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Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund
This gorgeous art book celebrates the work and legacy of Barbara Shermund, one of the first female cartoonists for humor and lifestyle magazines in the United States, including The New Yorker and Esquire.
Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins doubles as an official biography and coffee table art collection honoring the life and art of pioneering cartoonist Barbara Shermund, an unheralded early master of magazine cartooning whose career spanned the heyday of American magazines from the 1920s–1960s. Her sharp wit and loose style boldly tapped the zeitgeist of first-wave feminism with vivid characters that were alive and astute. Shermund’s women spoke their minds about sex, marriage, and society; smoked cigarettes and drank; and poked fun at everything in an era when it was not common to see young women doing so. Shermund left behind a body of work that was ahead of its time and remains insightful, witty, relevant, and contemporary.
As one of the first women cartoonists to work for The New Yorker the year of its launch in 1925, she created nine covers and more than 600 cartoons for the magazine, in addition to countless spot illustrations, giving the nascent publication its unique visual brand. Shermund later became a mainstay at Esquire; contributed to Life, Colliers, Judge, and more; had a syndicated newspaper cartoon published by King Features; and illustrated a variety of books. In 1950, Shermund was among the first three women to be accepted as a member of the male-dominated National Cartoonist Society. A compelling facet of Shermund’s work is her frequent nods to queer audiences, which appeared in her work more than that of any of her contemporary New Yorker cartoonists. There are indications in her personal files that she also may have been queer, including love letters and other personal archives.
Readers will discover Shermund’s unique and vibrant life and art and gain an understanding of how women’s place in the history of cartooning has been controlled and sublimated by greater societal and cultural allowances. Through close readings, archival research, reproductions of original art, correspondence and photographs, this volume uncovers and celebrates a trailblazing female magazine cartoonist, and rightfully places her in the canon of cartoon art history.
Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins doubles as an official biography and coffee table art collection honoring the life and art of pioneering cartoonist Barbara Shermund, an unheralded early master of magazine cartooning whose career spanned the heyday of American magazines from the 1920s–1960s. Her sharp wit and loose style boldly tapped the zeitgeist of first-wave feminism with vivid characters that were alive and astute. Shermund’s women spoke their minds about sex, marriage, and society; smoked cigarettes and drank; and poked fun at everything in an era when it was not common to see young women doing so. Shermund left behind a body of work that was ahead of its time and remains insightful, witty, relevant, and contemporary.
As one of the first women cartoonists to work for The New Yorker the year of its launch in 1925, she created nine covers and more than 600 cartoons for the magazine, in addition to countless spot illustrations, giving the nascent publication its unique visual brand. Shermund later became a mainstay at Esquire; contributed to Life, Colliers, Judge, and more; had a syndicated newspaper cartoon published by King Features; and illustrated a variety of books. In 1950, Shermund was among the first three women to be accepted as a member of the male-dominated National Cartoonist Society. A compelling facet of Shermund’s work is her frequent nods to queer audiences, which appeared in her work more than that of any of her contemporary New Yorker cartoonists. There are indications in her personal files that she also may have been queer, including love letters and other personal archives.
Readers will discover Shermund’s unique and vibrant life and art and gain an understanding of how women’s place in the history of cartooning has been controlled and sublimated by greater societal and cultural allowances. Through close readings, archival research, reproductions of original art, correspondence and photographs, this volume uncovers and celebrates a trailblazing female magazine cartoonist, and rightfully places her in the canon of cartoon art history.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published November 19, 2024
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November 29, 2024There are few books that are as mesmerizing and important as TELL ME A STORY WHERE THE BAD GIRL WINS. It brings to the forefront a woman and cartoonist who many people would be totally unfamiliar with. But once you finish the pages of this amazing tribute, you will feel as though you have known Barbara Shermund for all your life.
Caitlin McGurk has created the ultimately biography of an extraordinary lady, who was one of the first female cartoonists to make her mark in the pages of the New Yorker magazine back in the 1920’s. It was when the New Yorker magazine was starting out in the 1920’s, that they were looking for cartoonists to add that extra flair to the issues. Shermund fit the bill and more, with her witty cartoons that soon became a staple of the issues going forward. In fact her works appeared on nine covers of the New Yorker, and were seen in more than 600 cartoons inside the magazine. Often, there were several of her cartoons in one particular issue.
Shermund once admitted that she was drawing as soon as she could hold a pencil, and at eight years old, had one of her drawings printed in the San Francisco Chronicle. Life was often challenging for her. Her mother died at not quite forty years of ag,e at the time when the influenza plague was raging havoc around the world. Barbara was nineteen at the time she died.
Shermund was in many ways a woman of mystery at times. Her personal life was most private, but her drawings more than compensated for this, putting her out there in the world for readers to enjoy. Besides drawing for the New Yorker, she also was published in the pages of Esquire magazine, when it was first beginning as well. She also was found in Life magazine, Colliers, Judge, and a syndicated newspaper cartoon Shermund’s Sallies, that was distributed through King Features. Plus she was hired to create illustrations for major products of the time such as Pepsi, Frigidaire, and movie posters for such films as Du Barry Was A Lady with Gene Kelly and Lucille Ball.
Most of her cartoons featured women, but there were also many with men, some that would be noted effeminate, offering a subtle nod to the queer world, and there were occasional rumors she may have been gay even though she had been married more than once.
The sad aspect of all this, is that when she died in 1978 and was cremated, no one ever came forth to claim the ashes until her niece came forward in 2019 to claim them, and see they were finally interred beside her mother in a cemetery in Colma California.
Caitlin McGurk’s research and dedication to this groundbreaking cartoonist is the ultimate act of dedication and tribute to a true pioneer in the cartooning world. She wasn’t a bad girl by any means, but this book is certainly a winner in every sense of the word.
Caitlin McGurk has created the ultimately biography of an extraordinary lady, who was one of the first female cartoonists to make her mark in the pages of the New Yorker magazine back in the 1920’s. It was when the New Yorker magazine was starting out in the 1920’s, that they were looking for cartoonists to add that extra flair to the issues. Shermund fit the bill and more, with her witty cartoons that soon became a staple of the issues going forward. In fact her works appeared on nine covers of the New Yorker, and were seen in more than 600 cartoons inside the magazine. Often, there were several of her cartoons in one particular issue.
Shermund once admitted that she was drawing as soon as she could hold a pencil, and at eight years old, had one of her drawings printed in the San Francisco Chronicle. Life was often challenging for her. Her mother died at not quite forty years of ag,e at the time when the influenza plague was raging havoc around the world. Barbara was nineteen at the time she died.
Shermund was in many ways a woman of mystery at times. Her personal life was most private, but her drawings more than compensated for this, putting her out there in the world for readers to enjoy. Besides drawing for the New Yorker, she also was published in the pages of Esquire magazine, when it was first beginning as well. She also was found in Life magazine, Colliers, Judge, and a syndicated newspaper cartoon Shermund’s Sallies, that was distributed through King Features. Plus she was hired to create illustrations for major products of the time such as Pepsi, Frigidaire, and movie posters for such films as Du Barry Was A Lady with Gene Kelly and Lucille Ball.
Most of her cartoons featured women, but there were also many with men, some that would be noted effeminate, offering a subtle nod to the queer world, and there were occasional rumors she may have been gay even though she had been married more than once.
The sad aspect of all this, is that when she died in 1978 and was cremated, no one ever came forth to claim the ashes until her niece came forward in 2019 to claim them, and see they were finally interred beside her mother in a cemetery in Colma California.
Caitlin McGurk’s research and dedication to this groundbreaking cartoonist is the ultimate act of dedication and tribute to a true pioneer in the cartooning world. She wasn’t a bad girl by any means, but this book is certainly a winner in every sense of the word.
April 19, 2025
What a marvelous book.
October 1, 2024
My thanks to NetGalley and Fantagraphics Books for an advance sampler of this biography and art book featuring one of the female trailblazers in the art of cartoons, who is finally getting the acknowledgment this artist richly deserves.
I grew up reading comics, cartoons, and the Sunday funnies. Newspapers used to be full of them, and so did magazines. I came to appreciate the work of single panel cartoonists as they had so much to do. They had to create a piece of art that told a story, with set up and punchline, sometimes with words, sometimes without. Even the bad jokes still had something too them, and maybe they weren't bad, I was too young, or naïve. Cartoons are starting to make a bit of a comeback, books are starting to appear about cartoons, and it history though many of this people still are unknown. I had not been aware of the pioneering works of Barbara Shermund, who started cartooning for The New Yorker in its first year. Nor the interesting life she lead. Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund is written by Caitlin McGurk a professor and curator, and tells of this woman her life, and of course her art.
I was granted a sample by Fantagraphics, which tells of Barbara Shermund's time in New York city, establishing herself. Around this time a new idea for a magazine was begun, with a lot of hope, a lot of talent but not much money. This magazine was The New Yorker, and was about the city, the culture and the people. Many of the articles came from friends of the publisher, and people who were known, but not well known. To fill the magazines cartoons were needed, and Shermund's work caught their eye. Shermund's sex was not a problem, and soon her work started appearing in The New Yorker. Most of her cartoons dealt with women discussing fashion, men, dating, men, and shopping along with a few mentions of men. Barbara Shermund drew flappers, and the art seems to capture a moment where women were testing limits and ideas, especially in the captions she wrote.
The book is both a biography and collection of Barbara Shermund's cartoons, some of which must have confused a few people and delighted others. Shermund drew male characters that seemed to be gay men, and if the art didn't give it away, the captions might have. They are told in such a way that maybe the idea slipped past most of the populous of the time, but now look rather obvious. This might tie in with Shermund's personal life, which was mentioned but not really investigated in the sampler. I enjoyed what I read, and enjoyed the cartoons. Not being an artist I can really describe them well, but they have that look of old advertising and color, but the women seem so much more free in what they say and what they think. Even now, these women seem to see a future where they can be who they want to be, not the way they are treated by politicians.
I will be picking this book up when it comes out, as what I read I really enjoyed, and like I said the cartoons are very good. Funny, different, dated, and yet there seems such a possible future for women here. Recommended for cartoon fans, fans of women artists who have gone under the radar, and supporters of Fantagraphics for creating books like this.
I grew up reading comics, cartoons, and the Sunday funnies. Newspapers used to be full of them, and so did magazines. I came to appreciate the work of single panel cartoonists as they had so much to do. They had to create a piece of art that told a story, with set up and punchline, sometimes with words, sometimes without. Even the bad jokes still had something too them, and maybe they weren't bad, I was too young, or naïve. Cartoons are starting to make a bit of a comeback, books are starting to appear about cartoons, and it history though many of this people still are unknown. I had not been aware of the pioneering works of Barbara Shermund, who started cartooning for The New Yorker in its first year. Nor the interesting life she lead. Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund is written by Caitlin McGurk a professor and curator, and tells of this woman her life, and of course her art.
I was granted a sample by Fantagraphics, which tells of Barbara Shermund's time in New York city, establishing herself. Around this time a new idea for a magazine was begun, with a lot of hope, a lot of talent but not much money. This magazine was The New Yorker, and was about the city, the culture and the people. Many of the articles came from friends of the publisher, and people who were known, but not well known. To fill the magazines cartoons were needed, and Shermund's work caught their eye. Shermund's sex was not a problem, and soon her work started appearing in The New Yorker. Most of her cartoons dealt with women discussing fashion, men, dating, men, and shopping along with a few mentions of men. Barbara Shermund drew flappers, and the art seems to capture a moment where women were testing limits and ideas, especially in the captions she wrote.
The book is both a biography and collection of Barbara Shermund's cartoons, some of which must have confused a few people and delighted others. Shermund drew male characters that seemed to be gay men, and if the art didn't give it away, the captions might have. They are told in such a way that maybe the idea slipped past most of the populous of the time, but now look rather obvious. This might tie in with Shermund's personal life, which was mentioned but not really investigated in the sampler. I enjoyed what I read, and enjoyed the cartoons. Not being an artist I can really describe them well, but they have that look of old advertising and color, but the women seem so much more free in what they say and what they think. Even now, these women seem to see a future where they can be who they want to be, not the way they are treated by politicians.
I will be picking this book up when it comes out, as what I read I really enjoyed, and like I said the cartoons are very good. Funny, different, dated, and yet there seems such a possible future for women here. Recommended for cartoon fans, fans of women artists who have gone under the radar, and supporters of Fantagraphics for creating books like this.
December 20, 2025
Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Art and Life of Barbara Shermund (2024) by Ohio State University Comics professor and curator Caitlin McGurk was the winner of the Eisner 2025 award for Best Comic-Related Work. It is a splendid--no, let me say resplendent, to match the high style!!--coffee table book, gorgeously (shall we say sumptuously?)--impressively produced by Fantagraphics. Who is she, you ask? Shemund was one of the (no surprise) first, rare women cartoonists of The New Yorker, creating snarky, slightly naughty "bad little rich girl" comics that helped to set the tone for New Yorker humor right from the beginning. She was also a prolific illustrator, and did a lot of advertising work. For tone, think: Dorothy Parker, but as a cartoonist. A satire on lithe, indolent young women hanging out with each other and commenting on the world.
The title of the book comes from a cartoon where a little girl sits on her (rich) grandfather's lap and asks him that question. These "bad" girls are primarily mischievous, it seems, not truly BAD, whatever that may mean in any era, but there is both a touch of first wave feminism in it. Men would seem to be superfluous, as easily manipulated as the furniture. Well, several men are depicted as effeminate, which may be part of the nods to queer culture you can find throughout, though it would not be all that pronounced during these decades.
Okay, I did not read this entire book, but I read the introduction and conclusion and all the cartoons within. Fun and impressive and gorgeous.
The title of the book comes from a cartoon where a little girl sits on her (rich) grandfather's lap and asks him that question. These "bad" girls are primarily mischievous, it seems, not truly BAD, whatever that may mean in any era, but there is both a touch of first wave feminism in it. Men would seem to be superfluous, as easily manipulated as the furniture. Well, several men are depicted as effeminate, which may be part of the nods to queer culture you can find throughout, though it would not be all that pronounced during these decades.
Okay, I did not read this entire book, but I read the introduction and conclusion and all the cartoons within. Fun and impressive and gorgeous.
December 29, 2025
I'm always glad to learn about smart, capable women who have been lost to history. Barbara Shermund was a cartoonist who helped set the tone for the visuals in the brand new magazine, The New Yorker in the 1920's. She was a free spirit and an early feminist.
Because this is a coffee table sized book filled with her cartoons and illustrations, it's enjoyable just to flip through. It's also a well researched biography. I enjoyed getting to know Barbara through this book.
Because this is a coffee table sized book filled with her cartoons and illustrations, it's enjoyable just to flip through. It's also a well researched biography. I enjoyed getting to know Barbara through this book.
January 25, 2025
This book is beautiful. Oversized with all the well heeled aspect I expect from Fantagraphics. The research is interesting and I was very happy to learn a great deal about an amazing cartoonist of yesteryear who has sadly been celebrated too infrequently. Thank you for making this wonderful book.
August 25, 2025
Great coffee table book here. Another case where I was unfamiliar with the subject matter, Barbara Shermund, one of the New Yorker's first women cartoonists. This is a great, dare I say definitive collection of her work. Great to thumb through everything. Exhaustive research too.
March 1, 2025
An absolutely delightful biography of the (little known?) artist Barbara Shermund that is graced with pages and pages of reproductions of her illustrations and cartoons.
December 30, 2025
With a blind choice, sometimes you win and sometimes you don't finish the book, because you lose interest in the topic.
January 3, 2026
I loved reading about this first woman cartoonist who was very progressive. This book displays her art work that was published.
July 18, 2025
I found myself laughing at her art while at the same time being furious that I’d never heard of this Dorothy Parker contemporary. What a fascinating person.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews