Beanworld Volume 4: Hoka Hoka Burb'l Burb'l

Beanworld #4

by Larry Marder, Jennifer L. Holm (Introduction)

The most peculiar comic book experience returns in an all-new volume--Beanworld Volume 4: Hoka Hoka Burb'l Burb'l! The Boom'r Band coaxes a new healing power out of Chow, leading to a visit from Dreamishness's relatives--the Windy Songsterinos--who bring their gift of rain. The storm causes great changes to Mr. Spook, Beanish and the Pod'l'pool Cuties. Marder's deceptively simple artwork illustrates a self-contained ecological fantasy realm with its own unique rules and lingo. Beanworld has delighted readers from grade school to grad school for more than a generation, earning a spot on the New York Times Graphic Books Best Sellers List.

"I have yet to find a comic book as challenging and inventive and downright fun as Beanworld."
-Scott McCloud, author of Understanding Comics and The Sculptor

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction

152 pages, Hardcover

First published July 4, 2017

About the author

Larry Marder is the creator of Tales of the Beanworld.

Reviews

[Mark Schlatter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a volume that raises many more questions than it answers. In part, that's expected --- a typical plot in Beanworld isn't a crisis for some individual, it's an exploration into just how one piece of this very strange world works. Also, Marder makes it clear that we're approaching a change in Beanworld (as we start the "Summer Saga"), and that alterations and new experiences will be coming fast and furious. But, as a result, it's hard to review this as a book in itself. I shared the frustration of many of the characters as they struggled to understand what was going on (and there's a trippy transcendence sequence that I think I'm just misreading).

Still, I'm just very happy to get new Beanworld, and I'm hoping the next volume appears soon.

[Jason Bergman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up reading Beanworld in its first incarnation from Eclipse. The final issue came out when I was all of 15. I read and re-read all of those over and over again hoping that some day new books would come out. And sure enough, a brand new volume came out when my daughter was just learning to read. So we read through them all together (several times, actually). But then another break.

Finally we have a new volume, and it's just as good as all the others! Sure, it doesn't answer many questions, and it raises new ones, and that's just what I love about Beanworld. And so does my daughter, who's now nine years old. She'd read this twice before I had a chance to start it.

I love Beanworld. If it takes another seven years for a new book, then so be it. I'll be waiting.

[Robert Monk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, Beanworld. How does one describe these weird books? They're about odd little creatures living in a two-dimensional, non-Euclidean world. Plot? There's not much of that to be found here. Mostly meditations on the interconnectedness of things. They're also charming as hell and very readable.

Marder's life had gotten in the way of him putting out a new Beanworld book in quite a while (he tells the story in the introduction, if you're interested), and whenever there's a big gap in a series I come back to it with a bit of hesitation. Will the creator be able to pick up where they left off? As I can't imagine many people starting in on Beanworld with number 4, I'd guess most people looking at this book want to know the answer to that particular question. So, from my standpoint, the answer is yes. I like Beanworld a lot, and I liked this book a lot. We get more tidbits about how Beanworld works, more in the ongoing story of Beanishness and Dreamishness, more about the Cuties, all told in the desired childlike style. Good stuff.

[Allen Rubinstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

You just can beat the wonderful nonsense of Beanworld. It's all going somewhere. I don't know where or why or what, but I know I can't tear my eyes away.