What I’m Reading, Part 5 (Newspaper Comics)
Thursday, January 17th, 2008More than a few years ago, I remember my aunt telling me about a new comic that was appearing in the newspaper called Calvin and Hobbes. I think I was already reading it at that point, but I’ve always given my aunt credit for discovering it because she was so excited by how good it was. Now my aunt was a very smart lady, but in all honesty, you don’t have to be a genius to realize very quickly that Calvin and Hobbes is/was a great comic — after reading one or two strips, you just know.
My aunt passed away a few years ago, but in honor of her I’d like to share with everyone a newspaper comic that I’ve recently discovered called Cul de Sac, by Richard Thompson. Like Calvin and Hobbes, it has that quality that after you’ve read a couple days worth of strips you know that it’s a really, REALLY special comic. The artwork is fantastic, and the jokes are quite funny and pretty close to home. But if my word isn’t good enough for you, click here to see what Bill Watterson himself has to say about Cul de Sac.
I hope you like it. And if you’re a dinosaur like me and enjoy getting ink on your hands while you read the daily paper, make sure to send a letter to your local newspaper and request that they feature Cul de Sac in their comics section. They’ll thank you for it.
January 17th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
As much as she loved Calvin & Hobbes, your Auntie Ruth would have LOVED Zip and L’il Bit too, especially the gentle, direct humor and clean-cut artwork. I wonder: Did she also share with you her love of the children’s book “Good Night Moon”? That was your Auntie Ruth’s #1 favorite book for small children. The adventures of Zip and L’il Bit have the same whispery mystery nighttime magic that made “Good Night Moon” a standout for nearly 60 years.
January 18th, 2008 at 12:05 am
Ha! Thanks, Lee, but I know you’re just saying the nice things about Zip and Li’l Bit because we’re related.
Good Night Moon is a big favorite at our house. We’ve read that one over and over and over. One thing I’ve learned that’s really important with kids’ books, now that I’m a father, is that they have to be written in an entertaining fashion for the parents. Good Night Moon was written in rhyme so it was fun for me to read over and over because the text is fun to say. Dr. Seuss’ books are great that way, too. Unfortunately, we’ve moved on to books based on the Thomas the Train show, and the Cars movie. My son really likes them so I shouldn’t complain, but they really read like someone just threw them together so it’s kind of painful when he asks for those ones all the time.
January 19th, 2008 at 9:33 am
Hey Trade, thanks for the very kind words. Your aunt sounds like my mom, who turned me onto Pogo when I was a kid, before I could even understand half the jokes.
And I agree with Lee about Zip & L’il Bit having that nocturnal charm and mystery, though I enjoy it a lot more than Good Night Moon, which I always thought was spooky. As your son gets older your repertoire of read-aloud books will expand to include a lot of really enjoyable books (just wait till you hit Harry Potter, those are a hoot to read aloud, especially if you can do accents & voices, not to mention gestures). And thankfully it never stops; my older daughter is almost 13 and she loves being read to, anything, Dickens, Austen, Harper Lee, Philip Pullman, not to mention Harry Potter.
January 20th, 2008 at 1:45 am
Hey Richard. I can’t wait until those Pogo books from Fantagraphics come out. When I was little I was really fascinated with Walt Kelly’s artwork. I’m looking forward to actually getting the jokes.
I’m afraid my wife has dibs on the story reading for Harry Potter when we get to that age. She was a theater major in college and still does a lot of acting AND a lot of dialect coaching. Thanks to her I actually knew how to pronounce Hermione when I first read those books. In fact, my wife’s voice can be heard on the Harry Potter Pronunciation Guide on Scholastic’s website.
http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/books/pronunciation.htm
January 20th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
Dang that’s cool, and your wife has a lovely voice! There were several names whose pronunciation we weren’t sure about back when we first read them; wish I’d've heard this then.
But still, that’s seven books and some quarter of a billion pages of Harry Potter. You should at least get to read some of it aloud. Also the Jim Dale recordings are pretty wonderful. But you know all this.
May 21st, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Kate Spade Handbag…
I found your site on technorati and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. I just added your RSS feed to my Google News Reader. Looking forward to reading more from you….