We've been busy bees making downloadable PDF excerpts available for several new and upcoming books. Unlike previously, when PDF previews were only available to registered users, these downloads are available to everyone (and of course they're free)! Download links are available on the product listing pages for the books listed and linked below. Try before you buy with these nice juicy chunks:

• Hank Ketcham's Complete Dennis the Menace 1959-1960 - read all the strips from January 1959!
• Unlovable Vol. 1 - preview the first 20 pages!
• Humbug - see what the Humbug hullabaloo is all about by reading the entire first issue!
• Mome Vol. 14: Spring 2009 - sample 15 pages, including almost every artist in the issue!
• Sam's Strip - read the first full month of strips!
• The Wolverton Bible - read the first 12 pages, comprising most of Genesis 1-6!

Full news release soon, but I'm excited so here's a teaser: 

• Interview: The Inkstuds radio programme talks to Beasts-master Jacob Covey

• Interview: Newsarama asks David B. about his latest book Nocturnal Conspiracies and his work in Mome (with answers in both the original French and translated English -- nice touch)

• Review: Newsarama posts the latest rave for Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw

• Preview: The Forbidden Planet International Blog Log takes a sneak peek at Carol Swain and Bruce Paley's comics memoir Giraffes in My Hair: A Rock 'N' Roll Life, which we've currently got on our schedule for August this year

• Things to see: The New York Times presents an animated ode to the Bowery by Gary Leib

• Things to see: This Animal Collective video that's blowing up the internets features animation by Jon Vermilyea

• Things to see: Johnny Ryan illustrates the cover of the current Las Vegas Weekly

• Things to see: The latest batch of sketchbook scans from Anders Nilsen

• List: Sean T. Collins reveals his Best Comics of 2008, with Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 by the Hernandez Brothers, Mome Vols. 10-12, and Pocket Full of Rain by Jason crowded into a 6-way tie (counting Mome as one entry) for 15th place and Tales Designed to Thrizzle #4 by Michael Kupperman in 14th

• List: The Indie Jones WizardUniverse Blog "Best of 2008" has The Last Musketeer by Jason, Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw, and "Invasion" by Al Columbia (from Mome Vol. 12) on it

• List: The Guardian names The Three Paradoxes by Paul Hornschemeier as one of "The best graphic novels" as part of their series "1000 novels everyone must read"

• Review: On TheRumpus.net, The Believer editor Andrew Leland has a great review of Petey & Pussy by John Kerschbaum

• Review: DJ Sloofus's Baaadaaaassssss Blog! looks at Popeye Vol. 3 and declares "All hail Segar!"

• Video: Arrested Motion compiles an 11-part video from YouTube user sketchv of Robert Williams's recent talk at the Oakland Museum of California

• Oddity: The Solar Sisterhood takes note of a calendar of real-life Maggie the Mechanics

• Oddity: On YouTube, Chinese Popeye vs. some mummies

Just when I thought the storm of year-end critics' lists had subsided, three heavy-hitters and one up-and-coming cartoonist have posted theirs, leading off today's update:

• List: Jeet Heer names his "Best Comics of 2008," including the fraternal one-two punch of Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 by the Hernandez Brothers and Deitch's Pictorama by the Deitch Brothers

• List: Frank Santoro posts his "Top 9 of '08," with Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 at #3 and Abandoned Cars by Tim Lane at #2

• List: Douglas Wolk lists his favorite book-length comics of 2008, with Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw at #3 and The Education of Hopey Glass by Jaime Hernandez at #1

• List: Tom Kaczynski highlights the comics of fellow Mome-ster Dash Shaw in his look back at the best comics of 2008

• Things to see: 999 posts a short excerpt from Jason's Meow, Baby!

• Things to see: Gary Panter + Black Sabbath + video = win

Whoops, forgot to post yesterday... the only thing we had scheduled to arrive in comic shops this week is a reoffer of Mome Vols. 7-10, so if you're missing any of those issues and your local shop hasn't had them for a while, now would be a good time to check back in with them!

MOME contributor Jonathan Bennett has a fantastic, classic Sunday-style comic strip called "Beat of the Traps" in the new Kramers Ergot. John is a fantastic cartoonist whose work exhibits the craftsmanship of a master jeweler, but also has an existential soul a la Glenn Ganges or King Cat that its quotidian trappings often belie. He's really good. It turns out he also completed an additional page for Kramers of B&W dailies leading up to the Sunday payoff that the editor, Sammy Harkham, mercilessly rejected from the book. I like to picture Sammy laughing, with a cigar, as he gave Bennett the news. Anyway, luckily for us, Bennett has rescued the page from oblivion and produced the handsome minicomic version pictured above. The only downside of this is it makes my job harder in putting together that MOME theme issue I'd been planning, KRAMERS REJECTS. But you should search it out nonetheless.

We've been posting these as we've found them, but here's a (slightly OCD) alphabetical list of Fantagraphics titles and whose year-end lists that they've appeared on, for your handy reference. (Links will continue to be added as we find them.) Rankings appear in parentheses; no number means the list was unranked:

Abandoned Cars by Tim Lane
• Mark Athitakis' American Fiction Notes, "Favorite Books of 2008"
• Alan David Doane, "Debut of the Year"
• Inland Empire Weekly
• Publishers Weekly "Comics Week's Third Annual Critic's Poll" (Honorable Mention)
• Frank Santoro, "Top 9 of '08" (#2)
• Marc Sobel (#2)
• St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Best Books of 2008: Graphic Literature"

Amor Y Cohetes by the Hernandez Brothers
• The Independent, "Best Comics"

Angry Youth Comix Vol. II #14 by Johnny Ryan
• comiXology "Best Comics of 2008" (#15)
• Jog - The Blog, "Twenty 'Hot Ones' from 2008" (#9)

Beasts! Book 2
• Book By Its Cover "Best of BBIC 2008" (#5)

Beyond Palomar by Gilbert Hernandez
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#17)
• The Independent, "Best Comics"

Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw
• Amazon.com, "Best Books of 2008 - Top 10 Books: Comics & Graphic Novels" (#4)
• Derik Badman, "Best Comics of 2008"
• Tom Bondurant, "Robot 6," Comic Book Resources, "Favorite Comics of 2008"
• Bookmunch, "Graphic Novel of the Year"
• Matthew Brady, "Best Comics of 2008" (#12)
• Box Brown at The Daily Cross Hatch (#1)
• Bully Says: Comics Oughta Be Fun! "Fun Fifty of 2008" (#25)
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#4)
• Comic Book Resources "Best 100 Comics of 2008" (#41)
• comiXology, "The Top Ten Comics of 2008" (#3)
• Daily Vanguard, "Top 10 Graphic Novels and Comics of 2008" (#9)
• Entertainment Weekly, "Best Fiction of 2008" (#5)
• GraphicNovelReporter, "Best Graphic Novels of 2008"
• Dustin Harbin, Top 10 "Best Comics of 2008" (#2)
• I Love Rob Liefeld, "The Best Comics of 2008" (#2)
• Tom Kaczynski
• Largehearted Boy, "Favorite Graphic Novels of 2008"
• Minty Lewis at The Daily Cross Hatch
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best Original Graphic Novel" (runner-up)
• J. Caleb Mozzocco, "The Best Comics of 2008"
• Mari Naomi at The Daily Cross Hatch
• New York Magazine, "The Top Ten Graphic Novels" (#2)
• Brian Nicholson, "Best Comics of 2008" (#1)
• The Oklahoman's Nerdage blog, "2008's best graphic novels" (#4)
• Shannon O'Leary at The Daily Cross Hatch (#1)
• Nate Powell at The Daily Cross Hatch (#4)
• Publishers Weekly "Comics Week's Third Annual Critic's Poll" (#1)
• Arthur Smid at The Daily Cross Hatch (#1)
• Zack Soto, "personal 'best of/favorite' comics of 2008"
• Aron Nels Steinke, "My Top Ten"
• USA TODAY Pop Candy, "Top 100 People of 2008" (#81)
• USA TODAY Pop Candy, "Top Comics of 2008" (#1)
• The Village Voice, "Pulp Fictions: The Best of 2008"
• Washington Post, "Best Comics of 2008"
• Douglas Wolk, "Favorite Book-Length Comics of 2008" (#3)

The Complete Peanuts 1967-1968 by Charles M. Schulz
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#36)

Deitch's Pictorama by the brothers Deitch
• Michael C. Lorah, Newsarama, "Top Eleven: Best of 2008"
• Jeet Heer, "Best Comics of 2008"

Daddy's Girl by Debbie Drechsler
• Tim O'Shea, "Robot 6," Comic Book Resources, "Favorite Comics of 2008"

The Education of Hopey Glass by Jaime Hernandez
• Daily Vanguard, "Top 10 Graphic Novels and Comics of 2008" (#7)
• Alan David Doane, "Graphic Novel of the Year"
• Michael C. Lorah, Newsarama, "Top Eleven: Best of 2008"
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best Comic I Didn't Get Around to Reviewing" (runner-up)
• The Oklahoman's Nerdage blog, "2008's best graphic novels" (#8)
• Publishers Weekly "Comics Week's Third Annual Critic's Poll" (#2, tied)
• Douglas Wolk, "Favorite Book-Length Comics of 2008" (#1)

Explainers by Jules Feiffer
• Robert Boyd, "The Best Comics of 2008"
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#37)
• Joe Matt at The Daily Cross Hatch (#3)
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best Collection of Previously Published Material" (runner-up)
• Newsarama, "Top 5: Best Archival Comics, 2008" (#3)
• St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Best Books of 2008: Graphic Literature"

Ganges #2 by Kevin Huizenga
• Box Brown at The Daily Cross Hatch (#3)
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#15: "the works of Kevin Huizenga")
• Comic Book Resources "Best 100 Comics of 2008" (#51)
• "Comics Should Be Good: Top Ten Comics of 2008" (#4)
• comiXology, "The Top Ten Comics of 2008" (#1)
• Daily Vanguard, "Top 10 Graphic Novels and Comics of 2008" (#1)
• Dustin Harbin, Top 10 "Best Comics of 2008" (#7)
• I Love Rob Liefeld, "The Best Comics of 2008" (#8)
• Jog - The Blog, "Twenty 'Hot Ones' from 2008" (#7)
• Bill Kartalopoulos at The Daily Cross Hatch
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best Comic I Didn't Get Around to Reviewing" (runner-up)
• Brian Nicholson, "Best Comics of 2008"
• The Oklahoman, "Top 10 Periodical Comic Book Series of 2008" (#4: "the comics of Kevin Huizenga")
• Jesse Reklaw at The Daily Cross Hatch (#2)
• Aron Nels Steinke, "My Top Ten"
• Jeremy Tinder at The Daily Cross Hatch (#1)
• Leigh Walton at The Daily Cross Hatch (#1)

Ghost World: Special Edition by Daniel Clowes
• Alan David Doane, "Reissue of the Year"

Grotesque #2 by Sergio Ponchione
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#48)

Hall of Best Knowledge by Ray Fenwick
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#46)
• Drawn! "Favourite Comics and Art Books of 2008"
• The Cultural Gutter, "10 Comics I Liked in 2008"

Hotwire Comics Vol. 2
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#43)

I Shall Destroy All the Civilized Planets! by Fletcher Hanks
• Mindless Ones, "Top Comics of 2008"

Interiorae #3 by Gabriella Giandelli
• Nate Powell at The Daily Cross Hatch (#4)

Jessica Farm Vol. 1 by Josh Simmons
• Mike Carey at the Forbidden Planet blog
• comiXology, "Best Comics of 2008" (#17)
• Joe Infurnari at The Daily Cross Hatch (#4)

The Lagoon by Lilli Carré
• Jeff Lemire at The Daily Cross Hatch
• Tim O'Shea, "Robot 6," Comic Book Resources, "Favorite Comics of 2008"
• Nate Powell at The Daily Cross Hatch (#3)
• Publishers Weekly "Comics Week's Third Annual Critic's Poll" (Honorable Mention)
• USA TODAY Pop Candy, "Top 100 People of 2008" (#58)
• USA TODAY Pop Candy, "Top Comics of 2008" (#6)

The Last Musketeer by Jason
• J. Caleb Mozzocco, "The Best Comics of 2008"

Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 by The Hernandez Brothers
• Johnny Bacardi, "2008 Personal 10 Best in Comics"
• Robert Boyd, "The Best Comics of 2008"
• Matthew Brady, "Best Comics of 2008" (#19)
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#42)
• Comic Book Resources "Best 100 Comics of 2008" (#20)
• comiXology, "Best Comics of 2008" (#11)
• The Daily Blog, "10 for '08"
• Michel Fiffe at The Daily Cross Hatch
• Jeet Heer, "Best Comics of 2008"
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best New Series"
• The OC Weekly, "The Year's Best Graphic Books and Novels"
• Publishers Weekly "Comics Week's Third Annual Critic's Poll" (Honorable Mention)
• Frank Santoro, "Top 9 of '08" (#3)
• Zack Soto, "personal 'best of/favorite' comics of 2008"
• Rich Tommaso

Man of Rock: A Biography of Joe Kubert by Bill Schelly
• "Comics Should Be Good: Top Ten Moments of Comic-Related Happiness in 2008"

Mome Vol. 12
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#29)
• comiXology, "Best Comics of 2008" (#21)
• Daily Vanguard, "Top 10 Graphic Novels and Comics of 2008" (#5)
• Jog - The Blog, "Twenty 'Hot Ones' from 2008" (#18)
• Jesse Reklaw at The Daily Cross Hatch (#5 - includes Vol. 10-11)
• Marc Sobel ("the comics of Dash Shaw in Mome," #4)
• Douglas Wolk at The Daily Cross Hatch (#3)

Most Outrageous: The Trials and Tespasses of Dwaine Tinsley and Chester the Molester by Bob Levin
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best Book About Comics"
• Marc Sobel (#3)
• The Village Voice, "2008's Best Comics, Clip Art, and Pedophilia"

The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 by Thomas Ott
• The SF Site, Rick Klaw, "Nexus Graphica: Top Ten Graphic Novel or Comics Related Publications" (#2)
• The SF Site, Mark London Williams, "Nexus Graphica: Top Ten Graphic Novel or Comics Related Publications" (#5)

Perla La Loca by Jaime Hernandez
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#16)
• The Independent, "Best Comics"
• Zack Soto, "personal 'best of/favorite' comics of 2008"

Petey & Pussy by John Kerschbaum
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#7)
• Bob Fingerman at The Daily Cross Hatch
• Joe Infurnari at The Daily Cross Hatch (#5)

Pocket Full of Rain and Other Stories by Jason
• Matthew Brady, "Best Comics of 2008" (#16)
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#35)

Popeye Vol. 3: "Let's You and Him Fight!" by E.C. Segar
• Dustin Harbin, Top 10 "Best Comics of 2008" (#4)
• Joe Matt at The Daily Cross Hatch (#2)
• Chris Mautner, "Robot 6," Comic Book Resources, "Favorite Comics of 2008" (#1)
• Newsarama, "Top 5: Best Archival Comics, 2008" (#2)
• Jeff Smith
• Frank Stack at The Daily Cross Hatch

Rebel Visions: The Underground Comix Revolution 1963-1975 by Patrick Rosenkranz
• The SF Site, Mark London Williams, "Nexus Graphica: Top Ten Graphic Novel or Comics Related Publications" (#1)

Sammy the Mouse #2 by Zak Sally
• Austin English at The Daily Cross Hatch (#1)
• Tom Neely at The Daily Cross Hatch (#4)

Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko by Blake Bell
• Alan David Doane, "Comic Art Book of the Year" (tie)
• Paul Gravett, "The Best of 2008 - Books About Comics"
• The SF Site, Rick Klaw, "Nexus Graphica: Top Ten Graphic Novel or Comics Related Publications" (#5)
• St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Best Books of 2008: Graphic Literature"

Sublife Vol. 1 by John Pham
• Jeffrey Brown at The Daily Cross Hatch (#4)
• Comic Book Resources, "Best 100 Comics of 2008" (#72)

Tales Designed to Thrizzle #4 by Michael Kupperman
• Bully Says: Comics Oughta Be Fun! "Fun Fifty of 2008" (#11)
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#24)
• Comic Book Resources, "Best 100 Comics of 2008" (#70)
• "Comics Should Be Good: Top Ten Comics of 2008" (#5)
• comiXology, "The Top Ten Comics of 2008" (#8)
• Same Hat! Same Hat! "Best X of Everything 2008: Comics!" (#5)

Things Just Get Away from You by Walt Holcombe
• Mike Carey at the Forbidden Planet blog

Town of Mirrors by Robert Pollard
• KEXP, "2008's Best Books About Popular Music"

Where Demented Wented: The Art and Comics of Rory Hayes
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#38)
• Paul Gravett, "The Best of 2008 - Books About Comics"
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best Collection of Previously Published Material" (runner-up)
• The Village Voice, "2008's Best Comics, Clip Art, and Pedophilia"
• The Village Voice, "Pulp Fictions: The Best of 2008"

Willie & Joe: The WWII Years by Bill Mauldin
• Rob Clough, "My Top 50 Comics of the Year" (#10)
• Shaenon Garrity at The Daily Cross Hatch (#3)
• The Boston Globe "Out of Line" blog
• Matt Kindt at The Daily Cross Hatch
• Chris Marshall at the Forbidden Planet International Blog (#2)
• Chris Mautner, The Patriot-Ledger, "Moxie Awards: Best Collection of Previously Published Material"
• Bram Meehan, "Top Ten Comics of 2008" (#10)
• Ben Ostrander at The Comics Reporter

• In the day's biggest news, the winner of Publishers Weekly's annual Critic's Poll of graphic novels is Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw, with The Education of Hopey Glass by Jaime Hernandez in a 6-way tie for 2nd place and Honorable Mentions to Abandoned Cars by Tim Lane, The Lagoon by Lilli Carré, and Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 by the Hernandez Brothers

• Ben Ostrander sends The Comics Reporter his Top Books of 2008 list, which has Willie & Joe: The WWII Years by Bill Mauldin on it

• Marc Sobel lines up his Top Ten Books of 2008, with Abandoned Cars by Tim Lane at #2, Most Outrageous by Bob Levin at #3, and "the comics by Dash Shaw in Mome" at #4, and with Pocket Full of Rain and Other Stories by Jason, Ganges #2 by Kevin Huizenga, and Insomnia #3 by Matt Broersma in the "Other Noteworthy Books" category

• We've got 16 entries on Rob Clough's "Top 50 Comics of the Year", plus 8 honorable mentions; don't make me list them all out

• Comics And... Other Imaginary Tales says Petey & Pussy by John Kerschbaum is "obscenely good fun!"

• Not comics: Magnet has the scoop on Robert Pollard's slate of 2009 records

• Michael C. Lorah's "Top Eleven: Best of 2008" at Newsarama includes The Education of Hopey Glass by Jaime Hernandez and Deitch's Pictorama by the brothers Deitch

• On Jog's "Twenty 'Hot Ones' from 2008" best-of list: Mome Vol. 12 (#18), Angry Youth Comix #14 by Johnny Ryan (#9), and Ganges #2 by Kevin Huizenga (#7)

• Comic Book Resources' new multi-author blog Robot 6 presents their "favorite comics of 2008," which include Tom Bondurant's choice of Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw; Chris Mautner giving Popeye Vol. 3: "Let's You and Him Fight!" by E.C. Segar the top spot; and Tim O'Shea including The Lagoon by Lilli Carré and Daddy's Girl by Debbie Drechsler

• The Oklahoman's "top 10 periodical comic book series of 2008" places "the comics of Kevin Huizenga" at #4

• In their "Bull Tongue" column for Arthur Magazine, Thurston Moore & Byron Coley check out Town of Mirrors by Robert Pollard and declare it "stunning"

• Newsarama talks to Craig Yoe about Boody Rogers and our upcoming Yoe-edited collection of Rogers's work, Boody: The Bizarre Comics of Boody Rogers

• Comic Book Resources' "Comics Should Be Good" spotlights the comics of Michael "Tales Designed to Thrizzle" Kupperman

• LIT MOB looks at The Lagoon by Lilli Carré

• The Northwest Science Fiction Society takes note of Beasts! Book 2

• The Daily Cross Hatch presents part 2 of their 3-part interview with Bob Fingerman

• Douglas Wolk has started sharing pages from his convention sketchbook; here's Roger Langridge

• Looking for our books in Tokyo? When Comic Books Ruled the Earth recommends Tower Records in Shibuya

• According to Boing Boing, "snoopy" is the 192nd worst password of all time (beating out "buddy" but just behind "chester")