Graphic Novels, Cartoons & Comics

Use this guide as a pathfinder to graphic novels, cartoons, and comics.  It also contains resources for criticism and analysis of this field.  It includes references to animated television shows and films that are adapted from print. The guide is currently stronger in coverage of nonfiction graphic novels.

BOOKS

• Fischer, R. A. (1996). Them Damned Pictures: Explorations in American Political Cartoon Art. North Haven, Conn: Archon Books.
• Groening, M. (2010). Simpsons World: The Ultimate Episode Guide, Seasons 1-20 (1st ed.). New York: Harper.
• Hatfield, C. (2005). Alternative Comics: An Emerging Literature (1st ed.). Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
• Lamb, C. (2004). Drawn to Extremes: The Use and Abuse of Editorial Cartoons. New York: Columbia University Press.
• Meyerowitz, R. (2010). Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: Writers and Artists Who Made the National Lampoon Insanely Great. New York: Abrams.
• Bok, C. (2005). A Recent History of the United States in Political Cartoons: A Look Bok! Series on law, politics, and society (1st ed.). Akron, Ohio: University of Akron Press.
• Greenwood encyclopedia of world popular culture
  REF HM621 .G74 2007
  Greenwood Press, 2007.
• Our Front Pages: 21 Years of Greatness, Virtue, and Moral Rectitude from America’s Finest News Source. (2009). (1st ed.). New York: Scribner. (The Onion)
• St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture
  REF E169.1 .S764 2000
  

  Substantive essays and brief entries on all aspects of popular culture in the United States during the 20th century. Most include bibliographies. 5 vols.

• Television cartoon shows: an illustrated encyclopedia, 1949 through 2003
  2nd ed., McFarland & Co., 2005.
• Versaci, R. (2007). This Book Contains Graphic Language: Comics as Literature. New York: Continuum.
• The World Encyclopedia of Comics. (1999). (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: Chelsea House.

ONLINE INDEXES

• Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum
  Research collection of American printed cartoons at Ohio State University.  Includes a Cartoon Image Database and Digital Exhibits.
• Daryl Cagle's Professional Cartoonists Index
  Find numerous political cartoons by current topics or major events. Cartoons can be sent as e-mails or licensed for use through this site.
• Digital Comic Museum
  Contains downloadable public domain golden age comics
• Facts.com: Editorial Cartoons
  Browse editorial cartoons by subject: Arts, Entertainment &the Media; Business, Labor &the Economy; Crime & Terrorism; Education; Environment; Families and Family Life; Human & Civil Rights; International Affairs; Judiciary; Medicine & Health Care; Minorities & Race Relations; Politics & Political Reform; Religion; Science and Technology; Sports; Wars, Weaponry & Military Forces; & Women
• Jerry Beck's Cartoon Research Library
  Animation historian Beck's site containing his blog Cartoon Brew and Animated Movie Guide (also a book available through ebrary to I.C. users).
• Lambiek Comiclopedia
  Illustrated compendium of over 10,000 comic artists from around the world. Search for artists, books, strips or comic characters.

Criticism and analysis can be found indexes for history, literature, and communication.

MULTIDISCIPLINARY INDEXES

• Academic Search Premier
• Academic OneFile
• ProQuest Research Library

SUBJECT INDEXES

• Art Full Text
• America: History and Life
• Communication and Mass Media Complete (CMMC)
• MLA International Bibliography (Chadwyck-Healey)
  

JOURNAL COLLECTIONS (full-text of key journals in major fields of study)

• JSTOR   Note: it is much easier to search Project Muse; Project Muse indexes JSTOR content
• Project Muse
  Full-text scholarly journals in the Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences and Mathematics; Coverage varies by journal but generally only 2-3 current years.

SELECT TITLES

• European Comic Art
• International Journal of Comic Art
• Journal of Graphic Novels & Comics  The library does not currently subscribe to this title.  If you see an article you like, make an Interlibrary Loan request.
• Journal of Popular Culture

Most of the links below go to the Gale Biography in Context a library subscription resource.

• David Axe 
• Peter Bagge
• Sue Coe
  
• David Collier
• Guy Delisle
• Will Eisner
• Rick Geary
• Brooke Gladstone
• Sid Jacobson
• Carol Lay
• Jason Lutes
• Scott McCloud
• Josh Neufeld
• Harvey Pekar
• Ted Rall
• Joe Sacco
• Marjorie Satrapi 
• Art Spiegelman
• Craig Thompson
• Tom Tomorrow (Dan Perkins) (interview in The Progressive, March 2003)
• Garry Trudeau
• Shannon Wheeler

American wit and humor, Pictorial.
Broadcast journalism--Comic books, strips, etc.
Caricatures and cartoons.
Cartooning--History.
Cartooning--Technique.
Cartoonists--United States--Criticism and interpretation.
Comic book fans--Drama.
Comic books, strips, etc.--Dictionaries.
Comic books, strips, etc.--Drama.
Comic books, strips, etc.--Film adaptations.
Comic books, strips, etc.--History and criticism.
Comic books, strips, etc.--Illustrations.
Comic books, strips, etc.--Moral and ethical aspects
Comic books, strips, etc.--Technological innovations
Comic strip characters--Technique.
Comic strip characters in motion pictures.
DC Comics, Inc.
Editorial cartoons--United States--History--20th century.
Graphic novels.
Graphic novels--Film and video adaptations.
Graphic novels--History and criticism
Heroes.
History of comics.
Journalism--Comic books, strips, etc.
Mass media and language
Mass media and the arts.
National lampoon.
Newspapers--Humor.
Political satire, American--History and criticism.
Popular culture--History--20th century
Popular culture--United States.
Science fiction comic books, strips, etc.--History and criticism.
Simpsons (Television program).
Spiegelman, Art--Criticism and interpretation.
Stories without words.
Storytelling in mass media.
Survivalism--Comic books, strips, etc.
Trudeau, G. B., 1948---Criticism and interpretation.
United States--Politics and government--1933-1945--Caricatures and cartoons.
Underground comic books, strips
Wit and humor, Pictorial.
Zombies--Comic books, strips, etc.

• Journalism
• Motion Graphics, Animation, and 3D (this course guide has an emphasis on production)
• Visual Communication

• Center for Cartoon Studies
  The CSC, "is dedicated to providing the highest quality of education to students interested in creating visual stories."  It operates under the charter of the The National Association of Comics Art Educators.
• Comic-Con
  Premiere convention for the comic arts.
• Popular Culture Association - American Culture Association (PCA/ACA)
  Founded in 1971, and partnered with the ACA in 1979, the PCA/ACA is an organization that supports the study of popular and American culture. Journals produced include the Journal of Popular Culture and the Journal of American Culture.

Local bookstores in Ithaca sell Graphic Novels and comics:

• Comics for Collectors, 207 N. Aurora Street
• Buffalo Street Books, DeWitt Mall (between Cayuga and Tioga Street
• The Tompkins County Public Library has a list of Graphic Novels (you can get a library card with proof of residency).  Search their catalog for additional titles.

Distributors:

• Drawn and Quarterly
• Fantagraphics Books

• Artbomb.net
  A site promoting "diverse and sophisticated graphic novels"
• Comic Book Resources
  Online comics magazine and community.
• ComicMix
  Site for fans of "fantastic media fantastic media, from comic books television and movies to video games and more."
• ComicsResearch.org
  Site for comics research by Dr. Gene Kannenberg.
• Comics Bulletin
  An online comics webzine.
• Graphic Novel Reporter
  Graphic novel news by bookreporter.com.
• Grovel
  Graphic novel reviews.
• Newsrama
  Comic book news site.

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Definitions from the Encyclopædia Britannica.  The first paragraph of the entry on "Graphic Novel" is excerpted.

• Comic strip  (includes Manga)
• Cartoon & Caricature (includes comic satire and political cartoon; provides a worldwide history)
• Graphic Novel "The term graphic novel is contentious. From the 1970s, as the field of comic studies was first emerging as an academic discipline, scholars and others have attempted to define the word comics and to generate a critical terminology appropriate to support that definition. The debate over so-called graphic novels touches upon this complex situation. For many, the word comics denotes a periodical for children, published on a weekly or monthly basis, sold at newsstands or in speciality comic book stores, often with pages devoted to advertising and, when intended for younger readers, competitions and puzzles. In contrast, graphic novel is usually taken to mean a long comic narrative for a mature audience, published in hardback or paperback and sold in bookstores, with serious literary themes and sophisticated artwork." --graphic novel. (2011). In Encyclopædia Britannica.

To search for comic books, go to the Advanced Search and search Comic Books as a phrase, keyword anywhere.

• Axe, D. (2010). War Is Boring: Bored Stiff, Scared to Death in the World’s Worst War Zones. New York: New American Library.
• Delisle, G. (2008). Burma Chronicles. Montréal: Drawn & Quarterly.
• Doxiadēs, A. K. (2009). Logicomix (1st ed.). New York: Bloomsbury.
• Eisner, W., & Eisner, W. (2006). The Contract with God Trilogy: Life on Dropsie Avenue (1st ed.). New York: W.W. Norton.
• Gladstone, B. (2011). The Influencing Machine: Brooke Gladstone on the Media (1st ed.). New York: W.W. Norton.
• Gonick, L. (1991). The Cartoon Guide to Genetics (Updated ed.). New York: Harper Perennial.
• McCloud, S. (1994). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art (1st ed.). New York: HarperPerennial.
• Minear, R. H., & Mandeville Special Collections Library. (1999). Dr. Seuss Goes to War: The World War II Editorial Cartoons of Theodor Seuss Geisel. New York: New Press.
• Neufeld, J. (2009). A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge. New York: Pantheon Books.
• Pekar, H. (2003). American Splendor: The Life and Times of Harvey Pekar: Stories (1st ed.). New York: Ballantine Books.
• Pekar, H. (2009). Studs Terkel’s Working: A Graphic Adaptation. New York: New Press.
• Rall, T. (2002). To Afghanistan and Back: A Graphic Travelogue (Updated ed.). New York: Nantier, Beall, Minoustchine.
• Sacco, J. (2001). Palestine. Seattle, WA: Fantagraphic Books.
• Sacco, J. (2009a). Footnotes in Gaza (1st ed.). New York: Metropolitan Books.
• Sacco, J. (2009b). The Fixer and Other Stories. Montréal: Drawn & Quarterly.
• Sacco, J. (2011). Safe Area Goražde (Special ed.). Seattle, WA: Fantagraphics.
• Satrapi, M. (2003). Persepolis (1st ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.
• Satrapi, M. (2004). Persepolis 2: [the Story of a Return] (1st ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.
• Satrapi, M. (2005). Embroideries (1st ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.
• Schiffrin, A. (2009). Dr. Seuss & Co. Go to War: The World War II Editorial Cartoons of America’s Leading Comic Artists. New York: New Press.
• Spiegelman, A. (1986). Maus: A Survivor’s Tale. New York: Pantheon Books.
• Spiegelman, A. (1991). Maus II: A Survivor’s Tale: And Here My Troubles Began (1st ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.
• Spiegelman, A. (2004). In the Shadow of No Towers. New York: Pantheon Books.
• Spiegelman, A. (2008). Breakdowns: Portrait of the Artist as a Young %@[squiggle][star]! (1st ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.
• Tomorrow, T. (2011). Too Much Crazy. New York: Soft Skull Press.

 

• Clowes, D. (2002). Ghost World (8th ed.). Seattle, Wash: Fantagraphics.
• Clowes, D. (2011). Mister Wonderful (1st ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.
• Ware, C. (2003). Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth. London: Jonathan Cape.

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