SPECTATORS - Part 120
Plus, BKV recommends a brilliant superhero novel!
How the hell is it already time for school again?
Brian here, a little sleepy with the return of the dreaded pre-dawn alarm, but enormously proud of my bright, independent and hilarious kids, who greeted another first day with tranquility, grace and good cheer (unlike their frazzled old man).
For today’s assignment, please open your digital copy of Spectators to Page 284, studiously drawn by co-creator Niko Henrichon with A+ lettering from Fonografiks, as our spectral protagonists Val and Sam spy on some more living souls inside Manhattan’s opulent El Dorado apartment building.
As always, kindly consult our convenient Archives if you need a refresher course…
Uh-oh.
More secrets revealed next Monday, dearest pupils!
Speaking of school, whether you’re a current student, long-ago graduate, dedicated teacher, or proud dropout, I wanted to ask: How do you feel about your educational experience?
As thanks for taking the time to respond, our underpaid intern Genesis the Exploded Giraffe will randomly select a few commenters from The Tower to receive a signed copy of Saga Vol. 11, which I was amazed to learn won a 2024 Hugo Award, perhaps the highest accolade in science fiction/fantasy, and definitely the coolest trophy ever designed:
I’m very sorry that Fiona Staples and I couldn’t make it to Glasgow to accept in person, but here’s what I would have sweatily stammered had we been able to attend:
What a tremendous honor. All credit to the team: letterer/designer Fonografiks for always holding our book together, and of course extraordinary co-author Fiona Staples, who somehow keeps pushing herself to new heights with every single issue.
Congrats to our equally worthy fellow nominees, and thanks to all the unsung heroes behind the scenes at Image Comics, to the independent comic retailers who’ve kept us alive these past dozen years, and to everyone who voted, especially kind and patient readers like you.
Right, enough laurel-resting, O Boastful One! What new shit have you got for folks…?
Well, out later this month in the UK (and in October for those of us in the States), the next installment of the British anthology Battle Action features an all-new 14-page story written by me and drawn by the outrageously talented Chris Burnham.
You won’t need to have any prior knowledge of the original (and excellent) Kids Rule OK to hopefully enjoy our tale, which Chris and I discussed in this fun interview with David Brooke over at AIPT.
Stay tuned to Exploding Giraffe for more updates about this and future (?!?!) exciting post-Spectators projects…
In last week’s chat with you generous paid subscribers, we were discussing The New York Times’ “100 Best Books of the 21st Century,” and Genesis promised to send…
…ooh, fun, just felt a nice earthquake in the middle of typing this sentence, love you, Southern California…
…a few commenters the prize of their choice from the Official Saga Threadless Shop, including our limited edition new Chapter 67 shirt, or perennial faves like this fancy feline:
And our friends at Threadless recently sent us this cool update:
For a limited time, grab your favorite tees for just $10—our lowest price ever. Use promo code WOW10 at checkout until August 13th at 5 PM CDT.
That’s tomorrow! Act now, constant consumers!
Unlike the many disreputable sites out there offering bootleg Saga merch, Threadless actually pays the creators behind its wares, so thanks for supporting the folks who help support us.
Anyway, this week’s randomly selected winners:
Hanno F.:
Lists, I love lists! I embarrassingly become very competitive reading those, though I think that shouldn’t be the reason why I read literature. Literary canons are never cast in stone and shouldn’t be taken too seriously. And I always feel the looming threat of the economisation of culture.
I have only read 13 of those books. I am astounded that there is no Siri Hustvedt and no Michel Houellebecq! My personal list would include Anna Burns’ Milkman, Hari Kunzru’s White Tears and Daniel Kehlmann’s Tyll. A great new voice in fiction is Emma Cline, I enjoy everything she writes and I think her novels will soon be turned into screenplays.
And I have to add two guilty pleasures: Bret Easton Ellis’ The Shards and DBC Pierre’s Vernon God Little.
We’re in complete agreement about Emma Cline, Hanno. One of my favorite writers told me that I would love Cline’s latest novel The Guest, and she was 100% correct. Such a smart, fun read.
Andrew b:
I’ve read 36 of the NYT’s selections, but really I just wanted to note how jealous I am that you have art from both Persepolis and Fun Home. Sometime when I have more mental energy I’ll share a story from a party at Chip Kidd’s apartment with my wife sharing a poem with Alison Bechdel and then watching Chip, Alison, and Howard Cruse (R.I.P.) try to figure out how to take a selfie. I should have a photo in the cloud of them trying to figure it out. Fun times. No pun intended.
I’m the jealous one, Andrew, both of your impressive reading tally, and of your even more impressive past dinner company.
Peter M:
I’ve read nine books on the list. I’m an avid reader and read all genres. I seem to be missing some humor, pulp, scifi, etcetera on this list. I’ve got a feeling that it was composed by people who want their choice to reflect something about themselves: we are serious people, who take literature very seriously. 😀
You could say that the goal was a list of serious literature, but readers like that will miss a lot of good stuff, that subsequently doesn’t make the list, because their taste or choice in books limits them.
Some popular and/or funny writers, like Mick Herron, Terry Pratchet, Douglas Adams or Ben Elton, write greater literature than 30% on this list. But that’s my opinion. 😀
Also: only two comics? That tells me that certain genres or media are not popular amongst the readers who composed this list.
Best to treat lists like reviews: a personal opinion which is sure to be colored by the writers’ or composers’ preferences and background.
Thanks, Peter. You certainly weren’t the only reader to complain about the dearth of genre fiction in the NYT’s list.
But I did some digging into the lists behind that list, and in the Top Ten submitted by a prestigious and popular author, I discovered a recent novel I’d never heard of, literary sci-fi involving—in wholly unexpected and delightful ways—both comic books and superheroes (and no, it’s not Kavalier & Clay).
I devoured this relatively obscure masterpiece in a few days, and I’d now add it to my own list of favorite books of the 21st century (so far).
What is it? I’ll share the title with you loyal Tower types after the jump! Everyone else, have an erudite week, and Niko, Fonografiks and I will see you back here next Monday evening for more free Spectators…