As seen in the pages of Previews, these are the books and comics slated for release by Fantagraphics Books in February, 2010. Please note that all details, including cover art, prices, specs, contents, and release dates are preliminary and subject to change.

TEMPERANCE

by Cathy Malkasian
240 pgs, 2 Color, 8 x 10, Hardcover, $22.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-323-1

Do ideas of war and enemies hold people together? Is a culture of conflict too seductive not to be irresistible? These are the questions 2008 Eisner Award Winner Cathy Malkasian explores in her second graphic novel Temperance, a fully realized, multi-layered world, inhabited by vivid characters and master craftsmanship. After a brutal injury in battle, Lester has no memory of his prior life. For the next thirty years his wife does everything to keep him from remembering —and re-constructing— a society, Blessedbowl, that elevates him as a hero. Blessedbowl is a cultural convergence of lies, memories, stories, and beliefs. Its people thrive on ideas of persecution, exceptionality, and enemies, convinced that war is lurking just outside their walls. Malkasian creates a densely textured social context, masterfully conveying the idiosyncratic physical domain with its spiraling structures and quasi-medieval architecture along with intimate yet plastic portraits of her characters in a rich, tonal pencil line. Temperance is a galvanizing work of empathy and violence by one of today’s most thoughtful and accomplished cartoonists. Be there!

THE SEARCH FOR SMILIN' ED

by Kim Deitch
144 pgs, B&W, 6.75 x 9.75, Softcover, $16.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-324-8

The Search for Smilin’ Ed is the latest of Kim Deitch’s graphic novels to showcase his obsessive burrowing into the nooks and crannies of vintage American popular culture. Launched on his latest investigation by a remark from his brother about a shared childhood favorite (“Y’know, I heard that when Smilin’ Ed died... his body was NEVER found!”), Deitch begins to uncover some truly amazing things about the kiddie-show host and his malevolent sidekick, Froggy the Gremlin. Meanwhile, Deitch’s muse and nemesis Waldo the Cat abandons Deitch to hang out with some demon buddies, and soon both Waldo and Deitch are closing in on the mysteries of Smilin’ Ed and Froggy. Bonus! Deitch has also created a brand new story starring Waldo in his 21st century post-Alias The Cat state of domestic bliss, stumbling across an army of (French-) talking beavers. Of course, there’s a story behind that...

SAND & FURY: A SCREAM QUEEN ADVENTURE

by Ho Che Anderson
144 pgs, 2 Color, 7 x 9, Softcover, $16.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-321-7

A story of blood, of sex, of death — of sound and retribution. It opens as a girl by the side of a desert road accepts a ride from a stranger. How could she know that behind that wheel sits the angel of death? Of course, even the angel of death once had a life. During that life, death was a successful business woman, with a great career and an even greater future. It’s true she could be a little cavalier with her innate gifts; she had, after all, broken the heart of everyone who had ever loved her. And then, one day — the monster entered the woman’s life and changed everything forever. Drawn in a stark, chiseled, expressionistic line that evokes modern attitudes and classic terror of the unknown and unknowable.

CAPTAIN EASY, SOLDIER OF FORTUNE: The Complete Sunday Newspaper Strips Vol. 1

by Roy Crane
10.5 x 14.75, HC, 144 pages, FC, $39.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-161-9

Roy Crane is a GIANT among cartoonists and Fantagraphics is embarking upon an ambitious reprinting of his best work within Captain Easy, Soldier of Fortune. Dig in and bask in the radiance of these FULL COLOR, prismatic Sunday strips! Discover with each page a buried treasure of adventure and chicanery replete with Crane’s mastery of comics storytelling. Citing Crane’s influence on comics, the artist Gil Kane once said, “Superman was Captain Easy; Batman was Captain Easy.” BEWARE! Beautiful women! Pirates! Sunken ships! And fun! fun! FUN! are barely contained within this beautiful package brought to you by Fantagraphics, the torchbearer of quality when it comes to classic comic strip reprints.

BLAZING COMBAT S/C

by Archie Goodwin and The Best Damn Cartoonists of the 20th Century
200 pgs, B&W, 8 x 10, Softcover, $19.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-366-8

The legendary anti-war comic now in paperback! Written by Archie Goodwin and drawn by such luminaries as Frank Frazetta, Wally Wood, John Severin, Alex Toth, Al Williamson, Russ Heath, Reed Crandall, and Gene Colon. Following in the tradition of Harvey Kurtzman’s Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat, Goodwin’s stories reflected the human realities and personal costs of war rather than exploiting the clichés of the traditional men’s adventure genre. They are among the best about war ever published.

HIGH SOFT LISP

by Gilbert Hernandez
144 pgs, B&W, 6.5 x 9.75, Softcover, $16.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-318-7

Rosalba “Fritz” Martinez, bombshell, former punkette, former psychiatrist, “Z” movie star — in supremely sexy and constantly surprising in this BRUTAL graphic novel masterpiece (what do you expect, it’s GILBERT HERNANDEZ!). “Five six. Hundred twenty-eight pounds. Forty-three twenty-two thirty-six. High soft lisp. Genius level I.Q.” That’s how motivational speaker Mark Herrera sums up Fritz. And Herrera should know, being only one of many compassionately misguided chumps to fall under Fritz’s “lithping” spell. With over a dozen brand new pages, Gilbert Hernandez has fleshed out his initial suite of Fritz stories, thus creating a comprehensive volume that further explores the rich world of Love and Rockets!

PENNY CENTURY

by Jaime Hernandez
240 pgs, B&W, 7.5 x 9.25, Softcover, $18.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-342-2

A collection in the style of Maggie The Mechanic. Penny Century collects the well loved comic book series of the same title and select stories featuring Penny from Love and Rockets, as well as the long out of print graphic novel Whoa Nellie! The Penny material features... Penny! The hottest super heroine of Earth and beyond! Whoa Nellie is hands down the best female wrestling comic of ALL TIME. From the master cartoonist Jaime Hernandez!

BEST AMERICAN COMICS CRITICISM

edited by Ben Schwartz
280 pgs, B&W, 7 x 9, Softcover, $19.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-148-0

Conventional wisdom states that cartooning and graphic novels exist in a golden age of creativity, popularity, and critical acceptance. But why? Today, the signal is stronger than ever, but so is the noise. New York Times, Vanity Fair, and Bookforum critic Ben Schwartz assembles the greatest lineup of comics critics the world has yet seen to testify on behalf of this increasingly vital medium. This volume includes Daniel Clowes, Jonathan Lethem, Chris Ware, Jonathan Franzen, Frank Miller, Will Eisner, John Updike, Donald Phelps and more! This collection functions as a valuable guide for fans, retailers, civilians, and maladjusted children, tracing the current comics renaissance from its beginnings and creative growth to the cutting edge of today’s artists. Killer!