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Bill Schanes Acquires Bud Plant’s Business

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Bill Schanes

GRASS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, January 28, 2026 /budsartbooks.com/ – Longtime comics industry icon Bill Schanes, who entered the comics field at the age of 13 selling at local Southern California comic shows, has concluded his bid to purchase the online mail order business, Bud’s Art Books, the long-serving purveyor of comic strip, comic book, fantasy, horror, and sci-fi illustrated books and graphic novels, originally launched by legendary retailer, distributor, publisher, collector and historian, Bud Plant.

The deal, which was officially completed on January 15, 2026, gives Schanes ownership and control of Bud’s Art Books (a.k.a. Bud Plant Comic Art), the online mail order business that sells new and rare books related to comic books, fantasy art, illustration, and related subjects. This is a purchase of the overall assets of Bud’s Art Books. 

Schanes and Plant began their storied careers in comics in the early ‘70s and the late ‘60s, respectively, each transitioning from retailer to publisher to distributor in Northern and Southern California. Over the years, their paths have intersected on both personal and business levels, with Plant purchasing the assets of Schanes’ Pacific Comics distribution company in 1985. Now, over 40 years later, Schanes has purchased Bud’s Art Books, completing a comic book industry loop worthy of a special issue.

Schanes is joined in this new endeavor by his business partner, Sasha Fera-Schanes. Fera-Schanes is the President and CEO of POP-KING, Inc., a longtime player in the comic book and pop culture industry. Both PopKing and Bud Plant will operate as separate business entities, but cooperation and mutual support between the companies are planned going forward.

Schanes, who retired in 2013 from his role as Vice President of Purchasing at Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc., where he had served since 1985, has spent the years since his exit from Diamond travelling the world and visiting comic, game, and collectibles stores wherever he found himself. He chronicled his travels via Facebook posts, visiting shops in over 160 countries and experiencing our world as few have ever done. In regard to his acquisition of Bud’s Art Books, Schanes stated, “After travelling around the world for over a decade, I returned to the United States and my children. I missed seeing them while I was away, and I also missed the industry. Acquiring Bud’s Art Books, a company with a long history of serving comics and fantasy art fans was, to me, the perfect way to get back into the business I love, while also providing a solid future for my family.” 

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Bud Plant

Plant, who announced in 2011 plans to sell his mail-order business and retire, continued the business when no potential buyers emerged after a year. Since then, Bud’s Art Books has continued to serve fans of comics and illustration with its curated catalog of new and rare books. When he was approached by Schanes about acquiring Bud’s Art Books, Plant knew he had found his buyer.

The deal was completed surprisingly quickly, as both parties shared a similar vision and mutual trust formed over 50 years of interaction and cooperation, on January 15, 2026. Following the sale, Plant will remain available onsite during the transition period in an advisory capacity as the new team (including Marty Grosser, most recently Diamond PREVIEWS Editor, and former Comics & Comix/Bud Plant staffer) familiarizes themselves with the Bud Plant business model. Schanes and his team officially take control of the operation as of February 1, 2026.

With the sale of his company completed, Plant reflected on his long history in the industry and the end of an era for him: “I’ve been privileged to share my passion for all things comics as well as illustration and art history… for an amazing run of 55 years. I’m so lucky to have had the support of wonderful customers as well as comic book creators, many of my good friends. I’ve loved picking catalog covers featuring my favorite artists, creating cool signed bookplates (thanks to all you artists and writers!!), and last but not least, helping deserving books get to people who appreciate them. As if that’s not enough, I’ve been told I’m being inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame at Comic-Con this July. Life is good! I’m super pleased Bud Plant Comic Art will carry on with our present great staff and also new people like Marty Grosser and Bill Schanes to keep up the good work and add new dimensions to what I’ve achieved.”

In his new role as Owner and President of Bud’s Art Books, Schanes has long-range plans to expand the company’s reach into new online forums and to also expand the company’s already comprehensive pool of titles. “My vision for this company is comprehensive, and I have mapped out our future plans to take it into new markets, new audiences, and offering even more books and products than ever. The demand for comics and fantasy art has never been stronger, with comics currently in a strong period of sales. We will strive to be an important facet of that market, and look forward to serving their comic art needs.”

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The Joy of Snacking by Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell

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There were three major comics memoirs by women in the fall of 2025, all about the same cluster of topics: eating, cooking, family, and how those things are connected. I don’t know if it’s going to be surprising to anyone that many women have issues around both eating (their bodies are often policed by others) and cooking (they are generally assumed to be responsible for feeding the people around them), but the cluster is an interesting thing, and I hope someone better-qualified than me (an actual woman, at a minimum) digs in and looks at the three books together.

I first saw Jennifer Hayden’s Where There’s Smoke, There’s Dinner , published in November, leaning towards the production side of food and making comic hay about Hayden’s inability or unwillingness to do it well. Then I noticed My Perfectly Imperfect Body  by Debbie Tung from September, which is more focused on the consumption side of food, and a bout of disordered eating in Tung’s youth.

Published in between the two of those is The Joy of Snacking , from Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell, whose work I’ve seen as a cartoonist in The New Yorker, but has also done a previous comics memoir, illustrated several other books, made a few documentary movies, and also works in burlesque.

Snacking is mostly about eating – young Hilary was what we call “a picky eater,” and that’s continued into her adult life. (She’s now in her early thirties.) The spine of this book is, as the title implies, “snacking” – Campbell is one of those people who eats lots of little bits all day long, isn’t terribly fond of big meals, and tends to focus on a few preferred, beloved, standard snacks. (She also says this is a youngest-kid thing, which made me realize my younger son is also a grazer – there’s a kind of bowl that he uses to gather stuff to eat, and we see them pile up in the sink – so I tentatively think her theory has some merit and she should get a major research grant to investigate it.)

Campbell organizes Snacking into loose chapters, bouncing between two timelines: her childhood and young-adulthood, as she discovered new foods and mostly tried to avoid them, and the last few years and her tumultuous relationship with a man she calls E. Separating scenes or sections are cookbook-like pages, which are each about a food Campbell likes – apples and peanut butter, or “a baggie of goldfish,” or “a bowl of potato chips,” or Cool Ranch Doritos – with details on how to “prepare” them, when and where to eat them, and their significance to her.

It might be the fact that this isn’t her first memoir, but I found Campbell to be harder on herself than other people – in particular, E comes across (maybe, though, because I am a man) as a fairly reasonable guy trying to live with Campbell’s issues, as the two of them snipe at each other in that deeply nasty way some couples develop. I’m sure he had his flaws, but I felt that Campbell presented him in a mostly-positive light: he’s a guy who is in many ways her opposite (a foodie who works selling wine to restaurants!), but they made it work, more or less, for a number of years.

This is not a how-I-changed book, or a I-fixed-my-problem book. Campbell likes snacking. She’s going to continue doing it. On the other hand, this isn’t entirely a celebration, since she’s also clear that she had a weird, often unpleasant childhood because of her food issues, and that it’s affected her adult life in ways she doesn’t like. That tension plays out throughout the book – can she be herself, eat the stuff she likes (and maybe “normal” food, too, OK, sure, sometimes), and go through life with less stress and anxiety? Well, maybe. But how about some popcorn and white wine now, while she thinks about it?

This is a big book, with some aspects I’ve not even mentioned – Campbell traces the eating habits of her parents as well in flashback sections, so it’s not just a book about her individually – and a warm open-heartedness I found deeply engaging. Campbell has a cartoony, dense style here: her people are loosely defined with thin lines, her panels are many and jammed together without gutters, her dialogue is long and rambling, like real people. This is a fun book about a distinctive person who’s not afraid to show herself being odd and quirky – that’s the whole point of the exercise. I don’t know if anyone else eats quite like Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell does, but, then again, do any of us really eat like all of the rest of us? This book made me wonder that – and that’s a good thing to wonder about.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

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REVIEW: Wake Now in the Fire

Wake Now in the Fire
By Jarrett Dapier and AJ Dungo
464 pages/Ten Speed Graphic/$38 (hardcover) $24.99 (softcover)

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For several years, I taught Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis in my high school English classes, a chance to introduce readers to the graphic novel storytelling style while helping see what people their age endure in other countries. Last year, after a few parents complained about language and sex, I was asked to remove it from the curriculum (although I could keep it in my class library).

When I introduced the story, I referenced its international awards as well as the brief 2013 ban of the book from Chicago Public Schools. So, the parallels were not lost on me. But I never knew the full story.

Former teen librarian at the Evanston and Skokie public libraries, Dapier knows his audience, and the teenagers in this fictionalized account of the true event sound authentic. As the students at Curtis Technical College Preparatory High School arrived on Monday, March 11, 2013, we see how a memo from the district began the sequence of events.

First, an English teacher has to take the books out of the classroom, and then we discover the entire district has to comply, which involves collecting and disposing of them. She bravely preserved her class set.

As word spreads, we focus on several sets of students, including those working on the school newspaper, who begin researching the event. For whatever reason, the Chicago CEO of Schools, Barbara Byrd-Bennett, refuses to respond to requests for comment. Satrapi, though, does, and mainstream media are directed to retrieve her quote from the student journalist.

Dapier does a nice job weaving the growing student discontent into their personal lives, making things complex and realistic. Apparently, the characteristics and life events were real, although characters were changed for dramatic reasons. I appreciate seeing the classroom discussions across the disciplines to make sure all voices and opinions are reflected.

As the 451 Banned Books Club plans a Persepolis read-in and others plan a walkout protest for that Friday. We watch each student wrestle with their choice of action and its consequences. This makes the book a rich reading experience as well as a breezy one.

Dungo’s artwork is relatively simple, mixing real and cartoon elements with thick ink lines, using a limited blue palette, with just red reserved for the banned book’s cover. I wish Dungo tightened the balloon shapes, which wasted a lot of space and, instead, provided more backgrounds, making much of the story seem simplistic/ I found the balloons (but not the captions, go figure) distracting throughout.

In the Note from the Author, we discover it was Dapier who used the Freedom of Information Act to retrieve the vital documents which proved Byrd-Bennett was behind the ban, despite lying about it, and this proved to be one of many instances of her misconduct, ultimately leading to her firing.

With books still under attack across the country, this book is a vital resource that shows students how to take action, have a voice, and hold adults accountable. It’s a compelling read, one I raced through and suspect you will, too.

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Jubilee gets One-Shot in April from Gene Luen Yang

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New York, NY— January 16, 2026 — OnApril 29, Marvel Comics will shine a special spotlight on the X-Men’s Jubilee in celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! The iconic mutant firecracker, currently starring in Gail Simone, Dave Marquez, and Luciano Vecchio’s Uncanny X-Men, will strike out on her own in JUBILEE: DEADLY REUNION #1, a Marvel’s Voices one-shot written by Eisner Award-winning writer Gene Luen Yang (Shang-Chi) and acclaimed rising star artist Michael YG (Iron Fist). The saga kicks off when Jubilee’s long-lost cousin shows up at the X-Men’s doorstep—with mutant powers of his own and a mission that will force Jubilee to explore her Chinese heritage and family history in a profound way!

JUBILEE’S X-CELLENT ADVENTURE!

Jubilation Lee always puts her life on the line for those in need – but for family? She’ll do anything! When the cousin she never knew is suddenly in need of help, Jubilee tracks him down to save him! But Jubilee may find that her familial bonds aren’t as strong as she hoped! What secrets does her cousin hold? And what dangerous mutant power does he wield?! Join Jubilee as she embarks on a bombastic and life-altering journey of family, heart and heartbreak!

“I’ve been a big fan of Jubilee since high school, when I was reading the Chris Claremont and Jim Lee X-Men run,” Yang shared. “She just felt like someone I would’ve been friends with at school, except she’s an X-Man. She’s also an American Born Chinese like me, so I’ve always wanted to tell a story about her uneasy relationship with her roots. I’m thrilled to finally get the chance.”

“I’m greatly honored to collaborate with Gene Luen Yang once again,” Michael YG shared. “This project is truly a celebratory highlight for me, just like a jubilee itself!”

Throughout the year, Marvel’s Voices delivers super-powered storytelling that spotlights characters and creators, including renowned and emerging talent, exploring the multitude of unique backgrounds, journeys and identities found in the Marvel Universe.

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Spider-Versity, the Latest Event, is Announced

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New York, NY— January 15, 2026 — All your favorite webheads will band together in a brand-new way this April in THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: SPIDER-VERSITY! Announced at IGN, the five-issue limited series will be written by Jordan Morris (Predator: Bloodshed) and Joe Kelly (Amazing Spider-Man) and drawn by artist Pere Perez (Amazing Spider-Man: Torn).

Spinning directly out of Kelly’s hit run of Amazing Spider-Man, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: SPIDER-VERSITY sees Norman Osborn take various Spider-heroes under his wing to train them against a deadly incoming threat—himself! Following up on Norman’s heroic turn as Spider-Man—as well as his looming descent back to madness—and bringing the entire Spider-family together as a united front, the series is an essential chapter in the lead-up to AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #1000, the mega milestone issue coming later this year.

LEARNING TO CRAWL!

Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, Silk, Araña, Spider-Boy and Spider-Girl have one thing in common – THEY AREN’T READY. According to former Resolute Spider-Man Norman Osborn. So he and Spider-Woman are going to train them to meet the next threat – the only way the Green Goblin knows how. Because the next threat might well BE the Green Goblin!

On how the Spider-heroes react to their new mentor, Morris told IGN, “The younger Spiders all have their own take. Some of them are stoked, some are more wary (specifically the ones Norman has killed before). To a certain extent, they’re all students of Pete. Even the ones who haven’t trained with him specifically see him as a role-model. Since Pete has forgiven Norman, the other Spiders are willing to give him a chance. Even though certain members of the team are more prickly, they all share the try-and-see-the-best-in-people ethos that is so important to Pete.”

“Spider-Versity spins directly out of the events of Amazing Spider-Man,” Kelly added. “Norman has a definitive threat in mind that he’s trying to protect the young Spiders against. One he knows intimately. But even for a master planner like Norman, things may perhaps go awry, and the kids will face some unexpected threats. Nothing like learning on the job!”

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Captain America & Wolverine Stories Build Toward Armageddon

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New York, NY— January 15, 2026 — The roadto ARMAGEDDON, an upcoming Marvel Comics event written by Chip Zdarsky, officially begins this month in CAPTAIN AMERICA #6, the start of an all-new arc in Zdarsky’s acclaimed run. Zdarsky will also set the stage for the event in WOLVERINE: WEAPONS OF ARMAGEDDON, a four-issue prelude series kicking off next month. Both series team Zdarsky up with top artists including Valerio Schiti, Delio Diaz & Frank Alpizar and Jan Bazaldua on CAPTAIN AMERICA and Luca Maresca on WOLVERINE: WEAPONS OF ARMAGEDDON. Today, fans can peek ahead at what’s to come in April with the reveal of CAPTAIN AMERICA #9-10, new parts of the ARMAGEDDON lead-in arc, and WOLVERINE: WEAPONS OF ARMAGEDDON #3.

ARMAGEDDON picks up in the aftermath of One World Under Doom. With global tensions rising to determine the fate of Latveria, it’s up to Captain America and the all-new S.H.I.E.L.D. to prevent various groups from erupting into all-out war, including one with a startling connection to Doom’s legacy. Meanwhile, Wolverine investigates a mysterious new super soldier program, but is too late to stop them from creating a deadly new Weapon X. All this while origin boxes, brought over to the 616 from the new Ultimate Universe, begin to surface, giving rise to new heroes and ushering in the next era of Avengers…

Read on to learn more!

CAPTAIN AMERICA #9
Written by CHIP ZDARSKY
Art by JAN BAZALDUA
A CAPTAIN CORNERED ON THE ROAD TO ARMAGEDDON!

After discovering how far Salvation’s True Latveria insurgency is willing to go for power, Captain America goes rogue, throwing in with the Latverian Liberators to take down Salvation before he can become the next Doctor Doom. But Salvation is prepared for Steve’s next attack, and his new ploy has heartbreaking consequences for the team…

CAPTAIN AMERICA #10
Written by CHIP ZDARSKY
Art by VALERIO SCHITI
UNITED THEY FALL ON THE ROAD TO ARMAGEDDON!

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A shocking betrayal leaves Captain America’s S.H.I.E.L.D. team at odds – just in time for Doom’s ultimate weapon to be dragged into the light. But it’s not what anyone thought it was, and as an all-out feeding frenzy ignites between Salvation, Red Hulk, and S.H.I.E.L.D., it’s up to Steve to get his hands on the weapon before it’s too late!

WOLVERINE: WEAPONS OF ARMAGEDDON #3 (OF 4)
Written by CHIP ZDARSKY
Art by LUCA MARESCA
THE PENULTIMATE CHAPTER ON THE ROAD TO ARMAGEDDON ENDS WITH A BANG!

The shadows of David Colton’s past are collapsing over Wolverine. The high-risk hunt for the newest WEAPON comes to a head as all the players are on a crash course with each other!

ARMAGEDDON is coming…and no one is ready. In the words of Nuke: GIVE ME A RED! Check out the main covers for CAPTAIN AMERICA #9-10 and WOLVERINE: WEAPONS OF ARMAGEDDON #3, along with a CAPTAIN AMERICA #10 variant cover by Paco Diaz and a WOLVERINE: WEAPONS OF ARMAGEDDON #3 variant cover by Phil Noto, and preorder both series at your local comic shop today. Stay tuned for more soon on this June’s ARMAGEDDON and how it’ll change the face of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes!

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50th Anniversary Details on Spider-Man & Superman Revealed

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New York, NY— January 14, 2026 — Following the massive success of last year’s Deadpool/Batman and celebrating the 50th anniversary of Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man, the first-ever Marvel/DC crossover, Marvel Comics and DC Comics unite this April again in Marvel’s SPIDER-MAN/SUPERMAN #1! Like last year’s crossover, fans can look forward to a double-dose of history-making comic book storytelling with DC publishing a separate one-shot, Superman/Spider-Man, in March.

The lead story, where Spider-Man and Superman join forces, will be written by New York Times bestselling author Brad Meltzer in his first full-length Marvel Comics story, and drawn by one of Marvel’s most acclaimed artists, Pepe Larraz. In addition, the one-shot will feature various bonus stories by a monumental lineup of industry talent, each co-starring Marvel and DC characters, including a few surprises readers will be talking about for the next fifty years!

Here’s what to expect:

  • THWIP, THWIP AND AWAY! Brad Meltzer and Pepe Larraz pit SPIDER-MAN and SUPERMAN against LEX LUTHOR and NORMAN OSBORN as their greatest villains exploit some of their greatest weaknesses!
  • In the shadow-laden 1930s, SPIDER-MAN NOIR encounters the original GOLDEN AGE SUPERMAN as told by Dan Slott and Marcos Martin!
  • Industry powerhouse Geoff Johns delivers his first Marvel story in over 20 years, teaming up with frequent collaborator and fellow superstar Gary Frank! A crisis ensues as the hit creative team bring the Super- and Spider-families against each together at the summons of MYSTERIO…but is their true foe an ally out of control?!
  • SYMBIOTE hordes invade Metropolis as a new War of the Realms ignites in Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman’s epic reunion starring Jane Foster as the Mighty Thor, Wonder Woman and more!
  • Co-creator of STEEL Louise Simonson and artist Todd Nauck hammer out the tale of John Henry Irons’ clash with the HOBGOBLIN.
  • Current Amazing Spider-Man scribe Joe Kelly and artist Humberto Ramos deliver a campus crossover between GWEN STACY and LANA LANG!
  • SPIDER-MAN (MILES MORALES) teams up with SUPERMAN in a tale by Miles’ legendary co-creators, Brian Michael Bendis, who recently made his grand return to Marvel, and Sara Pichelli!
  • And more!
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“I’ve been waiting fifty years to write this book,” Meltzer shared. “Superman and Spider-Man have affected me more than most real people. I carry them with me everywhere — and our story cuts to the core of what it means to be a good person. I’m honored that Nick Lowe and everyone at Marvel even asked. Just wait until you see Pepe’s work. Get your capes and web-shooters ready…”

“Everyone here at Marvel is excited to be re-teaming with our friends at DC for another colossal crossover, this time to celebrate the 50th anniversary of our two icons, Spider-Man and Superman, first teaming up!” Editor-in-Chief C.B. Cebulski added. “I can’t wait for fans of every generation to read these spectacular stories that our titanic talent are telling, featuring all-new, easily accessible stories about the ever-growing Spider-Man and Superman families meeting for the first time.” SPIDER-MAN/SUPERMAN will include a main cover by Pepe Larraz and an assortment of stunning variant covers by top artists, some of which reflect the one-shot’s bonus stories. Today, fans can check out variant covers by Sara Pichelli, Walter Simonson, Greg Capullo, Marcos Martin, Ryan Stegman, Peach Momoko, Erik Larsen, Jerome Opeña, and Russell Dauterman along with a wraparound cover by Kaare Andrews and a Foil Cover by Mark Bagley. A Logo Mash-Up Variant Cover will also be available. Stay tuned for more news, including additional story and cover reveals, and preorder the SPIDER-MAN/SUPERMAN #1 at your local comic shop today!

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MARVEL/DC: SPIDER-MAN/SUPERMAN #1

Written by BRAD MELTZER, GEOFF JOHNS, DAN SLOTT, LOUISE SIMONSON, BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS, JASON AARON, JOE KELLY & MORE!

Art by PEPE LARRAZ, GARY FRANK, MARCOS MARTIN, TODD NAUCK, SARA PICHELLI, RUSSELL DAUTERMAN, HUMBERTO RAMOS & MORE!

Cover by PEPE LARRAZ

Foil Variant Cover by MARK BAGLEY
Variant Cover by GREG CAPULLO
Virgin Sketch Variant Cover by GREG CAPULLO
Variant Cover by RYAN STEGMAN
Variant Cover by PEACH MOMOKO
Variant Cover by IVAN TALAVERA
Virgin Variant Cover by IVAN TALAVERA
Variant Cover by E.M. GIST
Variant Cover by JEROME OPEÑA
Variant Cover by MARCOS MARTIN
Variant Cover by ADAM HUGHES
Variant Cover by RUSSELL DAUTERMAN
Variant Cover by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Variant Cover by ERIK LARSEN
Variant Cover by FRANK MILLER
Variant Cover by SARA PICHELLI
Variant Cover by GARY FRANK
Variant Cover by HUMBERTO RAMOS
Variant Cover by WALTER SIMONSON
Wraparound Variant Cover by KAARE ANDREWS
Homage Variant Cover by DAVID MARQUEZ
Homage Variant Cover by SANFORD GREENE
Homage Variant Cover by TBA
Blank Variant Cover
Logo Mashup Variant Cover

On Sale 4/15

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Hi, It’s Me Again by Asher Perlman

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I bemoan the sorry state of single-panel cartoons a lot here – because I like them, and because they used to be a massive tide rolling across popular culture, so there were many more of the things I liked, albeit mostly before I was born – so it’s nice to be able to balance that out now and then.

Asher Perlman’s first book of cartoons, covering a decade or so of toil and strife, was published last fall: Well, This Is Me . It was a best-seller, says the publisher, and I believe them. The reason I believe them is because they backed it up: they published what looks very much like a sequel to the first book just about exactly a year later, which is the time-honored model for a publisher that has found a good thing and wants it to continue as long as they possibly can.

The 2025 Asher Perlman collection is Hi, It’s Me Again , featuring the same character (and a variation on the joke) from the cover of the first book. Again, “hey, this is a sequel!” is a reaction you aim for when the first thing did well, so I am happy for Perlman and for comics-in-book-form in general.

Like the first book, it has three new short page-formatted comic sections to organize it (Introduction, Interlude, Epilogue), all with the “real” Perlman taking to another character about his work, in the usual half self-deprecating, half self-aggrandizing manner appropriate for comedy.

In between are two big sections, transparently called Part One and Part Two, each with eighty or ninety single-panel cartoons. The whole book is just about two hundred pages long, so it has almost that many pages of Perlman art and gags.

The only remaining major regular outlet for single-panel cartoons is The New Yorker, and Perlman does appear regularly there. According to the copyright page, nine of the cartoons here first appeared in that magazine – it’s possible that some of the others appeared elsewhere, but likely the vast majority of them are new to this book. (At least as far as the general public goes; my guess is that they were part of Perlman’s weekly “batches” over the past who-knows-how-long, though potentially reworked or finished for this book.)

As always, it’s difficult to say anything specific about a pile of nearly two hundred individual cartoons. Perlman has a fine modern cartoon style, with confident lines mostly of a single weight and various tones overlaid for texture and depth, and his ideas and punch lines are funny. (At least, I think so, and I’m the one reading the book.) A lot of people liked the first book; if you were one of them, this second book is more of the same stuff you already liked.

If you weren’t one of them, well, a lot of people liked the first book, so the odds you’ll like this one are solid – give it a try, won’t you? Help keep single-panel cartoons alive; it’s your civic duty.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

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REVIEW: A Brief History of a Long War: Ukraine’s Fight Against Russian Domination

A Brief History of a Long War: Ukraine’s Fight Against Russian Domination
By Mariam Naiem, Yulia Vus, and Ivan Kypibida
112 pages/Ten Speed Graphics/19.99

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As the horrific Ukraine War continues, nearing its fourth anniversary, along comes this wonderful graphic novel.

A Brief History of a Long War: Ukraine’s Fight Against Russian Domination niftily blends a contemporary account of a young woman fleeing for shelter during yet another bomb attack from Russia. As she finds companionship among other victims of Russia’s aggression, they all share reflections of Ukraine’s contemporary situation, while flashing back to the 9th century, when Ukraine can trace its history.

Yulia Vus & Ivan Kypibida provide detailed illustrations that show the evolution of the country and its inhabitants. With a simplified color scheme, it’s very easy to follow. They take the award-winning journalist’s words and bring them to vivid life.

While Vladimir Putin has wanted Ukraine since he wrote about it in 1997, Russia’s grip on the country dates back centuries, showing how the two are inexorably tied. Depending on your point of view, Ukraine was always a part of Russia and should remain so, while others contend its independence was undermined time and again, and the people should decide their fate.

They do not shy away from the various religious and ethnic controversies, such as the “linguicide” during the 1860s, which banned Ukrainian from being spoken by its natives or the Holodomor famine of the 1930s, which killed over 3.3 million people.

We have a frighteningly short attention span and memory, so let me remind readers that in 2004, Russia poisoned the independently-minded Viktor Yushchenko in the country’s presidential election. He recovered and won the office, only to see his rival, Viktor Yanukovych, replace him in the next election. He enriched himself while turning the country into an authoritarian state that leaned toward Putin, setting the stage for the 2014 seizure of Crimea and moving the pieces, resulting in the 2022 invasion.

Obviously, you can’t fully cover 13 centuries of complex history in 112 pages, nor can you cover all sides of the independence-versus-reabsorption issue that has confronted the Ukrainian people since the dissolution of the USSR. And yes, it isn’t very objective toward the people currently being victimized. It’s also challenging to tell this story when it lacks a definitive ending.

Still, this work provides greater context and vibrant images to help Westerners better grasp the issues at stake. As a result, this is a worthy addition to classroom libraries.

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Laser Eye Surgery by Walker Tate

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In a city somewhere, there’s a tall man, bald on top. We don’t know his name. We don’t know his job, or if he has one. We know he lives in a small apartment, plagued by a mouse he keeps trying to catch, and that he eats some kind of canned food, maybe exclusively, and gets big packages of the cans in the mail. We think he’s some kind of a nut, or a hermit, or similar – one of those urban types who radiate a “don’t talk to me” aura as you see them stalking down the street or ranting on a corner or staring intently at something you can’t see.

This man has bad eyesight: he wears glasses sometimes, contacts sometimes. One day, he finds a flyer about eye correction – a local clinic is offering a two-eyes-for-the-price-of-one deal, with the testing upfront thrown in free and satisfaction guaranteed. He puts the flyer away, but remembers it when, the next morning, he accidentally steps on his glasses, breaking them.

So he goes to the clinic, which we readers see is shadier than he realizes. He’s tested, has the operation. He seems to stay in that clinic, just lying on a table recuperating, for many days, and eventually goes home, his sight hugely improved. But he has floaters – more than before, sometimes overwhelmingly so. (As someone who has had his optometrist say to him “you have a lot of floaters” basically every yearly visit for two decades, I sympathize but also think he’s over-reacting. But I think his deal is to over-react.)

Things escalate; the man, as we may have expected, tends to be paranoid and subject to conspiratorial thinking…and may also be right.

This is Laser Eye Surgery , the first graphic novel by New York cartoonist Walker Tate. Tate works in thin lines, tightly defined and precise, almost mechanical but with life and energy to them. His writing is laconic and minimal; the story told mostly through images.

The defining image, in fact, is of this man, striding at pace – often away from the viewer, usually at an angle. Always without eyes – either his face is turned away or Tate just doesn’t draw that level of detail. His eyes show up in close-up, and drive some imagistic sequences where the floaters wander about and proliferate, in a way we think the man considers deliberate.

Tate tells this story quietly, with an assurance that the reader will pick up the nuances and connect the dots – there’s no narration, and minimal details. This is a book about seeing, and so the reader must see it. I don’t know if I got all of the things Tate was trying to say, but I’m impressed by the power of his images and by the confident way he constructed this story; I want to see more of his work.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

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