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Books and Trade Paperbacks

Sounds of the Forest, Getting in Tune

Three entertainment veterans have teamed up to create a new music-oriented funny animal book series for kids called The Musicritters. The first full-color book is called The New House. “Ten year old Lizzie’s world was turning upside down. Dad’s new job was taking Lizzie, her mother, and her brother Jamie far from the only home and friends that she had ever known. Little did Lizzie realize that some of the most unusual, fun and lovable new friends a kid could ever have were waiting to be discovered at her new house, right in her own backyard. Lizzie was about to meet the MusiCritters!” Namely, creatures that combine animals with musical instruments! Writer Steve Sperry is known for his songwriting work on TV shows like Fame. Illustrator Willie Ito has spent years developing characters and animation for Disney, Hanna Barbera, and Warner Brothers cartoons. And colorist Iraj Paran has worked at Hanna Barbera too — he designed their world-famous logo. The book is available at Amazon, but it’s also available as a .pdf download at several sites, including OkayBooks.org.

image c. 2015 CreateSpace

image c. 2015 CreateSpace

A Feline Detective. In Space.

Leon is the creation of author Pati Nagle, first appearing in her science fiction novel Pet Noir from Book View Cafe (check it out over at Amazon). Now Kymera Press have adapted Pet Noir as a full-color comic book series with art by by Anna G, Laurie Foster, and Liezl Buenaventura. “Feline investigator Leon has opposable thumbs, the ability to talk, and is possibly the most dangerous cat in the galaxy. Indentured to the Security department of Gamma Station until he’s worked off the cost of his ‘creation’, Leon alternates between harassing his human partner and roommate Devin and fighting sleazy criminals, yet he still finds time to flirt with the lovely Leila, an exotic Burmese. Will he win her heart, and more importantly, will he win his freedom?” The first issue is available now.

image c. 2015 Book View Cafe

image c. 2015 Book View Cafe

Little Mice, Big Swords

This July look for an interesting new hardcover book from Boom! Studios: The Art of Mouse Guard, 2005 – 2015. “Celebrate the first 10 years of a comics classic from the very first sketch. For the first time since the series debut, David Petersen’s process for creating the world of Mouse Guard and bringing it to life in stunning illustration is documented in exquisite detail. With never-before-seen sketches; 100 pages of full-color, oversized artwork; and commentary from colleagues, collaborators, and Petersen himself, readers and fans get an unprecedented look behind-the-pages at how their favorite characters and adventures were born.” Those colleagues and collaborators include folks like Mike Mignola, Stan Sakai, Geof Darrow, and many others. You can find out more over at the Simon & Schuster Digital Catalog site.

image c. 2015 Boom! Studios

image c. 2015 Boom! Studios

The Duck Begins

Well before the current incarnation, and even before his unfortunate association with a famous bad movie, Howard the Duck was… one of Marvel Comics’ strangest characters, created and written by Steve Gerber and illustrated by a parade of artists… perhaps most famously, Frank Brunner. Well now this July Marvel is putting together a good part of the cosmic fowl’s early adventures in Howard the Duck: The Complete Collection. ” Howard the Duck takes an adventure into fear when he is plucked from Duckworld and finds himself on Earth, bill to proboscis with the melancholy muck-monster Man-Thing! Stuck here on a planet of hairless apes, the furious fowl forges a future for himself in, of all places, Cleveland. But the would-be Master of Quack-Fu will have his wings full hanging out with Spider-Man and waging ‘waaaugh’ with madcap menaces like the Space Turnip, the Cookie Creature, the Beaver and Doctor Bong. Will that earn him a spot on the Defenders?” We’ll soon find out! Other fine illustrators you’ll find in this more-than-400-page full-color trade paperback (and this is just Volume 1!) include Val Mayerik, John Buscema, Gene Colan, and Sal Buscema. Barnes & Noble has more.

image c. 2015 Marvel Comics

image c. 2015 Marvel Comics

Men and … NOT Men

The things we stumble across on the Internet… There’s an author who goes by the name of Chuck Tingle, who specializes in gay… make that very gay erotica for Kindle readers. Interestingly, almost all of his works involve hunky young human men getting together with… hunky guys who are decidedly not human. Dinosaurs are a favorite, and so are unicorns, it seems. We’d tell you more but even the titles of most of his stories are Not Safe For Work — though all of them tell you pretty much straight forward (ha ha) what they’re about.  The closest we can get to a safe example is Pounded by the Gay Unicorn Football Squad. See what we mean? Check out the author on Amazon if you’re feeling adventurous — but remember, you have been warned. This is not by any means for kids.

image c. 2015 Amazon Digital Services

image c. 2015 Amazon Digital Services

When Otter Met Husky

We got this from author Tempe O’Kun regarding the new novel Windfall: “Tempe O’Kun (https://www.furaffinity.net/user/tempo321), author of the award-winning furry fantasy-western Sixes Wild, returns! His new novel centers around Kylie and Max, an otter and a husky, who are best friends grappling with falling in love with each other…and with the fact that the supernatural cable TV show they starred in was actually real. Featuring 22 illustrations from acclaimed furry artist Slate (https://www.furaffinity.net/user/slate), this new M/F furry romance is a mystery you’ll find irresistible. Available at the FurPlanet booth for $15 at Anthrocon and online afterward. Windfall is a sweet love story between a cute otter and a hunky husky. It’s also about alien horrors beyond the imagination. Want to read a book that would blow Lovecraft’s mind? This is your chance.” Check it out and pre-order over at FurPlanet.

image c. 2015 FurPlanet

image c. 2015 FurPlanet

Drawing His Characters… and Many Others!

Eric Goldberg is a supervising animator at Walt Disney Pictures, well known for his work on such classic cartoon films as Aladdin, Hercules, and Fantasia 2000. He also recently began a stint as an artist-in-residence instructor for character animation at the University of Southern California (USC). For the opening of a new Disneyland in Shanghai, China, Mr. Goldberg helped to decorate one of the restaurants by drawing a series of Disney characters in the caricature style made famous by restaurants like The Brown Derby and Sardi’s in Hollywood.  In fact, Mr. Goldberg wound up drawing nearly 200 pictures for the project! Now no less than 180 of these black & white illustrations have been gathered together in a new hardcover book — An Animator’s Gallery: Eric Goldberg Draw The Disney Characters from Disney Editions. According to an article at Stitch Kingdom, “Fans of all ages, and from all over, can enjoy Eric’s playful portraits, starting with Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and Mickey Mouse from the Company’s early days through Anna and Elsa from Frozen. Bonus sections will even feature some of the most beloved characters from Pixar (Toy Story, Cars, Monsters, Inc.) and live-action films (Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, Pirates of the Caribbean).” Featuring text by fellow Disney animator David Bossert and a foreword by John Lasseter, An Animator’s Gallery will be available this September.

image c. 2015 Disney Editions

image c. 2015 Disney Editions

Tramp Tramp Tramp

Far Out Fairy Tales is a new, very odd graphic novel series for young readers from Stone Arch Books. And at least one of them is of note to furry fans: In Super Billy Goats Gruff, the three brothers named Gruff head off to get themselves some grass… and wind up trapped inside a video game! Now they face evil trolls with the powers of a warrior, a wizard, and a ninja! All brought to you in full color by writer Sean Tulien and illustrator Fernando Cano. It’s available now, and Capstone has more.

image c. 2015 Stone Arch Books

image c. 2015 Stone Arch Books

 

Award-Winning Art and Stories

Ursa Major Award winner Rukis recently announced a new set of books coming out from FurPlanet. Following the award-winning novel Off the Beaten Path and its sequel, Lost on Dark Trails, the third book in the trilogy comes out this July. In The Long Road Home, “Shivah’s journey continues, taking her not only across a country she never truly knew, but soon the oceans, as well.  She finds herself journeying to a distant land, but even so far from home, she can’t hide from her grief, or the anger eating away at her heart.” Also this July comes a collection of full-color mature-themed art that Rukis and Myenia created for their popular Menagerie series.  Check out over at FurPlanet’s web site to find out more.

image c. 2015 by Rukis

image c. 2015 by Rukis