiece, The Walking Man -- now bring us a fresh treat.  Initiated by the powers that be at the French Institutes and Alliances in Japan, who, along with the Franch Embassy, bankrolled the visits of nine French comics creators to Japan in order that they be inspired to create eight of the works we have here.  The other half -- eight more pieces -- were supplied by Japanese natives (one of whom, the editor, Frédéric Boilet, is a French ex-pat residing in Japan).  Together, these sixteen pieces provide a kaliedoscope of views of Japan today; and not just Tokyo.  This project was designed with a geographically broad view:  the entire country, from the southern tip at Amakusa to the northern metropolis of Sapporo, is on display here.  Creators include manga master Jiro Taniguchi (author of the aforementioned masterwork, The Walking Man), Joann Sfar, of The Rabbi's Cat fame, François Schuiten & Benoît Peeters, Kan Takahama, Fabrice Neaud, Little Fish, Aurélia Aurita and nine others.  This is an excellent anthology of comics work at the same time as it is an engaging cultural survey.  Of equal interest to readers of contemporary comics work and students of Japan, this is a sure fire must have for anyone who is both. 
retail price - $25.00  copacetic price - $22.50


Mom's Cancer
by Brian Fries
Here's what the publisher, Abrams Image has to say:  "Winner of the 2005 Eisner Award in the category of Best Digital Comic for the original Web version, Mom's Cancer is now available as a graphic novel. An honest, unflinching, and sometimes humorous look at the practical and emotional effect that serious illness can have on patients and their families, Mom's Cancer is a story of hope-uniquely told in words and illustrations.  Brian Fies is a freelance journalist whose mother was diagnosed with lung cancer. As he and his two sisters struggled with the effects of her illness and her ongoing recovery from treatment, Brian processed the experience in his journal, which took the form of words and pictures."  This volume expands the boundries of comics yet again, demonstrating the medium's effectiveness at providing a catharsis for even such painfully debilitating experiences as a parent's mortal illness.
retail price - $12.95  copacetic price - $11.65


MOME 3
edited by Gary Groth and Eric Reynolds
Well, the undisputed highlight of this issue is an all-new 36-page piece by David B. (Epileptic) titled "The Armed Garden". Yes!  Along side of this is a line-up up the ususal MOME suspects: Andrice Arp, Gabrielle Bell, Jonathan Bennett, Jeffrey Brown, Martin Cendreda, David Heatly, Anders Nilsen, and Kurt Wolfgang, who is the interviewee this time around. (Concerned MOME devotees may be assured that both John Pham and Paul Hornschemeier will return in the next issue) R. Kikuo Johnson (Night Fisher) takes a bow in this issue with a series of three-panel strips featuring "Cher Shimura."  MOME is fast becoming the official "little literary magazine" of the comics world.  If you've read an issue already, you know what we're talking about; if you haven't, this is a good time to find out for yourself.  To learn more, visit our MOME page.
retail price - $14.95  copacetic price - $11.95



Billy Hazelnuts
by Tony Millionaire
This brand new 110-page hardcover graphic novel from the creator of Maakies and Sock Monkey features a new cast of characters in the classic Victorian era settings that Millionaire is famous for.  Classic pen and ink rendering, rip-roaring adventure yarns, naval navigations that end up on Saturn... what more do you want?
retail price - $19.95  copacetic price - $16.95







Art
by Patrick McDonnell
From the irrepressible creator of Mutts comes this 48-page hardcover children's book on art and creativity. It's the book you want to give to encourage the creativity that lies dormant in every child to erupt in fun filled frenzy!
retail price - $14.95  copacetic price - $13.33



Bluesman: Book Two
by Rob Vollmar & Pablo G Callejo
It's taken a year, but Book Two of this unique series has arrived.  Here's what we had to say about book One: "A convincing account of a fictional bluesman at the dawn of the blues era.  The creators of this fine piece worked hard to capture this era in pen and ink, and they did a great job.  Callejo's drawing presents a style that is finely crafted, yet still rough around the edges; perfectly complementing his material.  Vollmar has a good ear for dialogue and in Bluesman he successfully avoids the hackneyed contrivances of accent and dialect that have so often spoiled an otherwise good story.  No, here Vollmar relies on the rhythm of the speaker along with selected grammatical tics to lend an authenticity to spoken word, and he manages to pull it off.  Together the stylistic choices serve to bolster the believability of the characters and advance the story, making for a great experience for the reader."  Book Two continues the story -- and the quality level -- in an 80-page tradeback, now from NBM. 
retail price - $8.95  copacetic price - $8.00


The Recidivist
by Zak Sally
This attractive square-format hardcover is published by La Mano, which is itself a project of Sally's.  It contains six pieces finely rendered in a solid ink brush style that doesn't spare the ink.  Ranging from eight to nineteen pages in length, these stories are threaded together by a shared theme, which is fully articulated by the volume's title.  All the tales are populated by characters moving through a world where continual lapsing into error is the one and only way of life.  Success is not an option here.  Every chance is blown.  Every step forward is a leap back.  Progress is an illusion.  No one gets better.  It's just a matter of when and how it all goes bad.
retail price - $15.00  copacetic price - $12.75


Phil Boyd and The Hidden Twin (CD)
With spring, a young person's fancy turns, evidently, to... music!  Pittsburgh boy turned international rock guy, Phil Boyd, of Modey Lemon fame, not content to rest on his laurels, has released a truly solo effort on which he wrote and performed and recorded the entire record all by his lonesome (well, he was accompanied on two tracks by Mike Prosser, so not quite).  Fifteen songs grace this disc, bearing vaguely psychedelic titles like, "Themepark Dream Requiem" and "The Axeman of the Glass Forest," along with more down to earth compositions like, "Simple Insect," "Honest John and the Draining of the Lakes," and "Storms Drone Down on the  Appalachians."  Learn more at:  http://www.thehiddentwin.com
copacetic price - $10.00


Atomik Aztex
by Sesshu Foster
This book has been described as successfully incorporating influences from graphic novels, Ishmael Reed's masterpiece of Americana, Mumbo Jumbo, the paranoia of Philip K. Dick and the knowing cultural insight of William Burroughs.  Then, The Believer magazine -- in the March 2006 issue (now in stock, by the way) -- bestowed upon this book, their Second Annual Believer Book Award.  Upon reviewing their basis and reading the excerpt they provided, well, that was enough for us --  we jumped on the bandwagon!  Check out The Believer's Citation and see what you think.  It has the look of a must read from where we sit.  We hope to be back with more on this once we've had the chance to dive in.
retail price - $15.95  copacetic price - $14.35


... and over on the CD rack there's a healthy batch of new pop that we'd like to draw to your atttention:

Tales from Turnpike House
by Saint Etienne
This release -- on Savoy Jazz(!) -- amply demonstrates why St. Etienne have maintained such a devoted following for as long as they have, which is fifteen years or so, by our reckoning.  Superbly crafted pop from beginning to end, Tales from Turnpike House presents a series of songs linked -- as both the title and cover suggest -- in a manner akin to a block of flats and their respective inhabitants.  Each song is in and of itself a pithy commentary on the post-modern condition and taken as a whole, the album is an instant classic. 
copacetic price - $17.77

The Million Colour Revolution
by The Pinker Tones
This is it, the party record you've been looking for!  The Pinker Tones are a Spanish band that are new to us, and on Million Color Revolution they've managed to put together a tasteful blend of every pop genre you can think of, sung in a bevy of languages including, French, German and Spanish (but mainly English).  From the Beach Boys and the Pixies to Sly Stone and Funkadelic, to The Pizzicato Five and St. Etienne, and delicately seasoned with spicy Latin rhythms, it's guaranteed to elevate your spirit.  Check out their funky low-budget video.

copacetic price - $12.77

Life Pursuit
by Belle and Sebastian
Before this record, you wouldn't necessarily think of placing B & S amidst company such as this, but with this record, they've joined the party and seem to be having a good time.  There's traces of the Kinks, as usual, but also of classic Beach Boys and even Apples in Stereo.  They've really put a back beat on these tracks, and the record, as a whole, quite bounces along.  For those sitting on the fence about this band, this might very well be the Belle & Sebastian record to take a chance on.
copacetic price - $15.00


Put the Book Back on the Shelf:  a Belle & Sebastian Anthology
Speaking of Belle & Sebastian, we now have on our shelves a highly unusual comics anthology made up entirely of pieces inspired by, devoted to and/or adapted from the song catalogue of B & S.  And it's published by Image Comics, no less.  Edited by Eric Stephenson and designed by Laurenn McCubbin, this book presents 24 works by a fairly decent range of talents, including: Charles Brownstein & Dave Crosland, Leela Corman, Tom Hart, Janet Harvey & Laurenn McCubbinn, David Lasky, Jacob McGraw, Andi Watson and many others.  The volume is printed in lavish full colour throughout. 
retail price - $19.99 copacetic price - $17.99


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New for February 2006


Or Else #4
by Kevin Huizenga
This issue of Or Else checks in at a big 100 pages.  It's squarebound and the page size is now "digest size," which is larger than the last two issues, which were "mini comic" size.  The theme this time around seems to be nature in society, a sort of turning of the tables.  One of the classic themes of literature has always been "man vs. nature."  But, in today's day and age, it seems, this battle has been won, that it's "old hat." It's more like "nature vs. man" with nature as the challenger, or nature in the world of man, struggling for a place in a world gone man!  There is in this issue, as in all issues of Or Else, plenty of food for thought, a feast in fact!
retail price - $5.95  copacetic price - $5.00



Big Questions #8: Theory and Practice
by Anders Nilsen
The latest issue in Nilsen's ongoing epistemological entreaty employing avian intermediaries is currently expounding from our shelves.  This issue comes to us in a deluxe 40-page, French-flapped edition, in which the flaps themselves are cleverly employed to provide us with a full-color line-up of the cast of characters that will be edifying to all but will be especially useful to newer readers in helping them to navigate their way through the symbol strewn landscape of this series.
retail price - $5.95  copacetic price - $5.00



Crickets #1
by Sammy Harkham
Kramers Ergot editor (and sometimes publisher), Sammy Harkham has decided, "Enough already with spending all my time getting other artists' work together.  I just want to sit down and draw!"  Crickets is his new ongoing series and we now have the first issue on hand so you can check out what he's been up to.  This first issue is a nicely produced,  slightly oversized, saddle-stitched, 32-page duo-tone (black and green) comic book that is entirely taken up by a single story titled, "Black Death,"  a mordant tale that falls pretty much half way between Jordan Crane and Anders Nilsen in its feel -- but is on its own after that -- seems to be a novel take on the legend of the golem, and is, evidently, the first installment of an epic saga which will, in subsequent issues, become the ongoing back-up feature, and that the lead features in these upcoming issues will be stand alone stories.  Sammy Harkham has the singular ability to create characters that personify the inhumanity of fate.  The premiere issue of Crickets shows Harkham demonstrating this ability to full effect.
retail price - $3.95  copacetic price - $3.55



Ed the Happy Clown # 4 & #5
by Chester Brown
The latest installments of the classic story that put Chester Brown on the map when it was initially serialized in the pages of Yummy Fur nearly 20 years ago(!) are now in stock (sorry about the delay on #4; it's a long story).  These issues are tailor-made to enrage the repressed.
retail price - $2.95  copacetic price - $2.65



Sturgeon White Moss
We finally got around to importing this spirited anthology from London, England.  We now have the entire (so far) run of #1 - 6 on hand.  There's a wealth of variety on hand in these issues, each of which is limited to a 1000 copy print run, only a fraction of which have managed to make it across the Atlantic.  From Marc Bell and Ivan Brunetti to Xavier Robel and Ron Rege, Jr. and many, many others -- quite a few of whom will be new to you -- Sturgeon White Moss is a challenging ongoing forum for new comics work from Europe and North America.
copacetic price - $8.75@


Little Kingdoms
by Stephen Millhauser
The lead story in this collection of three novellas by America's reigning master of the form, "The Little Kingdom of J. Franklin Payne" is an amazing tour de force for which the life and work of Winsor McCay serves as a springboard into a hallucinatory trip inside the mind of a powerful and obsessive creativity. We believe that this work stands to be especially appreciated by comics aficionados, and as we just secured a large quantity of the UK edition at a special price (and as the US edition is now, while not, technically, out of print, available only in a print-on-demand edition) we felt it was appropriate to bring it to our customers' attention at this time.  The two additional novellas that fill out this volume are every bit as original, unique and intense:  "The Princecss, the Dwarf and the Dungeon" is a magnificent deconstruction of the fairy tale that reveals its origins and functions -- social as well as psychological; and "Catalogue of the Exhibition: The Art of Edmund Moorash (1810 - 1846)" is one of the most singular works in the annals of fiction -- a turbulently romantic tale presented in the form of, as the title has it, the catalogue for an exhibition of paintings.  Recommended!
copacetic price - $3.95



Buddha, Volume 7: Prince Ajatasattu
Buddha, Volume 8:  Jetavana
by Osamu Tezuka
The wait is over!  With these two volumes, this epic tale by the grandmaster of manga comes to its conclusion. 
retail price - $24.95@  copacetic price - $21.25@





Meow, Baby
by Jason
This time around Jason regales us with a 144-page collection of pithy shorts of all shapes and sizes, ranging from the healthy dose of standard, newspaper-style, three-panel gag-strips that closes out the volume, to the TinTin-esque, 20-page graphic short, "The Mummy's Secret," which immediately precedes them.  The bulk of the book is made of of short -- one to seven pages in length, with most falling in the middle range -- gag pieces that are all variations on a small set of themes.  Some are as minimal as a set-up followed immediately by a denouement, while others play with the formula a little.  The one thing that all the pieces in this book have in common is that they all work and they're all quite humorous... in the dark, depressing sort of way that is Jason's trademark.
retail price - $16.95  copacetic price - $14.40


Gødland, Volume One: "Hello, Cosmic"
by Tom Scioli and Joe Casey
Now it's time for you latecomers who missed the now sold out and out-of-print early issues of this wild and wooly homage to Jack Kirby's cosmic capers of the sixties, seventies and eighties to jump on the bandwagon and get all caught up so you can plunge in for the next batch.  Pittsburgh artist -- and Copacetic neighbor -- Tom Scioli has mastered the late-Kirby style, and not just the superficial stylings; he understands what's going on underneath as well, and uses his comprehension of the underlying mechanics of Kirby's vision to be able to rebuild it from the ground up to say something new (an ability perhaps best demonstrated in his self-published Myth of 8-Opus series, all issues of which are available here at Copacetic >plug, plug<).   Joe Casey, the seasoned scripter of Gødland, sprinkles the dialogue with plenty of wit and keeps the plot one twist ahead. 
retail price - $14.95  copacetic price - $12.75


The Drama #7
First introduced to Copacetic Customers as part of our 2005 SPX haul, The Drama is a quarterly arts magazine with a major focus on comics, that is one of the best values out there.  The artists featured will be familiar to readers of Kramers Ergot, The Ganzfeld and MOME, who will be on largely familiar territory here -- but not completely:  The Drama has its own vision and it is decidedly informed by the independent gallery milieu, and as it is based in Richmond, Virginia, it offers a unique regional perspective as well.  This 104 page issue -- the biggest yet -- offers a 72 page full color magazine section followed by "This It," a 32-page duo-tone comics (mostly) & columns section. The cover feature is a heavily illustrated interview with the Swiss artists known as Elvis Studio, conducted by Alvin Buenaventura.  In addition, Julie Doucet is featured in her own profusely illustrated interview with Dan "Ganzfeld" Nadel.  The comics section features the work of Mark Bell, Mark Burrier,Tom Gauld, Brian Ralph, and many others; plus, David Heatly illustrates the dreams of Erika Clowes! 
retail price - $5.95  copacetic price - $5.35


Tales Designed to Thrizzle #2
by Michael Kupperman
Arriving, amazingly, almost on schedule, the second issue follow-up to the wildly funny and quite popular first issue is here.  We have to admit that it's not quite the gut-buster that the first issue was, but rest assured:  Kupperman remains the main man of pen and ink absurdity.
retail price - $4.50  copacetic price - $3.85


GLAM! An Eyewitness Account
by Mick Rock
foreward by David Bowie
This is an oversize (10" x 13") softcover collection of some of the greatest rock 'n' roll photos ever taken.  Centering on the glammest of the glam years -- 1972 -- but with numerous forays before and after, Mick Rock was and is the undisputed chronicler of this moment in rock.  All the classic photos are here:  Bowie, Iggy and Lou are the trinity at the center of it all, but there are plenty more pics on offer: of The Spiders and The Stooges; Bryan Ferry, Brian Eno and Roxy Music; Freddie Mercury & Queen; Ian Hunter and Mott; the original cast of The Rocky Horror Picture Show; Deborah Harry and Blondie; and much more.  Concise, insightful commentary accompanies many of the photos, amply demonstrating that Rock is a man possesed of  a discerning intelligence as well as artistic talent. The photo that was originally slated to run as the cover of Mott the Hoople's classic LP, All the Young Dudes -- but was mysteriously axed at the last minute -- is worth the price of admission all on its own!
retail price - $29.95  copacetic price - $25.47


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New for January 2006


Beginner's Guide to Community-Based Arts
by Keith Knight, Mat Schwarzman and a host of others
This is a book that aims to make a difference, and does.  It's goal is to promote an awareness, first and foremost, of the simple fact that arts make a difference -- a positive, life affirming difference that can and does effect substantial grassroots social change -- in the lives of both individuals and the communities they are a part of.   In addition, as the book's title clearly suggests and where it especially excells, this book's central function is to serve as a guide on how to go about initiating, organizing and planning community arts. It does so by providing in depth presentations of ten transformative local arts projects.  Each of these presentations begins with a description of the setting in which it takes place -- in 7 of the 10 cases it is an inner city neighborhood -- in order to understand that there is a necessarily organic connection of the form the art takes to the community it grows out of and takes root in.  The core of each presentation (and why we here at Copacetic are especially excited about this particular book) is a narrative in comics describing the people (primarily), the place(s), the genesis of the project and how it plays out.  Each of these pieces are excellent examples of the power of comics to effeciently and effectively communicate both stories and ideas.  All the comics pieces are between seven and ten pages in length.  The lion's share of the comics work is by the much acclaimed satirist Keith Knight of The K Chronicles Fame, who here amply demonstrates heretofore hidden strengths.Several pieces are done by Ellen Forney, author of the under-rated Monkey Food: The Complete "I Ways Seven in '75" Collection (which we currently have on offer at a quite affordable price), who employs a different but equally successful approach.  The final piece by newcomers Courtney Collins and Rondall Crier.  This a book that has so many potential uses that it is hard to know where to begin.  Let's just start off by saying that evey community group in America could benefit by having a copy of this in their library, and every co-op with a bookshelf should make sure to have a copy on hand at all times.  This is a book that is sure to inspire.
retail price - $19.95  copacetic price - $17.95


Ganges
by Kevin Huizenga
This comic book, the latest addition to the burgeoning Ignatz Comics line from Coconino Press and Fantagraphics Books, asks the question, "Is it possible to intelligently examine domesticity in a comic book?"  The five all new pieces in this deluxe magazine format edition by one of the strongest talents on the comics scene today provide the answer, and the answer is, "Yes."  All five pieces focus on the quotidian reality of Kevin Huizenga's graphic alter ego, Glenn Ganges, and his wife, Wendy.  Thoughts, concepts and stories are converted to images in Huizenga's trademarked fashion, and combined with text and dialogue commentaries to create a dialectical rendering of the tension between subjectivity and objectivity and various attempts -- characterized by their youthful callowness and longing curiosity -- at locating a harmonious balance between the two.  Underlying it all is Huizenga's perennial concern with time.  Specifically, with the irreconcilable divide between our individual, human, subjective experience of time, and its universal, inhuman, objective reality.  Recommended.
retail price - $7.95  copacetic price - $6.75


King-Cat Comics and Stories #65 & 66
by John Porcellino
Check it out, a double dose of King-Cat Comics!  These are full size issues, too.  #65 runs 40 pages and 66 runs 36, so all you King-Catters have 76 big pages comin' your way.  And for those of you who aren't hep, now's your chance to get a great full-immersion introduction to one of the (THE?) longest running self-published mini comics on the market, one that's truly in a league of its own.  #65 is titled, "Places," and, as this title suggests, each story focuses on a particular place, yes, but really, as with so much of Pordcellino's work, it's more about memory -- in this case, how particular times become associated with particular places, about the role of geography in biography:  how it's possible to see your life in a map.  Supplies are limited, so don't delay.
copacetic price - $3.00@


Schizo #4
by Ivan Brunetti
FINALLY.  This is what, two years late?  Well, you know what they say:  you can't hurry art.  Now, whether or not Schizo qualifies as art, we'll have to leave it up to you to decide.  We can say for sure, however, that this issue is quite a departure from the first three.  For starters, it's gigantic:  11" x 15"!  Next, it's full color.  But most surprising of all:  it's not filled to the brim with misanthropic ravings; nor are the ususal homicidal and suicidal fantasies in evidence; instead, we have -- emerging like a full color butterfly from his coccoon of hatred and bitterness -- the new and improved, almost (but not quite yet) well adjusted Ivan Brunetti.  Who would've thought we'd live to see the day.
retail price - $9.95  copacetic price - $8.95



MOME 2
It's finally here, after a regrettable delay:  the second issue of the most engaging regularly published comics anthology currently on the market.  This issue continues to meet the high standards set by the first issue and includes the entire roster of contributors.  Highlight:  Jeffrey Brown redeems his shallow submission to the first issue by turning in one of his best pieces to date.  Recommended!  To learn more about MOME, please visit our MOME 1 page. 
retail price - $14.95  copacetic price - $11.95






The Believer Book of Writers Talking to Writers
Edited by  Vendela Vida
Twenty-Three conversations and correspndences between a host of today's most engaging authors, including Zadie Smith talking with Ian McEwan; Jonathan Lethem talking with Paul Auster; Adam Thirlwell talking with Tom Stoppard; Susan Choi talking with Francisco Goldman; ZZ Packer talking with Edward P. Jones; Dave Eggers talking with David Foster Wallace; Julie Orringer talking with Tobias Wolff; and Ben Marcus talking with George Saunders.  An excellent book for the morning commute and/or the lunchroom. 
retail price - $18.00  copacetic price - $15.75



The Better of McSweeneys
This is a jam-packed assortment culled from the now out-of-print first ten issues of McSweeney's Quarterly Concern.  Editor David Eggers has written plenty of fresh commentary specifically for this volume, so even if you are one of the tiny minority who already posses the first ten issues of MQC, you still might want to consider this one.  Authors whose work grace this collection include Jonathan Lethem, Glen David Gold, A. M. Homes, David Foster Wallace, Dave Eggers, Amanda Davis, George Saunders, Paul Collins, and William T. Vollmann, as well as many talented newcomers.
retail price - $18.00  copacetic price - $15.75




Chimera by Lorenzo Mattotti
and
Interiorae by Gabriella Giandelli
These are the latest two entries in the Ignatz line of comics currently being published collaboratively by  Fantagraphics Books in the USA and Coconino Press in Italy.  Mattotti's Chimera, the first major black and white work by an artist closely associated with his lush pastel palette, is a textless pen and ink tour de force that employs a highly expressive line to render the subtle give and take between perception and conception, and mediate a rapprochement between the consciousness of dreaming and that of waking.  This latter aim is shared by Ms. Giandelli's Interiorae, which is a fanciful exploration of the "life" of a block of flats that is largely successful in its attempt to capture an elegiac aspect of the spirit of urban living.
retail price - $7.95@  copacetic price - $6.75@



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