Deitch's Pictorama

Be the first to write a review

Overview

Presenting a new type of graphic fiction from a legendary family in American cartooning.

Kim Deitch, creator of the acclaimed Fantagraphics collection Shadowland and the Pantheon graphic novels Alias the Cat and Boulevard of Broken Dreams, has recruited his siblings to produce a unique, all-new "picto-fiction"
pocket book. Alternating between heavily illustrated near-comics stories and outright prose pieces, ...

See more details below
Paperback
$18.99
BN.com price
Other sellers (Paperback)
  • All (9) from $4.95   
  • New (3) from $13.22   
  • Used (6) from $4.95   
Sending request ...

More About This Book

Overview

Presenting a new type of graphic fiction from a legendary family in American cartooning.

Kim Deitch, creator of the acclaimed Fantagraphics collection Shadowland and the Pantheon graphic novels Alias the Cat and Boulevard of Broken Dreams, has recruited his siblings to produce a unique, all-new "picto-fiction"
pocket book. Alternating between heavily illustrated near-comics stories and outright prose pieces, Deitch's Pictorama is a testament to the Deitch family's amazing yarn-spinning abilities!

The book leads off with Kim's lengthy picto-story "The Sunshine
Girl," a typically Deitchean tall tale involving bottle cap collectors,
drug dealers, family secrets, and the innocents who wind up in the middle of the hullaballoo. Then it's time for Seth's prose short story
"Children of Aruf," about a man and his very unusual dog; "Unlikely
Hours," a paranoid picto-story about a conspiracy of sentient rats written by Seth and illustrated by Kim; the prose novella "The Golem,"
once again written by Seth and decorated with a series of superb pencil illustrations by Simon; and finally Kim's autobiographical "The Cop on the Beat, the Man in the Moon and Me." This entire "Deitch treat" is wrapped up with an introduction by legendary Academy Award-winning animator, cartoonist and illustrator and proud papa Gene (Tom Terrific, Terr'ble Thompson, Tom and Jerry) Deitch.

Read More Show Less

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher
“Comics alchemist Kim Deitch transforms cultural ephemera into artistic gold. (Richard Gehr, The Village Voice)”

“The stories in this volume are fascinating as they mix a lot more fiction than found in a traditional art volume and this combination of very strong and intriguing fiction mixed with superb illustration makes this quite an unusual volume. (Synergy Magazine)”

“Deitch’s Pictorama is a powerful statement about the ways words and images can combine, as well as a testament to the creative power of the comic book form. (Troy Brownfield, Newsarama)”

Publishers Weekly

Noted independent cartoonist Kim Deitch (Alias the Cat; Boulevard of Broken Dreams) teams up with his brothers, writer Seth Kallen Deitch and illustrator Simon Deitch, to provide this experimental collection of "Pictofiction." It's not quite the revolutionary expansion of graphic novels the Deitches sell it as; it's illustrated prose with an occasional comics page. Kim's artwork, when it appears, is the highlight of the book, demonstrating the assurance he has acquired over years of underground cartooning. His depiction of a bottle cap convention in his novella, "Sunshine Girl," is sly and witty, and his illustration of brother Seth Kallen's story, "Unlikely Hours," is more of an illumination, employing inventive interactions between drawing and printed typeface. Simon's artwork is more static, so it's appropriate that he confines himself to illustrating a prose story (Seth Kallen's pastiche, "The Golem"). Still, like many experiments, this one is a qualified success. In some stories, extended blocks of text undermine the visceral impact of the artwork. Both Kim and Seth Kallen exhibit a tendency to wander off into various odd digressions, understandable in traditional prose but oddly redundant when paired with their brothers' illustrations. Still, a failed Deitch brothers experiment is more engaging than many lesser talents' moderate successes. (Sept.)

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Read More Show Less

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781560979524
  • Publisher: Fantagraphics Books
  • Publication date: 9/1/2008
  • Pages: 184
  • Product dimensions: 5.90 (w) x 7.40 (h) x 0.70 (d)

Meet the Author

Kim Deitch lives in New York, NY, with his wife, the artist Pamela Butler. His books include The Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Deitch's Pictorama, Shadowland, Alias the Cat, A Shroud for Waldo, and The Search for Smilin' Ed!

Seth Deitch lives in Cambridge, MA.

Simon Deitch lives in White Plains, NY.

Gene Deitch has lived in Prague for the last 30 years with his wife. He is the father of underground cartoonist Kim Deitch.

Read More Show Less

Customer Reviews

Be the first to write a review
( 0 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(0)

4 Star

(0)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identity on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

 
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously
    If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble
    Why is this product inappropriate?
    Comments (optional)