New for September 2018 at Copacetic Comics

Nocturne
by Tara Booth
The unconscious is a playground.  Dreaming and waking lives intertwine as desires ebb and flow against and between an air of midnight blue.

The Fruit of Knowledge
by Liv Stromquist
Fruit of Knowledge: The Vulva vs. The Patriarchy has hit America’s shores!  Employing a merciless onslaught of comics rhetoric, Liv Strömquist storms the patriarchal fortress with weapons readily at hand (including satire, sarcasm, synecdoche and more – all leavened with a healthy sense of humor).  Remember, not all Vikings were men. You have been warned.
retail price – $22.99  copacetic price – $20.00

Slum Wolf
by Tadao Tsuge; edited and translated by Ryan Holmberg
The latest Garo-centric manga project from the (apparently, see below) indefatiguable Ryan Holmberg is this curated collection of nine classic tales of down-and-outers on the fringe of Japanese society by the legendary Tadao Tsuge.  All the works in Slum Wolf were created in the 1960s and ’70s, with all but three originally running in Garo.  All works herein collected – including a bonus autobiographical essay by Tsuge, “Always a Tough Guy at Heart” – were translated and edited by Mr. Holmberg, who has also supplied a highly informative essay that closes out the collection, which runs 328 pages in total.  Anyone wanting to learn more, can read an illustrated excerpt of this essay on the NYRB site, HERE.

The Troublemakers
by Baron Yoshimoto; edited and translated by Ryan Holmberg
In yet another great manga collection edited and translated by Ryan Homberg, here we have six classic manga tales from the Gekiga master, Baron Yoshimoto whose hyperbolic observations of the social transformations taking place in the new post-WW II generation in Japan grab the reader’s attention and don’t let go.  The title’s of this collection’s stories will give you an idea of what’s in store:  “Eriko’s Happiness”, “High School Brawler’s Ditty”, “Insect”, “The Gambling Stripper”, “Nostalgia”, and “The Girl and the Black Soldier”.  Totaling 225 pages, these tales were originally published in Japan between 1966 and 1974.  This volume also includes an 18-page illustrated essay by Holmberg, ‘natch.

The Winner
by Karl Stevens
Karl Stevens runs his victory lap in this collection of (mostly) full color short pieces that (to some degree, anyway) depict his struggles to live a life less dependent on sarcasm and irony.  A follow up to his previous collection, Failure, The Winner finds Karl recently espoused, newly sober and, as you may have already surmised from the cover illustration, working as a museum guard – but still residing in Boston and still an ace in the Pen & Ink Rendering of Reality (and, in one bit, Fantasy, as well) Department.  This time around Mr. Stevens fleshes out his drawing with plenty of color, employing a variety of methods, primarily watercolor.  Fans of his previous work will not be disappointed, and newcomers possessing the proper temperament and appropriately dry sense of humor may find themselves pleasantly surprised.

by Joff Winterhart
As this has only just arrived, but as this double-dose of comics new-to-US-readers by Joff Winterhart has been previously published in the UK, where it garnered some impressive praise by some people whose opinions we pay attention to (see below), we dove right in.  So far we can report that Days of Bagnold Summer consists of a narratively linked series of one-page comics, each of which stands on their own yet each one building on the previous to tell the story advertised by the title.  Days of Bagnold Summer doesn’t blink in presenting the uncomfortable aspects of adolescence and adolescent parenting (Our blurb might read, “There’s a cringe on every page!”).  “Beautifully drawn and exquisitely written… confirms Winterhart as one of the most talented graphic novelists in the UK.”  – Zadie Smith on Driving Short Distances  “There is probably no truer portrait of teenage and parental angst.” – Posy Simmonds
retail price – $25.00  copacetic price – $20.00

Miyazaki World
by Susan Napier
And, while we’re on the topic of animé here’s an in-depth look at a master of the form.  Years in the making, Susan Napier’s critical biography of the world’s greatest living animator, Hayo Miyazaki is now available from Yale University Press, who state:  “Japanese culture and animation scholar Susan Napier explores the life and art of this extraordinary Japanese filmmaker to provide a definitive account of his oeuvre. Napier insightfully illuminates the multiple themes crisscrossing his work, from empowered women to environmental nightmares to utopian dreams, creating an unforgettable portrait of a man whose art challenged Hollywood dominance and ushered in a new chapter of global popular culture.”  Miyazai World is a 300 page hardcover, illustrated in black & white, plus a 16-page section of full color plates.
retail price – $30.00  copacetic price – $26.75