Tintin in the Land of the Soviets


Hergé - 1930
    Punctuated by slapstick and political revelations, this story is based on the writings of an anticommunist Belgian ex-consul to the Ukraine. Herge's early style revealed strong graphics, influenced by photo-reporting from the period, marking the historic debut of a major artist.

The Eyes of the Cat


Alejandro Jodorowsky - 1978
    The very first graphic storytelling collaboration between two masters of the medium, Alexandro Jodorowsky and Mœbius.In a desolate dreamscape world, a man, a bird, and a cat interact in a unique apocalyptic yet poetic fashion…

Berlin


Jason Lutes - 2001
    Berlin is one of the high-water marks of the medium: rich in its well-researched historical detail, compassionate in its character studies, and as timely as ever in its depiction of a society slowly awakening to the stranglehold of fascism.Berlin is an intricate look at the fall of the Weimar Republic through the eyes of its citizens—Marthe Müller, a young woman escaping the memory of a brother killed in World War I, Kurt Severing, an idealistic journalist losing faith in the printed word as fascism and extremism take hold; the Brauns, a family torn apart by poverty and politics. Lutes weaves these characters’ lives into the larger fabric of a city slowly ripping apart.The city itself is the central protagonist in this historical fiction. Lavish salons, crumbling sidewalks, dusty attics, and train stations: all these places come alive in Lutes’ masterful hand. Weimar Berlin was the world’s metropolis, where intellectualism, creativity, and sensuous liberal values thrived, and Lutes maps its tragic, inevitable decline. Devastatingly relevant and beautifully told, Berlin is one of the great epics of the comics medium.

Secret Invasion


Brian Michael Bendis - 2009
    The shape-shifting alien race known as the Skrulls has secretly infiltrated every super-powered organization on Earth with one goal - full-scale invasion! Filled with shocking revelations and powerful action, this adventure will keep you on the edge of your seat as Marvel's greatest heroes and villains ask - Who do you trust?Collects Secret Invasion (2008) #1-8

Poorly Drawn Lines: Good Ideas and Amazing Stories


Reza Farazmand - 2015
    Embrace it.A bear flies through space. A hamster suffers a breakdown. Elsewhere, a garden snake is arrested by animal control and jailed for home invasion, while a child marvels at the wonder of nature as worms emerge from the ground and begin looking for vodka (as they always have). These are common occurrences in the world of Reza Farazmand’s wildly popular webcomic, Poorly Drawn Lines. Traveling from deep space to alternate realities to the bottom of the ocean, this eponymous collection brings together fan favorites with new comics and original essays to share Farazmand’s inimitable take on love, nature, social acceptance, and robots.

Deadpool's Art of War


Peter David - 2015
    It has influenced leaders in both warfare and business for hundreds of years. Which means it's totally in the public domain, and ripe for being ripped off by Deadpool! And what's Deadpool's plan to ensure that his version outsells the original? Make sure the world is at war when it comes out! But Deadpool soon finds it's easier starting a war than it is keeping the war under his control! Now, Loki has imprisoned 'Pool and is about to conquer Earth! Fortunately, Deadpool knows the art of war, right? (He does, that's sort of the point. He's teaching you about war in this series.) Will Deadpool's war destroy Earth – or make him a best-selling author?Collects Deadpool's Art of War #1–4.

The Fixer: A Story from Sarajevo


Joe Sacco - 2003
    He begins by returning us to the dying days of Balkan conflict and introduces us to his own fixer; a man looking to squeeze the last bit of profit from Bosnia before the reconstruction begins. Thanks to a complex relationship with the fixer Joe discovers the crimes of opportunistic warlords and gangsters who run the countryside in times of war. But the west is interested in a different spin on the stories coming out of Bosnia. Almost ten years later, Joe meets up with his fixer and sees how the new Bosnian government has "dealt" with these criminals and Joe ponders who is holding the reins of power these days...

Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia


Greg Rucka - 2002
    When Wonder Woman partakes in an ancient ritual called the Hiketeia, she is honor bound to eternally protect and care for a young girl named Danielle Wellys. But when the Amazon Princess learns that Danielle has killed the drug dealers who murdered her sister, she suddenly finds herself in battle with Batman, who is searching for the female fugitive. Caught in a no-win situation, Wonder Woman must choose between breaking a sacred oath and turning her back on justice.

Captain America Comics #1


Joe SimonSyd Shores - 1941
    See America's greatest hero take to the front lines alongside his sidekick Bucky!

Werewolves of Montpellier


Jason - 2009
    The way he figures it, the disguise will give him an extra few moments advantage vis-a-vis any startled home owner if things get ugly...but he hasn't taken into account the existence of a society of real Montpellier-based werewolves who do not take kindly to this new pretender. So while Sven spends his days playing chess and poker with his friends, sketching his way through his picturesque chosen hometown, and coping with romantic dilemmas -- both his and those of his best friend, the Breakfast at Tiffany's-obsessed Audrey, who has girl troubles of her own -- little does he realize that a genuine threat to his life, and for that matter his humanity, is closing in on him.Werewolves of Montpellier is a lycanthropic thriller, a romantic comedy, and an existential drama -- basically, your typical Jason book. Beware the full moon!

The Rabbi's Cat


Joann Sfar - 2002
    To his master’s consternation, the cat immediately begins to tell lies (the first being that he didn’t eat the parrot). The rabbi vows to educate him in the ways of the Torah, while the cat insists on studying the kabbalah and having a Bar Mitzvah. They consult the rabbi’s rabbi, who maintains that a cat can’t be Jewish — but the cat, as always, knows better.Zlabya falls in love with a dashing young rabbi from Paris, and soon master and cat, having overcome their shared self-pity and jealousy, are accompanying the newlyweds to France to meet Zlabya’s cosmopolitan in-laws. Full of drama and adventure, their trip invites countless opportunities for the rabbi and his cat to grapple with all the important — and trivial — details of life.Rich with the colors, textures, and flavors of Algeria’s Jewish community, The Rabbi’s Cat brings a lost world vibrantly to life — a time and place where Jews and Arabs coexisted — and peoples it with endearing and thoroughly human characters, and one truly unforgettable cat.

Royal City, Vol. 1: Next of Kin


Jeff Lemire - 2017
    In a return to the literary and thematic territory of Lemire's breakthrough graphic novel ESSEX COUNTY, ROYAL CITY follows Patrick Pike, a fading literary star who reluctantly returns to the once-thriving factory town where he grew up. Patrick is quickly drawn back into the dramas of his two adult siblings, his overbearing Mother and his brow beaten Father, all of whom are still haunted by different versions of his youngest brother, Tommy, who drowned decades ago. As each member of the family struggles to keep themselves above water, it quickly becomes clear that Tommy's death isn't the only dark secret tearing the town, and this family, apart at the seams. Can each member of the Pike family come to terms with their own guilt over Tommy's death, and make peace with the many versions of Tommy that still haunt them, or will they all be dragged down below the river along with his lingering ghost? ROYAL CITY promises to be a sprawling, serialized graphic novel that will chart the lives, loves and losses of a troubled family and a vanishing town, across three decades. Jeff Lemire is the creator of DESCENDER (with DUSTIN NGUYEN), AD: AFTER DEATH (with SCOTT SNYDER), ROUGHNECK, SECRET PATH (with Gord Downie), PLUTONA (with EMI LENNOX), ESSEX COUNTY, SWEET TOOTH, TRILLIUM, and THE UNDERWATER WELDER. He had also written celebrated stories featuring Green Arrow, Animal Man, Bloodshot, Wolverine, Hawkeye, Teen Titans, the Valiant, the X-Men and Inhumans for the major comic book publishers. Collecting issues 1 through 5.

Bottomless Belly Button


Dash Shaw - 2008
    When the parents announce their divorce, the family comes together at their beach house for a week. Dennis, the eldest son, is having marriage troubles of his own, and searches for clues, trap doors, and secret tunnels. Claire, the middle child, is a single mother with a troubled 16-year-old daughter, Jill. The youngest child, Peter, is a hack filmmaker suffering from paralyzing insecurities who establishes an unorthodox romance with a mysterious day care counselor at the beach.

The Complete Peanuts, Vol. 1: 1950-1952


Charles M. Schulz - 2004
    (Among other things, three major cast members—Schroeder, Lucy, and Linus—initially show up as infants and only "grow" into their final "mature" selves as the months go by. Even Snoopy debuts as a puppy!) Thus The Complete Peanuts offers a unique chance to see a master of the art form refine his skills and solidify his universe, day by day, week by week, month by month.This volume is rounded out with Garrison Keillor's introduction, a biographical essay by David Michaelis (Schulz and Peanuts) and an in-depth interview with Schulz conducted in 1987 by Gary Groth and Rick Marschall, all wrapped in a gorgeous design by award-winning cartoonist Seth.

Spawn Origins, Volume 1


Todd McFarlane - 2009
    Spawn Origins Volume 1 includes the introduction of not only Spawn, but also a number of other memorable and menacing characters, including Malebolgia and the Violator. Collects Spawn #1-6.