I think this may be the first must-have book of 2013 for me.

Virgil Partch was one of the great cartoonists. I first discovered him doing his relatively normal syndicated comic strip, Big George. But I soon discovered a book collection of his old gag cartoons and realized that he was a complete and utter nut.

He had a wild line, drew insane-looking men and women, and his situations were often over-the-top - it was like looking at a single frame of a Tex Avery cartoon, but signed with Partch’s signature signature: VIP. That shouldn’t have been surprising since Partch was a former animator.

Now Fantagraphics, one of the premiere art publishers, is collecting a pile of Partch cartoons into a nice-sized coffee-table hardcover.

VIP: The Mad World of Virgil Partch will be “120 pages of full color illustrations and 120 pages of black and white illustrations,” assembled and art-directed by Jonathan Barli. That’s 240 pages of great cartooning.

Get those pre-orders in now. I want this book!

[Artwork: VIP: The Mad World Of Virgil Partch]