Category: Graphic Novels

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Newly Published: A NewsHound’s Guide to Student Journalism

New on our bookshelf today:

A NewsHound’s Guide to Student Journalism
Katina Paron and Javier Güelfi

Covering the basics of media arts values and practice, this graphic textbook offers cub reporters a primer on the drama, adventure and ethical conundrums that make journalism rewarding and fun. Using ripped-from-the-headlines examples, the authors challenge students to engage with the big issues. The stories revolve around a diverse newspaper staff at an urban high school who find themselves in a series of teachable moments. Packed with reporting exercises and fundamentals of the craft, woven into engaging narratives, each comic also gives readers a look at the real-life event that inspired the tale.

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Newly Published: Rowena Sunder, Artist in New York

New on our bookshelf today:

Rowena Sunder, Artist in New York
Linda Campbell Franklin

Rowena Sunder, still an artist in 2018, composes a meta auto-biographical book about five years of her life in New York City between 1965 and 1970. She escapes Toledo and her father’s idea that she should marry and paint on Sundays and drives away in her VW bug. She sells one painting on the way, and arrives in the big city during one of its most exciting times. She works at the (invented) Museum of Invention, sublets on E. 94th Street, makes friends, acquires a cat named Kittyhawk, and finds NYC much to her liking.

After selling paintings to a psychotherapist, he listens while she struggles with mixed feelings about focus. She finally rejoices in the swarm of ideas that come to her from everywhere. Now, a half-century later, she draws her book, and talks directly to the reader in a series of vignettes, all connected by her gift of too many ideas. Rowena loves words and puns and little jokes and these add other perspectives to every page.

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New Catalog and Huge Holiday Sale

It’s our biggest sale of the year! Through the holiday season, get 30% off your order of two or more books with the coupon code HOLIDAY17! Need inspiration? Check out our brand new holiday catalog!

HOLIDAY17 is valid through January 2, 2018, and applies to any book on McFarland’s website. Browse our entire online catalog here. 

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Newly Published: Lotte Reiniger

New on our bookshelf today:

Lotte Reiniger: Pioneer of Film Animation
Whitney Grace 

For three years during the 1920s, in an attic in Potsdam, a young woman crafted what is today the oldest surviving animated feature film. Equipped with scissors, cardboard, sheets of lead, glass panes and a camera, animation pioneer Lotte Reiniger filmed Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed (The Adventures of Prince Achmed) using a technique of frame-by-frame silhouette animation she developed, inspired by Chinese shadow puppetry.

As the result of a number of factors—her gender, her German ethnicity, World War II and a lack of funding—Reiniger became a footnote in animation history. Yet her 60–plus films plainly show her skill and dedication to her craft. This detailed account of her life and work describes her significant contributions to animation, puppetry, Weimar cinema and modern filmmaking.

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New in Softcover: Classics Illustrated

Now available in softcover:

Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History, 2d ed.
William B. Jones, Jr. 

A significant expansion of the critically acclaimed first edition, Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History, 2d ed., carries the story of the Kanter family’s series of comics-style adaptations of literary masterpieces from 1941 into the 21st century. This book features additional material on the 70-year history of Classics Illustrated and the careers and contributions of such artists as Alex A. Blum, Lou Cameron, George Evans, Henry C. Kiefer, Gray Morrow, Rudolph Palais, and Louis Zansky. New chapters cover the recent Jack Lake and Papercutz revivals of the series, the evolution of Classics collecting, and the unsung role of William Kanter in advancing the fortunes of his father Albert’s worldwide enterprise. Enhancing the lively account of the growth of “the World’s Finest Juvenile Publication” are new interviews and correspondence with editor Helene Lecar, publicist Eleanor Lidofsky, artist Mort Künstler, and the founder’s grandson John “Buzz” Kanter.

Detailed appendices provide artist attributions, issue contents and, for the principal Classics Illustrated–related series, a listing of each printing identified by month, year, and highest reorder number. New U.S., Canadian and British series have been added. More than 300 illustrations—most of them new to this edition—include photographs of artists and production staff, comic-book covers and interiors, and a substantial number of original cover paintings and line drawings.

 

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Newly Published: Superheroines and the Epic Journey

New on our bookshelf today:

Superheroines and the Epic Journey: Mythic Themes in Comics, Film and Television
Valerie Estelle Frankel
Foreword by Trina Robbins

The heroine’s journey echoes throughout ancient legend. Each young woman combats her dark side and emerges stronger. This quest is also a staple of American comic books. Wonder Woman with semi-divine powers gives us a new female-centered creation story. Batgirl, Batwoman and Black Widow discover their enemy is the dark mother or shadow twin, with the savagery they’ve rejected in themselves. Supergirl similarly struggles but keeps harmony with her sister.

From Jessica Jones and Catwoman to the new superwomen of cutting-edge webcomics, each heroine must go into the dark, to become not a warrior but a savior. Women like Captain Marvel and Storm sacrifice all to join the ranks of superheroes, while their feminine powers and dazzling costumes reflect the most ancient tales.

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Newly Published: Ponyville Confidential

New on our bookshelf today:

Ponyville Confidential: The History and Culture of My Little Pony, 1981–2016
Sherilyn Connelly

Beloved by young girls around the world, Hasbro’s My Little Pony franchise has been mired in controversy since its debut in the early 1980s. Critics dismissed the cartoons as toy advertisements, and derided their embrace of femininity. The 2010 debut of the openly feminist My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic renewed the backlash, as its broad appeal challenged entrenched notions about gendered entertainment.

This first comprehensive study of My Little Pony explores the history and cultural significance of the franchise through Season 5 of Friendship Is Magic and the first three Equestria Girls films. The brand has continued to be on the receiving end of a sexist double standard regarding commercialism in children’s entertainment, while masculine cartoons such as the Transformers have been spared similar criticism.

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Newly Published: Marvel’s Black Widow from Spy to Superhero

New on our bookshelf today:

Marvel’s Black Widow from Spy to Superhero: Essays on an Avenger with a Very Specific Skill Set
Edited by Sherry Ginn

First appearing in Marvel Comics in the 1960s, Natasha Romanoff, a.k.a. Black Widow, was introduced to movie audiences in Iron Man 2 (2010). Her character has grown in popularity with subsequent Marvel films, and fans have been vocal about wanting to see Black Widow in a titular role. Romanoff has potent appeal: a strong female character who is not defined by her looks or her romantic relationships, with the skill set of a veteran spy first for the KGB, then for S.H.I.E.L.D. This collection of new essays is the first to examine Black Widow and her development, from Cold War era comics to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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Newly Published: The Ages of the Justice League

New on our bookshelf today:

The Ages of the Justice League: Essays on America’s Greatest Superheroes in Changing Times
Edited by Joseph J. Darowski

The first superhero team from the Silver Age of comics, DC’s Justice League has seen many iterations since its first appearance in 1960. As the original comic book continued and spin-off titles proliferated, talented writers, artists and editors adapted the team to appeal to changing audience tastes.

This collection of new essays examines more than five decades of Justice League comics and related titles. Each essay considers a storyline or era of the franchise in its historical and social contexts.

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The Art and Inventions of Max Fleischer Reviewed in Booklist

“Pointer’s account of Fleischer’s life and work draws on his own experience in film and animation as well as interviews with Fleischer family members. It is also stocked with previously unpublished photographs and artwork, including trade ads and patent diagrams…The story of this artist-inventor and the early days of animation will appeal to all interested in film history and iconic cartoons.”—Booklist

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Newly Published: How He-Man Mastered the Universe

New on our bookshelf today:

How He-Man Mastered the Universe: Toy to Television to the Big Screen
Brian C. Baer

Elaborate cinematic universes and sophisticated marketing tie-ins are commonplace in entertainment today. It’s easy to forget that the transmedia trend began in 1982 with a barbarian action figure. He-Man and the other characters in Mattel’s popular Masters of the Universe toy line quickly found their way into comic books, video games, multiple television series and a Hollywood film. The original animated series (1983–1985) was the first based on an action figure, and the cult classic Masters of the Universe (1987) was the first toy-inspired live-action feature film.

But it wasn’t easy. He-Man faced adversaries more dangerous than Skeletor: entertainment lawyers, Hollywood executives, even the Reagan administration. The heroes and villains of Eternia did more than shape the childhoods of the toy-buying public—they formed the modern entertainment landscape.

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Women's Studies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Playing for Equality: Oral Histories of Women Leaders in the Early Years of Title IX
Diane LeBlanc and Allys Swanson

Mammography and Early Breast Cancer Detection: How Screening Saves Lives
Alan B. Hollingsworth, M.D.

The Beyoncé Effect: Essays on Sexuality, Race and Feminism
Edited by Adrienne Trier-Bieniek

Click here to browse McFarland’s complete line of women’s studies titles. 

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Newly Published: Joss Whedon and Race

New on our bookshelf today:

Joss Whedon and Race: Critical Essays
Edited by Mary Ellen Iatropoulos and Lowery A. Woodall III

Joss Whedon is known for exploring philosophical questions through socially progressive narratives in his films, television shows and comics. His work critiques racial stereotypes, sometimes repudiating them, sometimes reinvesting in them (sometimes both at once). This collection of new essays explores his representations of racial power dynamics between individuals and institutions and how the Whedonverse constructs race, ethnicity and nationality relationships.

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New in Softcover: Native Americans in Comic Books

Now available in softcover: 

Native Americans in Comic Books: A Critical Study
Michael A. Sheyahshe

This work takes an in-depth look at the world of comic books through the eyes of a Native American reader and offers frank commentary on the medium’s cultural representation of the Native American people. It addresses a range of portrayals, from the bloodthirsty barbarians and noble savages of dime novels, to formulaic secondary characters and sidekicks, and, occasionally, protagonists sans paternal white hero, examining how and why Native Americans have been consistently marginalized and misrepresented in comics. Chapters cover early representations of Native Americans in popular culture and newspaper comic strips, the Fenimore Cooper legacy, the “white” Indian, the shaman, revisionist portrayals, and Native American comics from small publishers, among other topics.

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Weekly Deal: Zombie Studies

If you couldn’t wait to see [SPOILER REDACTED] on The Walking Dead last night, then this Weekly Deal is for you! Through October 30, 2016, get 20% off all books about zombie studies when you enter the coupon code SPOILER!

“We’re All Infected” Essays on AMC’s The Walking Dead and the Fate of the Human

How Zombies Conquered Popular Culture: The Multifarious Walking Dead in the 21st Century

Zombifying a Nation: Race, Gender and the Haitian Loas on Screen

Zombies and Sexuality: Essays on Desire and the Living Dead

…But If a Zombie Apocalypse Did Occur: Essays on Medical, Military, Governmental, Ethical, Economic and Other Implications

Great Zombies in History

Unraveling Resident Evil: Essays on the Complex Universe of the Games and Films

The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia

The Zombie Movie Encyclopedia, Volume 2: 2000–2010

Generation Zombie: Essays on the Living Dead in Modern Culture

Race, Oppression and the Zombie: Essays on Cross-Cultural Appropriations of the Caribbean Tradition

Zombies Are Us: Essays on the Humanity of the Walking Dead

American Zombie Gothic: The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of the Walking Dead in Popular Culture

Back from the Dead: Remakes of the Romero Zombie Films as Markers of Their Times

White Zombie: Anatomy of a Horror Film

 

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Weekly Deal: All Hallow's Read

All Hallow’s Read is a new tradition, started by the great Neil Gaiman, that encourages gifting a scary book during the week of Halloween. If you’re curious about its origins, read this blog post, helpfully titled “A MODEST PROPOSAL (THAT DOESN’T ACTUALLY INVOLVE EATING ANYONE).” Rather than selecting a handful of our more than 100 books about horror in popular culture and literature, we’re putting ALL of our horror books on sale, this week only! Order now for delivery in time for your All Hallow’s Read gift, and get 20% off when you use the coupon code HALLOW!

 

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New Book Series about the Whedonverses

978-0-7864-5858-5We’re excited to announce a new book series on the Whedonverses (official title to be determined).

McFarland seeks proposals for book-length works to be published as part of a new series about the works of Joss Whedon, to be edited by Sherry Ginn. We welcome new perspectives on old favorites as well as explorations of Whedon’s less recognized work.

Proposals should include a detailed outline, a tentative table of contents, draft introduction and sample chapter. Also useful at this stage would be a length estimate (75,000-word to 100,000-word projects are preferred), comments on special elements (such as artwork or photos), and a resume or curriculum vitae.

Please send proposals to:
Sherry Ginn

For general guidelines for prospective authors, please refer to McFarland’s author resource center. For questions not covered there, please contact Natalie Foreman.

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Newly Published: Encyclopedia of Weird Westerns

New on our bookshelf today:

Encyclopedia of Weird Westerns: Supernatural and Science Fiction Elements in Novels, Pulps, Comics, Films, Television and Games, 2d ed.
Paul Green
Introduction by Cynthia J. Miller

From automatons to zombies, many elements of fantasy and science fiction have been cross-pollinated with the Western movie genre. In its second edition, this encyclopedia of the Weird Western includes many new entries covering film, television, animation, novels, pulp fiction, short stories, comic books, graphic novels and video and role-playing games. Categories include Weird, Weird Menace, Science Fiction, Space, Steampunk and Romance Westerns.

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Newly Published: The Ages of the Incredible Hulk

New on our bookshelf today:

The Ages of the Incredible Hulk: Essays on the Green Goliath in Changing Times
Edited by Joseph J. Darowski

The Incredible Hulk is one of the earliest Marvel Comics superheroes. Through the decades, the character and his narrative elements—the causes of Bruce Banner’s transformations, the Hulk’s strength, intelligence and skin color, the stories’ tone, theme and sources of conflict—have been continually reinvented to remain relevant.

This collection of new essays explores Marvel’s more than five decades of Hulk comics. The contributors analyze the Hulk and his supporting cast in their shifting historical contexts, offering insights into both our popular entertainment and our cultural history. Topics include the Cold War’s influence on early Incredible Hulk issues, a feminist reading of She-Hulk and writer Peter David’s focus on the AIDS crisis.

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New Holiday Catalog—And Our Biggest Sale of the Year!

Holiday 2015Our brand-new holiday catalog is in the mail, but we’re giving you a sneak preview this morning—click here for great holiday gift ideas before the catalog hits your mailbox!

And, because it’s never too early to start your holiday shopping, we’re offering our biggest sale of the year! Get 30% off your purchase of two or more books when you enter the coupon code HOLIDAY2015 at checkout!

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North Carolina Library Association 2015 Conference

We’re exhibiting at the biennial North Carolina Library Association conference in Greensboro, North Carolina this week! Our own Dylan Lightfoot and Stephanie Nichols are exhibiting books, and several McFarland authors are among the NC librarians attending the convention.

NCLA Cole
Author J. Timothy Cole with his books, The Forest City Lynching of 1900 and Collett Leventhorpe, the English Confederate.
NCLA Shiflett
Author Orvin Lee Shiflett with his book, William Terry Couch and the Politics of Academic Publishing

 

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EISNER AWARD WINNER Graphic Details: Jewish Women’s Confessional Comics

978-0-7864-6553-8At Comic-Con, Graphic Details: Jewish Women’s Confessional Comics in Essays and Interviews took home the Eisner Award for Best Scholarly/Academic Work!  This is the second award Graphic Details has garnered, with the Eisner following the Popular Culture Association’s Susan Koppelman Best Anthology Award.  Congratulations to editor Sarah Lightman, the 18 artists she covers, and to all the women around the world who are bravely making comics about their own lives. #Eisner # SDCC #ComicCon2015

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The Mission of Comic-Con

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Comic-Con International San Diego is a nonprofit educational corporation dedicated to creating awareness of, and appreciation for, comics and related popular art forms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture.

McFarland is getting ready to do its part at Comic-Con this week.  Create awareness—check.  Appreciate comics and related popular art forms—check.  We’ll also copiously document all the spectacle that is this event: stay tuned.

 

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Fan Studies and Comic-Con

With San Diego Comic-Con International commencing in just a few days, it is a timely moment to take another look at recent fan studies explorations by Ben Bolling and Matthew J. Smith (It Happens at Comic-Con), Bill Schelly (Founders of Comic Fandom), Kristin M. Barton and Jonathan Malcolm Lampley (Fan CULTure), and Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse (Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet).

978-0-7864-7694-7It Happens at Comic-Con: Ethnographic Essays on a Pop Culture Phenomenon
This “engrossing” (Midwest Book Review) collection seeks to expand fan studies, exploring Comic-Con International more deeply than any publication before it. Ben Bolling is a Jacob K. Javits Fellow in the Department of English and Comparative Literature at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Matthew J. Smith is a professor of communication and director of cinema studies at Wittenberg University, where he teaches courses in media, including television criticism and graphic storytelling.

Founders of Comic Fandom: Profiles of 90 Publishers, Dealers, Collectors, Writers, Artists and Other Luminaries of the 1950s and 1960s
In the 1950s and ’60s, a grassroots movement arose to celebrate comic books and strips, which were becoming increasingly important to American popular culture. “Meticulously researched and thoroughly documented” (School Library Journal), profiled here are the people at the heart of the movement. Bill Schelly has been chronicling the history of popular culture since the 1960s, beginning with his magazine Sense of Wonder. He has written or edited several books, and is associate editor of the Eisner Award–winning magazine Alter Ego.

978-0-7864-7418-9Fan CULTure: Essays on Participatory Fandom in the 21st Century
This “highly recommended” (Choice) collection explores how present-day fans interact with the films, television shows, books, and pop culture artifacts they love. Kristin M. Barton is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Communication at Dalton State College in Dalton, Georgia. Jonathan Malcolm Lampley is a prolific contributor to many popular-culture periodicals and publications.

Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays
The essays in this “useful and thought-provoking” (SFRA Review) volume explore the world of fan fiction—its purposes, how it is created, how the fan experiences it. Karen Hellekson is a copy editor and independent scholar. She writes book reviews for Publishers Weekly and lives in Jay, Maine.  Kristina Busse teaches in the Department of Philosophy at the University of South Alabama and has previously written about fan fiction and fan culture. She is the founding coeditor of Transformative Works and Cultures.

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Ashe County: Where McFarland Resides

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Authors, customers, friends, and fans: if you’ve ever wondered what McF’s mountain town is like, have a look at this neat response about our area from a recent vacationer.  (A special nod, too, to our Boondocks friends who regularly support us in a number of ways.)  We love where we live!

 

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CONFERENCE: American Library Association 2015 Annual Meeting

cHICAGO)

There is much to celebrate today!  Our publishing duty, however, is to equip you with industry intel (some of which is less likely to be in your news feed today).  Therefore, as we witness historic decisions in our country, we’d be remiss not to mention the Annual American Library Association conference, which meets over the weekend in San Francisco.  Themed “TRANSFORMING our libraries, ourselves, McFarland looks forward to several days’ worth of terrific conversations about all things librarianship.

A happy coincidence—assistant sales manager Adam Phillips has THIS hotel view, providing opportunities to share the goings-on of an historic Pride Week in San Francisco.    

 

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Hardball Legends and Journeymen and Short-Timers

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The Washington (D.C.) City Paper recently posted an interview with McFarland author Ronnie Joyner (Hardball Legends and Journeymen and Short-Timers), whom the paper said “may be America’s last sports cartoonist.”  It’s a fascinating discussion—with several illustrations included—of Joyner’s artwork, his creative process, and his influences.

 

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New Releases for February 17: Braves, Heartland, Urban Transportation, Comic Books, Military

978-0-7864-7424-0

The Miracle Braves, 1914–1916 by Charles C. Alexander

Hard Living in America’s Heartland: Rural Poverty in the 21st Century Midwest by Paula vW. Dáil

Urban Transportation Innovations Worldwide: A Handbook of Best Practices Outside the United States by Roger L. Kemp

The Law for Comic Book Creators: Essential Concepts and Applications by Joe Sergi

American Military Training Aircraft: Fixed and Rotary-Wing Trainers Since 1916 by E.R. Johnson

 

 

 

 

 

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Le Guin and Gaiman at National Book Awards

Photo by Eileen Gunn
Photo by Eileen Gunn

At the 2014 National Book Awards, Ursula Le Guin accepted the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.  Author Neil Gaiman presented the awards.  Le Guin said, “I rejoice in accepting [this prize] for, and sharing it with, all the writers who were excluded from literature for so long: my fellow authors of fantasy and science fiction.”  NPR covered the award here:  http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/11/20/365434149/book-news-ursula-k-le-guin-steals-the-show-at-the-national-book-awards

Le Guin-related books from McFarland:

One Earth, One People:
The Mythopoeic Fantasy Series of Ursula K. Le Guin, Lloyd Alexander, Madeleine L’Engle and Orson Scott Card

Ursula K. Le Guin’s Journey to Post-Feminism

Nature and the Numinous in Mythopoeic Fantasy Literature

The Past That Might Have Been, the Future That May Come:
Women Writing Fantastic Fiction, 1960s to the Present

Practicing Science Fiction:
Critical Essays on Writing, Reading and Teaching the Genre

Literary Eats:
Emily Dickinson’s Gingerbread, Ernest Hemingway’s Picadillo, Eudora Welty’s Onion Pie and 400+ Other Recipes from American Authors Past and Present

Gaiman-related books from McFarland:

Feminism in the Worlds of Neil Gaiman:
Essays on the Comics, Poetry and Prose

Neil Gaiman in the 21st Century:
Essays on the Novels, Children’s Stories, Online Writings, Comics and Other Works

The Gothic Fairy Tale in Young Adult Literature:
Essays on Stories from Grimm to Gaiman

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CALL FOR REVIEWERS: Tales of Superhuman Powers

talesofsuperhumanpowersAre you a book review editor, reviewer, or folklorist interested in receiving a media copy of Tales of Superhuman Powers: 55 Traditional Stories from Around the World?  McFarland has a supply of review copies available upon request.  Contact us via our review copy request form, filling out the form completely, to receive your copy.

Csenge Virág Zalka, a Hungarian storyteller, has collected 55 foltktales from around the world about supernatural abilities like superhuman strength, invulnerability, flying, heightened senses, speed, invisibility, healing, agility, precognition, telepathy, fire manipulation, teleportation, water powers, and shifting.  These tales represent powers that people have dreamed of, conjured up and strived for through the ages.   Many of the powers are present in popular culture, making the superheroes who wield them the direct descendants of characters such as the princess who could see through walls or the invulnerable Isfandiyar.  Zalka excluded stories about magic or about gods with divine powers, and focused on less well-known stories.  She included information on similar heroes, the ability in the story, sources of the powers, the origin of the story, teachings in it, the recommended age group, sources, variants, and comments.

#folklore #superheoes #comics #popculture

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It Happens at Comic-Con!

SDCCIf you can’t hang with us at San Diego Comic-Con (or even if you can), we highly recommend you check out It Happens at Comic-Con!, edited by Ben Bolling and Matthew J. Smith.  Let us help you help yourselves with a better understanding of the pop cultural phenomenon that is this event.  Enter the coupon code PHENOM in the shopping cart of our online catalog (or call our toll free 800-253-2187 during business hours Friday and Monday) for a 20% discount now through Monday, July 27.

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Scottish Highlanders Are Invading San Diego!

outlander

With the onset of Comic-Con International, throngs of fans, media companies, celebrities and others are descending upon San Diego.  Expect the San Diego Convention Center to be filled to capacity with pop culture providers and seekers.

As usual, McFarland has arrived (snuck in during the night under a “MacFarlane’s Lantern”!) and will be stationed in the exhibit hall, this time in booth #1501.  At our book stand, two of the staff have notable middle names…there’s a “McFarland” and a “McRae” at the book stand!  We’re not the only ones with a connection to the Scottish Highlands, however.  Jamie Fraser and his Outlander fellows are making there way to San Diego, as well.

The Outlander panel takes place Friday, July 25, at 2:15 P.M., in Room 6A.  If you haven’t yet acquainted yourself with Outlander, the seven subsequent novels, or the upcoming television series, be assured that they “lavishly evoke the land and lore of Scotland” as the critics put it.  

For more about McFarland’s history, go here.  For more about the Outlander series, go here.

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CONFERENCE: American Library Association Annual

ALA Annual 2014June 27-30, the American Library Association is gathering in Las Vegas for Annual.  We’re still trying to get our book display set up in the exhibit hall, with some “help” from early browsers like Allan Greenburg of Diamond Comic Distributors (pictured). McFarland is in Booth #1423, and our friends at Diamond are in Booth #2015.

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McFarland Celebrates 35 Years

mainofficeOn April 1st, 1979, founder Robert McFarland Franklin departed Plainfield, New Jersey, heading south in a Volkswagen bug towing a U-Haul.  With wife Cheryl behind the wheel, Robert began company operations on a yellow pad in his lap.

Thirty-five years ago, libraries provided almost the sole market (but a robust one!) for the heavily-researched books that McFarland made its specialty.  Over the decades, the company won ever-growing numbers of devoted readers who appreciated the care McFarland and its authors lavished on our books.  Our authors, a throng of thousands now, teach us something new every day.

We’re having an open house Friday, June 20, from noon until 5:00.  Join us for tours, conversation, punch, finger food, art and books.


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PCA 2014 Recap

Editor Tara Prescott and contributor Rachel R. Martin are all smiles about Feminism in the Worlds of Neil Gaiman
Editor Tara Prescott and contributor Rachel R. Martin are all smiles about Feminism in the Worlds of Neil Gaiman
Author Katheryn Krotzer Laborde dares to open her work.
Author Katheryn Krotzer Laborde dares to open her work.
We’re not sure, but editor Matthew Wysocki may be explaining why CTRL-ALT-PLAY is perhaps even more satisfying than CTRL-ALT-DELETE.
We’re not sure, but editor Matthew Wysocki may be explaining why CTRL-ALT-PLAY is perhaps even more satisfying than CTRL-ALT-DELETE.
Yuya Kiuchi and fan.
Yuya Kiuchi and fan.
Clues editorial board member Rachel Schaffer shows off the latest.
Clues editorial board member Rachel Schaffer shows off the latest.
Hundreds of books to set up for the good people. Happily, very few were left by meeting’s end.
Hundreds of books to set up for the good people. Happily, very few were left by meeting’s end.
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New Releases for February 21: Comic-Con, Baseball, Jackson Purchase, Masher, Three knots

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It Happens at Comic-Con: Ethnographic Essays on a Pop Culture Phenomenon by Ben Bolling

Baseball Prodigies: Best Major League Seasons by Players Under 21 by Charles F. Faber

The Civil War in the Jackson Purchase, 1861–1862: The Pro-Confederate Struggle and Defeat in Southwest Kentucky by Dan Lee

Beware the Masher: Sexual Harassment in American Public Places, 1880–1930 by Kerry Segrave

Three Knots to Nowhere: A Cold War Submariner on the Undersea Frontline by Ted E. Dubay

 

 

 

 

 

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Celebrate 2014 with the best possible gift: books!

Our holiday sale ends today, Dec. 31st, so don’t delay!   Best wishes to all from your McFarland friends…happy reading!  Enjoy 20% off your order through today.  On the McFarland website, use coupon code HOLIDAY in the cart as you are checking out. Or, call toll-free 800-253-2187 (Mon-Fri 8:00am to 4:30pm Eastern Time). http://www.mcfarlandbooks.com/2013/11/holiday-sale/

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New Releases for November 19: Rogue's Life, Wonder Women

A Rogue’s Life: R. Clay Crawford, Prison Escapee, Union Army Officer, Pretend Millionaire, Phony Physician and the Most Respected Man in Macon, Georgia by Lewis A. Lawson

This book reveals the life of R. Clay Crawford, his dreams, his schemes, his successes and his failures, as he launched himself into many of the most turbulent episodes of 19th century United States history. Like everyone, he was born with a family history, not just genetic but also cultural determinants; this book reveals the influences on his behavior inherited from his father and his grandfathers. He likewise passed on to his children a model, not just genetic but cultural. Even so, Clay Crawford’s story is not just a family affair. He was a “self-made man” living in an age when such was thought to be a national asset—and thus stands out as a warning that the worship of the “self-made man” may produce more rogues than Rockefellers.

 

 

The Ages of Wonder Woman: Essays on the Amazon Princess in Changing Times by Joseph J. Darowski

Created in 1941 by the psychologist William Marston, Wonder Woman would go on to have one of the longest continuous run of published comic book adventures in the history of the industry. More than 70 years after her debut, Wonder Woman remains a popular culture icon. Throughout the intervening years many comic book creators have had a hand in guiding her story, resulting in different interpretations of the Amazon Princess. But the changes in tone, theme or subject matter in Wonder Woman’s fictional adventures are the result not only of new creators. Wars, the feminist movement, politics and evolving social opinions and concerns can be seen influencing the stories found in Wonder Woman’s comic books.

 

 

 

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CATALOG: Popular Culture Holiday 2013

Folks, the first couple of Pinterest search options are called: “Popular” and “Everything.”  Overwhelming?  We think so, too.  So here’s our latest popular culture catalog that covers both.  You can thank us later with an order.

Speaking of orders, on the McFarland website, use coupon code HOLIDAY in the cart as you are checking out for 20% off your entire order.  Or, call toll-free 800-253-2187 (Mon-Fri 8:00am to 4:30pm Eastern Time) and ask for your holiday discount.

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Holiday Sale!

Happy holidays….happy holidays…while the merry bells keep ringing, enjoy 20% off your purchases through December 31st.  McFarland’s customer service elves stand at the ready to help, so get shopping!

On the McFarland website, use coupon code HOLIDAY in the cart as you are checking out.  Or, call toll-free 800-253-2187 (Mon-Fri 8:00am to 4:30pm Eastern Time).

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CONFERENCE: Frankfurt Book Fair

   The Frankfurt Book Fair 2013 has concluded, and we’ve been receiving a few photographs from happy readers.  Here, Ulrich K. Baues (senior editor at Western Mail and Country Mag) spots a copy of Western Movies: A Guide to 5,105 Feature Films, 2d ed. by Michael R. Pitts in the Eurospan stand.