Showing posts with label New pop culture books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label New pop culture books. Show all posts

Coming Up: 'It Rose From The Tomb: Celebrating the 20th Century's Best Horror Comics'


Out April 2 from TwoMorrows Publishing. Order now from Amazon.

Details:

Rising from the depths of history comes an all-new examination of the 20th Century's best horror comics, written by Peter Normanton (editor of From The Tomb, the UK’s preeminent magazine on the genre). 

From the pulps and seminal horror comics of the 1940s, through ones they tried to ban in the 1950s, this tome explores how the genre survived the introduction of the Comics Code, before making its terrifying return during the 1960s and 1970s. Come face-to-face with the early days of ACG’s alarming line, every horror comic from June 1953, hypodermic horrors, DC’s Gothic romance comics, Marvel’s Giant-Size terrors, Skywald and Warren’s chillers, and Atlas Seaboard’s shocking magazines. 

The 192-page full-color opus exhumes Bernie Wrightson’s darkest constructs, plus artwork by Frank Frazetta, Neal Adams, Mike Kaluta, Steve Ditko, Matt Fox, Warren Kremer, Lee Elias, Bill Everett, Russ Heath, The Gurch, and many more. Don't turn your back on this once-in-a-lifetime spine-chiller―it's so good, it's frightening!

New Pop Culture Books: Chester Himes, Stanley Kubrick, Bee Gees and More

Our picks this month.

Here in one volume is an exceptional selection from Chester Himes's acclaimed Harlem Detectives series. Winner of France's prestigious Grand Prix de Littérature Policière and lauded by Jean Cocteau as a "prodigious masterpiece," A Rage in Harlem introduces detectives Grave Digger Jones and Coffin Ed Johnson in a searing escapade. In The Real Cool Killers, the duo investigates a shooting and discovers an unsettling personal connection. In The Crazy Kill, a man is found in a breadbasket, stabbed to death, leaving Himes's detectives to find out who among the many suspects did it. And in Cotton Comes to Harlem, the brazen robbery of a notorious con man running a back-to-Africa scam sets off a hunt for a bale of Southern cotton. These masterful novels exhibit Himes's evocative, baroque descriptions of Black life in Harlem and his famously blistering social commentary. 

Everyman's Library pursues the highest production standards, printing on acid-free paper, with full-cloth cases with two-color foil stamping, decorative endpapers, silk ribbon markers, European-style half-round spines, and a full-color illustrated jacket. Contemporary Classics include an introduction, a select bibliography, and a chronology of the author's life and times.

Stanley Kubrick: An Odyssey fills that gap. This definitive book is based on access to the latest research, especially Kubrick's archive at the University of the Arts, London, as well as other private papers plus new interviews with family members and those who worked with him. It offers comprehensive and in-depth coverage of Kubrick’s personal, private, public, and working life. Stanley Kubrick: An Odyssey investigates not only the making of Kubrick's films, but also about those he wanted (but failed) to make like Burning Secret, Napoleon, Aryan Papers, and A.I.

Revealingly, this immersive biography will puncture the controversial myths about the reclusive filmmaker who created some of the most important works of art of the twentieth century.

The world is full of Bee Gees fans. Yet for a band of such renown, little is known about Barry, Maurice, and Robin Gibb.

People tend to have their favorite era of the Bee Gees's career, but many listeners are also conscious that there is more to uncover about the band. This book will provide the perfect solution, by pulling together every fascinating strand to tell the story of a group with the imagination of the Beatles, the pop craft of ABBA, the drama of Fleetwood Mac, and the emotional heft of the Beach Boys.

Uniquely, the Bee Gees's tale spans the entire modern pop era—they are the only group to have scored British top-ten singles in the '60s, '70s, '80s, and ‘90s—and includes world-conquering disco successes like 'Stayin' Alive' and 'More Than a Woman', both from the soundtrack of the hit film Saturday Night Fever.

But the Bee Gees's extraordinary career was one of highs and lows. From a vicious but temporary split in 1969 to several unreleased albums, disastrous TV and film appearances, and a demoralising cabaret season, the group weren't always revelling in the glow of million-selling albums, private jets, and UNICEF concerts. Yet, even in the Gibbs' darkest times, their music was rarely out of the charts, as sung by the likes of Al Green, Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton, and Destiny's Child.

Capturing the human story at the heart of the Bee Gees, this book is a lyrical and stylish read, delighting hardcore fans with its details while engaging casual pop readers who simply want to know more about this important and enigmatic group.

This stunning coffee table book focuses on the storyboards for nine of Alfred Hitchcock’s classic movies – Vertigo, The Birds, Psycho, North by Northwest, The 39 Steps, Torn Curtain, Marnie, Shadow of a Doubt and Spellbound. It includes never before-published images and incisive text putting the material in context and examining the role the pieces played in some of the most unforgettable scenes in cinema. Hitchcock author and aficionado Tony Lee Moral provides a fascinating and illuminating insight into the directorial mind of the Master of Suspense.

After February 9, 1964, everyone wanted to be Debbie Gendler. On that date, she was just one of a relative handful of lucky fans who were in the live audience for The Beatles’ historic performance on The Ed Sullivan Show—an iconic television event viewed in the living rooms of 73 million Americans. Everyone has a story to share about where they were when they watched the appearance, but very few were there in person—and even fewer would actually go on not just to meet the Beatles, but end up building an entire career around the band. But Debbie did.

This is the story of a New Jersey teenager who managed to accomplish what millions only dreamed about. Prior to the Beatles arrival in America, Gendler met with the group’s manager Brian Epstein regarding the establishment of a U.S. Fan Club. Atthe start of the Beatles’ historic 1965 summer tour, she was the only teen to welcome them to America, and after their press conference at The Warwick Hotel she finally meets them in person.

Continuing her journey, Debbie recounts her unique and sometimes wacky experiences having witnessed first-hand some of the most historic events in pop culture. She shares concert antics from Forest Hills Tennis Stadium, Shea Stadium and Suffolk Downs and describes the mayhem outside the Plaza Hotel and later that year at the Delmonico Hotel chanting for the Beatles. Organizing fans to sleep on Broadway to purchase tickets for A Hard Day’s Night, representing the Official Beatles Fan Club on television, and promoting the Ringo for President novelty record are just some of the requests she fulfilled as one of the band’s leading ambassadors in the US.This coming-of-age tale details the adolescent journey of a devoted Beatles fan in all her youthful innocence against the backdrop of the turbulent 1960s, and a shifting cultural landscape.

Six decades may only be a handful of heartbeats to a Time Lord, but for Doctor Who it's the adventure of several lifetimes. Evolving over 60 years, the world's longest-running sci-fi TV show has gifted us a universe of menacing monsters and unforgettable heroes. You might even call it a 'Whotopia'.

Now you can roam free through the Doctor's dimension as never before in this special commemorative book for Doctor Who's diamond anniversary. Join all the Doctors as each tells their own story. Learn about their legions of legendary allies - and hear from the monsters' own mouths about what makes them tick. Find danger on alien worlds and threats here on Earth in all eras. And explore the gadgets, robots, spaceships, computers and mind-blowing creations that crowd the never-ending corridors of Whotopia.

Crammed with exciting new images and in full colour throughout, Whotopia: The Ultimate Guide to the Whoniverse is the essential celebration of 60 years of Doctor Who.

In 1974, as Apple was winding down, George Harrison and RIngo Starr both wanted to help new artists, so rather than trying to salvage Apple Records, each ex-Beatle created their own label. Ringo Starr established Ring'o Records, while George Harrison created Dark Horse Records, set up to be a much smaller scale label, releasing records from new artists as well as some of his old friends, with an eye to eventually releasing his own solo music. 

While Dark Horse had an encouraging beginning with a hit single from Splinter in 1974, the label started suffering some problems, failing to establish itself the way Harrison hoped. However, some incredible music from a variety of artists was created from 1974 to 1977 and some of Harrison's best solo material would come out on that label.

In the end, Dark Horse Records would only release George Harrison's solo work (for the most part), but since 2020, Dhani Harrison has taken over the reins and has made Dark Horse a viable label once again, signing Cat Stevens, Billy Idol and releasing music from Joe Strummer and Leon Russell. Finally, in 2023, it was announced that Harrison's entire solo catalogue was going to be rereleased on Dark Horse. This book tells the story of the label from the beginning, through its struggles and to its new and exciting renaissance.

Since the early 1990s, cartoonist Art Spiegelman has made the case that comics are the natural inheritor of the aesthetic tradition associated with the modernist movement of the early twentieth century. In recent years, scholars have begun to place greater import on the shared historical circumstances of early comics and literary and artistic modernism. Comics and Modernism: History, Form, and Culture is an interdisciplinary consideration of myriad social, cultural, and aesthetic connections.

Filling a gap in current scholarship, an impressively diverse group of scholars approaches the topic from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds and methodologies. Drawing on work in literary studies, art history, film studies, philosophy, and material culture studies, contributors attend to the dynamic relationship between avant-garde art, literature, and comics. Essays by both established and emerging voices examine topics as divergent as early twentieth-century film, museum exhibitions, newspaper journalism, magazine illustration, and transnational literary circulation.

In presenting varied critical approaches, this book highlights important interpretive questions for the field. Contributors sometimes arrive at thoughtful consensus and at other times settle on productive disagreements. Ultimately, this collection aims to extend traditional lines of inquiry in both comics studies and modernist studies and to reveal overlaps between ostensibly disparate artistic practices and movements.

When Frank Johnson, an itinerant musician and shipping clerk, died in 1979, he left behind a startling discovery: more than 2,300 notebook pages of comics and 131 unbound drawings, among them a massive, continuous story line beginning in the earliest surviving notebook dated 1928 ― before the existence of comic books! ― and following the exploits of his own cast of characters across 50 years until Johnson passed away. During this lifelong project, Johnson invented in private many of the conventions and tropes that define comics storytelling, effectively enacting an alternative secret history of the comics medium.

This debut publication of Johnson’s work is the first of two 600+ page volumes that will collect the best 1200 pages of his comics, including Wally’s Gang, his 50-year magnum opus chronicling the humorous, cliff-hanging adventures of a group of bachelor friends; The Bowser Boys, a seamy, darkly slapstick depiction of bohemian street life that could be considered the first underground comic series; and, coming in Volume 2, Juke Boys, absurd, self-reflexive graphic experimentation.

Curator and historian Chris Byrne and fine artist and graphic novelist Keith Mayerson have brought this astounding work into the light of day and provide historical background and analysis.

Horror films have been around for more than 100 years, and they continue to make a large impact on popular culture as they reflect their contemporary zeitgeist. Between the mid-1950s and mid-1980s, drive-in theaters were at their peak of popularity, and each decade brought forward new challenges and themes.

This book explores 60 B horror films, divided into 12 fun and uniquely-themed categories. Chapters discuss how the Atomic Age, the Vietnam War, the women's liberation movement and other current events and social issues affected these films. Films covered include Willard, The Fly, Santa Sangre and many more.

Bill Ward’s glamour girls were the staples of countless men’s and humor magazines, where they shared the pages with cult models like Bettie Page, Tina Louise, and Julie Newmar, and cartoons by fellow “good girl” artists such as Archie’s Dan Decarlo and Playboy’s Jack Cole. What set Ward apart―and above―his talented contemporaries in terms of sheer image-making was his use of the conte crayon.  When drawn on simple newsprint stock, this potent combination created Ward’s trademark gossamer sheen on his women’s thigh-high stockings.
This Fantagraphics Studio edition showcases the best of Ward’s Humorama work and includes a healthy number of what became known as his “telephone girls.” Tame by today’s standards, Ward’s telephone girls were always caught in candid moments when they just happened to be talking on the phone dressed in gossamer lingerie in innocently provocative poses.

The majority of the images in this volume were drawn between 1955 and 1965 when Ward was at the height of his skill. They have been scanned in super high-solution from original art and reproduced to highlight every sheen and accentuate every curve to its fullest.  The book not only reproduces more than 150 of Ward’s most beautifully rendered illustrations, but also serves as a time capsule to a more innocent moment in pop culture when these images were shocking.

Our books, our movies—our imaginations—are obsessed with extra dimensions, alternate timelines, and the sense that all we see might not be all there is. In short, we can’t stop thinking about the multiverse. As it turns out, physicists are similarly captivated.  
 
In The Allure of the Multiverse, physicist Paul Halpern tells the epic story of how science became besotted with the multiverse, and the controversies that ensued. The questions that brought scientists to this point are big and deep: Is reality such that anything can happen, must happen? How does quantum mechanics “choose” the outcomes of its apparently random processes? And why is the universe habitable? Each question quickly leads to the multiverse. Drawing on centuries of disputation and deep vision, from luminaries like Nietzsche, Einstein, and the creators of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Halpern reveals the multiplicity of multiverses that scientists have imagined to make sense of our reality. Whether we live in one of many different possible universes, or simply the only one there is, might never be certain. But Halpern shows one thing for sure: how stimulating it can be to try to find out. 

The Skin of Dreams is a novel of waking dreams. Even as he lives his life, Jacques L’Aumône, its hero, daydreams a hundred other possible lives. A few lines on a page, a chance encounter, a remark overheard in passing, any of these are enough to kick things into gear and send him off outside of himself to become a boxer, a general, a bishop, or a lord. He lives alongside his life with diligence and steadfastness; and the passage from real to dream is so natural for him that he no longer knows precisely which him he is. Eventually he becomes an actor in Hollywood, and the basis of countless dreams for others. This Jacques L’Aumône, like the characters who surround him, has the same sort of haunting and fluid consistency as someone that we might dream of in our beds at night. And reverie, here, is born through the tale’s humor, which is as gentle as it is cruel, as well as by way of a writing technique that is itself drawn from one of Queneau’s great loves, the cinema.

Coming Up: 'The Beach Boys' by the Beach Boys


Out April 2. Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

‘There’s love in the music and people can relate to the love, regardless of whether you're two years old or 92 years old. For me, music is about love. Love is the message I want to share. I hope people feel that in my music. That makes the hard work worth it.’ - Brian Wilson

Here, for the first time in print, is the history of The Beach Boys, by The Beach Boys.

Their only official book, The Beach Boys by The Beach Boys is the ultimate chronicle of one of the world’s greatest bands. Through their unique sound, complex harmonies, sensational live shows and use of innovative recording techniques, The Beach Boys became woven into the cultural fabric of America and influenced generations of musicians globally. This book documents how it happened.

Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine and Bruce Johnston together provide a combined career narrative especially for this book, and through meticulous compilation from sources worldwide, Carl Wilson and Dennis Wilson’s words are equally represented. Documenting how they went from a Hawthorne garage band to a global phenomenon, they tell the astounding story of their ascent: perfecting their harmonies, initial fame as a surf group, and then their ultimate progression as pioneering recording artists to become one of the most musically complex ensembles in history.

Their text is accompanied by iconic images, never-before-seen negatives and rare ephemera. Given unprecedented access to their personal archives, The Beach Boys by The Beach Boys offers intimate insight into the lives of the group. Also opening their archives are Brother Records and Capitol Records, all of which assist in illustrating their remarkable journey.

Expanding the narrative are a host of contributors who have been involved with or inspired by the band's music, including Peter Blake, Lindsey Buckingham, Eric Clapton, Elvis Costello, Ray Davies, Bob Dylan, Def Leppard, the Flaming Lips, Bobby Gillespie, David Lee Roth, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Jim Kerr, Roger McGuinn, Graham Nash, Jimmy Page, Carly Simon, Pete Townshend, Rufus Wainwright, Thom Yorke, and many more.

A group collaboration, The Beach Boys by the Beach Boys is, in effect, The Beach Boys’ autobiography. Like their music, it is poignant, frank, often humorous but always sincere. 

Coming Up: 'Doctor Who' Target Book Novelizations - 'The Star Beast,' 'Wild Blue Yonder' and 'The Giggle'

Old school-style Target paperback novelizations of the recent "Doctor Who" specials. Click the links to order from Amazon and help support Pop Culture Safari!

Based on a script by Russell T Davies, this brand-new adventure for Doctor Who’s 60th Anniversary features David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble.

Based on a script by Russell T Davies, the spectacular second adventure for Doctor Who’s 60th anniversary features David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble.

Based on a script by Russell T Davies, this thrilling third adventure for Doctor Who’s 60th anniversary features David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble.

Coming Up: 'Neal Adams Classic DC Artists Edition'


Out Sept. 10. Order now from Amazon and help support Pop Culture Safari! 

Details:

A hugely influential and popular artist, Adams redefined the way comics were viewed by both fans and creators.

This Artist’s Edition presents Neal Adams’ original artwork scanned at high resolution and in color (though the art appears to be in black and white) so the reader can view pages and covers as close to their natural state as possible, mimicking the look and even the feel of original art.




Coming Up: 'Paul Smith's Uncanny X-Men Artist's Edition'


Out Oct. 8. Order now from Amazon and help support Pop Culture Safari!

Details:

A veritable cornucopia of classic Paul Smith original X-Men art has been scanned at high resolution in color—although the art appears to be in black and white, all Artist’s Editions are shot in color so all the subtle nuances are clearly visible to the reader—and printed at 100 percent size as drawn, a massive 12 × 17 inches. The only better way to see Paul Smith’s original art would be to hold it in your own hands.

176 pages.

 

New Pop Culture Books: Doctor Who, Ultraman, Lego, Beatles, More

Our picks this month:

*Featuring a foreword from David Tennant himself, and an exclusive Fourteenth Doctor story!*

You've never seen a Doctor Who Annual quite like this . . .

In November 2023, Doctor Who returns to our screens with an almighty TARDIS-crashing bang. David Tennant is back as the Doctor, Catherine Tate is back as the incredible Donna Noble.

And this celebration of 60 years of Doctor Who really is just the beginning . . .

The Doctor Who 2024 Annual is THE place to start this incredible journey. With exclusive information about this amazing new era, including behind-the-scenes photos, dialogue, costumes and hints from the new episodes.

Pursuing a fugitive space monster, a Being of Light enters Earth’s atmosphere. Accidentally colliding with a patrolling jet, piloted by Science Patrol Agent Shin Hayata, the Being merges with the pilot to save his life and vows to defend the Earth.

Now whenever the planet is threatened by alien invaders, terrifying monsters or any threat beyond the capabilities of humanity, Shin Hayata transforms into the towering Ultraman to restore peace and save the day.

Dive into the action-packed adventure as told by Hugo, Clarke and Scribe Award-winning author Pat Cadigan.

Malcolm Evans, the Beatles’ long-time roadie, personal assistant, and devoted friend, was an invaluable member of the band’s inner circle. A towering figure in horn-rimmed glasses, Evans loomed large in the Beatles’ story, contributing at times as a performer and sometime lyricist, while struggling mightily to protect his beloved “boys.” He was there for the whole of the group’s remarkable, unparalleled story: from the Shea Stadium triumph through the creation of the timeless cover art for Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and the famous Let It Be rooftop concert.

Geddy Lee is one of rock and roll's most respected bassists. For nearly five decades, his playing and work as co-writer, vocalist and keyboardist has been an essential part of the success story of Canadian progressive rock trio Rush. Here for the first time is his account of life inside and outside the band.

Long before Rush accumulated more consecutive gold and platinum records than any rock band after the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, before the seven Grammy nominations or the countless electrifying live performances across the globe, Geddy Lee was Gershon Eliezer Weinrib, after his grandfather was murdered in the Holocaust.

As he recounts the transformation, Lee looks back on his family, in particular his loving parents and their horrific experiences as teenagers during World War II.

He talks candidly about his childhood and the pursuit of music that led him to drop out of high school.

He tracks the history of Rush which, after early struggles, exploded into one of the most beloved bands of all time.

He shares intimate stories of his lifelong friendships with bandmates Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart—deeply mourning Peart’s recent passing—and reveals his obsessions in music and beyond.

This rich brew of honesty, humor, and loss makes for a uniquely poignant memoir.

Johnny Cash is one of the most beloved and influential country-music stars of all time, having composed more than six hundred songs and sold more than ninety million records. He received twenty-nine gold, platinum, and multiplatinum awards for his recordings and has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
 
This is the first time Cash’s fifty years of songwriting have been collected anywhere; this book includes the lyrics to 125 songs and the stories behind them. Perhaps more than any other American artist, he spoke to the soul of the nation as well as to the triumphs and challenges of his own life. These pages explore Cash's range as a poet and storyteller, taking readers from his early life and first successes through periods of personal challenge, activism, and faith. The result is a profound understanding of Johnny Cash as a man and an artist, as well as the American story he helped shape. 

An essential collectible that sheds new light on Cash’s life and work, this book includes rare visual material in addition to remembrances from Cash’s son, John Carter Cash, “family historian” Mark Stielper. Released for the twentieth anniversary of the legendary musician’s passing, it will be a landmark in music publishing

LEGO toys have sparked creativity and joy for generations, delighting families with each and every new connection. Now, LEGO Space: 1978–1992 explores the latter half of the twentieth century through the lens of LEGO Space—illuminating the brand’s own history alongside the popular culture and world events that helped to shape it.

This collection includes statistics and trivia for each set from across nearly two decades, fascinating insights of the LEGO Group as a company, and celebrations of the talented designers who helped to create each essential piece and kit.

This gorgeous chronicle is perfect for LEGO fans and builders of all ages, and will excite any reader with an interest in the fascinating history of the peerless and classic building toy!

J.R.R. Tolkien, creator of the languages and history of Middle-earth as recorded in The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion, was one of the most prolific letter-writers of the last century. Over the years he wrote a mass of letters—to his publishers, to members of his family, to friends, and to “fans” of his books—which often reveal the inner workings of his mind, and which record the history of composition of his works and his reaction to subsequent events.

A selection from Tolkien’s correspondence, collected and edited by Tolkien’s official biographer, Humphrey Carpenter, and assisted by Christopher Tolkien, was published in 1981. It presented, in Tolkien’s own words, a highly detailed portrait of the man in his many aspects: storyteller, scholar, Catholic, parent, friend, and observer of the world around him.

In this revised and expanded edition of The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, it has been possible to go back to the editors’ original typescripts and notes, restoring more than 150 letters that were excised purely to achieve what was then deemed a “publishable length,” and present the book as originally intended.

Enthusiasts for his writings will find much that is new, for the letters not only include fresh information about Middle-earth, such as Tolkien’s own plot summary of the entirety of The Lord of the Rings and a vision for publishing his “Tales of the Three Ages,” but also many insights into the man and his world. In addition, this new selection will entertain anyone who appreciates the art of letter-writing, of which J.R.R. Tolkien was a master.

Wish you could spend more time enjoying British TV, rather than endlessly clicking around ever-changing TV menus to find the shows you want to watch?

The British TV Streaming Guide includes more than 2500 British shows from 23 US-based streaming services (both premium and free). For each, we tell you which British shows are available, when they came out, and a short description of what they're about.

Looking for a specific show? Flip to the index in back and you’ll find all the shows and their streaming services in an alphabetical index.

As this is our winter guide, we've also included guides to British Christmas movies (35 of them) and British TV Christmas special episodes (from both new and classic shows).

Take a deep dive into a turbulent era of the Star Wars galaxy and chart the rise of the Rebellion from the prequel trilogy through Obi-Wan, Andor, and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story to the original trilogy.

For many years, the state of the galaxy between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope was a mystery to Star Wars fans. With the release of Star Wars: Rebels and Rogue One, and more recently, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Andor, an exciting new era has begun to emerge – the Dawn of Rebellion.

Before Luke Skywalker ever picked up a lightsaber, the rebels were scattered and desperate bands of idealists, fighting their own battles against the might of the Empire. Victories were few, losses high, and danger ever-present. This Visual Guide charts this darkest of times, revealing all of the key characters, locations, vehicles, and weapons from the hit Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi and Andor, with supporting material from the Skywalker saga. Includes an exclusive new cross-section artwork of the Fondor Hauler.

Founded in 1960 by Chris Strachwitz, the one-man operation Arhoolie Records eventually produced more than four hundred albums during more than forty years in operation, exploring the far corners of American vernacular music—blues, gospel, Cajun, zydeco, hillbilly, Texas-Mexican norteño music, and more.

From the very beginning, Strachwitz brought his camera along with recording equipment as he met and recorded now-legendary artists such as Lightnin’ Hopkins, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Clifton Chenier, and Big Joe Williams. This book collects more than 150 of his best, most intimate, and exciting images—many never-before-seen—each with rich captions by Strachwitz and award-winning music journalist Joel Selvin, along with a substantial 20,000-word essay by Selvin about Arhoolie, Strachwitz, and the music.

A new manga adaptation of the only H.P. Lovecraft story published as a book during his lifetime, by modern horror master Gou Tanabe!

In the winter of 1927-28, the isolated coastal settlement of Innsmouth, Massachusetts was assaulted by U.S. government agents—its waterfront burned and dynamited, its people taken away to internment camps.

Yet that was neither the beginning nor the end of the horror uncovered by a young antiquarian who traveled to Innsmouth in search of rumors from the town's dead past, only to find them still very much alive...and find truths lying under water deeper and colder than any earthly grave!

Bands like R.E.M., U2, Public Enemy, and Nirvana found success as darlings of college radio, but the extraordinary influence of these stations and their DJs on musical culture since the 1970s was anything but inevitable. As media deregulation and political conflict over obscenity and censorship transformed the business and politics of culture, students and community DJs turned to college radio to defy the mainstream—and they ended up disrupting popular music and commercial radio in the process. In this first history of US college radio, Katherine Rye Jewell reveals that these eclectic stations in major cities and college towns across the United States owed their collective cultural power to the politics of higher education as much as they did to upstart bohemian music scenes coast to coast.

Jewell uncovers how battles to control college radio were about more than music—they were an influential, if unexpected, front in the nation's culture wars. These battles created unintended consequences and overlooked contributions to popular culture that students, DJs, and listeners never anticipated. More than an ode to beloved stations, this book will resonate with both music fans and observers of the politics of culture.

Even by the standards of the 1970s, even compared to Jar-Jar Binks, the legendary 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special is a peerlessly cringeworthy pop-culture artifact. George Lucas, who completely disowned the production, reportedly has said, “If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would track down every copy of that show and smash it.” Just how on earth did this thing ever see the light of day?

To answer that question, as Steven Kozak shows in this fascinating and often hilarious inside look into the making of the Special, you have to understand the cultural moment in which it appeared—a long, long time ago when cheesy variety shows were a staple of network television and Star Wars was not yet the billion-dollar multimedia behemoth that it is today. Kozak explains how the Special was one piece of a PR blitz undertaken by Lucas and his colleagues as they sought to protect the emerging franchise from hostile studio executives. He shows how, despite the involvement of some of the most talented people in the business, creative differences between movie and television writers led to a wildly uneven product. He gives entertaining accounts of the problems that plagued production, which included a ruinously expensive cantina set; the acrimonious departure of the director and Lucas himself; and a furious Grace Slick, just out of rehab, demanding to be included in the production.

Packed with memorable anecdotes, drawing on extensive new interviews with countless people involved in the production, and told with mingled affection and bewilderment, this never-before-told story gives a fascinating look at a strange moment in pop-culture history that remains an object of fascination even today.

Rebellion always starts somewhere, and in the music world of the transgressive teen—whether it be the 1960s or the 2020s—the Velvet Underground represents ground zero.

Crystallizing the idea of the bohemian, urban, narcissistic art school gang around a psychedelic rock and roll band—a stylistic idea that evolved in the rarefied environs of Andy Warhol’s Factory—the Velvets were the first major American rock group with a mixed gender line-up. They never smiled in photographs, wore sunglasses indoors, and invented the archetype that would be copied by everyone from Sid Vicious to Bobby Gillespie. They were avant-garde nihilists, writing about drug abuse, prostitution, paranoia, and sado-masochistic sex at a time when the rest of the world was singing about peace and love. In that sense they invented punk and then some. It could even be argued that they invented modern New York.

Drawing on interviews and material relating to all major players, from Lou Reed, John Cale, Mo Tucker, Andy Warhol, Jon Savage, Nico, David Bowie, Mary Harron, and many more, award-winning journalist Dylan Jones breaks down the band’s whirlwind of subversion and, in a narrative rich in drama and detail, proves why the Velvets remain the original kings and queens of edge.

Steven Grant, a mild-mannered man who lives a mundane life, is plagued by blackouts and memories of an existence separate from his own. But after a fateful encounter, Steven learns that he shares a body with Marc Spector - a former mercenary and the ruthless avatar of Khonshu, Egyptian god of the moon and vengeance! Now, with Marc's enemies converging on them, Steven must learn how to adapt to this new life and work with his alter ego - even as other godly motives come into play. 

From the archives of the American Film Institute comes a unique picture of what it was like to work in Hollywood from its beginnings to its present day. Gleaned from nearly three thousand interviews, involving four hundred voices from the industry, Hollywood: The Oral History, lets a reader “listen in” on candid remarks from the biggest names in front of the camera—Bette Davis, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Harold Lloyd—to the biggest behind it—Frank Capra, Steven Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock, Jordan Peele, as well as the lesser known individuals that shaped what was heard and seen on screen: musicians, costumers, art directors, cinematographers, writers, sound men, editors, make-up artists, and even script timers, messengers, and publicists. The result is like a conversation among the gods and goddesses of film: lively, funny, insightful, historically accurate and, for the first time, authentically honest in its portrait of Hollywood. It’s the insider’s story. 

 Legendary film scholar Jeanine Basinger and New York Times bestselling author Sam Wasson, both acclaimed storytellers in their own right, have undertaken the monumental task of digesting these tens of thousands of hours of talk and weaving it into a definitive portrait of workaday Hollywood.   

In 1968, Nick Drake had everything to live for. The product of a loving, creative family and a privileged background, he was not only a handsome and popular Cambridge undergraduate, but also a new signing to the UK’s hippest record label, Island.
 
Three years later, however—having made three well reviewed but low-selling albums—Nick had been overwhelmed by a mysterious mental illness. He returned to live in his family home in rural Warwickshire in 1971, and died in obscurity in 1974, aged just 26.
 
In the decades since, Nick has become the subject of ever-growing fascination and speculation. Combined sales of his records now stand in the millions, his songs are frequently heard on TV and in films, and he has become one of the most widely known and admired singer-songwriters of his generation.
 
Nick Drake: The Life is the only biography of Nick to be written with the blessing and involvement of his sister and estate. Drawing on copious original research and new interviews with his family, friends, and musical collaborators, as well as deeply personal archive material unavailable to previous writers—including his father’s diaries, his essays, and private correspondence—this is the most comprehensive and authoritative account possible of Nick’s short and enigmatic life.

Come join us for a celebration of Marvel Comics Bronze Age! Interviews with Writers, Editors, and Artists who helped create Marvel Comics most explosive creative time period.

Featuring: Marv Wolfman, Steve Gerber, Val Mayrik, Steve Engleheart, Bob McLeod, Frank Brunner, Tony Isabella, P. Craig Russell, Ed Hannigan, Danny Fingeroth, Peter B. Gillis, Bob Budiansky. J.M. DeMatteis, Jim Salicrup, Doug Moench, Gerry Conway, and more! With a Foreword by Mike Friedrich.

Few would have expected a small gathering of British comic book fans and creators in the early '70s to spark a cultural revolution, but this was the start of a disparate movement of punks, dropouts and disaffected youths who reinvented a medium and became the imaginative heart of a global success story.

Based on years of interviews with a generation of leading writers, artists and editors, Karl Stock reveals the true story of the wild times, passion and determination that helped, hindered and saw the reinvention of comics.

New Pop Culture Books: Wicker Man, Beatles, Sly Stone, More

Our picks this month. Click the links to order from Amazon.

The Wicker Man is one of the greatest horror movies of all time – a chilling exploration of an isolated community with a terrible secret. Featuring a stellar cast including Christopher Lee, Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland and Ingrid Pitt, The Wicker Man has terrified audiences world-wide for fifty years.

Author and filmmaker John Walsh tells the story of how this singular – and somewhat unlikely – folk-horror classic came to be, illustrated with fascinating behind-the-scenes photography, new interviews, exclusive artwork, and never-before-seen material from the StudioCanal archives. Learn the secret history of Summerisle – if you dare…

From his earliest work in the 1950s to today, Willie looks back at the songs that have defined his career, from his days of earning $50 each to his biggest hits, from his less well-known songs (but incredibly meaningful to him) to his concept albums. Along the way, he also shares the stories of his guitar Trigger, his family and “family,” as well as the artists he collaborated with, including Patsy Cline, Waylon Jennings, Ray Charles, Merle Haggard, Ray Price, Dolly Parton, and many others.

Willie is disarmingly honest—what do you have to lose when you’re about to turn 90? —meditating on the nature of songwriting and finding his voice, and the themes he’s explored his whole life—relationships, infidelity, love, loss, friendship, life on the road, and particularly poignant at this juncture of his life: mortality.

Revealing, funny, whimsical, and wise, this book is an enduring tribute to Willie Nelson's legacy.

Several years ago, a treasure trove containing some 6,000 original Bob Dylan manuscripts was revealed to exist. Their destination? Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The documents, as essential as they are intriguing—draft lyrics, notebooks, and diverse ephemera— comprise one of the most important cultural archives in the modern world. Along with countless still and moving images and thousands of hours of riveting studio and live recordings, this priceless collection now resides at The Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, just steps away from the archival home of Dylan’s early hero, Woody Guthrie.

Nearly all the materials preserved at The Bob Dylan Center are unique, previously unavailable, and, in many cases, even previously unknown. As the official publication of The Bob Dylan Center, BOB DYLAN: MIXING UP THE MEDICINE is the first wide-angle look at the Dylan archive, a book that promises to be of vast interest to both the Nobel Laureate’s many musical fans and to a broader national and international audience as well.

Edited by Mark Davidson and Parker Fishel, BOB DYLAN: MIXING UP THE MEDICINE focuses a close look at the full scope of Dylan’s working life, particularly from the dynamic perspective of his ongoing and shifting creative processes—his earliest home recordings in the mid-1950s right up through Rough and Rowdy Ways (2020), his most recent studio recording, and into the present day.

The centerpiece of BOB DYLAN: MIXING UP THE MEDICINE is a carefully curated selection of over 600 images including never-before-circulated draft lyrics, writings, photographs, drawings and other ephemera from the Dylan archive.

With an introductory essay by Sean Wilentz and epilogue by Douglas Brinkley, the book features a surprising range of distinguished writers, artists and musicians, including Joy Harjo, Greil Marcus, Michael Ondaatje, Gregory Pardlo, Amanda Petrusich, Tom Piazza, Lee Ranaldo, Alex Ross, Ed Ruscha, Lucy Sante, Greg Tate and many others. After experiencing the collection firsthand in Tulsa, each of the authors was asked to select a single item that beguiled or inspired them. The resulting essays, written specifically for this volume, shed new light on not only Dylan’s creative process, but also their own.
 
BOB DYLAN: MIXING UP THE MEDICINE is an unprecedented glimpse into the creative life of one of America’s most groundbreaking, influential and enduring artists.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is vast, incredibly varied, and richly complex. Different worlds, different timelines, countless characters. This is the guide to that universe. Created in close collaboration with Marvel Studios, it will answer the biggest questions: what happened, when, and where.

Follow the entire story of the MCU from before the Big Bang to the Blip and beyond. Along the way, learn more about the evolution of the Iron Man armors, the hunt for the Infinity Stones, and the formation of the Multiverse. Want to know how many times aliens have invaded Earth, or the complete history of Cap’s shield? Look no further!

A treasured keepsake for any movie buff, filled with exclusive infographics, illuminating timelines, and amazing movie stills, this book will have pride of place on any MCU fan’s shelf.

What makes us fall in love with a song? What makes us want to write our own songs? Do songs help? Do songs help us live better lives? And do the lives we live help us write better songs? 

After two New York Times bestsellers that cemented and expanded his legacy as one of America’s best-loved performers and songwriters, Let’s Go (So We Can Get Back) and How to Write One Song, Jeff Tweedy is back with another disarming, beautiful, and inspirational book about why we listen to music, why we love songs, and how music can connect us to each other and to ourselves. Featuring fifty songs that have both changed Jeff’s life and influenced his music—including songs by the Replacements, Mavis Staples, the Velvet Underground, Joni Mitchell, Otis Redding, Dolly Parton, and Billie Eilish—as well as Jeff’s “Rememories,” dream-like short pieces that related key moments from Jeff’s life, this book is a mix of the musical, the emotional, and the inspirational in the best possible way.

Finally in paperback and featuring seven new song commentaries, the #1 New York Times bestseller celebrates the creative life and unparalleled musical genius of Paul McCartney.

Spanning sixty-four years―from his early days in Liverpool, through the historic decade of The Beatles, to Wings and his solo career―Paul McCartney’s The Lyrics revolutionized the way artists write about music. An unprecedented “triumph” (Times UK), this handsomely designed volume pairs the definitive texts of over 160 songs with first-person commentaries on McCartney’s life, revealing the diverse circumstances in which songs were written; how they ultimately came to be; and the remarkable, yet often delightfully ordinary, people and places that inspired them. The Lyrics also includes:

· A personal foreword by McCartney
· An unprecedented range of songs, from beloved standards like “Band on the Run” to new additions “Day Tripper” and “Magical Mystery Tour”
· Over 160 images from McCartney’s own archives

Leaving a stable job as telecommunications engineer to serve as road manager for this fledgling band, Mal was the odd man out from the start—older, married with children, and without any music business experience. And yet he threw himself headlong into their world, traveling across the globe and making himself indispensable.

In the years after the Beatles’ disbandment, Big Mal continued in their employ as each embarked upon solo careers. By 1974, he was determined to make his name as a songwriter and record producer, setting off for a new life in Los Angeles, where he penned his memoirs. But in January 1976, on the verge of sharing his book with the world, Evans’s story came to a tragic end during a domestic standoff with the LAPD.

For Beatles devotes, Mal’s life and untimely death have always been shrouded in mystery. For decades, his diaries, manuscripts, and vast collection of memorabilia was missing, seemingly lost forever…until now.

Working with full access to Mal’s unpublished archives and having conducted hundreds of new interviews, Beatles’ scholar and author Kenneth Womack affords readers with a full telling of Mal’s unknown story at the heart of the Beatles’ legend. Lavishly illustrated with unseen photos and ephemera from Mal’s archives, Living the Beatles’ Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans is the missing puzzle piece in the Fab Four’s incredible story. 

Despite being hailed as one of the best guitarists of his era, George Harrison, particularly in his early decades, battled feelings of inferiority. He was often the butt of jokes from his bandmates owing to his lower-class background and, typically, was allowed to contribute only one or two songs per Beatles album out of the dozens he wrote.

Now, acclaimed Beatles biographer Philip Norman examines Harrison through the lens of his numerous self-contradictions. Compared to songwriting luminaries John Lennon and Paul McCartney he was considered a minor talent, yet he composed such masterpieces as “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and “Here Comes the Sun,” and his solo debut album “All Things Must Pass” achieved enormous success, appearing on many lists of the 100 best rock albums ever. Modern music critics place him in the pantheon of sixties guitar gods alongside Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Keith Richards, and Jimmy Page.

Harrison railed against the material world yet wrote the first pop song complaining about income tax. He spent years lovingly restoring his Friar Park estate as a spiritual journey, but quickly mortgaged the property to help rescue a film project that would be widely banned as sacrilegious, Monty Python’s Life of Brian. Harrison could be fiercely jealous, but not only did he stay friends with Eric Clapton when Clapton fell in love with Harrison’s wife, Pattie Boyd, the two men grew even closer after Clapton walked away with her.

Unprecedented in scope and filled with numerous color photos, this rich biography captures George Harrison at his most multi-faceted: devoted friend, loyal son, master guitar player, brilliant songwriter, cocaine addict, serial philanderer, global philanthropist, student of Indian mysticism, self-deprecating comedian, and, ultimately, iconic artist and man beloved by millions.

Please Please Me and With The Beatles, along with their associated singles, introduced the Beatles first to England and then to several countries across the world, including Canada and the United States. Although often overlooked due to the excellence of the group’ s later albums, these early albums contain the exciting songs that fueled Beatlemania. These albums showcased the songwriting talents of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, as well as incredible cover versions of songs from the group’ s stage show. 

Had the Beatles not evolved and matured, the group would still be well respected for the quality of the recordings on these two albums. In addition to the usual chapters on the British, American and Canadian perspectives, the book contains chapters on the Decca audition and the EMI artists test session. There are also chapters on the recording sessions and album covers, as well as on the news, music and films of the era to place these albums in their proper context. 

Not many memoirs are generational events. But when Sly Stone, one of the few true musical geniuses of the last century, decides to finally tell hislife story, it can’t be called anything else.

As the front man for the sixties pop-rock-funk band Sly and the Family Stone, a songwriter who created some of the most memorable anthems of the 1960s and 1970s (“Everyday People,” “Family Affair”), and a performer who electrified audiences at Woodstock and elsewhere, Sly Stone’s influence on modern music and culture is indisputable. But as much as people know the music, the man remains a mystery. After a rapid rise to superstardom, Sly spent decades in the grips of addiction.

Now he is ready to relate the ups and downs and ins and outs of his amazing life in his memoir, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin). The book moves from Sly’s early career as a radio DJ and record producer through the dizzying heights of the San Francisco music scene in the late 1960s and into the darker, denser life (and music) of 1970s and 1980s Los Angeles. Set on stages and in mansions, in the company of family and of other celebrities, it’s a story about flawed humanity and flawless artistry.

Written with Ben Greenman, who has also worked on memoirs with George Clinton and Brian Wilson, and in collaboration with Arlene Hirschkowitz, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) is a vivid, gripping, sometimes terrifying, and ultimately affirming tour through Sly’s life and career. Like Sly, it’s honest and playful, sharp and blunt, emotional and analytical, always moving and never standing still.

In his powerful and moving poem, featuring illustrations from thirteen extraordinary artists, bestselling author and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Neil Gaiman draws together many different memories to answer the question, what do you need to be warm?

On a cold Saturday afternoon in 1975, two men (who had known each other for eight years before they’d ever exchanged a word) met for lunch in a Chicago pub. Gene Siskel was the film critic for the Chicago Tribune. Roger Ebert had recently won the Pulitzer Prize—the first ever awarded to a film critic—for his work at the Chicago Sun-Times. To say they despised each other was an understatement.

When they reluctantly agreed to collaborate on a new movie review show with PBS, there was at least as much sparring off-camera as on. No decision—from which films to cover to who would read the lead review to how to pronounce foreign titles—was made without conflict, but their often-antagonistic partnership (which later transformed into genuine friendship) made for great television. In the years that followed, their signature “Two thumbs up!” would become the most trusted critical brand in Hollywood.

In Opposable Thumbs, award-winning editor and film critic Matt Singer eavesdrops on their iconic balcony set, detailing their rise from making a few hundred dollars a week on local Chicago PBS to securing multimillion-dollar contracts for a syndicated series (a move that convinced a young local host named Oprah Winfrey to do the same). Their partnership was cut short when Gene Siskel passed away in February of 1999 after a battle with brain cancer that he’d kept secret from everyone outside his immediate family—including Roger Ebert, who never got to say goodbye to his longtime partner.But their influence on in the way we talk about (and think about) movies continues to this day.

Thurston Moore moved to Manhattan’s East Village in 1978 with a yearning for music. He wanted to be immersed in downtown New York’s sights and sounds—the feral energy of its nightclubs, the angular roar of its bands, the magnetic personalities within its orbit. But more than anything, he wanted to make music—to create indelible sounds that would move, provoke, and inspire.

His dream came to life in 1981 with the formation of Sonic Youth, a band Moore cofounded with Kim Gordon and Lee Ranaldo. Sonic Youth became a fixture in New York’s burgeoning No Wave scene—an avant-garde collision of art and sound, poetry and punk. The band would evolve from critical darlings to commercial heavyweights, headlining festivals around the globe while helping introduce listeners to such artists as Nirvana, Hole, and Pavement, and playing alongside such icons as Neil Young and Iggy Pop. Through it all, Moore maintained an unwavering love of music: the new, the unheralded, the challenging, the irresistible.

In the spirit of Just Kids, Sonic Life offers a window into the trajectory of a celebrated artist and a tribute to an era of explosive creativity. It presents a firsthand account of New York in a defining cultural moment, a history of alternative rock as it was birthed and came to dominate airwaves, and a love letter to music, whatever the form. This is a story for anyone who has ever felt touched by sound—who knows the way the right song at the right moment can change the course of a life.

LEGO toys have sparked creativity and joy for generations, delighting families with each and every new connection. Now, LEGO Space: 1978–1992 explores the latter half of the twentieth century through the lens of LEGO Space—illuminating the brand’s own history alongside the popular culture and world events that helped to shape it.

This collection includes statistics and trivia for each set from across nearly two decades, fascinating insights of the LEGO Group as a company, and celebrations of the talented designers who helped to create each essential piece and kit.

This gorgeous chronicle is perfect for LEGO fans and builders of all ages, and will excite any reader with an interest in the fascinating history of the peerless and classic building toy!

In the first ten years of his career, Steven Spielberg directed some of the most influential and beloved films in cinema history. Movies such as Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial introduced audiences to the modern blockbuster and cemented Spielberg as a monumental figure in pop culture. Through exclusive imagery and unparalleled insight from Spielberg’s longtime documentarian, Laurent Bouzereau, this deluxe volume explores how a young filmmaker reinvented American cinema within just ten years. Featuring a fresh perspective on films including Duel, The Sugarland Express, Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, 1941, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, this book is an essential exploration of an iconic filmmaker’s early career.

Peacemaker had a long road to the spotlight and he’s not alone. There are dozens of unique, sometimes absurd, and yet truly memorable characters waiting for their chance to shine. Strange and Unsung All-Stars of the DC Multiverse celebrates some of the quirkiest, most compelling, and ready-for-primetime characters from throughout DC’s history. With peculiar powers—from Matter-Eater Lad to Arm-Fall-Off Boy—and one-of-a-kind costumes—from Red Tornado with her red long johns and a cooking pot for a helmet to Blue Snowman with her wintry robotic armor—these characters are truly unforgettable. Dive in and discover your next favorite DC Super Hero or Villain.

With narration adapted from Davis’ own words and an innovative visual style that shifts to reflect Davis’ constant musical changes, this 150-page graphic novel follows Davis through four decades of musical innovation, all centered around his quest to find a mysterious sound he heard on a moonlit country road as a child.

Meticulously researched and expertly crafted by writer/artist Dave Chisholm—a doctorate holder in jazz trumpet from the Eastman School of Music—Miles Davis and the Search for the Sound deftly explores the often volatile journey of Miles Davis and his world-renowned music.

Clover Press and The Library of American Comics prove that size does matter as we fulfill fans' long-standing requests to produce new editions of the first six volumes of Chester Gould's The Complete Dick Tracy. This is no simple reprinting – these volumes have been reformatted to be the same larger size as Volumes 7 through 29. In this premiere offering, we return again to those hardscrabble days of 1931, when tragedy in the Trueheart family puts young Dick Tracy on the police force and pits him against mobster “Big Boy,” Larceny Lu, the counterfeiter Alec Penn, the nefarious “Stooge” Viller, and Steve the Tramp! As an added bonus, the first thirty-four Tracy Sunday pages, with stories separate from the daily continuity, have been rescanned to make them sharper and cleaner than their original reprinting. There’s never been a better time than now to get reacquainted with Chester Gould’s crime-busting plainclothesman, with the publication of the new bigger edition of The Complete Dick Tracy Volume 1!

This profusely illustrated, 112-page, full-color issue is absolutely chock full of EC lore and rare artwork by EC artists! Front and back covers by Jack Davis. Featuring Frazetta’s original hand-colored silverprint of his legendary Weird Science-Fantasy 29 cover, an unpublished interview with EC Picto-Fiction cover artist/pulp fiction illustrator Rudy Nappi, a 1978 visit to Gaines’s legendary EC art vault, a feature on EC’s Leroy lettering team Jim and Margaret Wroten, EC Artist Christmas Cards, Jack Davis and Playboy, a feature on the Davis-illustrated Dracula’s Greatest Hits album, an exhaustive listing of all the various versions of EC’s Picture Stories from the Bible series, articles on the creation of―and history behind―the seminal 1960s EC fanzines Squa Tront and Spa Fon, and much more. This issue is absolutely essential reading for all EC Fan-Addicts! Full color illustrations throughout

In the 1920s they were socialites and flappers. In the 1960s they were homemakers and heartthrobs. But from the late 1930s to the early 1950s, female stars of the newspaper comic strips were detectives, spies, soldiers of fortune, even superheroes. Accomplishing everything the male comics stars of the time achieved, except they did it in high-heels and flowing skirts. Follow the daring exploits of these smart, tough, independent AND sexy Dauntless Dames.
Both a product of their era and ahead of their time, the women in these stories gave their audience just what they needed. Through the Sunday Comics readers could escape from the woes of the Depression, travel to exotic foreign lands, feel the glamor and gangsters of the entertainment world, and support the Allied efforts in World War II.

Presented in an extra-large format, here are the colorful, pulse-pounding tales of ten incredible women, both known and unknown to comics fans ― and most are reprinted here for the first time in three-quarters of a century! The book also includes a special bonus: an insert section with a dozen paper doll cutouts starring the most popular women comic strip characters of the day.

Now collected in an omnibus paperback, John Stanley’s Melvin Monster is about a good-natured monster boy whose sweet personality belies his monstrous appearance. Melvin just wants to be good, go to school, and do as he is told. Melvin’s sunny optimism makes him an oddball outcast in his Monsterville community, where he disappoints his parents, “Mummy” and “Baddy,” with his irrepressible sunny disposition, and also continually escapes the wrath of their pet alligator Cleopatra who only wants to eat Melvin whole. Gag after gag, the acclaimed mid-century cartoonist Stanley sets Melvin up in fairly quotidian situations that spiral into hilarious ridiculousness, with a ferociously frenetic comedic timing.

Charmingly naïve, Melvin Monster draws its direct inspiration from the 1960s monster craze and the work of cartoonist Charles Addams and its television adaptation The Addams Family as well as The Munsters, however, Melvin Monster is all its own with Stanley’s superior cartooning skills, melding pop colors, expressive lines, and funny jokes on full display.

Inspired by a 3-page comic by the French cartoonist Jean Giraud (Moebius) illustrating a speech by Chief Seattle, Seattle-based cartoonist Jon Strongbow went on a spiritual journey.  He studied at the Red Cedar Circle, a community dedicated to the ancient teachings of the First Peoples of the Northwest Coast, attended a local Tibetan monastery, and was mentored by local native healers and medicine people. Deeply moved by these teachings, he sought to honor the culture of the original inhabitants and refute the devastation wrought upon them by depicting today’s Seattle imbued with ghosts of the original inhabitants of Northwest Coastal natives.

All One Life is a series of 29 stunningly imaginative images ― meticulously rendered and expertly transformed into 3D (glasses required and included) ― that juxtapose the city’s past and present, indicating what we have lost by destroying the tribal nations. 

Many of the images feature masked dancers from all over the world and how they invigorate the modern streets. There are also shamanic images, especially spirit entities, such as the dream time Wandjina spirits of Australia and the Hopi and Zuni Kachinas in the Four Corners area. 

Strongbow also showcases endangered species: a whale swims in the streets of Pioneer Square, echoing their near extinction caused by aggressive whaling by Americans, Germans, and Japanese; dinosaurs roam the city’s streets, reminding us that many creatures have had their day, and we may have had ours. All One Life is a series of stunning images chronicling the transformation of Seattle that is both imaginatively fanciful and profoundly elegiac.

By the time Chris Claremont’s run as author of Uncanny X-Men ended in 1991, he had changed comic books forever. During his sixteen years writing the series, Claremont revitalized a franchise on the verge of collapse, shaping the X-Men who appear in today’s Hollywood blockbusters. But, more than that, he told a new kind of story, using his growing platform to articulate transgressive ideas about gender nonconformity, toxic masculinity, and female empowerment.

J. Andrew Deman’s investigation pairs close reading and quantitative analysis to examine gender representation, content, characters, and story structure. The Claremont Run compares several hundred issues of Uncanny X-Men with a thousand other Marvel comics to provide a comprehensive account of Claremont’s sophisticated and progressive gender politics. Claremont’s X-Men upended gender norms: where female characters historically served as mere eye candy, Claremont’s had leading roles and complex, evolving personalities. Perhaps more surprisingly, his male superheroes defied and complicated standards of masculinity. Groundbreaking in their time, Claremont’s comics challenged readers to see the real world differently and transformed pop culture in the process.

The 1940s saw the birth of many enduring superheroes like Superman, Batman, Captain America and Captain Marvel. Outside of the superhero genre, the golden age of comics also featured a host of lesser-known, evil-fighting action figures, and this book contains a wealth of information about these heroes without capes. Covered here are jungle heroines like Sheena, Rulah and Princess Pantha; science fiction stalwarts including Spacehawk, Hunt Bowman and Futura; adventurers such as Kayo Kirby, Werewolf Hunter and Senorita Rio; and Western heroes ranging from Tom Mix to the Ghost Rider.

The official adaptation of CONAN THE BARBARIAN, the seminal film written by John Milius and Oliver Stone, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Earl Jones. In the novel by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, the Cimmerian youth Conan witnesses the death of his parents at the hands of Thulsa Doom, a priest of Set. Enslaved, he is trained as a gladiator. Gaining his freedom he allies with Subotai, a Hyrkanian archer, and a skilled swordswoman thief named Valeria. Together they raid the Tower of the Serpent, then Conan breaks away to seek the cult of Doom—and revenge on the sorcerer who leads it.