Gene Luen Yang at the City Library

Gene Luen Yang–author and artist of Boxers & Saints, The Eternal Smile (with Derek Kirk Kim), Animal Crackers and American Born Chinese–will be speaking at the Salt Lake City Public Library Thursday, November 6 at 7:00 PM in the Level 4 Conference Room. He’ll also be signing copies of National Book Award-nominee Boxers & Saints through Weller Book Works, one of Salt Lake’s wonderful local booksellers. To read more about Yang and his work go to his website geneyang.com. If you have questions or want more information about the event go here: http://www.slcpl.org/events/view/3510

Banned Books Week with Comics!

Sept 21-27 is Banned Books Week where we celebrate banned books and the freedom to read. This year there is a focus on Banned Comics and Graphic Novels in conjunction with the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, on organization that helps fight for the rights of comic book creators, readers and distributors. Here’s a link to their Banned Book Week Handbook:

http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/node/3236

Utah Humanities Book Festival

Time again for the Utah Humanities Council’s Book Festival running roughly from September 17 to October 31, throughout the state.  Notable September events happening in Salt Lake City are:

Sept 18 (7:00 PM), 19th (12:00 PM) Frank Bidart at The Art Barn (54 Finch Lane)       Sept 25 @ 7:00 PM Anthony Doerr at the Viridian Event Center, 8030 South 1825 West, West Jordan                                                                                                             Sept 26 @ 7:00 PM Maggie Nelson at Westminster College in the Gore Business School Auditorium (1840 South 1300 East)                                                                    and Sept 28 @ 3:00 PM Michael Homer at the Mariott Library on the University of Utah Campus in the Gould Auditorium (295 South 1500 East)

for more information about the festival and to download a pdf of the program go to: http://www.utahhumanities.org/BookFestival.htm

Salt Lake Comic Con 2014

A reminder that this week (Sep 4-6) is Salt Lake Comic Con at the Salt Palace. The Salt Lake City Library is going to have a booth there for all 3 days, come check us out at booth 409. For tickets, schedules and more information go to http://saltlakecomiccon.com/

Eisner Award Nominees 2014

San Diego Comic Con International (or simply Comic Con, it’s often assumed you’re talking about ‘the’ Comic Con) is happening at the end of this month (July) and that means it’s time for the Eisner Awards!  Named for legendary writer/artist Will Eisner, recognizing artists, letterers, writers, and retailers for their contribution to the comics medium and culture.

Here are the nominees, generously lifted from the Comic Con website:

Best Short Story

• “Go Owls,” by Adrian Tomine, in Optic Nerve #13 (Drawn & Quarterly)
• “Mars to Stay,” by Brett Lewis and Cliff Chiang, in Witching Hour (DC)
• “Seaside Home,” by Josh Simmons, in Habit #1 (Oily)
• “Untitled,” by Gilbert Hernandez, in Love and Rockets: New Stories #6 (Fantagraphics)
• “When Your House Is Burning Down, You Should Brush Your Teeth,” by Matthew Inman, theoatmeal.com/comics/house

Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)

• Demeter, by Becky Cloonan (self-published)
• Hawkeye #11: “Pizza Is My Business,” by Matt Fraction and David Aja (Marvel)
• Love and Rockets: New Stories #6, by Gilbert Hernandez and Jaime Hernandez (Fantagraphics)
• Viewotron #2, by Sam Sharpe (self-published)
• Watson and Holmes #6, by Brandon Easton, and N. Steven Harris (New Paradigm Studios)

Best Continuing Series

• East of West, by Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta (Image)
• Hawkeye, by Matt Fraction and David Aja (Marvel)
• Nowhere Men, by Eric Stephenson and Nate Bellegarde (Image)
• Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)
• Sex Criminals, by Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky (Image)

Best Limited Series

• The Black Beetle: No Way Out, by Francesco Francavilla (Dark Horse)
• Colder, by Paul Tobin and Juan Ferreyra (Dark Horse)
• 47 Ronin, by Mike Richardson and Stan Sakai (Dark Horse)
• Trillium, by Jeff Lemire (Vertigo/DC)
• The Wake, by Scott Snyder and Sean Murphy (Vertigo/DC)

Best New Series

• High Crimes, by Christopher Sebela and Ibrahim Moustafa (Monkeybrain)
• Lazarus, by Greg Rucka and Michael Lark (Image)
• Rat Queens, by Kurtis J. Wiebe and Roc Upchurch (Image/Shadowline)
• Sex Criminals, by Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky (Image)
• Watson and Holmes, by Karl Bollers, Rick Leonardi, Paul Mendoza et al. (New Paradigm Studios)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 7)

• Benjamin Bear in Bright Ideas, by Philippe Coudray (TOON Books)
• The Big Wet Balloon, by Liniers (TOON Books)
• Itty Bitty Hellboy, by Art Baltazar and Franco (Dark Horse)
• Odd Duck, by Cecil Castellucci and Sara Varon  (First Second)
• Otto’s Backwards Day, by Frank Cammuso (with Jay Lynch) (TOON Books)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 8-12)

• The Adventures of Superhero Girl, by Faith Erin Hicks (Dark Horse)
• Hilda and the Bird Parade, by Luke Pearson (Nobrow)
• Jane, the Fox, and Me, by Fanny Britt and Isabelle Arsenault (Groundwood)
• The Lost Boy, by Greg Ruth (Graphix/Scholastic)
• Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard, vol. 2, edited by David Petersen, Paul Morrissey, and Rebecca Taylor (Archaia/BOOM!)
• Star Wars: Jedi Academy, by Jeffrey Brown (Scholastic)

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)

• Battling Boy, by Paul Pope (First Second)
• Bluffton: My Summers with Buster, by Matt Phelan (Candlewick)
• Boxers and Saints, by Gene Luen Yang (First Second)
• Dogs of War, by Sheila Keenan and Nathan Fox (Graphix/Scholastic)
• March (Book One), by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (Top Shelf)
• Templar, by Jordan Mechner, LeUyen Pham, and Alex Puviland (First Second)

Best Humor Publication

• The Adventures of Superhero Girl, by Faith Erin Hicks (Dark Horse)
• The Complete Don Quixote, by Miguel de Cervantes and Rob Davis (SelfMadeHero)
• The (True!) History of Art, by Sylvain Coissard and Alexis Lemoine (SelfMadeHero)
• Vader’s Little Princess, by Jeffrey Brown (Chronicle)
• You’re All Just Jealous of My Jetpack, by Tom Gauld (Drawn & Quarterly)

Best Anthology

• Dark Horse Presents, edited by Mike Richardson (Dark Horse)
• Nobrow #8: Hysteria, edited by Sam Arthur and Alex Spiro (Nobrow)
• Outlaw Territory, edited by Michael Woods (Image)
• Smoke Signal, edited by Gabe Fowler (Desert Island)
• The Thrilling Adventure Hour, by Ben Acker, Ben Blacker et al., edited by Joe LeFavi(Archaia/BOOM!)

Best Digital/Webcomic

• As the Crow Flies, by Melanie Gillman, www.melaniegillman.com
• Failing Sky, by Dax Tran-Caffee, failingsky.com
• High Crimes, by Christopher Sebela and Ibrahim Moustafa (Monkeybrain), www.monkeybraincomics.com/titles/high-crimes/
• The Last Mechanical Monster, by Brian Fies, lastmechanicalmonster.blogspot.com
• The Oatmeal by Matthew Inman, theoatmeal.com

Best Reality-Based Work

• A Bag of Marbles, by Joseph Joffo, Kris, and Vincent Bailly (Graphic Universe/Lerner)
• The Fifth Beatle: The Brian Epstein Story, by Vivek J. Tiwary, Andrew C. Robinson, and Kyle Baker (M Press/Dark Horse)
• Hip Hop Family Tree, vol. 1, by Ed Piskor (Fantagraphics)
• March (Book One), by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (Top Shelf)
• Today Is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life, by Ulli Lust (Fantagraphics)
• Woman Rebel: The Margaret Sanger Story, by Peter Bagge (Drawn & Quarterly)

Best Graphic Album—New

• Bluffton: My Summers with Buster, by Matt Phelan (Candlewick)
• The Encyclopedia of Early Earth, by Isabel Greenberg (Little, Brown)
• Good Dog, by Graham Chaffee (Fantagraphics)
• Homesick by Jason Walz (Tinto Press)
• The Property, by Rutu Modan (Drawn & Quarterly)
• War Brothers, by Sharon McKay and Daniel LaFrance (Annick Press)

Best Adaptation from Another Medium

• The Castle, by Franz Kafka, adapted by David Zane Mairowitz and Jaromír 99 (SelfMadeHero)
• The Complete Don Quixote, by Miguel de Cervantes, adapted by by Rob Davis (SelfMadeHero)
• Django Unchained, adapted by Quentin Tarantino, Reginald Hudlin, R. M. Guéra et al. (DC/Vertigo)
• Richard Stark’s Parker: Slayground, by Donald Westlake, adapted by Darwyn Cooke (IDW)
• The Strange Tale of Panorama Island, by Edogawa Rampo, adapted by Suehiro Maruo  (Last Gasp)

Best Graphic Album—Reprint

• The Creep, by John Arcudi and Jonathan Case (Dark Horse)
• Hand-Drying in America and Other Stories, by Ben Katchor (Pantheon)
• Heck, by Zander Cannon (Top Shelf)
• Julio’s Day, by Gilbert Hernandez  (Fantagraphics)
• RASL, by Jeff Smith (Cartoon Books)
• Solo: The Deluxe Edition, edited by Mark Chiarello (DC)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips

• Barnaby, vol. 1, by Crockett Johnson, edited by Philip Nel and Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)
• Percy Crosby’s Skippy Daily Comics, vol. 2: 1928–1930, edited by Jared Gardner and Dean Mullaney (LOAC/IDW)
• Prince Valiant vols. 6-7, by Hal Foster, edited by Kim Thompson (Fantagraphics)
• Society Is Nix: Gleeful Anarchy at the Dawn of the American Comic Strip, edited by Peter Maresca (Sunday Press)
• Tarzan: The Complete Russ Manning Newspaper Strips, vol. 1, edited by Dean Mullaney (LOAC/IDW)
• VIP: The Mad World of Virgil Partch, edited by Jonathan Barli (Fantagraphics)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books

• Best of EC Artist’s Edition, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)
• Canteen Kate, by Matt Baker (Canton Street Press)
• In the Days of the Mob, by Jack Kirby (DC)
• MAD Artist’s Edition, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)
• Will Eisner’s The Spirit Artist’s Edition, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

• Adventures of a Japanese Businessman, by Jose Domingo (Nobrow)
• Goddam This War! by Jacques Tardi and Jean-Pierre Verney (Fantagraphics)
• Incidents in the Night, Book One, by David B. (Uncivilized Books)
• Today Is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life, by Ulli Lust (Fantagraphics)
• When David Lost His Voice, by Judith Vanistendael (SelfMadeHero)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

• The Heart of Thomas, by Moto Hagio (Fantagraphics)
• The Mysterious Underground Men, by Osamu Tezuka (PictureBox)
• Showa: A History of Japan, 1926–1939, by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Summit of the Gods, vol. 4, by Yemmakura Baku and Jiro Taniguchi (Fanfare/Ponent Mon)
• Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist, by Asumiko Nakamura (Vertical)

Best Writer

• Kelly Sue DeConnick, Pretty Deadly (Image); Captain Marvel (Marvel)
• Matt Fraction, Sex Criminals (Image); Hawkeye, Fantastic Four, FF (Marvel)
• Jonathan Hickman, East of West, The Manhattan Projects (Image); Avengers, Infinity (Marvel)
• Scott Snyder, Batman (DC); American Vampire, The Wake (DC/Vertigo)
• Eric Stephenson, Nowhere Men (Image)
• Brian K. Vaughan, Saga (Image)

Best Writer/Artist

• Isabel Greenberg, The Encyclopedia of Early Earth (Little, Brown)
• Jaime Hernandez, Love and Rockets New Stories #6 (Fantagraphics)
• Terry Moore, Rachel Rising (Abstract Studio)
• Luke Pearson, Hilda and the Bird Parade (Nobrow)
• Matt Phelan, Bluffton: My Summers with Buster (Candlewick)
• Judith Vanistendael, When David Lost His Voice (SelfMadeHero)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

• Nate Bellegarde, Nowhere Men (Image)
• Nick Dragotta, East of West (Image)
• Sean Murphy, The Wake (DC/Vertigo)
• Nate Powell, March (Book One) (Top Shelf)
• Emma Ríos, Pretty Deadly (Image)
• Thomas Yeates, Law of the Desert Born: A Graphic Novel (Bantam)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

• Andrew C. Robinson, The Fifth Beatle (Dark Horse)
• Sonia Sanchéz, Here I Am (Capstone)
• Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)
• Ive Svorcina, Thor (Marvel)
• Marguerite Van Cook, 7 Miles a Second (Fantagraphics)
• Judith Vanistendael, When David Lost His Voice (SelfMadeHero)

Best Cover Artist

• David Aja, Hawkeye (Marvel)
• Mike Del Mundo, X-Men Legacy (Marvel)
• Sean Murphy/Jordie Belaire, The Wake (DC/Vertigo)
• Emma Ríos, Pretty Deadly (Image)
• Chris Samnee, Daredevil (Marvel)
• Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)

Best Coloring

• Jordie Bellaire, The Manhattan Projects, Nowhere Men, Pretty Deadly, Zero (Image); The Massive (Dark Horse); Tom Strong (DC); X-Files Season 10  (IDW); Captain Marvel, Journey into Mystery (Marvel); Numbercruncher (Titan); Quantum and Woody (Valiant)
• Steve Hamaker, Mylo Xyloto (Bongo), Strangers in Paradise 20th Anniversary Issue 1 (Abstract Studio), RASL (Cartoon Books)
• Matt Hollingsworth, Hawkeye, Daredevil: End of Days (Marvel); The Wake (DC/Vertigo)
• Frank Martin, East of West (Image)
• Dave Stewart, Abe Sapien, Baltimore: The Infernal Train, BPRD: Hell on Earth, Conan the Barbarian, Hellboy in Hell, The Massive, The Shaolin Cowboy, Sledgehammer 44 (Dark Horse)

Best Lettering

• Darwyn Cooke, Richard Stark’s Parker: Slayground (IDW)
• Carla Speed McNeil, Bad Houses; “Finder” in Dark Horse Presents (Dark Horse)
• Terry Moore, Rachel Rising (Abstract Studio)
• Ed Piskor, Hip Hop Family Tree (Fantagraphics)
• Britt Wilson, Adventure Time with Fionna and Cake (KaBOOM!/BOOM!)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

• Comic Book Resources, produced by Jonah Weiland, www.comicbookresources.com
• The Comics Journal #302, edited by Gary Groth and Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics)
• Comics and Cola, by Zainab Akhtar, www.comicsandcola.com
• Multiversity Comics, edited by Matthew Meylikhov, www.multiversitycomics.com
• tcj.com, edited by Dan Nadel and Timothy Hodler (Fantagrapahics), www.tcj.com

Best Comics-Related Book

• Al Capp: A Life to the Contrary, by Michael Schumacher and Denis Kitchen (Bloomsbury)
• The Art of Rube Goldberg, selected by Jennifer George (Abrams ComicArts)
• Co-Mix: A Retrospective of Comics, Graphics, and Scraps, by Art Spiegelman (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Genius, Illustrated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth,  by Dean Mullaney and Bruce Canwell (LOAC/IDW)
• The Love and Rockets Companion, edited by Marc Sobel and Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics)

Best Scholarly/Academic Work

• Anti-Foreign Imagery in American Pulps and Comic Books, 1920–1960, by Nathan Vernon Madison (McFarland)
• Black Comics: Politics of Race and Representation, edited by Sheena C. Howard and Ronald L. Jackson II (Bloomsbury)
• Drawing from Life: Memory and Subjectivity in Comic Art, edited by Jane Tolmie (University Press of Mississippi)
• International Journal of Comic Art, edited by John A. Lent
• The Superhero Reader, edited by Charles Hatfield, Jeet Heer, and Kent Worcester (University Press of Mississippi)

Best Publication Design

• The Art of Rube Goldberg, designed by Chad W. Beckerman and Sara Corbett (Abrams ComicArts)
• Beta Testing the Apocalypse, designed by Tom Kaczynski (Fantagraphics)
• Genius, Illustrated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth, designed by Dean Mullaney (LOAC/IDW)
• The Great War: July 1, 1916: The First Day of the Battle of the Somme: A Panorama, by Joe Sacco, designed by Chin-Yee Lai (Norton)
• Little Tommy Lost, Book 1, designed by Cole Closser (Koyama)

– See more at: http://www.comic-con.org/awards/will-eisner-comic-industry-award-nominees-2014#sthash.eWXnnRf5.dpuf

Graphic Novels to Looks Forward To 2014 Edition Part 2

Now for the second half of the year, more books to look out for in 2014

 

 

 

 

 

It Never Happened Again by Sam Alden, Get Over It by Corrine Mucha, Art Schooled by Jamie Coe and Youth is Wasted by Noah Van Sciver.

 

Seconds by Bryan Lee O’Malley, Through the Woods by Emily Carroll, The Motherless Oven by Rob Davis and The Wrenchies by Farel Dalrymple.

Pascin by Joann Sfar and Blacksad: Amarillo by Juanjo Guarnido and Juan Diaz Canales

 

Graphic Novels to Look Forward To: 2014 Edition

20 books coming out in 2014 that look promising: http://www.comicsandcola.com/2014/02/20-most-anticipated-graphic-novels-for.html First, two GNs published by Jonathan Cape: (publisher of Bryan Talbot, Daniel Clowes, Charles Burns, Alison Bechdel), Polina by Bastien Vives and Just So Happens by Fumio Obata

Beautiful Darkness by Fabienne Vehlmann (writer of Island of 100,000 Graves with Jason and Last Days of an Immortal with Gwen de Bonneval) and Kerascoët (contributor to the Dungeon books). Nijigahara Holograph by Inio Asano (creator of the What a Wonderful World manga series) Beautfil Darkness is available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=2

Two continuing series books, Locke and Key volume 6: Alpha by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez and Hilda and the Black Hound by Luke Pearson. Locke and Key Volumes 1-5 are available at the library http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/searchresults.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&type=Keyword&term=locke%20and%20key&by=KW&sort=RELEVANCE&limit=TOM=*&query=&page=0&searchid=1 as well as the first 2 volumes of Hilda.

Weapons of Mass Diplomacy by Christophe Blain (Gus and His Gang, Dungeon) and Abel Lanzac. How To Be Happy by Eleanor Davis, a relative newcomer to the comics scene, she’s been published in Mome and Best American Comics of 2013.

This One Summer by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki (Skim and Emiko Superstar). Andre the Giant by Box Brown. Stay tuned for the second half of the year…

Best 13 of ’13

As the year draws to a close, even as it gets abysmally cold and the sun seems to disappear from our lives, it seems appropriate to reflect upon what amazing comics were created in the past year. As long as your bunkered down for the next several weeks, you might as well have something good to read. Here’s 13 of the best graphic novels or trade paperbacks from 2013.

Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1
and here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=5

Hawkeye Vol. 1 written by Matt Fraction, illustrated by David Aja and Javier Pulido

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=2

The Adventures of Superhero Girl by Faith Erin Hicks

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

Relish by Lucy Kinsley

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=2

The Mind MGMT by Matt Kindt

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

Saga Volume 2 written by Brian K. Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=3

Bad Houses written by Sara Ryan and illustrated by Carla Speed McNeill

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

The Property written by Rutu Modan, translated by Jess Cohen

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

Battling Boy by Paul Pope

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

March Book 1 written by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, illustrated by Nate Powell

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

Calling Doctor Laura by Nicole J Georges

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

Today Is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life by Ulli Lust

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=1

RASL (the complete series) by Jeff Smith

available here: http://catalog.slcpl.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=4

Monster Used Book Sale & Utah Book Festival

October is National Book Month!

In keeping, we have two events you’ll not want to miss: the Friend’s of the Library Monster Used Book Sale happening at the Main Branch (210 East 400 South) from October 10th-15th and the Utah Humanities Book Festival with events happening throughout the state throughout the month of October (several of which are happening at City Library Locations).

More information about the book sale can be found here: http://www.slcpl.org/events/view/2448

And information about the Utah Book Festival, including a schedule of events can be located here:

http://www.utahhumanities.org/BookFestival.htm

Greetings from Japan!

If you’re following us on Facebook (and you really, really should be–just search for “Alt Press”), then you’ve glimpsed the inter-cultural amazingness currently displayed on Level 2 at the Main Library.

We’re talking about zines from Japan!

In a first-ever international outreach experiment, we shipped off some of our precious zine collection (via good old snail mail) to Kanda University of International Studies, about an hour east of Tokyo, Japan.