"Yahoo No.5 - How I Loved The War" By Joe Sacco (published by Fantagraphics Books, Inc. Seattle, October 1991) - Part 2

 

 

Joe Sacco was actually up in Scotland this week, for the Edinburgh International Book Festival! He gave a talk last Tuesday at a venue in Charlotte Square where the Festival is held, promoting his latest book "Journalism". I also happened to be there on that day browsing on all the new graphic novels totally unaware of any events taking place or writers walking about signing books etc! I did have a good look at this book though (see cover below) and Sacco's work is getting better each time so I'm definitely up again next week to buy it - might even be lucky and get a signed copy!

 

This year there's a comics and graphic novels fair taking place alongside the normal book fair called Stripped, www.strippedbookfest.co.uk so there a lot to see. It was interesting to discover work by young and unknown artists/writers next to the big international names so you do need more than one day to appreciate the range and quality on offer.

 

"Yahoo No.5 - How I Loved The War" By Joe Sacco (published by Fantagraphics Books, Inc., Seattle, October 1991)

 

 

Nothing to do with THE Yahoo search engine - this magazine came out some 22 years ago! The subject was the mindlessness of the Gulf War of 1991,conducted by President George Bush senior. Sacco, through his powerful drawings and sharp dialogue, asks uncomfortable questions about the meaning of the war to both Americans and the people of Iraq and Palestine. Here is Joe Sacco's impressive biography from Fantagraphics Books' website: http://www.fantagraphics.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=267&Itemid=82

 

"The Fixer - A Story From Sarajevo" by Joe Sacco (part 2)

I have finally managed to get around to posting these - too busy with work, family and the veg garden... What I like about them is how real these characters look - their faces, expressions, postures etc. It's almost like you are there experiencing the events yourself which makes you really appreciate how observant and skillful the artist is in depicting the scenes.

"The Fixer - A story from Sarajevo" by Joe Sacco, published by Jonathan Cape 2004

Joe Sacco writes AND illustrates this book. Very powerful drawings capturing the mood and the horrors of the war in Bosnia. There's a biography of the artist on http://www.fantagraphics.com/ (follow the links on individual artists). I'll be scanning some more pages for an other post.