Publications

Softcover, 104 pages, Measures 6" x 9"

Redesigned to coincide with the release of Shortcomings in paperback is a brand-new edition of Adrian Tomine's first book, 32 Stories, that collects his inaugural mini-comics in a special edition. This onetime printing includes facsimile reprints of the seven mini-comics packaged in a slipcase, as well as an additional pamphlet containing a new introduction and notes by Tomine.

Hardcover, 128 pages, Measures 6.7 x 9.7"

Killing and Dying is a stunning showcase of the possibilities of the graphic novel medium and a wry exploration of loss, creative ambition, identity, and family dynamics. With this work, Adrian Tomine (Shortcomings, Scenes from an Impending Marriage) reaffirms his place not only as one of the most significant creators of contemporary comics but as one of the great voices of modern American literature. His gift for capturing emotion and intellect resonates here: the weight of love and its absence, the pride and disappointment of family, the anxiety and hopefulness of being alive in the twenty-first century.

"Amber Sweet" shows the disastrous impact of mistaken identity in a hyper-connected world; "A Brief History of the Art Form Known as Hortisculpture" details the invention and destruction of a vital new art form in short comic strips; "Translated, from the Japanese" is a lush, full-color display of storytelling through still images; the title story, "Killing and Dying", centers on parenthood, mortality, and stand-up comedy. In six interconnected, darkly funny stories, Tomine forms a quietly moving portrait of contemporary life.

Tomine is a master of the small gesture, equally deft at signaling emotion via a subtle change of expression or writ large across landscapes illustrated in full color. Killing and Dying is a fraught, realist masterpiece.

Hardcover, 128 pages, Measures 6.7 x 9.7"

Dan Clowes meets Walker Evans in this collection of subway and street portraits by Adrian Tomine, whose work readers will recognize from Time, Rolling Stone, Dave Eggersis Best American Nonrequired Reading and the cover of The New Yorker. New York Sketches features 15 full-color reproductions of the beautiful ink-and-watercolor drawings that Tomine began after moving from California to the city.

Each shows his unparalleled eye for detail: a police officer scrutinizes a stylish young mother; a girl remains content but completely motionless through four subway stops; a disgruntled worker kicks a chair while he sweeps. This remarkable portfolio is printed on finely textured 130-lb. Cougar paper, accordion folded so that images can be detached for framing or displayed upright together. It is the only full-color project featuring new art from Adrian Tomine, one of the most respected and perhaps the most widely visible alternative cartoonists of our time.

Softcover, 132pp

Reading just a page of this Optic Nerve collection will improve your life considerably. But don't stop there; curl up on a rainy day and read the whole thing, twice.

Softcover, 102 pages, measures 7.5 x 10.75 inches.

Collecting the first four issues of Adrian Tomine's acclaimed comic series optic nerve, this book offers sixteen concise, haunting tales of modern life. The characters here appear to be well-adjusted on the surface, but Tomine takes us deeper into their lives, subtly examining their struggle to connect with friends and lovers.

Softcover, 9.25" x 6.5", 108pp, Black & White

Ben Tanaka has problems. In addition to being rampantly critical, sarcastic, and insensitive, his longåÐterm relationship is awash in turmoil. His girlfriend, Miko Hayashi, suspects that Ben has a wandering eye, and more to the point, it's wandering in the direction of white women. This accusation (and its various implications) becomes the subject of heated, spiralling debate, setting in motion a story that pits California against New York, devotion against desire, and trust against truth.

By confusing their personal problems with political ones, Ben and Miko are strangely alone together and oddly alike, even as they fly apart. Being human, all too human, they fail to see that what unites them is their shared hypocrisies, their double standards. This gray zone between the personal and the political is a minefield that Tomine navigates boldly and nimbly. The charged, volatile dialogues that result are unlike anything in Tomine's previous work or, for that matter, comics in general. But Shortcomings is no mere polemic. Any issues that are raised stand on equal footing with expertly-crafted plot turns, subtle characterization, and irreverent humor, all drawn in Tomine's heart-breakingly evocative style. What Tomine ultimately offers is more provocation than pronouncement--a brutal, funny, and insightful reflection of human shortcomings.

Shortcomings was serialized in Tomine's iconic comic book series Optic Nerve (issues #9-11) and was excerpted in McSweeney's Quarterly Concern #13.

Cover varies in color.

Hardcover, 168 pages, Measures 5.5" x 8.3"

A collection of some of the best stories by Baron Yoshimoto, one of the Japanese manga artists who helped develop the graphic novel form in the 1960s and 1970s by targeting an older audience with scintillating and exquisitely drawn stories about class, gender, ethnicity, and race. With an essay by noted manga historian and translator Ryan Holmberg. The stories included are “Eriko’s Happiness”, “High School Brawler’s Ditty”, “Insect”, “The Gambling Stripper”, “Nostalgia”, and “The Girl and the Black Soldier”.

Baron Yoshimoto grew up in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, and helped build the graphic novel boom in the 1960s and 1970s. When he was at the height of his popularity, he concluded all of his serializations and suddenly left for the United States. In 1985, he returned to Japan and began to produce paintings, launching a new and innovative style. He has received critical praise for his painted works, where he uses the name Ryu Manji.

Website: baron-yoshimoto.jp/

Twitter: @baronyoshimoto

The Troublemakers is translated from the original Japanese by Ryan Holmberg, an art and comics historian whose many translations include Yuichi Yokoyama's World Map Room, Osamu Tezuka's Mysterious Underground Men, and Tsuge Tadao's Trash Market.

More writing by Ryan Holmberg: tcj.com/author/ryan-holmberg/

248 black & white pages with some color, 5.75x8.25 inches (14.6x20.9 cm), softcover graphic novel

Measures 5" x 7", Black & White, 248 pp

Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour! It's finally here... six years and almost one thousand pages have all led to this epic finale! With six of Ramona's seven evil exes dispatched, it should be time for Scott Pilgrim to face Gideon Graves, the biggest and baddest of her former beaus. But didn't Ramona take off at the end of Book 5? Shouldn't that let Scott off the hook? Maybe it should, maybe it shouldn't, but one thing is for certain -- all of this has been building to Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour!

HARDCOVER, 176 pages, Measures 5.5 X 6.6

 Hardcover, 6.75 x 9 inches, 68 pages. Edition of 1500

 Hairdos of Defiance is a look into a microcosm of a fringe world, one where individuals engage in the act of retreat or refusal as a generative form of identity-making. Eschewing perfection for style, progenitors of the punk scene adopted the radical alterations of their bodies to signify their displeasure. Offensively deviant, the Mohawk evolved as a style dependent on social context and determined by the historical moment; purposely assumed, it is both a mask and an act of masking.

 

 

Measures 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 in; 64 pages; Hardcover

In this funny and sweet new book in the bestselling Darth Vader™ series, Eisner Award–winning author Jeffrey Brown offers an intimate look at the friendships between best pals in the Star Warsuniverse, from Darth Vader and the Emperor to Leia and her Ewok pals, Han and Chewie, C-3PO and R2-D2, the bounty hunters, and other favorite characters. Jealousy, birthday parties, lightsaber battles, sharing, intergalactic rebellion and more all come into play as Brown's charming illustrations and humor irresistibly combine the adventures of our friends in a galaxy far, far away with everyday events closer to home.

Hardcover. 64 pages. Measures 6 x 6 inches.

What if Darth Vader took an active role in raising his son? What if "Luke, I am your father" was just a stern admonishment from an annoyed dad? In this hilarious and sweet comic re-imagining, Darth Vader is a dad like any other—except with all the baggage of being the Dark Lord of the Sith. Celebrated artist Jeffrey Brown's delightful illustrations give classic Star Wars® moments a fresh twist, presenting the trials and joys of parenting through the lens of a galaxy far, far away. Life lessons include lightsaber batting practice, using the Force to raid the cookie jar, Take Your Child to Work Day on the Death Star ("Er, he looks just like you, Lord Vader!"), and the special bond shared between any father and son.

416 pages, 8.25 x 8.25 inches. Hardcover Graphic Novel Collection.

A must have for horror lovers and manga fans, this collection of 13 chilling, nightmare-inducing tales by Junji Ito will entice any reader.

150 black and white and colored pages, 8.25 x 11.75 inches. Hardcover Art Book.

Enter the world of Junji Ito’s art––an abyss of horror and sublime beauty.

A first-ever collection of Junji Ito’s artworks, featuring over 130 images from his bestselling manga titles along with rare works.

648 pages, 5.75 x 8.25 inches. Hardcover Graphic Novel.

A masterpiece of horror manga, now available in a deluxe hardcover edition!

Kurouzu-cho, a small fogbound town on the coast of Japan, is cursed. According to Shuichi Saito, the withdrawn boyfriend of teenager Kirie Goshima, their town is haunted not by a person or being but a pattern: UZUMAKI, the spiral—the hypnotic secret shape of the world. The bizarre masterpiece horror manga is now available all in a single volume. Fall into a whirlpool of terror!