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New Book Alert: January 11-15, 2021

Posted on January 16, 2021August 14, 2023 By Sammy Younan

My weekly collection of new and notable books for your pop culture pleasure and edification: #ReadMoreTweetLess.

The Alpha Enigma
by W. Michael Gear
Science-Fiction Novel / DAW Books
Published: November 3, 2020

We got a sci-fi mystery, assassins and…a time-displaced Egyptian tomb (yo!). I dig all those things. The latest novel from W. Michael Gear is The Alpha Enigma.

Happy #BookBirthday to THE ALPHA ENIGMA by W. Michael Gear (@GearBooks)!https://t.co/fc4dGWLVqv pic.twitter.com/FwcyT8O4VL

— DAW Books (@dawbooks) November 3, 2020

No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality
by Michael J. Fox
Non-Fiction & Hollywood / Flatiron Books
Published: November 17, 2020

In his own way; with his relentless optimism and fiercely defended hope Michael J. Fox is quickly becoming a modern day Terry Fox. Fresh from Flatiron Books this is No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality. Oh no. I’m not emotionally prepared to say goodbye to Michael J. Fox: we have too many Family Ties.

Great book recommendations from @realmikefox. You can read his new book, No Time Like the Future, when it publishes 11/17. #notimelikethefuture #flatironbooks https://t.co/SijQzuYDU2

— Flatiron Books (@Flatironbooks) October 13, 2020

A Wealth of Pigeons: A Cartoon Collection
by Steve Martin & Harry Bliss
Comics & Far Side? / Celadon Books
Published: November 17, 2020

It’s Steve Martin!. That’s it. That’s the hook: it’s a Steve Martin book. This is A Wealth of Pigeons: A Cartoon Collection. Where Steve is joined by Harry Bliss to make Far Side witty comics. Most Excellent! Dude’s a comic genius for sure not always because he’s so funny but because he’s fearless and takes risks.

.@PublishersWkly calls the #1 New York Times bestseller, A Wealth of Pigeons by @Blisscartoons and @SteveMartinToGo, a “refreshing tonic of a collection” and “perfect for flipping through on a Sunday after an especially trying crossword puzzle.” https://t.co/4B77I4t78o pic.twitter.com/7QHWcaNTcr

— Celadon Books (@CeladonBooks) December 31, 2020

X-Men: The Art and Making of The Animated Series
by Eric Lewald & Julia Lewald
Non-Fiction & Marvel Cartoons / Abrams Press
Published: October 13, 2020

The venerable animated X-Men series is immortalized in a book! Eric Lewald & Julia Lewald present X-Men: The Art and Making of The Animated Series. “This book gives a firsthand account of what it’s like to develop, pitch, design, write, draw, direct, and produce a hit animated series, and is jam-packed with never-before-seen concept sketches, storyboards, character models, background layouts, cels, and production and promotional materials.” X-cellent!

Take a peek at what went into X-MEN: THE ART AND MAKING OF THE ANIMATED SERIES and the creation of the iconic show! @comicsbeat has the scoop from @EricLewald and @JuliaLewald at #NYCCMetaverse. https://t.co/ibIKOK1hEp pic.twitter.com/UBfb9fY5js

— ABRAMS Books (@ABRAMSbooks) October 17, 2020

Wild Minds: The Artists and Rivalries That Inspired the Golden Age of Animation
by Reid Mitenbuler
Non-Fiction & Cartoons / Grove/Atlantic
Published: December 1 2020

“Silly Rabbit, Trix Are For Kids!” Well is that also true about cartoons? With Wild Minds Reid Mitenbule debunks the the “cartoons began as children’s entertainment.” Cel by cel this is American animation. “The vivid and untold story of the Golden Age of classic animation and the often larger-than-life artists who created some of the most iconic cartoon characters of the twentieth century. Wild Minds is an ode to our colorful past and to the creative energy that later inspired The Simpsons, South Park, and BoJack Horseman.”

“Exhaustive & highly entertaining… @ReidMitenbuler goes wide & deep in surveying the talented, sometimes eccentric, & often irascible artists who developed, nurtured, & transformed the medium [of animation].”

Great review of WILD MINDS in the @csmonitor!https://t.co/sDvWEhMNnO

— Grove Atlantic (@groveatlantic) January 15, 2021

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Sammy Younan is the affable host of My Summer Lair: think NPR’s Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.

New Book Alert Tags:Books, Reading is FUNdamental, Science-Fiction

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