Wake Up, Percy Gloom - Hardcover

Malkasian, Cathy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 160699638X ISBN 13: 9781606996386

Publisher: Fantagraphics, 2013

Synopsis

Cartoonist and animator Cathy Malkasian follows up her 2007 graphic novel Percy Gloom (a minor classic) with the further adventures of the small, immortal man with a light-up head. In Wake Up, Percy Gloom, kindhearted Percy awakens from (what he thinks is) a 200-year nap and finds himself in a strange new land. As Percy goes on a quest to locate his mother, he encounters many inspired inventions and bizarre, and sometimes dangerous, characters and situations, such as singing goats and furniture parades. Through it all he pines for his long-lost love and soul mate, Miss Margaret—but his love may not be as doomed as he thinks.

About this title

About the Author:

Cathy Malkasian is an animation director and cartoonist. Her credits include Rugrats, The Wild Thornberrys film (for which she received a British Academy Award nomination), and most recently, over 20 episodes of Curious George for PBS since 2008.

Review:

“Malkasian’s gentle pencil drawings, reminiscent of Raymond Briggs’s The Snowman and Gentleman Jim, are simultaneously magical and reflective of aspects of humanity. Allegorical, surreal, and thoughtful, this book is recommended for readers who prefer comics with philosophy as a side.”
- Ingrid Bohnenkamp, Library Journal

“Starred Review: The absurdist nature of the landscape Malkasian creates is reward enough in itself... But more than just absurdism is in play, and both the book’s spellbinding illustrations and charming narrative are wonderfully evocative. ... Impossible to overlook... is how charming this love story is ― never saccharin or conventional or recycled. It’s not an easy thing to create a sequel to a story that was lauded for its originality, but this work makes us think it is.”
- Publishers Weekly

“A quiet fable of immortality, hope, longing and singing goats, Wake Up, Percy Gloom captures the wonderful and unpredictable nature of our lives. It reminds us that much of what we are is actually the connections, both good and bad, that we share with others. ... In a graphic novel filled with exceptional art, lush dreamscapes and characters of rich beauty, Ms. Malkasian brings simple moments to life that show us the depth of someone’s heart.”
- Mark Squirek, New York Journal of Books

“Wake Up, Percy Gloom is a treat for anyone who grew up with a steady diet of Nickelodeon cartoons. ... Malkasian decorates the tale with surreal and absurd dressing (reminiscent of the land of Oz, more than anything else), and plots with twists and turns that are almost impossible to anticipate. ... If L. Frank Baum, Jim Henson, and Jeff Smith wrote a comic together, it would feel (and look) a bit like [Wake Up,] Percy Gloom.”
- Josh Christie, iFanboy

About this edition

• Publisher: Fantagraphics
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 160699638X
• ISBN 13: 9781606996386
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 200