It's James Sturm's America -- He Just Lets Us Live Here!
An American trilogy of Religious Fervor, Greed, and Entertainment Through the Eras Arrives At Last!

Hey, all -- top o' the morn to ya. My amigo, fellow author, artist and the dearly beloved Center for Cartoon Studies co-founder and Grand Omnipotent Inkslinging Stomper James Sturm has a new book out, and you need it!

As James puts it, "the modestly titled James Sturm's America: God, Gold and Golems has just been published. The book is the definitive collection of my American history stories."

Here's the front cover, folks; I didn't have a scan of the full wraparound to post, but trust me, it's a beaut.

Here's the hard info on the book itself, which collects all three of James's Americana graphic novels and novellas, The Revival, Hundreds of Feet Below Daylight and the celebrated The Golem's Mighty Swing:

"Focusing on less sensational times in U.S. history (non-war and pre-Depression), James Sturm's America draws a portrait of the people and their dreams that make up this country. Comprised of three chapters... the story grows as the country grows; from pioneers searching for a place to call home, to ghost towns gutted by greed and racism, to the distractions and fantasies of popular entertainment."

How to get your copy? Read on, and act!

If you're in the White River Junction VT area, James is having a celebratory signing this Thursday, October 11, at the stylish recent addition to WRJ drining holes, Elixir. We CCSers frequent Elixir every Tuesday night, after CCS movie night, and it's sweet. Elixir is located just a short walk from CCS itself -- at 188 S. Main St. (802-281-7009).

James says, "The signing is from 6-8pm but if enough people buy me a drink I may be there longer (luckily I live within walking distance)! I'll have my pens on hand and will adorn your book with some original artwork. If you haven't been to Elixir it's worth checking out, it's a swank tapas/martini bar in the beautifully refurbished freight house." Indeed it is.

But wait, there's more! The wonderfully independently owned Norwich Bookstore will selling copies of James Sturm's America there, at Elixir -- but, if you want to buy a signed book but cannot make it Thursday night, call the Norwich Bookstore now (802-649-1114 ) and reserve a copy -- James will happily inscribe it for you.

Cool -- but what if you live far, far away? What if you are in another part of America, or not in America at all? Well, fret not, constant reader.

My fave online source for all things comic-like, John Rovnak's renovated (and amid renovations) Panel to Panel.Net, is offering James Sturm's America to you via online purchase with a signed bookplate featuring an exclusive full-color image created by James Sturm.

Here's the link to the PaneltoPanel purchase page,

and note -- while supplies last, order James Sturm's America now and receive a free, signed copy of his out-of-print 2004 Eisner Award winning Marvel Comics graphic novel Fantastic Four: Unstable Molecules!

PaneltoPanel.net also has a new exclusive interview with James online, which you can get to from this link -- enjoy!

And oh, the quotes James has amassed. Read 'em and weep:

"Original and fascinating." -- Garry Trudeau

"James Sturm's graphic narratives make us re-imagine our shared history. This is historical fiction at its best." -- Russell Banks

"Sturm's America is the one glimpsed through the holes in the flag: rooted, grim and enduring. His line of his drawings has a pure grain like that of the voice in William Carlos Williams' epic poem Paterson, or the singers on Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music. Fables like these are an antidote to cultural amnesia." -- Jonathan Lethem

"Sturm's prose is as elegantly understated as his line work. And every now and then he throws the heater: 'They've been waiting for their Messiah a thousand years,' says one opponent. 'So they know how to wait on
a curveball.' A-." -- Entertainment Weekly

"Luminous... The revival, as Sturm gleaned through careful research, offered an oasis of companionship, entertainment and brief salvation from the land itself. One can see how Americans...would have yearned for a
message that this dangerous, lonely place was actually part of some divine plan." -- New York Times Book Review

"Sturm is a master of nuance, whose economical drawings effectively evoke the era, while his thoughtful compositions impressively capture action and atmosphere." -- Booklist

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Work continues on various Center for Cartoon Studies creations for this weekend's SPX convention in Bethesda, MD -- as previously noted (see last week's posts), I won't be there (my convention days are over), but my newest comics story will be, via Dead Man's Hand, a new anthology of western comic stories.

No, we don't have great quotes or a signing at Elixir, but we do have a mighty stylish hat and hankerchief, and there's enough of us to drink James Sturm under the table if we have to.

Here's the link to the Dead Man's Hand site --

-- updates, art and more info awaits you there!

OK, 'nuff ballyhoo for one day -- follow through, and have a great Monday!