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Get Naked
In the spirit of essayist David Sedaris and monologist Spalding Grey, SEAGLE and 19 emerging global cartoonists take drawn storytelling into the world of the "graphic essay." 19 stories of global attitudes about the naked body balance raw comedy, raw emotions, and raw cartooning. SEAGLE honestly chronicles his place as an undressed metaphorical fish out of water on different continents-from not recognizing a famous naked celeb in Hollywood to being naked and eaten by actual fish in Tokyo.
GET NAKED will be a trade paperback release with french flaps.
GET NAKED will be a trade paperback release with french flaps.
280 pages, Paperback
First published February 13, 2018
6 people are currently reading
407 people want to read
About the author
Steven T. Seagle
499 books50 followersSteven T. Seagle is an American writer who works in the comic book, television, film, live theater, video game, and animation industries.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
March 3, 2018
Stephen Seagle writes a series of graphical essays on getting naked in different cities around the world, mostly when visiting spas. It's an interesting premise that most Americans are too uptight to get naked in public. I happen to be one of them. But I don't need an almost 300 page graphic novel on the topic. Seagle flogs a dead horse with most of the chapters as it's the same story of visiting a spa in whatever city he's visiting.
February 7, 2018
As an American man born and raised in the Puritan states of New England, I don't often get publicly naked. And I've never really thought about why.
This series of graphic essays about what being naked means in various parts of the world is super interesting. and more personal than academic, but more informative than traumatic.
The art all skews toward indie/underground comic style, but that's super okay with me.
I recommend this for anyone looking for an unusual graphic novel read. The publishers mention that many of these essays evoke David Sedaris stories, and they're not wrong. So if that's your thing, go to your local comic store and seek out a copy.
This series of graphic essays about what being naked means in various parts of the world is super interesting. and more personal than academic, but more informative than traumatic.
The art all skews toward indie/underground comic style, but that's super okay with me.
I recommend this for anyone looking for an unusual graphic novel read. The publishers mention that many of these essays evoke David Sedaris stories, and they're not wrong. So if that's your thing, go to your local comic store and seek out a copy.
January 29, 2018
Steven T Seagle gets naked in various parts of the world – anecdotal and quite entertaining
Illustrated by a collection of artists, mainly from Denmark but also from other parts of the world, this collection is a series of anecdotes, linked by places where Steven T Seagle has got naked, usually in spa and sauna situations.
It is a curious collection, entertaining enough and probably quite weird for the American population who don't always understand what happens in other parts of the world and can be prudish about nudity, especially in public places. Original and worth a look.
Illustrated by a collection of artists, mainly from Denmark but also from other parts of the world, this collection is a series of anecdotes, linked by places where Steven T Seagle has got naked, usually in spa and sauna situations.
It is a curious collection, entertaining enough and probably quite weird for the American population who don't always understand what happens in other parts of the world and can be prudish about nudity, especially in public places. Original and worth a look.
February 6, 2018
Hmmm… This is a peculiar book, and no mistake. A comic creator gets a whole bunch of people to illustrate the different short stories he can garner from his 'career' of going from typical American 'ooh, I don't look like they do in the movies' prude to 'hey, Berlin, here's my cock if you wanna look!' spa user. There is no real examination of how a man can be so sharing and creative on the page and so tight personally, but once he's in the full swing of things the book is quite fun. The stories generally have a good aesthetic about them, although the credits are just dumped on us once and not attributed in the right, helpful place. Still, it certainly stands out as being a book with very few similar volumes from which to choose.
May 22, 2018
More travel memoir than anything else, the author has gotten naked in many countries mostly because of his affinity for swimming pools and hot saunas. Not as salacious as the title and cover imply.
The storytelling was fine, the art done by many different people, the message clear that the rest of the world handles nudity better than the US.
The storytelling was fine, the art done by many different people, the message clear that the rest of the world handles nudity better than the US.
January 31, 2021
Quick, easy read of vignettes about getting naked in foreign settings. Fun travelogues mixed with some interesting philosphy about being "naked".
July 21, 2019
This was very good! Not "humor" like its Eisner nomination claimed it was, but thoughtful and sometimes sweet comments on cultural differences around nudity as well as body image and confidence. And ayyyyyyyy *finger guns* to the comment about Armenian women
February 5, 2018
OMG! I had a lot of fun with the essays, situations and illustrations depicted on this...
February 13, 2018
I had never read a graphic essay, but this one, as it seems, was, and I enjoyed, even if at the beginning I found the topic not so interesting, but the more I read, the more I was fascinated by the different illustrators and the way they handled the story.
Non avevo mai letto un graphic essay, ma questo a quanto pare é uno dei primi e mi é piaciuto, anche se all'inizio, il fatto di essere nudi in diverse cittá non pensavo fosse un argomento poi tanto interessante, invece poi, a mano a mano che la storia si sviluppava e i diversi disegnatori ne illustravano una parte, mi sono proprio divertita.
THANKS EDELWEISS FOR THE PREVIEW!
Non avevo mai letto un graphic essay, ma questo a quanto pare é uno dei primi e mi é piaciuto, anche se all'inizio, il fatto di essere nudi in diverse cittá non pensavo fosse un argomento poi tanto interessante, invece poi, a mano a mano che la storia si sviluppava e i diversi disegnatori ne illustravano una parte, mi sono proprio divertita.
THANKS EDELWEISS FOR THE PREVIEW!
February 16, 2018
At times thoughtful, at times insanely funny, this is a wonderful comic to show the fixation on not disrobing. Filled with different styles of art and humor, my favorite was the one about swimming in the baby pool and the Czech spa experience complete with power hosing and metal cadaver-like tables. Thanks for letting me view this graphic novel just in time.
Access to review copy provided by the publisher.
Access to review copy provided by the publisher.
November 2, 2018
Stories become insanely redundant. I stopped reading after about 70 pages, and decided it wasn’t worth my time to finish it.
May 11, 2018
The premise of this book is that American comics writer, Steven Seagel, was born into a society that was once as accepting and respectful of the human body but has, since the late 1970s/early 1980s, strictly denounced nudity and even in non-religious spaces made the naked body a shameful/sinful thing to cover up as much as possible - but Steven is going to relearn the beauty and wonder of the naked human body!
That does happen, I guess, but not in a way that I think most readers will expect from the cover and a brief read of the back cover. To be fair though, the publishers did write that not all of the nakedness of this collections of graphic essays would be literal nudity. In much of the essays the nakedness refers to emotional nudity - vulnerability and openness - one might assume is difficult for the typical American.
I am not the typical American, in this sense. I grew up with southern Black-American, Italian, German, Korean, and Japanese culture (amongst some other things) very tightly intertwined in the home (thanks family for insisting I know where all I came from!) but also had the huge blessing of living in the home countries of the many different branches of my diverse fam. So many of the experiences abroad, Seagel describes were familiar to me and I was eager to see how a “regular” White-American felt about and processed these experiences the first time around. Many of Seagel’s insights are touching, and others are...stories that your friend tells you in-between commercials of your favorite show or over coffee or a strong drink after you haven’t seen each other in a while. Those are the stories I took issue with.
Many of Seagel’s essays just didn’t seem to fit - not in the sense of physical nudity NOR real emotional nakedness. A couple of the essays seemed to be working really hard to be included in this collection, and that made the reading drag. On the other hand, they also highlighted what awesome readers the other, tighter essays are. The essays where the artist really dives into the storytelling as well shine the most - obviously. My favorites were (in no particular order) Tokyo, Bern, Sydney, the Spanish city where all the people were stylized as bunnies, and of course the city in Denmark featured (which I want to say was the capital Copenhagen, but maybe was not).
This is a great collection. Which interestingly, Seagel did in partnership with The Animation Workshop in Denmark - an international school that offers degrees only in animation, graphics, and graphic storytelling! Seagel worked with a number of different artists in creating this project, and each of the artists are (or where at the time) students of the Animation Workshop. It’s interesting to see their work at play here. The styles are all very different, and some will work better for you than others, but all are worth the look in my opinion.
The final chapter “Forward” really drives home the intention of this work - a hope that we all, regardless of nationality, upbringing, look, etc. will make the steps necessary to build a future where the human form is no longer a scandalized object but once again a respected and normal part of who we all are and our communities at large. And I would like to see that to - a future where no one is ever taught to be ashamed of their body, clothed or not.
That does happen, I guess, but not in a way that I think most readers will expect from the cover and a brief read of the back cover. To be fair though, the publishers did write that not all of the nakedness of this collections of graphic essays would be literal nudity. In much of the essays the nakedness refers to emotional nudity - vulnerability and openness - one might assume is difficult for the typical American.
I am not the typical American, in this sense. I grew up with southern Black-American, Italian, German, Korean, and Japanese culture (amongst some other things) very tightly intertwined in the home (thanks family for insisting I know where all I came from!) but also had the huge blessing of living in the home countries of the many different branches of my diverse fam. So many of the experiences abroad, Seagel describes were familiar to me and I was eager to see how a “regular” White-American felt about and processed these experiences the first time around. Many of Seagel’s insights are touching, and others are...stories that your friend tells you in-between commercials of your favorite show or over coffee or a strong drink after you haven’t seen each other in a while. Those are the stories I took issue with.
Many of Seagel’s essays just didn’t seem to fit - not in the sense of physical nudity NOR real emotional nakedness. A couple of the essays seemed to be working really hard to be included in this collection, and that made the reading drag. On the other hand, they also highlighted what awesome readers the other, tighter essays are. The essays where the artist really dives into the storytelling as well shine the most - obviously. My favorites were (in no particular order) Tokyo, Bern, Sydney, the Spanish city where all the people were stylized as bunnies, and of course the city in Denmark featured (which I want to say was the capital Copenhagen, but maybe was not).
This is a great collection. Which interestingly, Seagel did in partnership with The Animation Workshop in Denmark - an international school that offers degrees only in animation, graphics, and graphic storytelling! Seagel worked with a number of different artists in creating this project, and each of the artists are (or where at the time) students of the Animation Workshop. It’s interesting to see their work at play here. The styles are all very different, and some will work better for you than others, but all are worth the look in my opinion.
The final chapter “Forward” really drives home the intention of this work - a hope that we all, regardless of nationality, upbringing, look, etc. will make the steps necessary to build a future where the human form is no longer a scandalized object but once again a respected and normal part of who we all are and our communities at large. And I would like to see that to - a future where no one is ever taught to be ashamed of their body, clothed or not.
May 16, 2019
There are a lot of books that I enjoy, but not nearly as many that really make me think. This collection of graphic essays by Steven Seagle explores the concept of nudity throughout the world from the perspective of an American and manages to make some very cogent arguments for Americans to loosen up on the topic. It's a journey, and each of the essays tackles it in a manner that is part travelogue, part autobiography. Several are very funny (especially one about a phantom scent and an airport bathroom), and all of them build into a fairly strong statement. The art isn't nearly as strong - each essay is done by a different artist, and the styles tend toward the abstract, which honestly considering the topic may be for the best. There is a lot of nudity here, but the focus is never on sexuality.
I picked this up because of its Eisner nomination and I can understand why it received it. I'd give it a strong 4.5 stars, with only the inconsistent art dinging it. The stories are worth reading on their own, although the presentation merging the art and text makes this work in a manner I don't think any other format could have provided. Highly recommended.
I picked this up because of its Eisner nomination and I can understand why it received it. I'd give it a strong 4.5 stars, with only the inconsistent art dinging it. The stories are worth reading on their own, although the presentation merging the art and text makes this work in a manner I don't think any other format could have provided. Highly recommended.
August 31, 2024
I enjoyed this book a lot.
It's a "graphic essay," that is, it's a lot of text with illustrations, as opposed to the normal graphic novel which is mostly art with dialogue.
There's nineteen stories where Steven talks about situations getting naked in front of others. A few are from his childhood but most involve going to spas, saunas, pools in various countries he's visited for his work. So there's the challenge not just of getting naked but also a language barrier.
He is very open about his insecurities and body image issues, something most of us in the U.S. can relate to, where nudity is discouraged and something to be hidden.
And over time, as he continues to enjoy activities where one must be naked in front of others, he overcomes those insecurities, becomes more comfortable disrobing and being naked in front of others.
Each story is depicted by a different artist so the mood and style will vary across the book.
I've also struggled with body image issues and working to overcome them and also feel more comfortable being naked around others so this book resonated a lot with me.
It's a "graphic essay," that is, it's a lot of text with illustrations, as opposed to the normal graphic novel which is mostly art with dialogue.
There's nineteen stories where Steven talks about situations getting naked in front of others. A few are from his childhood but most involve going to spas, saunas, pools in various countries he's visited for his work. So there's the challenge not just of getting naked but also a language barrier.
He is very open about his insecurities and body image issues, something most of us in the U.S. can relate to, where nudity is discouraged and something to be hidden.
And over time, as he continues to enjoy activities where one must be naked in front of others, he overcomes those insecurities, becomes more comfortable disrobing and being naked in front of others.
Each story is depicted by a different artist so the mood and style will vary across the book.
I've also struggled with body image issues and working to overcome them and also feel more comfortable being naked around others so this book resonated a lot with me.
August 10, 2020
I loved this book and it’s message, I personally have never subscribed to America’s taboo feelings towards nudity.
If I didn’t have skin whiter than snow I’d be a nudist most of the time, but wandering around my house after a shower when no one is home will have to do.
In Finland, Japan, Denmark, almost the entire world, they have a much healthier relationship with nudity than the US, we’re the black sheep.
Literally everyone, every single person is born with a body, and we as a country made it a mission to make people feel ashamed about that, or self conscious about it.
In Finland I went to the Sauna with people I had only know for a week, young, old, mostly men but a toddler joined us for a while so she could be with her dad.
Why can’t this be accepted in the United States?
This book follows the nude awakening of one man who went from never nude, to always nude in spirit.
I highly recommend this book and I highly recommend getting casually naked with your friends.
Sauna anyone?
If I didn’t have skin whiter than snow I’d be a nudist most of the time, but wandering around my house after a shower when no one is home will have to do.
In Finland, Japan, Denmark, almost the entire world, they have a much healthier relationship with nudity than the US, we’re the black sheep.
Literally everyone, every single person is born with a body, and we as a country made it a mission to make people feel ashamed about that, or self conscious about it.
In Finland I went to the Sauna with people I had only know for a week, young, old, mostly men but a toddler joined us for a while so she could be with her dad.
Why can’t this be accepted in the United States?
This book follows the nude awakening of one man who went from never nude, to always nude in spirit.
I highly recommend this book and I highly recommend getting casually naked with your friends.
Sauna anyone?
August 11, 2020
L’été, le soleil, les piscines et la mer nous poussent naturellement à nous confronter au corps et à la nudité plus ou moins complète. Alors que l’on a tous nos complexes et nos craintes du jugement et de juger, je découvre ce très bon comics de Steven t. Seagle et 19 dessinateurs sur l’expérience d’un américain, élevé dans un univers où se mettre nu semble un énorme tabou, face à la nudité dans les lieux publics (piscines municipales, spa, vestiaires...) un peu partout dans le monde.
Plein d’anecdotes et de moments comiques tout en faisant ressortir les différences de perceptions en fonction des cultures. Et pour finir, un éloge du Danemark face à la pudibonderie nord américaine !
Plein d’anecdotes et de moments comiques tout en faisant ressortir les différences de perceptions en fonction des cultures. Et pour finir, un éloge du Danemark face à la pudibonderie nord américaine !
October 22, 2025
4.5 stars. I picked this up randomly after seeing the cover on the Image Comics directory. Knowing little else, I was quite surprised by the sincerity and positivity with which Seagle presents his primary thesis. This collection, illustrated by 19 different cartoonists from around the world, is part snapshot memoir, part travelogue, and part anthropological observation. It features a wide range of stories that include the central theme to a varying degree; while several involve foreign saunas, there are also some truly specific and unusual experiences. Overall, I found Seagle's premise refreshing and admire the creative (and sometimes humorous) ways it was expressed in this book!
February 18, 2018
This book was interesting, and the art style was quite varied, but it wasn't really interesting in the way that I had hoped. There were several parts that had some really engaging and interesting parts about nudity in different parts of the world. There were also several parts that were really only tangentially related to the topic, and I didn't find those sections very engaging. Not quite the deep dive about nudity I was expecting, but as a decent enjoyable surface look it was fairly enjoyable.
September 16, 2022
unny, insightful, and as emotionally bare as the subject matter
Each of these illustrated essays delightfully covers a self-depreciating journey from being body-shamed to body-positive. I found the varying comic styles to do a great job of capturing the mood and tone of that particular essay. The great constant in all of them was the narrator slowly overcoming embarrassment and personal inhibitions about being naked. And yet, it wasn't a single transition but a discussion of the process of growing comfortable over years and exposures to many cultures. Definitely worth your time and money.
Each of these illustrated essays delightfully covers a self-depreciating journey from being body-shamed to body-positive. I found the varying comic styles to do a great job of capturing the mood and tone of that particular essay. The great constant in all of them was the narrator slowly overcoming embarrassment and personal inhibitions about being naked. And yet, it wasn't a single transition but a discussion of the process of growing comfortable over years and exposures to many cultures. Definitely worth your time and money.
April 23, 2018
I really enjoyed the combination of 1 writer working with 19 artists, giving this book a consistent voice to tie it together but some variety to keep it interesting. These essays were sometimes funny, sometimes interesting, sometimes moving, and just occasionally a little bland or repetitive. I found it a little weak when he strayed from talking about actually nudity to the metaphorical nakedness of emotional vulnerability.
February 5, 2020
This graphic novel is made up of 19 essays written by Seagle and his experiences and observations towards global attitudes around nudity. Each essay is illustrated by a different artist, giving each story its own unique voice in this collection of stories. I love how different each experience and artistic styles are from each other. I also love learning about different cultures, and was a very unique way to learn.
September 14, 2020
Graphic essays. Lol, reeeeaaaaalll graphic. I love the idea of non-fiction graphic novels, and I have enjoyed almost any one that I have seen because it is a rarity.
The cover is ugly. If the Title were not so provocative
I would never have looked inside.
But I did look,
and NONE of the art stood out to me.
EVEN SO,
the idea behind this book is brilliant, and reading this was paradigm shifting.
The cover is ugly. If the Title were not so provocative
I would never have looked inside.
But I did look,
and NONE of the art stood out to me.
EVEN SO,
the idea behind this book is brilliant, and reading this was paradigm shifting.
August 9, 2024
I was actually really pleasantly surprised by this. I didn't quite know what I would be getting when I saw it at the library, but was generally intrigued.
Because I read this while feeling a little under the weather, it took me a couple of chapters to realise that all of the stories are by Seagle with art by various people. I just wasn't connecting the dots, but once I did it made a lot more sense.
And because of the art, the nudity of the title is overwhelmingly cartoony and honestly, incidental to some of the stories. But I do love the overall message.
Because I read this while feeling a little under the weather, it took me a couple of chapters to realise that all of the stories are by Seagle with art by various people. I just wasn't connecting the dots, but once I did it made a lot more sense.
And because of the art, the nudity of the title is overwhelmingly cartoony and honestly, incidental to some of the stories. But I do love the overall message.
March 11, 2020
Steven hits all the feels and neuroses on this book. I laughed out loud reading through as I've either experienced the setting or felt the feelings. I highly recommend this book to anyone who's gotten naked in places you felt weird then 2 minutes later you knew it meant nothing... Go out and read this book right now!
May 11, 2020
An interesting look at how one's attitudes about their body can change over the years, and some frank discussion of how American attitudes differ from the rest of the world, I enjoyed most of this book. I feel like it could have been cut down by about 25%, though, especially near the end, where there is less deep thinking going on.
February 10, 2019
The idea was an intriguing one (essays about attitudes to nudity) and the artwork from multiple artists (mostly Danish) is great, but in practice the essays mainly revolve around Seagle going swimming and to saunas in different cities around the world and they're just not that interesting.
October 14, 2018
Cool idea, graphic essays around conceptual and physical nakedness.
January 4, 2019
An interesting story about different cultures views on nudity and the human form.
July 17, 2019
Well done and I liked the primary message (body acceptance, etc.)...but surprisingly boring.
February 14, 2020
Steven's stories are hilarious and the art is interesting!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews