Currently Reading Wednesdays 4: I forgot about it and posted it on Thursday

[healyg]

Currently I am reading Faster Than a Speeding Bullet: The Rise of the Graphic Novel by Stephen Weiner. It is the thinnest book on comic book history I have ever read, about 64 pages including the backmatter. Some of the early chapters (I am thinking of the first in particular) read like grade school history reports, if grade school taught the history of comic books. Later on it starts discussing just one or two comic books-- I'm sorry, graphic novels, per chapter. I think I detect a hint of bias in this book. It also ends just as it gets to manga boom; on the one hand, what do you expect from a book written in 2003, but on the other, wow, way to miss the second biggest zeitgeist of the coming decade (first being the web, natch). Also, for some reason it starts every chapter with a different quote, and while they're sometimes clever, most of the time it comes off as too twee, like the quote for the Sandman chapter: "Death was a friend, and sleep was Death's brother." --John Steinbeck. Also also, it cites no sources. Overall I'd say while it may be of use to a total comics newbie, you'd probably be better off with Demanding Respect instead.

Next time, on Currently Reading Wednesdays Somedays: Well, I really wanna get into some text adventures, but seeing as I've said that every week and I've gone with some comics related book each time, I'm guessing that's a no sale. With any luck Ryan Veeder will release his magnum opus IF about a struggling comic book author in the 30's, and this impasse will come to an end.

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[healyg.livejournal.com]

Spoiler Alert: The character he draws comes to life and they both make-out.