This week- surprise surprise!- the awesome Ray Fenwick is going to be guest blogging five of his favorite books. If you haven’t seen Ray’s work or read the huge article about him in Print magazine, then it’s time to check his work out via his website, his flickr page or his design studio’s site. His patterns are my favorite, full of super illustrative elements, they are always light and fun. (He’s been a huge inspiration for me in that department.) His work always has a great sense of humor to it from his handdrawn LL.Cool J lyrics to his Hall of Best Knowledge comics (which this spring will be published by Fantagraphics) to this great Don’t Freak Out Shopper tote bag. Ray has such a big fan club that it was almost impossible to get one of his Tiny Showcase letterpressed prints. When it came time to purchase I had to click refresh about 55 times because the site was so overloaded. I always look forward to hearing what Ray’s up to next because it’s always something exciting and his emails often make me laugh outloud. I am so so happy he was willing to contribute to this blog and make me laugh a little more. Thanks Ray!!

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If I am being completely honest, which I think you deserve, I find most visually focused/coffeetable books painful. The ones I love throw me in to fits of envious rage, and after slamming them shut I usually mope around for a good couple hours, sullen and jealous. And have you seen the prices of some of them? For me, it’s like buying an expensive cologne, spraying it in my eyes and then beating myself senseless with the bottle.

However, for some reason, books related to the world of comics don’t seem to bother me. I have no idea why, and I try not to think about it. So in order to avoid triggering any sort of episode, I’m going to stick to comics, ones that I’ve read recently and loved.

Oh, and please do call them comics. The only people who call them graphic novels are those who are secretly unsure if it’s cool to read comics. I mean, if you’re going to find another name, make up a better one, like totally literary totally serious graphic picture narratives. Or read them while drinking single malt scotch and polishing a monocle, that way nobody will question your intelligence.

All right, enough of that. Let’s party with some comics and comic-related books!
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You should buy it! (by emailing pancakemahoney@gmail.com)

This is a little collection of mini-comics, doodles and drawings by Laura Park that when taken as a whole kind of reads like a character sketch of it’s author. Sometimes that sense of autobiography is blatant, sometimes it’s buried, which makes for a great reading experience because you sort of bounce from the very personal to the more symbolic.

It’s a fairly melancholy affair, but sweetly so, and the truly hilarious and weird moments she throws into the mix—her cat’s anus says hi, for instance—give it the feel of a well rounded meal. I know that meal metaphor is a bit lame, but it actually makes sense because, wait for it, she also includes a recipe for onigiri! Did I just mention a meal right after talking about how her cat’s anus talks? I did. You can handle it though.

Lastly (should have been firstly) her drawing style is lovely, as you can see, both intense and playful like the stories themselves. Oh, and it’s a bit wrinkled—the actual book that is—but not because that’s how it came in the mail. I spilled a glass of water on it. I know, I know, but look, I’m not some professional book reviewer, all right? Gimme a break. Plus, I rescued it so quickly that my brain forced my hands into action before I even knew what was going on. That has to be a good sign.

© Julia Rothman 2007