Hey Kids! Comics! Book Kings
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Below are some comic strip and cartoon books scheduled for June 2025 release (or so).
Images and links from a variety of publishers and outlets,
though ordering through your local comic shop or independent book store is a good idea.
Hägar the Horrible: The First 50 Years by Dik Browne
It’s time to set sail with the worlds mildest marauding Viking, Hägar the Horrible and his hapless (and helpless) sidekick, Lucky Eddie and his long suffering family, his wife Helga and his duck Kveck. This collection is a celebration of the first 50 years of Hägar’s epic, never-ending quest to put meat, mead and loot on the family table, while doing as little as possible. The collection presents over 1000 daily cartoon strips, including 600 hand-picked by Dik Browne’s son Chris Browne.
How Comics Are Made: A Visual History from the Drawing Board to the Printed Page by Glenn Fleishman
How Comics Are Made covers the entire history of newspaper comics from a unique angle—how they were made and printed. This book combines years of research and dozens of interviews with cartoonists, historians, and production people to tell the story of how a comic starts with an artist’s hand and makes it way through transformations into print and onto a digital screen. You’ll see reproductions of art and artifacts that have never appeared in print anywhere, and some historic comics will appear for the first time ever in any medium in this book. And you’ll find out about metal etching, Dragon’s Blood (a real thing), flong (also a real thing), and the massively, almost impossibly complicated path that original artwork took to get onto newsprint in the days of metal relief printing.
Mafalda Book 1 by Quino; translated from the Spanish by Frank Wynne (history) (review)
Six-year-old Mafalda loves democracy and hates soup. What democratic sector do cats fall into? she asks, then unfurls a toilet paper red carpet and gives her very own presidential address. Mafalda’s precociousness and passion stump all grown-ups around her. Dissident and rebellious, she refuses to abandon the world to her parents’ generation, who seem so lost. Alongside the irascible Mafalda, readers will meet her eclectic group of playmates: dreamy Felipe and gossipy Susanita, young-capitalist Manolito and rebellious Miguelito. Quino’s bright irony and intelligence bring the streets and neighborhoods of Buenos Aires to life.
The Comics Journal #311 edited by by Austin English and Kristy Valenti
Featured in this issue: An in-depth, personal conversation between Kate Beaton (Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands, Hark! A Vagrant) and Sarah Glidden (Rolling Blackouts), from the Pizza Island comics collective, about depicting history, humor, and social issues in comics form; a profile of Gilbert Shelton (Zap, Fabulous Furry Freak Bros.), which includes a never-before-published-in-English “Shelton Hagiography” by French cartoonist Pic; and an interview with musician and cartoonist Jeffrey Lewis (12 Crass Songs, Fuff). Plus: “An Imaginary Publication Cover Gallery” by Marc Bell (Hot Potatoe); a new manga column that puts classic and contemporary manga (Kamen Rider and Hunter X Hunter) in concert; a publishing roundtable on how to grow the adult audience for comics; a deep dive into an underdiscussed Charlton cartoonist, Enrique Nieto; a case for fine artist Dorothy Iannone’s work as comics, and much more.
Nancy Wears Hats by Ernie Bushmiller
The cartoonist Ernie Bushmiller stated that his beloved Nancy was created for “the gum chewers” and not the “caviar eaters,” and this new collection of classic Nancy comic strips is perfect for gum chewers of all ages! Featuring over 300 comic strips, Nancy Wears Hats is a hilarious introduction to the timeless classic, beloved by generation after generation of children and adults.
This volume collects strips from the years 1949–1950, when Bushmiller was cresting to the peak of his powers and presents the work in a fresh and contemporary format that will entertain for ages.
Out of the Gutters edited by Jorge J. Santos Jr. and Patrick S. Lawrence
Out of the Gutters assembles scholars from diverse disciplines to examine US comics, graphic novels, and cartooning that have been challenged as obscene or transgressive. Covering well-known underground figures like Robert Crumb and Charles Burns, newcomers such as C. Spike Trotman and Emil Ferris, and mainstream creators including Chris Claremont and Archie Goodwin, the collection explores the market economics of transgression, historical representations of graphic violence, the ever-changing meaning of pornography, sex-positive comics by BIPOC authors, and queerness in pop-culture mega-properties like X-Men and The Walking Dead.
Garfield Bacon Me Drool: His 77th Book by Jim Davis
Garfield’s back in this brand-new full-color compilation comic strip book—truly a must-have for fans!
While Garfield is best known for his insatiable appetite for lasagna, he also believes in making time for bacon, and lots of it. Fans of the fat cat won’t want to be disturbed as they happily devour this latest batch of scrumptious comics.
Super Visible: The Story of the Women of Marvel Comics by Margaret Stohl with Jeanine Schaefer and Judith Stephens
[T]his eye-opening and engaging book celebrates the women who have helped make Marvel one of the most successful comics and entertainment companies in the world.
Margaret Stohl along with Judith Stephens, and Jeanine Schaefer interviewed more than a hundred women and nonbinary Marvel contributors in search of the answer to that question.
Stohl, Stephens, and Schaefer set out to tell the story of the women of the “House of Ideas” from 1939 through today, and along the way, to find the meaning of their own Marvel stories. Packed with biographies and illustrations from creators, graphical reprints and excerpts of historic Marvel comics, and exclusive interviews.
Peanuts: Snoopy and the Red Baron by Charles M. Schulz (review)
64 pages of classic Peanuts comic strips featuring everyone’s favorite Beagle, Snoopy. This Facsimile edition, the 18th volume, features 64 pages of Sunday Peanuts newspaper in full-color strips first published in 1966.
THERE’S NEVER BEEN A WAR BOOK LIKE THIS ONE! [The book was originally published back in 1966 by Fawcett World Library.]
How could there be? There’s never been a war hero like Snoopy. With verve, dash, courage (and maybe an old bone) ACE PILOT SNOOPY hurls his famous Sopwith Camel into the sky to challenge the infamous RED BARON in his infamous Fokker Triplane.
Abby’s Guide For a Joyful Life by Mr. Ollie
This book captures those precious everyday experiences that many of us take for granted. Follow Abby as she reveals the hidden joys in life—the moments we rarely pause to appreciate.
British Comics: A Cultural History by James Chapman
From John Freeman at downthetubes:
First published in hardback in 2011, Reaktion Books published a paperback edition of British Comics: A Cultural History by James Chapman last year, which slipped under our radar.
Cultural historian James Chapman, also author of The British at War and Licence To Thrill, examines comic publishing and reading in Britain, from the late-Victorian era to the present. He explores the origins and evolution of these beloved publications, tracing the rise of characters such as lovable rogue Ally Sloper.
From the heyday in the 1950s and ’60s with titles like Eagle to the controversial era of violent comics in the 1970s, including 2000AD, and the adult comics boom in the 1980s, Chapman covers it all. Offering insights into genres, creators and readers, he argues that British comics have a distinct identity, reflecting and responding to societal shifts.
The book is described as an “essential reference for collectors”
Girl with a Pencil by Peter Schrank
My first picture book for children is published by Paper Moon Press.
Writing and illustrating Girl With A Pencil gave me welcome relief from responding to the daily news cycle as a political cartoonist. Especially now, when word events seem bleak and dominated by some very nasty people. The book is mainly about the magic of drawing and creativity, but it also says something to about our world today, about walls and borders, about tolerance and creativity. [from author’s website]
Moomin Adventures: Book 2 by Tove Jansson and Lars Jansson
When D&Q debuted the Moomin comics in 2007, it was the first time that the strip had been published in English since its original appearance in the London Evening News. The series has since gone on to sell 400,000 copies. Now presented in an all-new softcover format that collects the comics of both Tove Jansson and Lars Jansson, the Moomin Adventures series will introduce these timeless classics to a new generation of readers of all ages.
This volume is jam-packed with classic Moomin antics and shenanigans.
Little Mouse Saves The Day by Jeff Smith
What’s that in the closet—a robber? A monster? A CAT!? This book about overcoming fears is the highly anticipated follow-up to Eisner award-winning author Jeff Smith’s Little Mouse Gets Ready and is both a perfect read-aloud and a book that kids can begin to read on their own.
[Little Mouse’s] adventures continue in Little Mouse Saves the Day, when he returns to face his biggest challenge yet: bedtime, an open closet door, and the mysterious shadow within. It could be anything…and there’s only one way to know for sure.
Alley Oop and the Beanstalk by V. T. Hamlin and Dave Graue
Alley Oop climbs to the skies and brings back magical treasures! Also featuring Ooola’s turn as professional astrologer, the wonky Brain Machine, and the Kiddy Korner franchise — Stone Age child Care — that takes over ancient Moo! King Guz and Oop himself as child care leaders…perhaps you can imagine the results. Those moms may not be happy! Reprinting all daily strips from 1969. .
Alley Oop and the Slavers by Dave Graue and Jack & Carole Bender
Alley travels back in time to join Vasco da Gama’s expedition but soon finds himself in the grip of a slave gang! Also featuring the Gunfight at Dead Dog as Alley heads back to the 1800s American west, Alley’s surprise party, and a helping hand from Harry Houdini! And crooks tie up Alley and crew and steel the time machine to rob the past! Reprinting all daily strips from 2001.
Alley Oop is Ooperman by Jack & Carole Bender
Alley Oop dons a crazy costume to become Ooperman! This story and more, reprinting the final original Sunday comic strips from the Benders’ run in 2003-2005. Plus adventures in Moo, Dinny finds a friend, the circus comes to Moo, and the cavemen create baseball.
The Stan Lee Story by Roy Thomas
First published as a signed Collector’s Edition, now available in an unlimited edition
The mostly true tale of Stan Lee, the one and only Godfather of Comics. From his childhood in Depression-era New York, to transforming Marvel into the number one comics publisher in the world, to his 21st-century reinvention as Chief Creative Officer of global entertainment company POW! Entertainment, Stan “the Man” Lee stands the test of time as the most legendary name in comicbook history.
First published as a signed Collector’s Edition and sold out within a week, the book was written and edited with Lee himself. His tale is told by his successor at Marvel, renowned comics writer, editor, and historian Roy Thomas, who brings “you are there” insights and wide-eyed clarity to key moments of Lee’s journey to pop culture immortality. Featuring hundreds of treasures of comicbook art, intimate photographs sourced straight from his family archives, a foreword written by Lee himself, a novel-length essay and new epilogue by Thomas, and an appendix with complete reprints of Stan’s comics from throughout the decades, this is a titanic tribute worthy of the Man.
The Complete Deadbone Erotica Omnibus Volume 1 by Vaughn Bodé
Collecting for the first time in chronological order underground comix legend VAUGHN BODÉ’s charmingly risqué strips and “Bodé Broads” from Cavalier magazine (“the kind men like.”)
Originally written and drawn in the 1970s, this volume represents a time capsule in erotic humor as only a master of the form could create it.
This beautiful hardbound book also collects BODÉ’s hard-to-find three-page strips and other rarities. With a foreword and additional new art from VAUGHN’s son, MARK BODÉ.
Underground comix enthusiasts, BODÉ aficionados, and fans of adult humor won’t want to miss this uncensored and digitally remastered omnibus.
Sunday Funday Wallace: A Treasury of Wallace the Brave Sunday Comics by Will Henry
A visual celebration of one of the most dynamic and imaginative comics since Calvin and Hobbes, this deluxe hardcover treasury celebrates includes every Wallace the Brave Sunday comic strip from 2018-2024, featuring original watercolors, character art, maps, and an introduction by the author.
This book celebrates the artistic achievement of Will Henry and presents the Wallace the Brave universe in vivid color, the first ever book edition that presents his Sunday comics in their original, large format. Henry’s illustration and storytelling in the daily Wallace the Brave comic strip and books have earned multiple Eisner Award nominations and Reuben awards for the Best Newspaper Comic Strip and Cartoonist of the Year.
feature image by Gabrielle Drolet
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