18.Jul.2010 The Push Man and Other Stories by Yoshihiro Tatsumi
This must be the bleakest graphic novel/manga I have ever read. I was intrigued when I saw this copy at Sydney Japanese Foundation Library. The book is designed and edited by Adrian Tomine (whose Shortcomings I have yet to read), and includes Tomine’s introduction. Yoshihiro Tatsumi is known as “the grandfather of Japanese alternative comics”. [...]
16.Jun.2010 The Sandman Vol 3: Dream Country by Neil Gaiman
I wonder how many Sandman I should read before I “get” it. I liked Dream Country a tiny bit more than the first two, but still not as much as I would’ve liked. People say the series gets better from the third series and above, that’s why I continued reading. In this third volume, the [...]
02.Jun.2010 Pedro and Me by Judd Winick
I have to thank Michelle for this one. If not for her glowing review I wouldn’t have picked up the book judging from the cover. It looks like some cheesy TV series from the 90s (not the first one, the second one below. I put the blue cover first because I just don’t like that [...]
22.May.2010 Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan
Tender Morsels is a book I picked up for many reasons. I first knew about it from Nymeth, whose passionate review seems to gather some sort of a cult. There was probably a time when people responded with a blank look “Tender Morsel who?”, but that time has long gone now! The novel won World [...]
11.May.2010 The Contract with God Trilogy by Will Eisner
“Will Eisner, born in 1917, saw himself as “a graphic witness reporting on life, death, heartbreak, and the never-ending struggle to prevail.” The publication of A Contract with God when Eisner was sixty-one proved to be a watershed moment both for him and for comic literature. It marked the birth of the graphic novel and [...]
26.Apr.2010 Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughan and Niko Henrichon
Pride of Baghdad is graphic novel based on a true story of four lions that escaped from Baghdad Zoo after American bombing in 2003. Since the animals have dialogues, obviously it’s highly fictionalized. One may read it as an allegory of the Iraqis. I just read it as what it is. Do you like Disney’s [...]
13.Mar.2010 Skim by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki
Skim is a graphic novel by cousins Mariko and Jillian Tamaki. It covers the issues of growing up, and about being gay at that. As the cousins grew up in Canada, there’s also a touch on growing up with Asian ethnicity in Canada. The style of illustration is one of the most unique I have [...]
07.Feb.2010 Bone: Treasure Hunters and Crown of Horns (Last 2 Volumes)
Like all good adventure story, Bone is ended with a great battle between good and evil ala The Lord of the Rings (not that I’ve read or watched LOTR). Bone series has been such a fun journey and I’m sad that it has ended, though the ending is pretty open to possibility of a sequel. [...]
31.Jan.2010 Oishinbo: Ramen & Gyōza by Tetsu Kariya and Akira Hanasaki
Oishinbo (美味しんぼ, lit. “The Gourmet”) is a long-running cooking manga published between 1983 and 2008, but only in 2009 it is published in English in thematic compilation volumes, which includes: Japanese Cuisine, Sake, Ramen & Gyôza, Fish, Sushi & Sashimi, Vegetables, The Joy of Rice, and Izakaya: Pub Food (7 volumes so far). Thematic compilation [...]
02.Jan.2010 Can’t Get Enough Graphic Novels
I joined Graphic Novels Challenge in 2009. I read 20 books and achieved the Masters level (18 books required): The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot (finished 02/09, rating 4/5) The Sandman Vol 1: Preludes & Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman (finished 03/09, rating 3.5/5) The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman (finished 03/09, rating [...]
