The Kindle Comics Christmas

Did you get a Kindle for Christmas? Want to fill it up with comics? I went to Amazon this afternoon and searched their official comics section - but only the first 700 listings (yes, I have that kind of free time) out of around 3800 or so and found a few things that I’d put on my Kindle.

Of course, your mileage may vary...

Amazon has a ton of Harlequin’s romance manga available. But this one, Mistress, is free so if it’s the kind of thing you like, give it a try.

Icecubes is a webcomic by Lew Brown and this collection, Icecubes The Comic Strip V. 2 is just $1.99.

Tumor Chapter 1 by Joshua Hale Fialkov and Noel Tuazon is free and it looks interesting. Tumor is described as “a dark Los Angeles noir” and it’s from the Harvey Award nominated creators who did Elk’s Run.

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American Elf Volume 3

I loves me some James Kochalka. His daily strips over at the American Elf site are alternately odd, funny, poignant, life-altering, and/or just plain fun. And while it’s rewarding to check in on a daily or weekly basis, it’s not until I get the books in my hand that the full picture is revealed; there’s much more continuity and grace in reading multiple strips in order that weaves itself like an actual story.

Kochalka uses a four-panel box to document his daily activities (and sometimes lack thereof). After over ten years of strips, he’s perfected both his style and the seemingly straightforward but not-so-simple format to distill moments in his life into completely relatable and universal truths.  Volume 3 of his collected strips was released just prior to the holidays, and maybe it’s the all-color nature or the fact that it delves into Kochalka’s life as a father and his wife’s next pregnancy in a way that makes me think about my 1-year-old son, but I think it’s probably my favorite of the books so far.

Kochalka’s been documenting his life in this way since October of 1988, and what may seem random when read separately day by day, once collected into book form, an intimate portrayal of his life emerges, with storylines that build and flow like a good novel. While I’m sure it’s not his “life” in that way that any type of documentary is not fully revealing, after following his printed adventures through the years, I feel like I’ve got a pretty good idea of what the James Kochalka would be like if I were to meet him on the street one day. At the very least, I’d know to ask him how he’s doing with his band or what made him mad that day…

Read More | American Elf