The Brinkley Girls!

I received my copies of Trina Robbins long-anticipated The Brinkley Girls today. Well, they came in damaged, which is annoying because that means I won't have any to sell until Wednesday, but nonetheless, it is a GORGEOUS book. I highly recommend it to anyone that has interest in the early days of newspaper illustration and cartoons. Nell Brinkley's cartoons appeared in newspapers from 1913-1940. The book is hardcover, published by Fantagraphics for the low low price of $29.99. I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about this book! Most of you, I'm guessing, have never heard of Nell Brinkley. I'm sure I would be in the dark as much as you, but lucky for me I read Trina Robbins wonderful book published a few years back from Kitchen Sink Press, entitled A Century of Women Cartoonists. That is a great book for the bookshelf, along with its companion volume The Great Women Super Heroes. Trina is a wonderful comic book historian, and she REALLY knows her gals, be it female writers, artists or characters, she knows ALL about them. (As a side note, this is why I'm SO excited that Trina will be contributing to my new Moonstone short story prose anthology called Chicks in Capes. More details on that soon! Because this post is about Trina's gorgeous collection of Nell Brinkley art.) Brinkley's work has been out of print for years, but thanks to Trina, this wonderful collection can be yours. Ask your local Amazing Fantasy for a copy next time you are in, so you can see for yourself Brinkley's lush and beautiful girls. I bought the 2 damaged copies I received today, for the sole purpose of dismantling them, I want to frame SO many of this full page, color illustrations, and you will too when you see this book!

All four Amazing Fantasy locations will be stocking this baby, so get yours before they are gone! I can't praise this book enough. Well worth the wait and well well worth the low price point. Every discrimating comic book fan needs this on their coffee table!

This is the write up from the back of the book:

"For more than three decades, Nell Brinkley's beautiful girls pirouetted, waltzed, Charlestoned, vamped, and shimmied their way through the pages of William Randolph Hearst's newspapers, captivating the American public with their innocent sexuality.

The Brinkley Girls collects Brinkley's exquisitely colored full page art from 1913-1940. Here are the earliest silent movie serial-inspired adventure series "Golden Eyes and Her Hero Bill"; her two romantic series "Kathleen and the Great Secret" and "Betty and Bill"; her snappy flapper comics from the '20's; her 1937 pulp magazine-inspired "Heroines of Today." Plus photos of Brinkley, reproductions of her previously unpublished paintings, and an introduction by Trina Robbins."

Thank you SO much Fantagraphics and Trina Robbins for giving me something to smile about today, nay something to be EXCITED about!