Reviews for American Literature to 1900

The average rating for American Literature to 1900 based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-01-21 00:00:00 Martin OHara I really enjoyed this evocatively titled 1993 comic compilation from Michael Dougan, a cartoonist whose work I read throughout the late 80�s and into the mid-90�s in anthologies such as Weirdo and Drawn and Quarterly. Dougan specialized in a sort of southern gothic slice-of-life true tale, where where the mood of everyday life in the sultry climes of East Texas might spin out into boiled-over rage, insanity or bloodletting at the slightest provocation. In addition to Dougan�s alter ego, the cast of characters features a wonderfully grotesque crew, ranging from random off the street nut-jobs (�Black Cherry�) to creepy entrepreneurs on the make (�Opportunity Jones�) to a group of children who practice a strange ritual (�Horror in the Henhouse�). The art is wonderful - especially loved his fanciful, swirly drawings of 80�s-style big hair in tales like �Where the Boys Are� - and the storytelling is fascinating. My one criticism is that Dougan often built a good head of steam in his longer pieces such as �Opportunity Jones,� only to end somewhat flatly, lacking a certain grace note or sense of closure fully satisfying to the reader. But I strongly recommend this to any fan of 90's style alt/art comics and lament the artist�s seeming disappearance from the scene in recent years. Where are you, Michael Dougan? Come back to the five and dime, Michael Dougan, Michael Dougan. POSTSCRIPT 3/25/13: a few weeks after I wrote the above review, still wondering about whatever had happened to the author, I finally did a quick bit of internet research and wrote to him. He responded very kindly, telling me he had greatly enjoyed his alt-comics career and had no regrets, but had since moved on. He also told me that the awkward quality of the story �Opportunity Jones� was the result of having had to pad the piece out to fulfill page requirements from the publisher. An interesting bit of info that reminds me once again: when you want to know something, ask!

Review # 2 was written on 2020-12-31 00:00:00 Ronald Miller This book was so good, filled with HILARIOUS stories about the author's life. But not funny in a punchline-y way. I miss this kind of storytelling. Any fan of nineties alternative autobio comics will love this. Even non-comics fans should get their paws on this.