My Aunt Karen found a copy of the Spanish edition on a recent trip to Spain!

Thanks for the photo, Chris and Karen!

La Familia Carter -- Our graphic novel is now available in a Spanish language edition!

My high school Spanish teacher, Sra. Pettigrew, recently took this photo in a "large and classy bookstore" in Barcelona. I'm thrilled to see our book available in Spain.

Frank and I have been excited by the fact that our graphic novel of the Carter Family's story has been translated into Spanish. It's all thanks to Madrid publisher Impedimenta, who has done an excellent job, even designing a great new cover!
Here is the publisher's page for this edition.

¡Qué bueno!

Meanwhile, in Music City...

If you're shopping for comics in Nashville, "Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song" is on the shelf at Brainfreeze Comics!

Spotted in Paris...

Sarah McIntyre (who is a superstar children's book illustrator in London) spotted "La Famille Carter" in the bookshop of the Centre Pompidou in Paris!  She sends this photo:

And if anyone reading this is flying Air France in August of 2015, please look for a comic by me in their in-flight magazine!

The Carter Family is Part of "The Best American Comics of 2014!"

We're delighted and excited to be a part of the newest installment in this venerable series of books. Critics are already raving about this 2014 edition.

Paul Constant of The Stranger has said: "...I find myself declaring to you that The Best American Comics 2014 is the best edition of The Best American Comics to ever be published." He adds:

The end result is a book you can hand anyone as an overview of where comics are as an art form in the year 2014. In fact, I may even take my earlier hypocritical claim one step further and call this the best book I've ever read in the whole Best American series. It's informative, funny, surprising, and a satisfying reading experience on its own. This should be the book that every Best American guest editor aspires to emulate in years to come.

Click HERE to read a witty and informative interview of Scott McCloud by the Washington Post's Scott Cavna.

Bill Kartalopoulos, the series editor for this project, discusses his work on the anthologies in THIS INTERVIEW. These books are invaluable for making the more adventurous byroads of comics art accessible to the average reader--the person or persons who would blanch at the thought of entering a typical comic book shop, but who might peruse this book in the more dignified setting of a bookstore or library.

An unusual chapter from the Carter Family graphic novel was chosen for this book. "The Program is Morally Good" (pp. 79-83 in the GN) attempts to capture the atmosphere of the original Carter Family in live performance. It was one of many challenging moments in which David Lasky and I had the task of bringing the feeling of music to the silent printed (and drawn) page.

I enjoyed coloring this sequence, as it gave me several different lighting sources to influence my palette--from the pale pre-dawn that opens the chapter to the claustrophobic, humid lamplit scenes of the Carters in concert. David's atmosphere of the performance panels really brings this interlude to life.

We're just one facet of this book, which features sequences from Chris Ware's blockbuster Building Stories, Ben Katchor, Charles Burns, R. Crumb and Aline Kominsky, Adrian Tomine, Tom Hart, Ron Rege Jr., The Hernandez Brothers and many other notables. It's a great honor to be in such esteemed comics company. David and I encourage you to check out this new volume, which will give you a strong taster of what's going on in the diverse, challenging and enriching world of today's comics and graphic novels.

We Love You, Third Place Books!

Third Place Books has always proven a great way to obliterate two or three hours in happy browsing. I was delighted when my friend Paul Tumey shared these photos of their prominent placement (with kind employee review) of the Carter Family book.

Thanks, Owen, for your kind words! And sorry if that photograph shows up sideways...

The Surprise of my Life: Meeting Robert Crumb for the first time...

So I was waiting around at Time Tested Books in Sacramento, where I was scheduled to do a signing in support of the “Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song” graphic novel. It was April 18, 2013, and I was a half hour early. I had asked the legendary cartoonist/musician Robert Armstrong to come and play a few Carter Family songs at the event. I was waiting for him to show up, in the mostly empty store, to see if he needed help setting up. A few minutes before starting time, he walked into the store, and right behind him came a bearded man in spectacles, looking very much like Robert Crumb. I quickly looked away and thought: “That can’t be Robert Crumb!” He lives in France after all. But then again, he and Armstrong used to play together in The Cheap Suit Serenaders. I looked back and found that the bearded man was indeed Robert Crumb, a man many consider to be the world's greatest living cartoonist. He shook my hand and asked if Frank (Young) was going to be there. I told him that Frank would have been there, had he known that his pen-pal R. Crumb was going to attend.

I had requested that Armstrong play few Carter Family songs, then a few old time songs of his choosing. The two of them played a lot more than I’d expected, and treated the audience of 25-30 people to what felt like an hour’s worth of music. The Carter Family songs sometimes had gaps in the lyrics; Mr. Armstrong (on a Gibson L5 guitar, Mr. Crumb on Banjo) apologized, explaining that he’d had to “cram” to learn some of these songs, to meet my request. In the second half, with some instrument changes, they played material they were more familiar with, and the musical sparks started to fly.

 

My father was in attendance, and whispered to me: “Is that really R. Crumb?” “Yes,” I answered. “What’s he doing here?” – “I don’t know.” - “Well, you didn’t give him much of an introduction.” I had nervously introduced “The Two Bobs” and after reading a few prepared remarks about Bob Armstrong (creator of Mickey Rat), simply said: “And this is Bob Crumb, who I’m sure you all know.” So, during an instrument change, I cited my father’s admonishment and tried to give a more proper introduction… “He normally lives in France, but is making a rare appearance here tonight. He’s a comics legend, and he’s my hero; this is a big night for me.”
Crumb interrupted: “Your hero?! Harold Gray is your hero.”
I agreed and added Frank King to my short list of cartooning heroes.  

 

As things wound down, they asked the audience for a request. Someone said: “How about a train song?” Someone else: “I’ve Been Workin’ on the Railroad!” Crumb jumped into "Workin' on the Railroad" and played the whole song beautifully. Armstrong commented something to the effect of: “That’s the last word in Cornball Americana.” They closed with a smokin’ instrumental.
When the fun was over, I managed to sign a few books and chat with some old friends who came to the event, two from my high school, one from college, and two Pulse Magazine alums (Jackson Griffith and cartoonist Michael King). Patrons talked with Crumb and Armstrong, and I got to meet cartoonist/musician Christine Shields as well. My father talked politics with Crumb (who showed us his French medical card – “I can get treated and when I leave [the doctor’s office] there is no charge.”). My dad concluded that now it was up to us younger folks to fix all the problems. And so ended one of the best evenings of my life.

 One final note: The owner of Time Tested Books, Peter Keat, had told Crumb and Armstrong that the Cheap Suit Serenaders had played at his wedding about 30 years ago. Crumb and Armstrong asked the same question that was on my mind: “Has the marriage lasted?” “Yes,” said Mr. Keat, “the marriage has lasted all these years.” Crumb breathed a sigh of relief… “You managed to avoid the curse of the Cheap Suit Serenaders.”

More photos from the event are posted here.

 

Mission Comics Recap

I am getting caught up on things I should have blogged a few weeks ago.  I was in Northern California in mid-April for my father's 75th birthday, and also did two signings, in SF and Sacramento.  Here's my recap of the SF signing, at Mission Comics and Art...

http://dlasky.livejournal.com/210128.html

More mentions...

The Peschel Report (which is a great site for links to articles on books and litereature - and graphic novels and comics) honored us by linking to our Seattle Times review...
http://planetpeschel.com/peschel_report/review-carter-family-graphic-novel-rocks/


The wonderful folklife website Boiled Down Juice wrote a nice review:
http://boileddownjuice.com/dont-forget-this-song-a-history-of-the-carter-family-in-the-form-of-a-graphic-novel/
And this week they are highlighting Leslie Riddle as well!

Readers continue to write good reviews in GoodReads.  So glad you're all enjoying it!!

Cartoonists Northwest wrote up a nice review of the talk Frank and I presented at their meeting in January...
http://www.cartoonistsnorthwest.com/meetings/lasky-and-young-draw-history/

We were honored to have a page of original art featured in an exhibition at Rice University.  Curator Robert Boyd provided a description of the project along with a photo of the page on display...
And if you're a fan of comics art, take a look at the rest of the exhibition:
http://emergencyroomcomics.blogspot.com/
(Or visit in person if you live near Houston).

Visit Seattle blogger David Newman kindly mentioned our mention on the NPR site.

The Copacetic Comics Company gave our book a very nice writeup...
http://www.copaceticcomics.com/comics/the-carter-family-don-t-forget-this-song
Please shop there whenever you're in Pittsburg (or every day, if you live in Pittsburgh).

When travelling The Crooked Road, find our book at Heartwood

We're very pleased that our book is available (alongside House of Cash) at Heartwood, in Abingdon, VA, on the legendary Crooked Road.  Heartwood is a gathering place for music, crafts, food, and culture of the region, and I look forward to visiting someday...

Thanks to Douglas Jackson for taking these photos!

In Portland, find the book at Powell's

Alas, Portland's Reading Frenzy has closed its doors for the time being. 
But Portlandians can still obtain the "Carter Family" graphic novel a  number of ways, including shopping at Powell's City of Books, a book lover's paradise, the largest used and new bookstore in the world...

(photo by Luke Shea)

On Seattle's Capitol Hill...

"The Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song" graphic novel can be found at The Elliott Bay Book Company, one of America's great bookstores which has been called something like "a cathedral of books". It's such an honor to see my book in their graphic novel section (and in the highlighted books section near the entrance!).

Also available at Elliott Bay: "Marbles" by Ellen Forney, and "Calling Dr. Laura" by Nicole Georges.  Here they are socializing with the ladies of Short Run after Nicole's reading...

In Pittsburgh

If you're in Pittsburgh, you can find "Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song" at The Copacetic Comics Company...

Staff Pick at Third Place Books Ravenna

Thanks, Meredith Li-Vollmer, for snapping this photo at Third Place Books in Seattle!

And thanks, Owen, for the nice recommendation!!

On the RF Bestseller List!

Reading Frenzy is a store in Portland, OR that specializes in zines, comics, graphic novels, paper art, and small press publications (and it is perhaps the greatest store in the world).  It was the locatin of the Portland reading/signing that Frank and I did last fall. Today I learned that "Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song" made the Reading Frenzy list of Top 25 Bestsellers for 2012! Such an honor.  Thanks to everyone at RF for making it happen!!

Photo of Reading Frenzy sign by Jeff Johnston, used with permission.  Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hishma/8070788200/in/photostream/

Fantagraphics Bookstore Recap

I've been meaning to write about our signings at the Fantagraphics Bookstore in Seattle, and Village Books in Bellingham, but real life has gotten in the way.

Janice at Fantagraphics wrote a really nice post about our Seattle signing for their FLOG, so I'm going to share the link...

And some photos from the event:

Kelly Froh gossips with Mike and Janice.

Frank Young, David Lasky, Noah Van Sciver.

Original art was displayed on the store's gallery wall!

Dennis Driscoll played a selection of Carter Family songs and his own songs (ending with a rap!) to a star-studded audience.  

Today was (I think) the last day to see the original art displayed at the Fantagraphics Bookstore.  The book is still available there and at many other bookstores.  What a nice holiday gift it would make! :)

Lots more photos from the Fantagraphics Bookstore signing can be seen here...

Thanks all who attended!!

Where to find "The Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song"

In San Francisco, it has been spotted at (the historic) City Lights Books!

(thank you, Haley Stocking, for the photo!)

Wherever Books Are Sold

The book should be appearing wherever books are sold. 
Here it is, for example, at the Fantagraphics Bookstore:

Now Available...

The Carter Family graphic novel is now on sale at the Fantagraphics Bookstore in Seattle!  (photo by Janice Headley)
Coming soon to a store near you...

PS: In anticipation of your questions: the book is published by Abrams, not Fantagraphics, but Fantagraphics sometimes sells graphic novels by other publishers in their store.

PPS: Frank Young and David Lasky will be doing a book signing at said store with Noah Van Sciver on November 2!