graphic novel

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After School Board Bans Maus, It Soars on Amazon

They objected to language, violence in Art Spiegelman's Holocaust book

(Newser) - Update: A Tennessee school board's decision to keep Art Spiegelman's Maus out of the hands of 8th-graders has fueled a buying spree. Mediaite reports that as of Sunday, the hardcover format of The Complete Maus is the No. 1 best seller on Amazon in the books category . Other...

Stan Lee Releasing a Most Appropriate Memoir

Marvel Comics icon's book will be a comic book

(Newser) - Stan Lee is publishing a memoir—and, of course, it will be in the form of a graphic novel. Lee, 92, the former head of Marvel Comics and creator of such iconic comic book (and now major motion picture) characters as Spider-Man and the X-Men, says in a statement that...

AMC's Walking Dead Creator Steps Down

Frank Darabont won't be directing zombies this season: Report

(Newser) - Can the Walking Dead survive without its head? Frank Darabont—creator, executive producer, and director of the critically acclaimed AMC hit series—has stepped down as its head honcho, reports Deadline Hollywood . It's unclear whether Darabont will depart the zombie show entirely or remain in another role.

Pentagon Plans ‘Comic Book Therapy’ for Troops

But results might not be great for PR

(Newser) - The Pentagon is looking to invest in the healing power of comic books. Convinced that creating graphic novels about their wartime exploits could help veterans deal with the mental scars of combat, military officials have launched an initiative asking software companies to create a web-based program that will allow troops...

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: a Hip, Inventive Blast
 Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: 
 a Hip, Inventive Blast 
review roundup

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: a Hip, Inventive Blast

Michael Cera and original storytelling make this a winner

(Newser) - Critics generally love the inventive storytelling of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, a very modern romance that stars Michael Cera. It's based on a graphic novel, and it shows.
  • Joe Neumaier, Daily News : "Plugged into some kind of mental electrical socket by director Edgar Wright, this is a romantic
...

American Splendor Auteur Harvey Pekar Dead at 70

Famed comic writer suffered from cancer, asthma, depression

(Newser) - Comic book legend Harvey Pekar, writer of the long-running American Splendor series, was found dead early this morning, PopEater reports. Wife and occasional collaborator Joyce Brabner found him dead in their Cleveland Heights home at about 1am this morning. The cause of death will be determined in an autopsy, but...

Stephen King Bites Into Vampire Comic

Horror maestro to lend hand on Vertigo's American Vampire

(Newser) - Stephen King is truly sinking his teeth into his official comic book debut, writing half of the first five issues of Vertigo’s upcoming American Vampire. The brainchild of King buddy Scott Snyder, the series tells the stories of a line of uniquely American blood suckers. King will be writing...

After Watchmen, Bring On Next 'Unfilmables'

(Newser) - Alan Moore’s Watchmen was supposed to be unfilmable. But with the director’s cut hitting stores today, that pretty obviously wasn’t the case. Scott Thill lists some supposedly unfilmable geek bibles for Wired:
  • Sandman: “It’s not film-shaped,” says creator Neil Gaiman. “What I got
...

Watchmen Just Watchable

 Watchmen
Just Watchable 
NEW RELEASE

Watchmen Just Watchable

Film 'bites off more than it can chew'

(Newser) - The task of putting graphic-novel classic Watchmen onscreen may be more than any filmmaker can handle, critics say—though director Zack Snyder did win over Roger Ebert. Some impressions:
  • "Stumbles and sometimes falls on its top-heavy ambitions. But there are also flashes of visual brilliance and performances that drill
...

Blind Comic Artist Battles On, Like Daredevil

Andre Campbell, visually-impaired since birth, is still chasing his dream

(Newser) - Life as an independent comic artist is never easy. It's even harder when you’re legally blind, the Washington Post reports. Baltimore's Andre Campbell, vision-impaired since birth with a retinal-degeneration condition, has only sold about 100 copies of his company’s comics since the mid-'90s. But the artist, who idolizes...

A 'Prose Guy' Explores the Comics Boom

How graphic novels went from nothing to something

(Newser) - Bob Thompson is a self-professed “prose guy,” but still can’t ignore the biggest trend in publishing: graphic novels. Thompson sets out for the Washington Post to discover how literature that uses word balloons can be book world's sole growing sector. He discovers that many “little see-saws”...

Watchmen Dazzles at Comic-Con
 Watchmen
 Dazzles at
 Comic-Con

Watchmen Dazzles at Comic-Con

Film adaptation of classic graphic novel wows thousands of fans

(Newser) - Thousands of Comic-Con fans cheered yesterday after seeing comic books' holy grail on the big screen, MTV reports. Director Zack Snyder showed an uncut trailer of his dark, violent film adaptation of Watchmen, the only graphic novel to win a Hugo and make Time's list of the 20th century's greatest...

Hollywood 'Discovers' Graphic Novels

Film industry loves gritty comics, but what does it mean for the medium?

(Newser) - Still tallying the proceeds of the Spider-Man and X-Men franchises, Hollywood is turning to darker, underground graphic novels like Wanted for movie adaptations—and comics auteurs have mixed feelings, Time reports. Some argue the mainstream success of ultraviolent adaptations like 300 and Sin City can only mean good things for...

Blogger Keeps Quake in Focus
 Blogger Keeps Quake in Focus 

Blogger Keeps Quake in Focus

Chinese graphic novelist tells stories from the disaster zone

(Newser) - A Chinese graphic novelist determined to keep the aftermath of last month's earthquake on the front burner is using her new blog to get the message out, and fellow citizen journalists on the other side of the world are catching on. "We love you, Coco Wang," a blogger...

Big-Time Writers Lured to... Comic Books?

Rising medium attracts established authors

(Newser) - Comic books have officially arrived as a literary medium, NPR reports, and big names are coming out of the woodwork to write them. “In all the years I've been writing, there's only one genre that's really debuted in the New York Times Book Review, and that's the graphic novel,...

Persepolis an Animated Triumph
Persepolis an Animated Triumph
NEW RELEASE

Persepolis an Animated Triumph

Critics enthralled with 'landmark in animation'

(Newser) - Persepolis isn’t just a good animated movie. “It’s a small landmark in feature animation,” writes Nick Pinkerton of the Village Voice. Rendered with handcrafted charm in black and white, it tells the poignant-yet-funny story of a girl growing up amidst the Iranian revolution. But “bare...

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