Hi there folks. These are the comics that are scheduled to ship to The Beguiling Books & Art in Toronto, Canada this week. These books may not show up at all retailers at the same time, but if you see a title here it’s probably at least worth asking your local retailer about… 

JAN073653 A LATE FREEZE 6.50
I was lucky enough to have the creator of this book, Danica Novgorodoff, send a copy to the store for me to take a look at. I’m really glad I did too, because this “mini-comic”, a full-colour, full-length dreamlike story, is absolutely excellent. The winner of the “Isotope Award for Excellence in Mini-Comics,” A Late Freeze is all about lost love and family and is really beautifully illustrated and realised. If all of my effusive praise isn’t enough for you to track down a copy for yourself, you can check out some strips from the book online at the author’s website, http://www.danicanovgorodoff.com.

DEC063936 AMERICAN ELF VOL 2 COLL SKETCHBOOK DIARIES OF JAMES KOCHALKA 19.95
The book we were all kind of worried would never be published! This second collection of James Kochalka’s fantastic diary comics weighs in a bit less than the previous collection (Volume 2 collects 2 years of strips to the first volume’s 5-or-so) but I don’t think it’s an exageration to say that this material is his best work. While Kochalka may actively be trying to shine a light on the nature of art and comics in his more formal productions, it’s the small illuminations that dot his sketchbook diaries that really speak work for me.

JAN070051 BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #1 2.99
…if you think retailers ‘under-ordered’ Captain America… Seriously, the only saving grace is that the press on this book has been a slow, consistant build and is unlikely to get the blitz that the ‘death’ did. But I have a feeling that this book will be just as tough to find, in its way.

OCT061854 COMPLETE INVINCIBLE LIBRARY VOL 1 HC 125.00
OCT061855 COMPLETE INVINCIBLE LIBRARY VOL 1 LTD ED SGN HC (C 175.00
You know, I actually really like Invincible and am buying this series in Hardcover, more for readability and durability than not, but I don’t actually think the material warrants this sort of collection. It’s fun, pulpy, well-done superhero material, but this kind of retrospective presentation is generally reserved for works that have… you know… stood the test of time. It’s a pretty audacious move at the very least. I probably shouldn’t say anything at all here, and I don’t begrudge the creative team the mortgage payment or two that they’re going to make with this thing, but even Kirby’s work doesn’t get this kind of treatment.

JAN073850 KING CITY VOL 1 GN (OF 3) (MR) 9.99
A Direct-Market exclusive! You won’t find this one in your Borders or Barnes & Noble. Honestly, it’s because they didn’t think they would sell any of it, but then they’ve got pretty specific ideas about what works and what doesn’t. Let’s try and prove them wrong, shall we?

King City is the new graphic novel series by Brandon Graham, a very talented young artist who’s been floating around the periphery of alternative comics for quite some time. The most easy-to-find collection of his work is Elevator, a bunch of short stories collected into a very handsome little book by Alternative Comics. King City is his first long-form work, and I’m really curious to see how Graham works in this format, let alone within the constraints of Tokyopop’s OEL line (which I’m not foolish enough to get into right now). Publisher’s Weekly put an eight-page preview of the book online, and I gotta say it looks pretty great. Gives me a lot of hope. Graham is a contemporary of Bryan Lee O’Malley and L0cke, as well as a member of the Meathaus group with Farel Dalrymple, Becky Cloonan, and James Jean, amongst others. I guess what I’m getting at is that I Think This Might Be A Very Good Book, cuz it reads well, has a great concept (cat-as-weapon-of-mass-destruction), and has a pedigree, if you will.

Don’t miss out.

OCT063730 STREET FIGHTER LEGENDS VOL 1 SAKURA TP 11.95
APR063425 STREET FIGHTER VOL 1 TP NEW EDITION 9.99
APR063426 STREET FIGHTER VOL 2 TP NEW EDITION 13.99
MAY063447 STREET FIGHTER VOL 3 FIGHTERS DESTINY TP 13.99
I’ve got a bigger post on this, but I just wanted to give props to my buddies at UDON because their new trades look fantastic. They’re on way better paper, and seriously, the books are so much sharper looking than before and twice as thick. The material is not to everyone’s tastes (heh, no, really?) but if you want to see Chun-Li kicking some dudes in the face, it has never looked better.

JUN063096 TIMES OF BOTCHAN VOL 3 GN (OF 10) 19.99
Just a heads-up, really, as if you’re not already reading this story by Jiro Taniguchi about Japan opening it’s bordered to the West at the turn of the last century, you probably won’t start doing so now. You totally should, of course, because it’s surprisingly wonderful and the narrative antithesis of pretty-much anything else on the book shelf, but… yeah.

OCT063547 TOWN OF EVENING CALM, COUNTRY OF CHERRY BLOSSOMS GN 9.99
This right here? This is one of those important manga that you hear about every once in a while. Two short stories about the after-effects of the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, years after the blast. I’ve already had the good fortune to read this and it’s absolutely incredible. Look for a review soon, but if you do happen to see it while you’re at the shop this week, pick it up.

And that’s it for this week!

Click on the link below to see the full list: 

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Books Are Good For You T-shirt design by Nury Lee at Threadless.com. 

Just as we’re all clibming out from Christmas Debts, one of my fav online t-shirt designers Threadless has to go and have a $10 sale. Most of their excellent, democratically produced T-Shirts are now just 10 bucks, which is too good to pass up. I personally wanted a couple which are already sold out, and the sale only lasts until Monday the 12th, so hurry your buns up and visit http://www.threadless.com. They even have a handy stock chart that you can search by size, to see what’s available in your preferred fit. Ginchy!

By the way, I’m not affiliated with Threadless or anything, and this is clearly not a comics post. I just like T-Shirts with the slogan “I’m A Noun!” on them is all. And so should you.

- Christopher

Toronto Cartoonist Matthew Blackett is best known around town as Matt B, who (until recently) chronicled life in the T-dot in his weekly comic strip for Eye Magazine, http://mattbcomic.com/. More recently though, he’s become known as the founder of Spacing magazine, and his contributions to city life have just recently been recognized by The Canadian Urban Institute.

Matt B has been awarded an Urban Leadership Award in the “City Soul” category, and while I’m not entirely sure what that actually means, it sounds pretty impressive (particularly when you look at the company he’s keeping). It’s not surprising though, as Matt and Spacing have really changed political discourse in the city, and alongside organisations like The Toronto Public Space Comittee (which he’s also on) they’ve made a positive impact on our day-to-day. All because in his 3-panel comic strips many years ago, he really loved the city he lived in (or at least loved it enough to want to make it better).

Matt B is also one of the best self-promoters I’ve ever met, and please believe me when I say that’s meant as a compliment. He used to organise these great big launch parties every time he released a new issue of his self-published comic strip collections (you might call them “mini-comics”). Bands would play, money would be raised, comics would be sold, and it would all go back into building his brand, which would then help us as a retailer sell his graphic novel collection. It’s amazing, and a course of action that I wish more… if not every… self publisher or small press would follow themselves. Hell, it’s what we as a store have started doing with our own events (see: the Scott Pilgrim/Dinosaur Comics Launch). Matt also helped us launch the Toronto Comic Arts Festival in 2003, helping to secure the best bit of press we received. (See also: above, right).

So, yeah, I’m really happy to see the work that Matt’s doing recognized, even if it isn’t in cartooning. I think there’s a similar mindset of really wanting to reach people with his message that’s carried through all of his projects, and he certainly worked hard enough for the success he’s achieved. Congrats, sir!

- Christopher