Graphic Novels Prepub Alert: Christmas Classics, Daniel X, and The Little Prince
By Martha Cornog Jun 14, 2010This month's sampling carries a distinct "news of the weird" flavor-after all, October's all about Halloween. Adaptations also keep popping up, nonfiction notables and the expected literary classics. Moi, I've been waiting for some brave heart to tackle James Joyce after seeing Robert Berry's quite appealing panels from the beginning of Ulysses (Philadelphia City Paper, August 16, 2007). Now I find out that this was an avatar of a larger project underway from Throwaway Horse LLC to adapt the full book to comics! Introibo ad altare Dei, indeed. Read it and read about it here.
Aristophane. The Zabime Sisters. First Second. Oct. 2010. 96p. tr. from French by Matt Madden. ISBN 978-1-5964363-8-1. pap. $16.99. F
Three teen sisters have a coming-of-age summer, with boys, fights, petty thievery, and illicit booze. What's different: M'Rose, Elle, Celine, and their families live on the lush Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. In bold, black-and-white brushwork art, this translation sounds like a good readalike for the popular Aya.
Burns, Charles. X'ed Out. Pantheon. Oct. 2010. 56p. ISBN 978-0-307-37913-9. $19.95. F
Pantheon's Big Graphic Novel for fall: another weird story from the author of the multi-award-winning Black Hole. Jolted awake by a strange buzzing, Doug sees his long-dead cat beckoning him through a huge hole in the wall. And this so-called "dazzling spectral fever-dream" will be in color.
Canada, Geoffrey (text) & Jamar Nicholas (adapt. & illus.). Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence; A True Story in Black and White. Beacon. Oct. 2010. 144p. ISBN 978-0-8070-4449-0. pap. $15. AUTOBIOG
This brutally honest 1995 memoir of a Bronx, NY, childhood earned raves from reviewers as well as from Oprah, who called Canada "an angel from God." Canada is president and CEO of Harlem Children's Zone, a model for the Obama-Biden "Promise Neighborhoods" designed to assist urban areas with high crime and low student academic achievement. Nicholas's thoroughly apt art has just the right lived-in yet edgy feel.
Christmas Classics: Graphic Classics. Vol. 19. Eureka Productions. Oct. 2010. 144p. ISBN 978-0-98256301-4. pap. $17.95. LIT
Instead of a cozy, Santa-y cover, we confront a seriously creepy image of the enchained Marley's ghost and a cowering Scrooge from Dickens's A Christmas Carol. Others among the eight all-color selections, favorites and rarities among them, include a seasonal Sherlock Holmes mystery, an O. Henry Western, pieces from Mark Twain and F. Scott Fitzgerald, and-Santa at last!-Clement Moore's classic poem, A Visit from St. Nicholas. A welcome addition to the all-too-sparse holiday-themed titles.
Edginton, Ian (text) & Davide Fabbri (illus.). Victorian Undead. WildStorm/DC. Oct. 2010. 144p. ISBN 978-1-4012-2840-8. pap. $17.99. F
Inevitably, Holmes joins Elizabeth Bennett and (also this month) the Hardy Boys among fictional favorites pitted against the Undead. Of course, these zombies are only a tool of that dastardly Moriarty. Check out the attractive and sinister art here.
Free, Chandra. The God Machine. Archaia. Oct. 2010. 144. ISBN 978-1-932386-87-5. $19.95. F
After Guy's girlfriend dies, he gets condolences from classmates-but also visits from monsters and then from a beautiful goddess who needs help finding her keys. Keys to heaven, that is. The wonderfully elastic Tim Burton-esque color art suggests a funhouse mirror reflecting Guy's emotional chaos.
Girl Comics. Marvel. Oct. 2010. 120p. ISBN 978-0-7851-4792-3. $19.99. F
Girls' Night Out in the Marvel Universe: this miniseries anthology features some 30 tales from a large roster of double-X chromosomed creators, including Trina Robbins, Jill Thompson, and Colleen Doran. The stories all feature Marvel characters of both sexes, both famous and not. While the comic book issues have gotten mixed reviews, the variety of narrative and artistic approaches makes this an enjoyable title. View some of the art here.
Haggard, H. Rider (text) & Bhupendra Ahluwalia (illus.). King Solomon's Mines. Campfire Books: Steerforth. Oct. 2010. 72p. adapted by Chris Welsh. ISBN 978-819069635-7. pap. $9.99. F
An aging elephant hunter heads a rescue party into the African bush and finds a hidden valley with treasure cave, but complications include warring tribal factions, extreme climate, and interracial romance. Now fans of Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentleman can meet the real Allan Quatermain in Haggard's original story, reportedly whipped out on a bet that he could write something as good as Treasure Island. While KSM never brought him Stevenson's repute, it did become enormously popular and established the "lost world" adventure subgenre later realized through pop icons like King Kong and Indiana Jones. Several Haggard works were adapted to comics in Classics Illustrated, but apparently nothing recently despite a number of KSM and derivative films.
Homer (text) & Gareth Hinds (illus. & adapt.). The Odyssey: A Graphic Novel. Candlewick. Oct. 2010. 256p. ISBN 978-0-7636-4266-2. pap. $14.99. LIT
The original road trip story: gods, monsters, shipwrecks, sexy sirens, and a devoted wife keeping the hearth warm-but rivals seek to win her away. How long can she hold out for her long-lost hubby? Hinds is known for his grim and masterful Beowulf adaptation as well as a Booklist-recognized King Lear and a modern-dress The Merchant of Venice. Take a look at the cover and videos of his watercolor art process here.
Koontz, Dean & Fred Van Lente (text) & Queenie Chan (illus.). Odd Is on Our Side. Del Rey. Oct. 2010. 192p. ISBN 978-0-345-51560-5. pap. $10.99. F
Another original graphic novel for the very popular series about a short-order cook who can see dead people: "a man named Odd who helps the dead get even." The first graphic novel, In Odd We Trust, made BookScan's top 20 graphic novels for summer 2008.
Morrison, Grant (text) & Frank Quitely (illus.). Absolute All Star Superman. DC. Oct. 2010. 320p. ISBN 978-1-4012-2917-7. $99.99. F
This collection of new and timeless Superman adventures won Eisner, Harvey, and Eagle (UK) awards and made it to Time magazine's top ten comics of 2007. And Lois Lane gets superpowers for a day! This collects the entire 12-issue miniseries with extras similar to the other "absolute" editions.
Patterson, James. Daniel X: The Manga. Vol. 1. Yen Pr. Oct. 2010. 192p. ISBN 978-0-316-07764-4. pap. $11.99. F
Chalk up another graphic adaptation from this best-selling YA author-and from Yen, which is also adapting Twilight, Gossip Girl, and Patterson's Maximum Ride. This appears to be the first part of The Dangerous Days of Daniel X, about a teen superhero tasked by his late parents with a list of very, very dangerous aliens to wipe out. The original gathered mixed reviews, but the action/adventure plot should do well as comics.
Revel, Brahm. Guerrillas. Vol. 1. Oni. Oct. 2010. 144p. ISBN 978-1-934964-43-9. pap. $14.99. F
Gorilla warfare? Make that chimpanzees and mandrills, but who's nitpicking titles? Fighting in Vietnam, a young soldier's bushwhacking his way through chaos when he runs right into a platoon of-simian soldiers?! Chain-smokers, too, with guns. But which side are they on? Real chimps are much stronger than humans, so the corporeal side of this yarn makes sense. Gritty black, white, and gray art that's not funny at all.
Saint-Exup?y, Antoine de (text) & Joann Sfar (illus. & adapt.). The Little Prince Graphic Novel. Houghton. Oct. 2010. 112p. ISBN 978-0-547-33802-6. $19.99. F
Tampering with a classic?! Du courage, mon ami! Saint-Exup?y's French publishers handpicked Sfar to adapt this whimsical and beloved dialog about the meaning of life. Sfar's drawings are designed to honor the original art and stretch it in new directions. Check out a preview of the French edition here. Hugely popular in his home country of France, Sfar is best known here for his Eisner-winning The Rabbi's Cat as well as two children's series: Sardine in Outer Space and Little Vampire.
Saiwai, Tetsu. The 14th Dalai Lama: A Manga Biography. Penguin. Sept. 2010. 208p. ISBN 978-0-14-311815-2. pap. $15. BIOG
School Library Journal praised this older-teens-and-up title for its blend of political content and spiritual matters with emphasis on the Dalai Lama's boyhood and youth. Originally released in 2008 as part of the "Biographic Novels" series from the Japanese publisher Emotional Content, about "the real superheroes" of the world. Others in the series: Mother Teresa, Che Guevera, and Mahatma Gandhi. The art suggests something between Tezuka's Buddha and Tatsumi's A Drifting Life. See a preview here.
Trudeau , G.B. 40: A Doonesbury Retrospective. Andrews McMeel. Oct. 2010. 664p. ISBN 978-0-7407-9735-4. $100. HUMOR
Yes, it's really been 40 years since college jock B.D. met his geeky roommate, Mike Doonesbury. Described as the strip that "has angered, irritated, and rebuked every president since Nixon," Doonesbury introduced over 40 major characters spanning three generations, and its 14,000 strips drew cheers and boos from the White House on down. This volume delivers 1800 strips marking key adventures of the cast, plus 18 Trudeau essays and a four-page foldout matrix of the characters' relationships.
Venditti, Robert (text) & Mike Huddleston (illus.). The Homeland Directive. Top Shelf. Oct. 2010. 144p ISBN 978-1-60309-024-7. pap. $14.95. F
When the head of the National Center for Infectious Diseases is fingered wrongly for murder, she's gotta go rogue to find the real bad guys-who have a megaplot going that affects the entire country. A political/medical thriller for everybody who made it through the 18 volumes of Monster, rooting for the innocent doctor with the law on his tail. Spare, realistic art with striking color wash linked to plot elements. Venditti is known for the well-regarded sci-fi police procedural The Surrogates.
Weiner, Zach & Chris Jones. Captain Excelsior. IDW. Oct. 2010. 104p. ISBN 978-1-60010-772-6. pap. $17.99. HUMOR
In the wake of Love and Capes comes another send-up about a superhero with relationship issues. Captain Excelsior's ex-wife is marrying a mortal, his son may be gay, his daughter can't get a prom date, and his middle child has no superpowers. But Captain Excelsior can fix everything, right? Cartoony color art. Not a teen comedy, this one is recommended for 16 and up.
Yang, Kyung-il (text) & Hyung-min Kim (illus.). March Story. Vol. 1. VIZ. Oct. 2010. 192p. ISBN 978-1-4215-3755-9. pap. $12.99. F
Elegant horror from Korea by way of Japan: March Story is being serialized in Shogakukan's Monthly Sunday GX and has been collected into two paperbacks so far. A hunter named March tracks demons known as the Ill that hide in beautiful works of art, demons embodied from the torment of the artists-and these demons can jump to unwary bystanders and drive them to horrible violence. The lovely, baroque-ish art holds an edge of chill.
Yuki, Kaori. Grand Guignol Orchestra. Vol. 1. VIZ. Oct. 2010. 208p. ISBN 978-1-4215-3636-1. pap. $9.99. F
Those Living Dead just won't die...but maybe music can soothe them. Lucille and his traveling musicians are going to try it just to get out of town alive. Yuki is known for her delicate goth-style art for The Cain Saga, Godchild, and Angel Sanctuary.
About Comics
Hino, Matsuri. Vampire Knight Official Fanbook. VIZ. Oct. 2010. 208p. ISBN 978-1-4215-3238-7. pap. $14.99. GRAPHIC NOVELS
Hino's lush shojo soap opera of love and death at a high school for vampires appeared on the New York Times manga best-sellers list from March 2009 through April 2010 and is ongoing both in Japan and the United States. This fan resource provides character designs and background, story-line summaries, the scoop on vampire society, and an interview with Hino. Includes glossy color pages.</
