Palookaville: Seth and the Art of Graphic Autobiography

by Tom Smart

Tom Smart's Seth and the Art of Graphic Autobiography examines the construction self-identity and the wafer-thin distinction between fiction and autobiography in Canadian cartoonist Seth's Palookaville series of graphic novels.

Genres: Nonfiction, Graphic Novels

96 pages, Paperback

Published October 15, 2016

Reviews

[Dominick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an odd little book (Smart describes it as an "essay" in the acknowledgements). It focuses on stories in Palookaville, as the title indicates, but it devotes a good chunk of space to Clyde Fans, which isn't autobiographical except perhaps in the sense that Simon bears something of a physical resemblance to Seth, and Seth's characteristic interest in the past and its attractions/dangers is paramount. It's not even fictionalized autobiography, as is. Regardless, Smart has some insightful things to say about Seth's work, in a casual, observational sort of way, as this really isn't also scholarly comics criticism (it doesn't cite a single work other than Palookaville). Smart's opinion son Seth are informed (if occasionally odd, as in his reiterated opinion that the letters printed in the comic are fakes written by Seth himself--not impossible, of course, but Smart reports that Seth directly denied this) and insightful, so anyone interested in Seth's work might want to check this out.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

A concise introduction to the world of cartoonist Seth. If you're already familiar with Seth's Palookaville series and his work before that, this book won't tell you what you don't already know or haven't noticed already. But that's another way of saying it's an accurate summary of Seth's work. In arguing his case for Seth as a cartoonist and innovator of first rank, Smart's prose occasionally overheats unnecessarily, as Seth's work makes a case for itself without the explanations.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having only read a little bit of Seth's work and not overly familiar with the Palookaville series, this book was an excellent dive into the author's introspective work, style and influences. Smart does an excellent job of walking the reading through the history and evolution of not just Palookaville, but also it's readers and the impressions that the series has left on them. Well laid out and illustrated with poignant examples of Seth's work. A solid read for both fans of Seth and Palookaville, or for those (like myself) who are curious to discover more about one of Canada's leading graphic artist.