Your Guide to the World of Furry Fandom
Love that title! Here’s part of the description from the publisher, Del Rey: “When a child is taken by the fearsome Boogeyman, his loyal toys (including The General, Max the bear, Percy the pig, and others) must rally to stage a daring rescue operation.” This trade paperback graphic novel was written by Mike Raicht and Brian Smith, and illustrated in black & white by Charles Paul Wilson III. It comes to stores this April.
Stuff of Legend cover, c. Del Rey Publishing
Three new titles of varying furry-fan interest are coming the March from Antarctic Press. First up: He’s a chip off the old… well, you’ll find out. Chip is a brand-new full-color miniseries by Boneyard and Far West creator Richard Moore. Chip is a young gargoyle on a farm in upstate New York, who’s determined to convince his elders that he can be a big, scary defender of the night like them. Trouble is, Chip is only 4 inches tall! On the non-fiction side of things there’s the new instructional trade paperback, How to Draw Magic and Fantasy by Fred Perry, Ben Dunn, and David Hutchinson — three names you should know if you follow Antarctic Press or furry comics in general. And finally, there’s Twilit, a new black & white comic book series by Robby Bevard and J.L. Anderson. Hmmm, we’ll let the publishers describe it: “When the vampires on campus would rather bake in their weed than drink blood, life is pretty mellow. Well, except for the occasional scraps with the werewolves, but as long as they vacuum up afterward, the vamps are cool with it. What’s worse is the furry fan down the hall who’s convinced he’s a werewolf, but isn’t.” You read it here folks.
Once again, the folks at Boom! Kids take things in a whole new direction… Donald Duck and Friends Volume 1: Double Duck is a new trade paperback (also available in hardcover) that collects the recent issues of this comic book series… featuring everyone’s favorite cranky duck as a top-flight secret agent, out to save the world from a madman bent on melting the world’s polar ice caps! The story is by Fausto Vitaliano and Marco Bosco, with various folks contributing the full-color art. The books are scheduled to come out in early May.
c. 2010, Boom! Studios. Not the final art... but oooo!
IDW Publishing presents a return to the focal point of Cynosure: Grim Jack’s own multi-world famous Munden’s Bar. Grim Jack was a popular dark science-fiction adventure comic of the 80’s and 90’s, and many anthropomorphic creatures (to say nothing of other alien beasties) met up with Grim Jack and his crew at Munden’s Bar. Now we have a brand-new full-color trade paperback featuring all new never-before-printed stories of this multi-dimensional hangout by the likes of Skip Williamson, Jon Ostrander, William Messner-Loebs, Marc Hempel, Joe Staton, Hilary Barta, Mark Wheatley and more. Munden’s Bar: Grand Re-Opening will be on shelves this February.
Jerry Robinson is a living legend in the world of comics, having created The Joker and having been involved in the comics industry for more than 70 years now (!). In 1974 Jerry was the author and editor of a book which has since become a world-famous study: The Comics: An Illustrated History of Comic Strip Art. Now that historic book has been updated and re-released in trade paperback form by Dark Horse Comics. The press release describes it as “…a comprehensive history of the truly American art form! The Comics is a fully reworked and updated edition of the 1974 classic that chronicles the origins and evolution of comic strips, from prior to The Yellow Kid through today, and highlights the game-changing contributions of such creative luminaries as Milton Caniff, Walt Kelly, Hal Foster, and Winsor McCay, among countless others. A fascinating resource of enduring excellence for fans of the art form, historians, and casual readers alike, this edition has been extensively revisited by Robinson and tells the stories behind the newsprint page.” Needless to say, many furry comic strips are covered in this extensive history, including Bloom County, Peanuts, Calvin & Hobbes, Pogo, Garfield, and many many more. This new edition goes on sale this April.
[From Amazon.com:]
“Charles M. Schulz and his beloved comic strip, Peanuts, have changed the world. In Security Blankets: How Peanuts Touched Our Lives, Donald Fraser and Derrick Bang present a heartwarming collection of 51 touching true stories to show the connection people have with the adored cartoon. Stories, photos from the contributors, and Peanuts artwork make this work extra special. The connections are so strong they’ve even had the power to change people’s lives. Take, for example, the Vietnam POW; whose first piece of correspondence while in captivity was a Snoopy card that included a picture of his wife and children. Or the 5-year-old boy from Boston who demanded that his stuffed Snoopy accompany him to the hospital for a high-risk surgery. Connections such as these show how Peanuts has become a security blanket for thousands. This is chicken soup for the Peanuts lover’s soul.”
The book is available in paperback from Andrews McMeel Publishing.
The artist known as Sekhmet has brought together a wealth of furry and fantasy artists to create the new Pin-Up Portfolio, a 56-page softcover coffee-table book of full-color art newly available for order this month. Featuring artists as diverse as Balaa, Dark Natasha, Diana Harlan Stein, Heather Bruton, Michele Light, Kacey Miyagami, Caribou, and many many more, this collection features over 40 full-color illustrations of furry ladies, sexily dressed or tastefully topless… plus 8 pages of sketches and work-in-progress illustrations, as well as information about the artists. Take note that this rare gathering of furry art talent is available only for a short time, and can only be ordered on the Internet. Visit http://pinupportfolio.com/ to find out more about ordering your own copy.
I think I’ll let Blotch themselves explain this one…
“Across Thin Ice is the first book of the Nordguard Trilogy. In short: It is a fully painted, color graphic novel, with each book coming in around 90 pages. Sofawolf Press will be publishing it and we’re looking at a release date of summer 2010.
The story is set in the north-eastern arctic in the year of 1903 and follows the trail of Pi and her team of sled-dogs. The northland is an untamed and cruel country, ruled by the winter and populated by scattered tribes and half starved strays. But now, at the turn of the 20th century, it is civilization’s last frontier and must be won. In this time of dauntless enterprise, exploration and intrepid spirits, thousands travel north to seek their own manifest destiny in the land of the midnight sun. The Nodguard is an elite company of dogs formed for search, rescue and exploration in the arctic regions of the White Land. Charged with cutting trails, carrying mail and recovering lost travelers, their dangerous job is never done. When a distress call comes over the wire in the late autumn, Pi and the team are called into swift action. With tensions between the three great nations rising in the northland, the team quickly finds themselves in deeper trouble than usual. Traveling in the company of an arrogant military officer and a green field surgeon, pursued by relentless hunters and pushed into the grip of a much larger conspiracy, their survival rides on very thin ice.
Arctic adventure, collies, huskies, Smith & Wessons, snow, caribou, tigers, wolverines, mines, glaciers, walrus, lumberjacks, sleds, canned fish, dynamite, barometers, bears and boars–what more is there! Well, a lot, but you’ll have to check out the Nordguard Website for more: www.nordguard.com.
But wait, want Free Stuff? Well, my friend, don’t fret. The folks at Sofawolf will be giving away, 100% free, no purchase necessary 18×24 posters of the Nordguard promo picture, here! When, you say? At their Sofawolf Dealer’s Island at AnthroCon this July! It’ll be first come, first serve while supplies last, so don’t miss out!”
You heard them! Check out the previews this summer, and look for the first book in 2010. And of course, keep your eyes on Sofawolf Press (www.sofawolf.com) for lots more cool anthropomorphic publications.
Titan publishing has collected 176 pages of full-color Wallace and Gromit comic strips together in The Best of Wallace and Gromit trade paperback (by Dan Abnett, Simon Furman, Jimmy Hansen, and others). Nick Park’s beloved and award-winning claymation duo are back in new comic strip adventures, along with their friend Shaun the Sheep and their fierce enemy, Feathers McGraw the criminal penguin!
