Trudeau and Doonesbury: The Cartoonist Who Turned the News into Art
A definitive account of the life and work of Garry Trudeau, creator of the massively popular and influential cartoon Doonesbury, based on archival sources and extensive interviews, including with Trudeau himself, and lavishly illustrated with over 200 cartoons and images

​Drawing on previously unmined archival materials and extensive interviews with Trudeau, his friends, fellow cartoonists, prominent journalists, and even politicians who were mocked in the strip, Trudeau & Doonesbury is an entertaining romp through both Trudeau’s remarkable life and the last half century of American history.

Biographer Joshua Kendall tells the story of the cartoonist and what drove him to put pen to paper. He traces Trudeau’s boyhood in the Adirondack Mountains, his teenage angst in prep school, and his formative years at Yale, where he began drawing his iconic strip. And he shows the changing world it reflected; Doonesbury began appearing in papers nationwide in 1970, and big events, from Watergate to the the war in Vietnam, fueled its popularity and its significance.

For more than 50 years, Doonesbury has helped drive the national conversation. The first comic strip to win a Pulitzer Prize, Garry Trudeau’s sprawling narrative featuring a host of beloved characters has reflected America back to itself, capturing the highlights and lowlights of American politics and culture with wit and penetrating insight. And as Doonesbury’s characters aged alongside their creator, Trudeau became one of the preeminent chroniclers of the Baby Boom generation.

A unique and compelling biography of both the individual behind Doonesbury and the times he has chronicled, Trudeau & Doonesbury is also a lavishly illustrated, full-color coffee table book featuring more than 200 cartoons, making it perfect for sharing, gifting, and displaying.
1148019637
Trudeau and Doonesbury: The Cartoonist Who Turned the News into Art
A definitive account of the life and work of Garry Trudeau, creator of the massively popular and influential cartoon Doonesbury, based on archival sources and extensive interviews, including with Trudeau himself, and lavishly illustrated with over 200 cartoons and images

​Drawing on previously unmined archival materials and extensive interviews with Trudeau, his friends, fellow cartoonists, prominent journalists, and even politicians who were mocked in the strip, Trudeau & Doonesbury is an entertaining romp through both Trudeau’s remarkable life and the last half century of American history.

Biographer Joshua Kendall tells the story of the cartoonist and what drove him to put pen to paper. He traces Trudeau’s boyhood in the Adirondack Mountains, his teenage angst in prep school, and his formative years at Yale, where he began drawing his iconic strip. And he shows the changing world it reflected; Doonesbury began appearing in papers nationwide in 1970, and big events, from Watergate to the the war in Vietnam, fueled its popularity and its significance.

For more than 50 years, Doonesbury has helped drive the national conversation. The first comic strip to win a Pulitzer Prize, Garry Trudeau’s sprawling narrative featuring a host of beloved characters has reflected America back to itself, capturing the highlights and lowlights of American politics and culture with wit and penetrating insight. And as Doonesbury’s characters aged alongside their creator, Trudeau became one of the preeminent chroniclers of the Baby Boom generation.

A unique and compelling biography of both the individual behind Doonesbury and the times he has chronicled, Trudeau & Doonesbury is also a lavishly illustrated, full-color coffee table book featuring more than 200 cartoons, making it perfect for sharing, gifting, and displaying.
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Trudeau and Doonesbury: The Cartoonist Who Turned the News into Art

Trudeau and Doonesbury: The Cartoonist Who Turned the News into Art

by Joshua Kendall
Trudeau and Doonesbury: The Cartoonist Who Turned the News into Art

Trudeau and Doonesbury: The Cartoonist Who Turned the News into Art

by Joshua Kendall

eBook

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Available for Pre-Order. This item will be released on May 26, 2026

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Overview

A definitive account of the life and work of Garry Trudeau, creator of the massively popular and influential cartoon Doonesbury, based on archival sources and extensive interviews, including with Trudeau himself, and lavishly illustrated with over 200 cartoons and images

​Drawing on previously unmined archival materials and extensive interviews with Trudeau, his friends, fellow cartoonists, prominent journalists, and even politicians who were mocked in the strip, Trudeau & Doonesbury is an entertaining romp through both Trudeau’s remarkable life and the last half century of American history.

Biographer Joshua Kendall tells the story of the cartoonist and what drove him to put pen to paper. He traces Trudeau’s boyhood in the Adirondack Mountains, his teenage angst in prep school, and his formative years at Yale, where he began drawing his iconic strip. And he shows the changing world it reflected; Doonesbury began appearing in papers nationwide in 1970, and big events, from Watergate to the the war in Vietnam, fueled its popularity and its significance.

For more than 50 years, Doonesbury has helped drive the national conversation. The first comic strip to win a Pulitzer Prize, Garry Trudeau’s sprawling narrative featuring a host of beloved characters has reflected America back to itself, capturing the highlights and lowlights of American politics and culture with wit and penetrating insight. And as Doonesbury’s characters aged alongside their creator, Trudeau became one of the preeminent chroniclers of the Baby Boom generation.

A unique and compelling biography of both the individual behind Doonesbury and the times he has chronicled, Trudeau & Doonesbury is also a lavishly illustrated, full-color coffee table book featuring more than 200 cartoons, making it perfect for sharing, gifting, and displaying.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9798887073620
Publisher: Abrams Press
Publication date: 05/26/2026
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 352

About the Author

Joshua C. Kendall was born in New York City. He received his BA (summa cum laude) from Yale, where he studied comparative literature. He also did graduate work in comparative literature at Johns Hopkins. For his excellence in reporting on psychiatry, he has received national journalism awards from both the National Mental Health Association (now Mental Health America) and the American Psychoanalytic Association. He lives in Boston, where he has ample opportunity to indulge his love of squash. He is currently an associate fellow of Yale’s Trumbull College. His previous books include First Dads, The Man Who Made Lists, and The Forgotten Founding Father.

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