Just arrived in our warehouse and ready to ship:
This
gorgeous grimoire is part alchemy, part art book, part storybook, part
comic book, and part conceptual art from the pen of Al Columbia, a
longtime fan favorite contributor to comics anthologies like Zero Zero, Blab!, and more recently, Mome.
Collecting over a decade’s worth of ‘artifacts,’ excavations, comic
strips, animation stills, storybook covers, and much more, this broken
jigsaw puzzle of a book tells the story of Pim & Francie, a pair of
childlike, male and female imps whose irresponsible antics get them
into horrific, fantastic trouble. Their loosely defined relationship
only contributes to the existential fear that lingers underneath the
various perils they are subjected to. Columbia’s brilliant,
fairytale-like backdrops hint at further layers of reality lurking
under every gingerbread house or behind every sunny afternoon. Never
have such colorful, imaginative vistas instilled such an atmosphere of
dread, and with such a wicked sense of humor.
This is a
comprehensive collection of Columbia’s Pim & Francie work,
including paintings, comics, character designs, and much more, all
woven into something greater than the sum of its parts, with Pim &
Francie careening from danger to danger, threaded together through text
and notes by the artist.
This is the first book collection by
Columbia, a well-regarded talent amongst longtime fans of the
alternative comic book scene, and one who will thrill an entirely new
audience with the singular, inspired, fully-realized fantasies within Pim & Francie.
"The comics definition of gestalt, Pim & Francie
may appear to be a book of random jottings, but don't let that fool
you. Treat this barbed landmine like a book and you will be richly
rewarded. Treat it like a sketchbook and end up with your hands lopped
off and your mind empty. You have been warned." – Paul Karasik
240-page full-color 8.25" x 8.25" hardcover • $28.99
ISBN: 978-1-60699-304-0
(NOTE: The special limited Collectors Edition of this book, which will include an original sketch by Al Columbia, is still
available for pre-order. Al will sign copies of the book on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009 at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery in Seattle:
more info here.)