this is the first installment of the racing union book club. union members are usually so busy reading their manifestos that it's difficult to squeeze other things in. but we do manage a bit here and there. almost all the books discussed here are available for loan, simply contact the reviewer. the books are described and we use a simple grading system. books can earn anywhere from 0 to 5 hammer and sickles. feel free to add additional feedback yourself in the comments
today we have five books of political cartoons and a special edition book club for the younger revolutionaries out there. enjoy!
review #1: attitude, attitude 2, and attitude 3. collections of subversive comics, edited by ted rall.
this is a nice series of books for those not familiar with what are generally referred to as underground artisits or alternative comics. Each book has between 15 and 20 artists with various points of view, drawing styles, and followings. some are widely published, some only occur on the web and are not commercial in the sense that they are not bought or sold, but available to anyone who cares to look at them. For each artist, rall presents a brief biography, an interview with the artist and a nice sampling of their work.
the strongest aspects of these books is the work itself. the samples are outstanding and people familiar with the artists may actually recall a number of the samples that are presented here. some are laugh out loud funny, some elicit wry smiles, and some are positively disturbing. one of my personal favorites was the interview with neil swaab who writes the edgy strip rehabilitaing mr. wiggles.
that interview is amusing, and almost as edgy as the strip. unfortunately, most are not like that. As strong as the comics are, most of the interviews don't add as much value as i was hoping. i'm not sure this is rall's fault, but the fact that the interviews get better as the books progress makes me think that there was a bit of a learning curve in eliciting good information from the artists. In general, the interviews provide some good insight into their influences, their ideas and what they feel their strip adds to the public dialouge. the interviews are not nearly as compelling as the comics, but luckily, the comics carry the day. I give it four hammers and sickles.
review #2 : hell in a handbasket by tom tomorrow. a collection of his "this modern world" strips.
this is a positively laugh-out-loud collection of comics. the material in this voume covers his strips from early 2002 through 2006. many of the strips deal with political spin and the cognitive dissonance that results from taking counter-factual positions. he has what many people refer to as a clip art style. many strips appear to have the same basic motif recurring throughout all panels with only slight alterations in the background. but this description belies the quality of the art itself. the characters he uses are immeidately recognizable archetypes and actually help to cement the message the strip is trying to get across. at times, the graphic style is laugh out loud funny all by itself.
i have shared this book with a lot of people of all political stripes and all agreed that the material was funny and worth the price of admission. tom tomorrow keeps a pretty entertaining blog and i would have though that some text to sort of tie the ideas togeterh might have worker well, but the comics are all outstanding and the book doesn't suffer because of it. four and half hammers and sickles.
review #3 : why do they kill me by tim kreider. a collection of his "the pain" strips.
why do they kill me is a very different kind of collection of comics. in part, this is because his strip is different. he tends to work in large single format, and does a limited number of sequences. his artisitic stlye is sparse. he uses an intersting mix of artisitic realism and stylized drawings. a lot of his humor comes from a pathological dislike of president bush balanced against a fundamental cynicism (could anyone else could do better?) and a nagging doubt (might there actually be wmd's somewhere in iraq and won't we look like asses when they show up?).
the best part of this collection is that each comic is presented with what amounts to a long diary entry, explaining the backstory for the comic. the comics can generally stand on thier own, but they are vastly better when viewed with the written material. the stories are very funny, and make strips that might otherwise seem awkward or confusing much better. the stories and strips work together to really crystalize what kreider is trying to get across. four and half hammers and sickles.
and finally, one for the young revolutionaries in your family, the little lenins gathered around your table.
review #4 : click clack moo cows that type. by doreen cronin and betsy lewin.
hands down, this is the best childrens book in our house. if you're unfamiliar with the story, the fantastic pbskids show between the lions has a free preview, check it man
http://pbskids.org/lions/clickety/
the preview does not do justice to the art (which is very nice) but you get the basic story. this is a classic tale of solidarity, where entities band together and collectively fight for humane conditions. it would be simplistic to say that the plot is simply about sticking it to the man, or the farmer in this case. not since animal farm by george orwell have we seen barnyard animals used to pimp social activism for collective progress so effectively. everytime i read this, i get a bit misty. i love this book and will tolerate no criticism of it. if you post in the comments and talk about taft/harltey or reagan and the flight controllers, i will delete your post, track you down and make you regret it. five hammers and sickles, bitches. dig it.
- - - posted by scott