The Works: Anatomy of a City


Kate Ascher - 2005
    When you flick on your light switch the light goes on--how? When you put out your garbage, where does it go? When you flush your toilet, what happens to the waste? How does water get from a reservoir in the mountains to your city faucet? How do flowers get to your corner store from Holland, or bananas get there from Ecuador? Who is operating the traffic lights all over the city? And what in the world is that steam coming out from underneath the potholes on the street? Across the city lies a series of extraordinarily complex and interconnected systems. Often invisible, and wholly taken for granted, these are the systems that make urban life possible. The Works: Anatomy of a City offers a cross section of this hidden infrastructure, using beautiful, innovative graphic images combined with short, clear text explanations to answer all the questions about the way things work in a modern city. It describes the technologies that keep the city functioning, as well as the people who support them-the pilots that bring the ships in over the Narrows sandbar, the sandhogs who are currently digging the third water tunnel under Manhattan, the television engineer who scales the Empire State Building's antenna for routine maintenance, the electrical wizards who maintain the century-old system that delivers power to subways. Did you know that the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is so long, and its towers are so high, that the builders had to take the curvature of the earth's surface into account when designing it? Did you know that the George Washington Bridge takes in approximately $1 million per day in tolls? Did you know that retired subway cars travel by barge to the mid-Atlantic, where they are dumped overboard to form natural reefs for fish? Or that if the telecom cables under New York were strung end to end, they would reach from the earth to the sun? While the book uses New York as its example, it has relevance well beyond that city's boundaries as the systems that make New York a functioning metropolis are similar to those that keep the bright lights burning in big cities everywhere. The Works is for anyone who has ever stopped midcrosswalk, looked at the rapidly moving metropolis around them, and wondered, how does this all work?

The Savage


David Almond - 2008
    At least it is for Blue, since his dad died and Hopper, the town bully, started knocking him and the other kids around. But Blue's story has a life of its own -- weird and wild and magic and dark -- and when the savage pays a nighttime visit to Hopper, Blue starts to wonder where he ends and his creation begins.

The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen: Awesome Female Characters from Comic Book History


Hope Nicholson - 2017
    Think comic books can t feature strong female protagonists? Think again! In The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen you ll meet the most fascinating exemplars of the powerful, compelling, entertaining, and heroic female characters who ve populated comic books from the very beginning. This spectacular sisterhood includes costumed crimebusters like Miss Fury, super-spies like Tiffany Sinn, sci-fi pioneers like Gale Allen, and even kid troublemakers like Little Lulu. With vintage art, publication details, a decade-by-decade survey of industry trends and women s roles in comics, and spotlights on iconic favorites like Wonder Woman and Ms. Marvel, The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen proves that not only do strong female protagonists belong in comics, they ve always been there."

Archie 1000 Page Comics BLOW-OUT!


Archie Comics - 2015
    From the Trade Paperback edition.

Tintin: The Complete Companion


Michael Farr - 2001
    An overview of the world-famous comic character and of his adventures through the 23 titles of the complete oeuvre, the Complete Companion contextualizes Hergé's work and places it in its historical period by showing side by side by side the drawings and the references used by the artist to establish believable backgrounds and realistic details.Also included are large numbers of sketches that Herge would rework and polish until he would find the clearest, most easily readable line, giving birth to a style that would later be called the Clear Line.

The Book of Moe: Simpsons Library of Wisdom


Matt Groening - 2008
    Get to know the man behind the apron strings, the misunderstood mixologist with the gold-plated heart, as he dispenses advice to drunks like it was Duff on draft, recommends some of his signature (and watered down) drinks like the Moe-jito, tries out a pick-up line or two, dreams of actually getting a date, dishes a little on his acting career, and counts his blessings (like babysittin' Maggie Simpson) that make life worth livin' for at least one more day.

Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey


Ozge Samanci - 2015
    Her dad expected Ozge, like her sister, to become an engineer. She tried to hear her own voice over his and the religious and militaristic tensions of Turkey and the conflicts between secularism and fundamentalism. Could she be a scuba diver like Jacques Cousteau? A stage actress? Would it be possible to please everyone including herself?In her unpredictable and funny graphic memoir, Ozge recounts her story using inventive collages, weaving together images of the sea, politics, science, and friendship.

In a Daze Work: A Pick-Your-Path Journey Through the Daily Grind


Siobhan Gallagher - 2017
    From small-talk to dating to death, In A Daze Work is an exciting, playful new spin on the minute and mundane decisions that make up your daily life. Each flip of the page puts you in control of the story: Will you stay in or go out? Do you wake up or sleep in? How will you navigate a bad date, or a party full of cookie-cutter couples (available in vanilla flavor only)? More importantly, where will your decisions take you? Bringing humor and sly self-reflection to the humdrum details of adulthood with hand-drawn illustrations and sharp wit, this relatable visual journey will help you find the extraordinary (or at least hilarious) moments in any day of the week.

Whose Boat Is This Boat?: Comments That Don't Help in the Aftermath of a Hurricane


The Staff of the Late Show - 2018
    It is the first children’s book that demonstrates what not to say after a natural disaster. On September 19, 2018, Donald Trump paid a visit to New Bern, North Carolina, one of the towns ravaged by Hurricane Florence. It was there he showed deep concern for a boat that washed ashore. “At least you got a nice boat out of the deal,” said President Trump to hurricane victims. “Have a good time!” he told them. The only way his comments would be appropriate is in the context of a children’s book—and now you can experience them that way, thanks to the staff of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Whose Boat Is This Boat? is an excellent teaching tool for readers of all ages who enjoy learning about empathy by process of elimination. Have a good time!

Writing for Comics and Graphic Novels with Peter David (Writing for Comics & Graphic Novels)


Peter David - 2009
    Instruction is easy to follow, even for beginners. New content to the book includes ten brand-new pages of specific questions from aspiring fans that read the first edition, covering a range of current and updated topics. Readers will also find useful a comprehensive chapter on the do's and don'ts of breaking into the comics business by Andy Schmidt, senior editor at "IDW", owner of a consulting company for aspiring comics professionals and author of "The Insider's Guide to Creating Comics and Graphic Novels". The revised edition also includes a brand-new introduction by Peter David as well as a new foreword by renowned comic's artist George Perez.

A Year Without Mom


Dasha Tolstikova - 2015
    But Dasha is more worried about her own challenges as she negotiates family, friendships and school without her mother. Just as she begins to find her own feet, she gets word that she is to join her mother in America — a place that seems impossibly far from everything and everyone she loves.This gorgeous and subtly illustrated graphic novel signals the emergence of Dasha Tolstikova as a major new talent.

My Neighbor Totoro 1


Hayao Miyazaki - 1988
    Film comics from "My Neighbor Totoro", directed by Hayao Miyazaki and released by Studio Ghibli

Japanese Cuisine


Tetsu Kariya - 2006
    To commemorate its 100th anniversary the heads of newspaper Tozai Shimbun come up with a plan to publish the “Ultimate Menu”. The assignment is given to journalist Yamaoka Shiro, the protagonist of the series. With the help of a female coworker, Kurita Yuko, Yamaoka starts off on what can only be termed an epic saga to find the dishes hat will go into the “Ultimate Menu”. The subject of volume 1 is Nishon ryori, or Japanese cuisine, featuring stories on subjects like how to prepare a proper dashi (broth that is one of the building blocks of Japanese cooking), or matcha (the powdered green tea used in the tea ceremony), or red snapper sashimi. The subjects of the later volumes are: 2) sake, 3) fish, 4) vegetables, 5) rice dishes, 6) udon, and 7) izakaya or “pub” food.

The Beatles Graphic


Hervé Bourhis - 2010
    Hervé Bourhis, creator of The Little Book of Rock, turns his unique graphic talents to the legend of The Beatles, told from the very beginning. Bourhis’ visual imagination illuminates the individual lives of each band member from their pre-Beatles youth to what would become a rock band of phenomenal worldwide fame. All of the epic details of their story are vividly evoked: the triumphs, the quarrels, the supreme musical creativity and of course the inevitable break-up. The story then goes on to follow the personal destinies of John, Paul, George and Ringo, four Liverpool lads who were by turns ambitious, clever, facetious, arrogant, down-to-earth and supremely talented. Theirs was the ultimate rock band story and Hervé Bourhis has done it —and them — full justice in this superb and exuberant graphic biography.

The PreHistory of The Far Side: A 10th Anniversary Exhibit


Gary Larson - 1989
    A Far Side retrospective, celebrating its tenth anniversary.