The 2025 edition of something I’ve tried writing before, but never seemed to finish before February, so … we’ll try again. As gift-giving season approaches, I’m starting to be pestered by my loved ones about my Christmas wishlist. As I put a few ideas together, my list is pretty much the same every year: books, books, books, and expensive woolly socks. There have been so many amazing books that have come out or come to my attention this year. Here are the ones I’d recommend to anyone, especially to people who enjoy comics history.
The Art of Popeye by R. C. Harvey
Another Popeye fan and a friend got this at San Diego Comic Con this summer, and I had to borrow it immediately. It’s filled with great art from the entire world of Popeye, not only the E. C. Segar strip but also classic animation and more. If you’re already a Popeye fan or at least a Popeye appreciator, you’ll enjoy this. I don’t know whether R. C. Harvey left more finished manuscripts, but this could well be one of the last books we’ll get from one of the great comics historians.
How Comics Are Made by Glenn Fleishman
I’ve praised this book many times, and I won’t be stopping anytime soon. Yes, I was interviewed for it, and facilitated a couple of small bits of this massive and enlightening puzzle. It’s a monumental work. This time, I don’t mean the book’s overall size, but the place it holds in our understanding of comics history. The invention of newspaper comics, and how they were actually created and put into readers’ hands, is an extremely understudied element of the story, and one that is already hard to nail down with the passing of the people involved and the binning of the technology used. Glenn was perfectly positioned not only to make sense of it but also to gather these disparate elements to tell the story. There’s more work to do, but anyone who works on this subject in the future will owe a debt of gratitude to Glenn Fleishman.
Mafalda by Quino, translated by Frank Wynne
A fresh English translation of this Argentinian kid strip classic. Often compared to Schulz’s Peanuts, I think it shares stronger DNA with Ernie Bushmiller’s Nancy, but that’s me. Yes, it’s very political, but seeing the questions and observations of another place and time mirror so much of our own is a comfort, granting a nod of comforting recognition. If Mafalda can weather the storm, so can I. From what I understand, this is going to be the first of a multivolume series, so start collecting them now, or you’ll have to hunt them all down later.
History of Manga by Eike Exener
Eike Exener’s previous book, Comics and the Origins of Manga: A Revisionist History, was excellent and mind-opening for me. If you’re interested in the world of comics, its global reach and evolution, and want a de-mystified understanding of manga in particular and how this rich branch of the comics family tree fits into the larger picture, get this book. I have a lot to learn about manga in general, and Exener’s books have been enlightening, making me finally feel like I’m on the right track.
Moomin Comic Strip Collections
The Moomin comic strip collections are not new, nor did they just come to my attention this year, but I must evangelize for this hilarious and wonderfully drawn strip every chance I get. More people need to know about it, especially American comic strip fans. Tove Jansson’s Moominvalley is a place I love to visit, where ridiculous adventures launch on preposterous whims, outlandish weirdos pop in and out of the story with even more frequency than real life. With the help of her brother Lars, she created a comic strip that should be more widely known. The Complete Moomin Comic Strip collections by Drawn & Quarterly are my preferred method to collect and read this strip (in ten volumes), but there are smaller paperback collections of single storylines that have been colored and are perfect for younger readers or anyone just wanting to give it a little try. For the holidays, let me recommend Moomin Winter, for when you just need a moment away from the crowd.
A book that is on my own Christmas wishlist! It comes out on December 9, and I’ve not seen it yet, but from what I’ve seen of The Smythes by Rea Irvin, it looks like a ton of fun and incredibly beautiful. I’ve always been an easy touch for anything related to the early days of the New Yorker magazine. I’ve read multiple biographies and memoirs of the early writers and editors there, including some of my all-time favorites like E. B. White and James Thurber. Rea Irvin is perhaps most famous as the creator of the New Yorker’s monocle-wearing classic logo/mascot/colophon character, Eustice Tilley.
Society is Nix by Peter Maresca
This new edition has some new content from the long out-of-print earlier edition of this monumental tome. And, I don’t use the term monumental lightly. This is not only a fascinating work of comics history, it is also lovingly and gorgeously reproduces pioneering comics pages in absolutely massive reprints. The book is nearly the size of a modern newspaper sheet, so it’s still a bit smaller than these gorgeous comics were originally printed, but far larger than we typically get. Here we also have strips we never get to see by artists who would define comics as we know them today, but who did so before anything in comics was truly codified. “Gleeful anarchy,” indeed. Wild formatting, shocking color, and action that cartoonists today cannot seem to imagine.
Tell Me A Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund by Caitlin McGurk
Easily the greatest title of any book, maybe ever. Another book from the past year or so, from the early days of the New Yorker, but also incredibly charming, fun, sassy humor, and gorgeous drawings. I’m a huge fan of this book, and now of Barbara Shermund. This book has easily been the most passed-around book in my circle of comic nerds and professionals this year. This book won the Eisner Award for Best Comics-Related Book this year.
The Art of Nothing: 25 Years of Mutts by Patrick McDonnell
This book has been out for a few years now, but in case you haven’t seen it, it includes Patrick’s gorgeous drawings and all the fun and humor of one of the greatest comic strips currently running, Mutts. So far, it’s the closest thing we’ve got to an artist edition of Mutts. And how many books have contributions from both Eckhart Tolle and Lynda Barry? I imagine that’s a short list.
The Poet, Volume Two: 2021, by Todd Webb
If you love Mutts by Patrick McDonnell (who wrote a foreword for this volume), Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz, the work of Mo Willems, and thought “This could use a dash of Gary Larson’s Far Side,” well, look no further. This daily strip, which Webb publishes online, has (thankfully) come out in a second annual compendium. He’s published his comic in little affordable collections, too, but these are great for passing around to friends who’ll enjoy it. These big annual collections (there’s a Volume One, as well) are fabulous, and I keep them for myself.
The Essential Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz: The Greatest Comic Strip of All Time by Mark Evanier
2025 marks the 75th anniversary for Peanuts. Yes, this book includes an essay by me, and I was on the committee that picked (and argued over) which strips to include in this very special book. This includes history, personal reflections, and so much more. It’s a very special collection. This special edition also includes a collection of stickers, mini posters, a patch, and more, all designed by Chip Kidd!
I’m sure there are books I’ve accidentally overlooked, but for now, this is a pretty good lineup. I’d be thrilled to receive any one of these books as a gift, so I imagine the comics history nerd in your life will too (if they don’t already have it). If you’re the comic nerd, forward this to your friends and family with a note about favorites. All of the affiliate links in this post support local, independent bookshops.
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About the Author: Benjamin L. Clark writes and works as a museum curator.
Historical Fiction for the Historian
