Will Eisner Reader

by Will Eisner

Four extraordinary autobiographical stories from a legend in American comics. A collection of brilliant short-story gems, including "A Sunset in Sunshine City"―an ode to memory and nostalgia inspired by Eisner's transition to life in Florida after his "retirement" in 1985.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Humor

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

William Erwin Eisner was an American cartoonist, writer, and entrepreneur. He was one of the earliest cartoonists to work in the American comic book industry, and his series The Spirit (1940–1952) was noted for its experiments in content and form. In 1978, he popularized the term "graphic novel" with the publication of his book A Contract with God. He was an early contributor to formal comics studies with his book Comics and Sequential Art (1985). The Eisner Award was named in his honor and is given to recognize achievements each year in the comics medium; he was one of the three inaugural inductees to the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like most comic fans I started out with SH comics; I did not discover Will Eisner until I went to college. One of my sociology professors put several GN of his on an extra credit reading list - and I have been a fan ever since. What makes Will Eisner unique is his ability to look under the surface of appearances; to find that dialogical connection between 'I and Thou' that Martin Buber defined so we'll. Highest recommendation.

[Phrodrick slowed his growing backlog · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you want the best in graphic storytelling, Will Eisner

One of my touch stones for graphic story-telling, is Will Eisner. The Will Eisner Reader is a reason why. Here in are collected 8 selections from the master. They range from fully plotted stories like A Sunset in Sunshine City and The Long Hit to a series of one page comics built around the theme of The Telephone. There is a small amount of nudity, the violence is violent and some themes can be adult.
The Telephone is a series of one page vignettes. The master demonstrates how nearly he can draw complete stories with almost no dialogue. His people are very expressive and their moods and reactions need never be explained. People are rarely perfect athletic specimens but Will is trying to say somethings about the universal ‘us’.

The most deliberately sophisticated selection is The Appeal a re-imagining of Kafka’s The Trial. Without giving away too much: a central theme in many of the comic books of his time is the unexpected reversal and the potentially heavy hand of justice. This selection assumes the reader to know Kafka’s original and be clever as the dialogue.

Added to the end is a preview of another book, To the Heart of the Storm. Those who whine about the appearance of certain themes in modern comics might want to re-read some of the golden oldies. Social justice, humanism and various forms of sloganeering have been parts of the comic book from very early on. Eisner had strong opinions about how we should treat each other and is not hesitant to speak to this notion without capes or men in tights. Publication dates for these stories run from 1985 to 1991. All at some level or another are about human dignity even where they jest about human foibles.

[Mickey Bits · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will Eisner needs no extra kudos from me. He invented this genre. This is an interesting collection of seven stories by Eisner. He really captures the zeitgeist of the eras he illustrates. And you'll notice that his stories are virtually devoid of swearing, egregious violence or sex, etc. Not that there's anything wrong with either of those things (in a book) but it's often the cheap way to hook readers.

Eisner's work contains the same emotion and pathos without resorting to things that would make it inappropriate for children. It doesn't become dated, even when it's past its prime. I look forward to introducing my children and future students to Eisner's work.

[Mary Overton]

"After a lifetime of anonymity spent in the middle Bronx - an uneventful youth spent in concrete school yards where he was a 'left-out' of choose-up games - and after 25 years as an unnoticed clerk at the city's parole board, Max Million, a lonely bachelor, finally retired. Whereupon he applied for a license as a private investigator." pg. 40

Opening line for a whimsical tale, "Detective Story: or Necromancy in the Bronx" ... My favorite of 7 light stories.

I also enjoyed "The Long Hit" about a mob hit-man's botched job, and "A Sunset in Sunshine City," about an unexpected turn-about late in a man's life. "The Appeal" is a sequel to Kafka's "The Trial." It inspired me to reread "The Trial."

[Paula · Rating 2 out of 5]

Because I love the graphic novel format, I thought I'd check out some of the works of "the grand old man of comics" (as stated in the "About the Author" section in the back). I can see how these works would have been groundbreaking when they first came out. The way Eisner composed some of the pages, especially in the story "The Long Hit", were interesting and efficient, telling a lot of story in a small space. But ultimately I didn't didn't really enjoy these stories. That had to do with the content and the characters, not the format.

[Patty · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is hard to come up with quotations from graphic novels and so I am not even going to try.

I have had this book on my shelves for at least five years. It is only 96 pages and I am a fast reader. However, I never read this until I put it up on PaperBack Swap. Then, once someone wanted it, I decided to read it before shipping it to Lincoln, Nebraska. It was good and I should have gotten to it sooner.

Eisner was one of the earliest American cartoonists and I have learned that I have him to blame for the fact we now have graphic novels. He popularized the term in the late 1970’s. (I wish folks had used a work other than “novel” for this type of literature.) There is an award for creative achievement in American comic books named after Mr. Eisner. Given all of this, the least I could do is read one of his books. Graphic novels are an important part of public libraries’ collections thanks to people like Eisner.

I may try to find something else by Eisner, but at least I have encountered his work once. I hope the person getting the book will enjoy it as much as I did.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will Eisner’s reputation needs little help from me, but this review is to say, I’ve finally read some Eisner and I found it lived up to the billing. This is essentially a graphic novel short story collection, featuring a variety of tales and genres, all of which demonstrate Eisner’s mastery of storytelling, his insights, and of course his art.

[Richard Joya · Rating 4 out of 5]

great dark humor.

[Juan Fuentes · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5

Historias cortas con el estilo particular de Eisner.

[Debra Golden · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and humorous read and a trip back in time, too.
It was nice to 'visit' some old stories.

[Eddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The short stories in this collection proves that Eisner is not only a masterful artist, but also a writer as well.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Both text and graphics tell gripping stories.

A Sunset in Sunshine City: Henry Klop's retirement leaves a lot to be desired.

The Telephone: Eight one page gags about the telephone.

Detective Story: With some help from the occult, Max Million becomes a detective and tracks down infamaous gangsters.

The Long Hit: 82-year-old retired hitman, Hockielozania, accidentally runs into the one man who escaped him and attempts to fulfill his age-old contract.

winning: Benny runs a marathon to prove himself.

The Appeal: A miscarriage of justice haunts the man responsible.

Humans: The evolution of man has come full circle.

[Casper · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a gift, by a friend who loves graphic novels. We had a long conversation about famous authors of graphic novels, the ones he likes and the ones I like. One author he likes and I didn’t know about was Will Eisner. The next time I saw him he presented me with a copy of a graphic novel; he had a double. It was called The Will Eisner Reader, containing ‘7 graphic stories by a comics master’.
My experience with graphic novels so far has always been with long works like Maus, Persepolis, and Safe area Goraźde, so it was interesting to see... Read the rest of my review here

[Steve Chaput · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of stories by Eisner that originally appeared in the Will Eisner Quarterly. They range from one page humor pieces that would have been right at home in an issue of Mad Magazine to longer stories featuring the humanity and heart that Eisner introduced to graphic storytelling.

The characters range from wannabe Private Detectives to hit men for the mob and ordinary men and women trying to get through life. It's easy to see the genius that Eisner brought to the medium and why he still influences the writers and artists that are working today.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't read any Will Eisner before, so this was my first exposure to his work. I really enjoyed his art, which was slightly cartoony, but clear and descriptive. I'm just not sure it worked with all of the stories. Some of the stories were meant to have more of an emotional depth, but the cartoon characteristics undermined that. The best story was "Telephone", which is just a series of one-page montages of various people getting phone calls.

[Maria Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today, I discover the historical komikero whose surname is coined as a prestigious award in every Comic covention. A stamp of his "E" is a great prestige - an esteemed insignia that a graphic novel is haunting and very much gripping.

Both the graphics and his scripts are exquisite - like a panel says so much yet shown so little. That is Will Eisner's magic, really. And this is one of the criteria for a comic book creator to win such an Eisner award.

An awesome read.

[Page · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eisner is a legend in the comic world but I am not sure this collection of short graphic stories is a good showcase. While the first one was interesting, there is an uneven quality to the remainder that make me feel like I was missing some key reference points. Because of this, I have rated it 3 stars -- the artwork does add a lot to otherwise flat tales.

[Ash · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good mix of some of Eisner's non-Spirit works ranging from the humorous to the philosophical. It's interesting to see how much Eisner used panelless pages or panels imposed over a panelless background before it came into popular use.

[Saleris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read/viewed his work since I was a little girl and am much enriched for it.

[Ero · Rating 4 out of 5]

deceptively easy-to-read and easy-to-look-at. These stories are lovely and beautifully drawn.

[Matt Piechocinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some shorts by the Master. Good stuff.

[Molly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know I should like this, being Will Eisner and comics master and whatnot, but I found it kind of cheesey and Mad magazine-y.

[Ann-Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

.