This chunky biography by José-Louis Bocquet and Catel Muller (translated by Edward Gauvin) from SelfMadeHero tells the life of Alice Guy, the first female filmmaker. At the end of the 1800s, she was writing, directing, and producing movies. She had her own production company in the US in 1912! And yet few have ever heard of her. Alice Guy: First Lady of Film covers from 1873 to 1968, the full span of her life, in an immensely welcoming, readable style. [...]

Rea Irvin’s The Smythes is a prestige hardcover from New York Review Comics reprinting a Sunday comic from the 1930s. Although I didn’t finish all the reprinted comic strips, which were much of a similarity, I found the historical information surrounding them fascinating. Rea Irvin is best known for creating Eustace Tilley, the snob with the butterfly who was on the first cover of The New Yorker and has become the mascot of the magazine. Irvin’s art style, appeal, and [...]

Sherlockians make the best recommendations. I saw this mentioned in a fan group and as soon as I heard the concept, I knew I’d enjoy it. Green Manor is a translated French comic, published by Cinebook Espresso, about an English club in the late 1800s where men gather to talk over vengeance and murder, or even to commit same. It’s a Victorian gentleman’s murder club. The series has two volumes, Assassins and Gentleman and The Inconvenience of Being Dead. (The [...]

An overview of some mystery manga titles. Let’s start with the original detective. Manga Classics: Sherlock Holmes – A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle, adapted by Crystal S. Chan, art by Julien Choy Manga Classics, $19.99 The first appearance of Sherlock Holmes is presented in full color. The storytelling and language are authentic, although the characters are drawn in manga style, with outrageous hair (Sherlock has a ponytail!) and dramatic outfits (including a bare-chested Holmes at breakfast!). There [...]

I found out about Wash It All Away by Mitsuru Hattori via The Manga Test Drive (an excellent review site). It’s about a young woman who runs a clenaners/laundry in a small seaside town known for its hot springs. That’s significant because, while I enjoyed the low-key, slow-paced, community feel — and the bits about cleaning techniques were interesting — we weren’t allowed to forget about the bathhouses because it’s apparently important to the series that we see our young [...]

In Creaky Acres, by Calista Brill and Nilah Magruder, Nora is upset at having to move. She’ll miss her riding lessons and her friends at the barn where she boards her horse. She’s a dressage champion, but her parents are moving her out to the country, where things are a bit more casual. And they don’t care much about competition events. The new riding school, Creaky Acres, has possums everywhere and a ragtag group of riders. Nora doesn’t fit in, [...]

The Manga Classics line has released its first full-color title, and it’s one dear to my heart, as it’s the first Sherlock Holmes story. Manga Classics: Sherlock Holmes – A Study in Scarlet, originally written by Arthur Conan Doyle, is adapted by Crystal S. Chan and illustrated by Julien Choy. It’s faithful to the source material, with authentic language and setting, although the characters are, obviously, manga-styled. Sherlock Holmes’ wild hair, as seen on the cover, is often in a [...]