News pg. 18

Announcing MADDY KETTLE and the return of JOHNNY BOO!

June 6, 2014 / More →

The Top Shelf Kids Club is already home to so many beloved characters... but there's always room for more! As of now, pre-orders are officially open for two great books debuting in August 2014.

Maddy Kettle: The Adventure of the Thimblewitch

Eric Orchard's Maddy Kettle was introduced to the world in this spring's Free Comic Book Day issue, and the response has been terrific. NPR said it "looks fantastic: every panel exudes quirky, gorgeous atmosphere,” while io9 agreed it was "quirky, beautifully illustrated, and frankly looks like it's going to be an instant classic. Don't miss it." What's more, an early version of a Maddy Kettle scene has already received the Silver prize at the Spectrum Awards, honoring the best in fantasy art. Now Maddy's full adventure is off to the printing press, and it's time to pre-order from your favorite retailer!

Johnny Boo Zooms to the Moon

And that's not all... we're also announcing the return of Johnny Boo, the best little ghost in the world — and he's brought company! When author James Kochalka asked what adventure Johnny Boo should go on next, many readers wanted him to visit the moon. Others wanted him to ride a skateboard. Well, dreams do come true! Johnny Boo Zooms to the Moon! has all this and more, including moon ice cream, a new monster, and the mighty Boom Power of new friend Susie Boom!

Click through for details and a free preview of each book!


Humble Bundle gets even better: TOO COOL and the FROM HELL COMPANION!

June 4, 2014 / More →

The Humble eBook Bundle deal -- in which you can pay what you want and download a bundle of great digital books -- just got even sweeter.

As of today, the bundle has swelled to thirteen titles, including the acclaimed The From Hell Companion by Alan Moore & Eddie Campbell (called "A man-behind-the-curtain look at a seminal graphic novel... an indispensable reference") and Alex Robinson's Too Cool to Be Forgotten (winner of the Harvey Award for best graphic novel!) as well as an audiobook by Cory Doctorow, and James K. Morrow's award-winning Shambling Towards Hiroshima.

All this in addition to the terrific bargain it already was. So head on over and grab your bundle - there's only one week left!


Top Shelf joins Humble Bundle: Pay what you want for DRM-free WIZZYWIG, FROM HELL, and MARCH!

May 28, 2014 / More →

Humble eBook Bundle IV

We at Top Shelf Productions are very pleased to partner with the team at Humble Bundle to offer several of the comic industry’s most acclaimed graphic novels, completely free of DRM restrictions, as part of Humble eBook Bundle IV.” For the next two weeks, customers can name their own price for the bundle, which marks the first ever DRM-free release of Wizzywig by Ed Piskor and From Hell by Alan Moore & Eddie Campbell, plus March: Book One, the award-winning civil rights graphic memoir by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell.

Those three titles alone are worth a cover price of $70, but the eBook Bundle also features work by many other authors, including George R. R. Martin, Neil Gaiman, Terry Goodkind, and Yahtzee Croshaw. What's more, this project serves as a fund-raiser for both Doctors Without Borders and the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Upon purchasing the bundle and choosing how much to pay, customers can select how they’d like the funds to be split among the books’ creators, the two charities, and a “tip” for the Humble Bundle team.

For more details and to name your own price for these outstanding books, visit Humble Bundle now! The promotion ends after two weeks, on June 11th.


MARCH: BOOK ONE wins Robert F. Kennedy Book Award — Special Recognition!

May 21, 2014 / More →

Image for MARCH: BOOK ONE wins Robert F. Kennedy Book Award — Special Recognition!

Every so often, a graphic novel comes out that is so remarkable and so important, it breaks out of traditional categories, forcing readers and institutions to reconsider their expectations of what the comics medium can do. In 1992, for example, Art Spiegelman's Maus depicted the life of a Holocaust survivor with such innovative power that the Pulitzer Prize committee issued Spiegelman a "Special Award."

Now, the RFK Center for Justice and Human Rights has announced that March: Book One, the first volume of Congressman John Lewis' civil rights memoir co-written with Andrew Aydin and drawn by Nate Powell, will receive a "Special Recognition" award at the 2014 Robert F. Kennedy Book Awards, to be awarded in a ceremony tomorrow night, May 22, in Washington, D.C.

Fittingly for an icon of the civil rights movement, this will be Congressman Lewis' second honor from the RFK Book Awards; his prose autobiography Walking with the Wind won in 1999. The awards, founded in 1980, celebrate those books which best reflect the late Senator Kennedy's ideals of justice, human rights, and equality of opportunity. In his capacity as attorney general, senator, and presidential candidate, Kennedy played a significant role in the civil rights movement throughout the 60s, and indeed will appear in the forthcoming second and third volumes of March.

This honor also places the March team in fine company in another way: the RFK Book Awards' only previous use of the Special Recognition was also for comics, awarded in 1994 to the legendary editorial cartoonist Herblock.

Read More →


This weekend, say "Hey, TCAF!" with Top Shelf!

May 6, 2014 / More →

Image for This weekend, say "Hey, TCAF!" with Top Shelf!

Can you believe it's May already?! We've just finished celebrating FREE COMIC BOOK DAY with a new Top Shelf Kids Club comic book (containing free samples of Rob Harrell's Monster on the Hill and Eric Orchard's upcoming Maddy Kettle), which you can now add on to web orders for only 50 cents!

And now it's time to head to Toronto for this weekend's TCAF: Toronto Comic Arts Festival, May 10-11! Join Top Shelf on the 2nd floor (tables 228-230) to meet this fantastic lineup:

Read More →


A "Century" of Extraordinary Gentlemen, finally collected in gorgeous hardcover!

April 30, 2014 / More →

The wait is over! Five years after Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill first brought their famous League of Extraordinary Gentlemen series to the trans-Atlantic partnership of Top Shelf (US) & Knockabout (UK), we're officially opening pre-orders for our most requested item: the collected "Century"!

This 256-page hardcover, scheduled to hit stores in July 2014, will collect all three installments of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. III: Century. Spanning the League's adventures in 1910, 1969, and 2009, this metafictional epic sees Mina Murray and her dwindling allies race across time to prevent an apocalyptic conspiracy, while the world they once knew crumbles around them. Woven throughout, of course, are countless colorful characters from 100 years of British popular culture, from Marxist opera to reality television, pulp fiction to experimental film, and even a touch of rock 'n' roll.

Discover the saga CBR called "arguably one of the greatest comics of all time"!

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Vol III): Century - HARDCOVER
by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill

-- 256-page full-color hardcover with dust jacket
-- 6 5/8" x 10 3/8"
-- ISBN 978-1-60309-329-3
-- Diamond order code: MAY14-1615
-- For mature readers (18+)
-- $29.95 (US)
-- Co-published by Top Shelf Productions (US) and Knockabout Comics (UK)
-- Pre-order now for release in July!

Also open for pre-order: the second printing of the critically acclaimed swan song by the inimitable dean of autobiographical comics, an autobiography of a man and a city: Harvey Pekar's Cleveland.

Harvey Pekar's Cleveland
by Harvey Pekar and Joseph Remnant

-- 128-page hardcover graphic novel
-- 9.3" x 7.3"
-- ISBN 978-1-60309-091-9
-- Diamond order code: DEC11-1207
-- For mature readers (16+)
-- $21.99 (US)
-- Co-published by Top Shelf Productions and Zip Comics
-- Pre-order the new printing now for release in July!


Zander Cannon's HECK wins prestigious Lynd Ward Prize Honor!

April 24, 2014 / More →

Hot on the heels of his Eisner Award nomination, more congratulations are in order for Zander Cannon tonight, as the Pennsylvania Center for the Book named his graphic novel Heck among the recipients of the Lynd Ward Prize, a recent and very prestigious award honoring "the best graphic novel, fiction or non-fiction, published in the previous calendar year by a living U.S. or Canadian citizen or resident." Heck is one of two Honorees, along with Gene Luen Yang's Boxers & Saints, while the top prize went to Jim Woodring's Fran. Indeed, when informed of the news, Zander had this to say: "This is such an honor. I'm also friends with Jim Woodring and Gene Yang, so the happiness is threefold!"

The judges called Heck "a thoroughly engaging story despite its seemingly simple presentation. It draws its intellectual inheritance from Dante’s Inferno to explore memory, amnesia and morality with grace and wit. Cannon’s style is characterized by deft and confident thick line work combined with dark shadows, creating a stark black and white affair that hides nothing."

Heck, first serialized in the digital magazine Double Barrel, is Zander Cannon's first solo graphic novel, though it follows two decades of acclaimed work in the industry as both artist and writer/artist. Combining the thrills and action of the pulp tradition with the trademark emotional sophistication of indie comics, Heck follows a washed-up football star as he discovers a portal to Hell, goes into business as an underworld courier, and battles dark forces both within and without. It's available in the pages of Double Barrel, as an ebook or hardcover, and exclusively from Top Shelf as a limited-edition signed and numbered deluxe package.

Our heartiest congratulations to Zander and all this year's Lynd Ward Prize recipients!


MARCH and HECK receive Eisner Award nominations! Plus: the Glyph Awards!

April 16, 2014 / More →

Image for MARCH and HECK receive Eisner Award nominations! Plus: the Glyph Awards!

After a terrific year for comics of all kinds, the judges of the 2014 Will Eisner Awards had quite a challenge selecting this year's nominees. Late yesterday, however, the results were released -- and Top Shelf is honored to congratulate four terrific authors on four Eisner nominations!

March: Book One, the monumental civil rights graphic memoir by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell, has already been acclaimed by critics, readers, retailers, universities, and library organizations. Now we are honored to add the endorsement of the comic book community, with Eisner Award nominations in Best Publication for Teens and Best Reality-Based Work, and Nate's artwork on the book singled out for Best Penciller/Inker!

As Andrew Aydin told the Washington Post: “I grew up in Atlanta as a nerd, so I’ve been reading about heroes in comic books and learning about the heroism of John Lewis since before I can remember... Decades later, the fact that our book is now being embraced by the comics community, and considered alongside so many great works, means the world to me.”

Congratulations also to Zander Cannon, whose powerful graphic novel Heck is Eisner-nominated for Best Graphic Album—Reprint! That gorgeous hardcover collects the story first serialized in the digital magazine Double Barrel.

One year after these books' triumphant launch at Comic-Con 2013, we'll see you again in San Diego this summer for the Eisner Award ceremony!

And that's not the only good news... the Glyph Comics Awards have also announced their list of nominees! The Glyphs, celebrating the best in African-American comics, have not only nominated March: Book One for Story of the Year, they've selected its 1950s-era inspiration, Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story for Best Reprint Publication! How appropriate for past, present, and future to be celebrated all together.

Congratulations to Congressman Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell, Zander Cannon, the Fellowship of Reconciliation, and all the amazing talents nominated this year!


Welcome the acclaimed PINOCCHIO, VAMPIRE SLAYER to Top Shelf!

April 2, 2014 / More →

This month’s Previews catalog features an twisted fairy-tale adventure for teens and adults alike! Now's your chance to see why the critics are raving about Pinocchio, Vampire Slayer:

Coming in June: the acclaimed PINOCCHIO, VAMPIRE SLAYER complete in one volume!

After gathering substantial praise for their individual volumes, artist Dusty Higgins and writer Van Jensen officially join the Top Shelf family this summer with the first-ever complete collection of Pinocchio, Vampire Slayer! Click through for more details and a 12-page preview.

One of YALSA’s Top Ten Graphic Novels for Teens!
"It's the greatest thing I've read all year. And you'll notice my nose didn't grow one bit when I said that." — Mark Waid
"Page after page of amazement." Publishers Weekly
“The premise for this graphic novel is really almost too good to be true… and the execution doesn't disappoint.” Booklist
"Outstanding." Topless Robot
"Sometimes dark, sometimes silly, but always fun, Pinocchio coming of age Batman-style is just the thing for fantasy and horror fans." MTV
“Really, really good.” Comics Alliance
"Seriously, it's perfect." Comic Book Resources

This puppet may not be a real boy… but he just might be a real hero.

When bloodthirsty monsters invade Pinocchio's hometown and kill his father Geppetto, Pinocchio discovers a new benefit to his magical nose: telling lies produces a never-ending supply of wooden stakes to combat the vampire hordes! Will Pinocchio be able to defeat these horrors, avenge his father, and save his friends?

Jensen (Green Lantern Corps) and Higgins (Knights of the Living Dead) present a captivating blend of comedy, horror, romance, and adventure, rooted in the original Italian novel but brought - as if by magic - to new life.

Pinocchio, Vampire Slayer
by Dusty Higgins and Van Jensen

--a softcover graphic novel with French Flaps, 6.25” x 8.5”
--528 pages
--$24.95 (US)
--ISBN 978-1-60309-347-7
--Diamond order code: APR141393
--Pre-order now for release in June!

Plus: Liz Prince's essential WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME IF I WET THE BED?, back in print!

Just as Liz Prince re-enters the spotlight with her delightfully misanthropic new book Alone Forever, we've headed back to print on her lovable debut! It's a must-have for any reader who's ever been in love. Grab your copy today, hot off the press!

Will You Still Love Me If I Wet the Bed?
by Liz Prince

--a softcover graphic novel, 4" x 6"
--80 pages
--$7.00 (US)
--ISBN 978-1-891830-72-3
--Diamond order code: APR141394


John Lewis' MARCH reaches college campuses, Oprah, and MTV!

March 24, 2014 / More →

Over six months after its publication, the phenomenon that is March: Book One continues to break new ground. This graphic novel, the first in a trilogy by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell, has won tremendous acclaim, both as a great book on its own terms, and as an opportunity to reach new audiences. March is not only communicating to new generations about vital American history, it's also introducing the graphic novel format to countless new readers.

With that in mind, we're very proud to announce three new developments this week:

Michigan State and Marquette University select MARCH!

Michigan State University and Marquette University have both selected March as freshman required reading for 2014! March: Book One will be featured in "One Book, One Community," a program in which Michigan State University partners with the City of East Lansing to read, discuss, and celebrate a book together as a community. Similarly, Marquette University in Milwaukee has selected March: Book One for its First-Year Reading Program, in which all incoming students spend the summer reading a common text and then discuss it during New Student Orientation. Together, these programs will see over 10,000 students reading this graphic novel simultaneously!

Oprah Magazine loves MARCH!

March: Book One is praised by New York State Senator Daniel Squadron with a glowing review in the new issue of O, the Oprah Magazine (April 2014, on newsstands this week): "A riveting chronicle of Lewis’s extraordinary life… it powerfully illustrates how much perseverance is needed to achieve fundamental social change."

MARCH heads to MTV!

Last but not least, co-authors Congressman Lewis and Andrew Aydin recently taped an interview with MTV News' Sway Calloway, which will air on MTV shortly!


Announcing the long-awaited return of HEY, MISTER and more!

March 6, 2014 / More →

This month's pre-order announcement is a very special landmark for us at Top Shelf. When Brett Warnock and I decided to join forces at the Small Press Expo in 1997, we had one goal: to bring great comics into the world, comics that could be funny or charming, and full of subtext and heart.

And the first graphic novel we ever released was Pete Sickman-Garner's wry and witty Hey, Mister: After School Special.

Now, so many years later, we're pleased as punch to announce the return of Pete, and his whole cast of lovable Hey, Mister weirdoes, for their biggest adventure ever -- to Hell and back! This 192-page self-contained graphic novel is a perfect introduction for new readers, while longtime fans will find extra treats lurking inside.

Hey, Mister: Come Hell or Highwater Pants
by Pete Sickman-Garner

ISBN 978-1-60309-030-8
$14.95 (US)
A 192-Page full-length graphic novel, 6.5" x 9.5"
Can Mister, Young Tim, and Aunt Mary help Satan sneak back into the underworld and retrieve his soul? Pete Sickman-Garner returns at last to his beloved cult-favorite series HEY, MISTER, rounding up the whole cast for one Hell of a heist job.
Pre-order in the current Diamond Previews today for books shipping in May!

Also coming soon: new printings of essential Top Shelf classics!


Now's the time to pre-order YOUR copies of the spring reprints of the Jeff Lemire library (The Underwater Welder, Essex County, and Lost Dogs) as well as the legendary Lost Girls by Alan Moore & Melinda Gebbie!

New releases from Top Shelf in stores now!


2014 is off to a mighty beginning with these new releases! Head to your favorite store today to pick up The Bojeffries Saga by Alan Moore & Steve Parkhouse and Alone Forever by Liz Prince -- and stay tuned for the March 19 release of Nemo: The Roses of Berlin by Alan Moore & Kevin O'Neill as well as our reprinted edition of the timeless civil rights comic book Martin Luther King & the Montgomery Story (hitting stores in April)!

Your friend thru comics,

Chris Staros


Top Shelf launches first wave of DRM-free graphic novels!

February 19, 2014 / More →

Ever since we first began selling digital editions of our books in 2011, Top Shelf has embraced digital distribution wholeheartedly. We’ve presented an unmatched library of award-winning and fan-favorite graphic novels on multiple platforms, working with digital partners to offer readers a remarkable degree of choice, while keeping digital prices substantially lower than print.

And since our printed books are so handsomely designed, we know that offering you affordable and convenient e-books doesn’t stop you from craving the print edition for your bookshelf — on the contrary, the two formats complement each other.

Fans evidently agree! You've responded to our digital offerings with great enthusiasm, downloading Top Shelf comics by the thousands from excellent vendors like Comixology, Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks, Kobo, BN Nook, and more, while continuing to shop for your favorites in printed format from your favorite retailers.

Today, we’re launching a new program that gives digital readers even more options. In addition to selling through our digital partners, select titles are now available in DRM-free digital editions directly from our online store at www.topshelfcomix.com! Using this DRM-free option allows you to download your purchase as a simple PDF, ePub, or CBZ file -- yours to keep, back up, or transfer to mobile devices.

What’s more, this new direct-download option allows us to launch another great feature: add-on pricing. Starting today, customers who order select titles from the www.topshelfcomix.com online store can purchase both print and digital editions at the same time, for a substantial savings! For example, Jeff Lemire’s The Underwater Welder is priced at $19.95 print and $6.99 digital, but now when ordering the print edition, it’s only $2.99 extra to add on the digital edition. One for home and one for the road? One for you and one for your sweetie? The choice is yours, with add-on pricing!

Top Shelf’s new DRM-free ebook program launches with the following titles:

Also, the following digital-exclusive titles are now available DRM-free:

Thanks as always for your support. Let’s explore the future of comics… together!


Liz Prince is ALONE FOREVER in a town near you!

February 1, 2014 / More →

Image for Liz Prince is ALONE FOREVER in a town near you!

Can you believe it's February already? Just in time for Valentine's Day, we've got a new release from the author of the award-winning fan-favorite Will You Still Love Me If I Wet the Bed?

Yes, Liz Prince debuts her much-anticipated new book Alone Forever this week (in stores February 5)!

But why let her be ALONE FOREVER when you can MEET LIZ PRINCE at one of her many events this month?

Liz hits the road with her new book:

And that's not all! Liz has expanded her reach by sending awesome prints of various Alone Forever comic strips for you to view and purchase at these worldwide gallery shows!

Hope to see you on the road! For more details and a 7-page preview of the book, click here.


MARCH: BOOK ONE wins Coretta Scott King Honors from American Library Association!

January 28, 2014 / More →

Top Shelf Productions is both proud and honored to congratulate Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell, the creators of March: Book One, on yesterday's announcement that their graphic novel is a Coretta Scott King Honor Book.

Since 1970, the Coretta Scott King Book Awards have celebrated outstanding books for young people about the African American experience. The honor for March: Book One (the first in a planned trilogy of graphic novels in which Congressman Lewis recounts his astonishing life in the civil rights movement) is only the second time the CSK committee has selected a book in comics format. It marks the first Coretta Scott King honor for Lewis, Aydin, or Powell, as well as for publisher Top Shelf.

March: Book One ended 2013 being listed among the year's best books by USA Today, The Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, and many more publications, and was recently selected by comic book retailers to receive Diamond Comic Distributors' Gem Award as Independent Graphic Novel of the Year. It is currently in its 21st week on the New York Times bestseller list.

For more information or to download the free Teacher's Guide to March: Book One, please visit www.topshelfcomix.com/march.


THE MONTGOMERY STORY comes to your favorite retailer!

January 28, 2014 / More →

You may remember that the award-winning March trilogy is based on the 1950s comic book Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story, which served as both an inspiration and an instruction manual for young John Lewis and many other activists of his generation. Now, in addition to launching the first fully-authorized digital edition of that comic book (both in a special bundle and on its own), we've partnered with the Fellowship of Reconciliation on a new physical reprint!

At last, comic shops, bookstores, libraries, and readers can order their own copies of this timeless piece of history. It's available for pre-order now and will hit stores in April. And once again, all of Top Shelf's proceeds will be donated to the book's original publishers, the Fellowship of Reconciliation!