Reincarnation Stories Hardcover – October 15, 2019

I bought this on a whim, unfamiliar with this brilliant artist or his prior work. Now it would seem that I have to work my way backwards. Another reviewer explains the this book encompasses most of Dietch’s work and biography. Taking one of the lessons of this book to heart, it may not matter where I start but rather where I end up along the way.

Kim Deitch is a master at work. His art his cartoony but in such a hyper detailed way it's one of a kind. Couple that in with master narrative story telling and you must give this book a read.

If you've followed Deitch at all through his career, this is a must have book to tie his work together. All of his usual themes are here, but it's more autobiographical, more complex in a personal way, and definitely the mature product of what I think is a true artistic mind. The kindle version is also very well formatted for comic strip ebook reading.

Are you a fan of Deitch's work? You need this book.Have you never read Deitch's work? You need this book.A master cartoonist, Deitch has been making comics for decades and he just keeps getting better in every way. Don't let the cartoony drawing fool you into thinking this is kids' stuff..This book takes a deep dive inside the rapidly firing synapses of this inventive creator's mind.

Kim Deitch has long been a master of comics but this new volume, created over many years, takes creativity to a new level.

I was really happy to see that Kim has produced yet more magic stuff. I'm tempted to say that this is his best ever piece of work, but it's a relative thing. If you are familiar with his previous publications, then this could well be his best ever. There is a more mellow side to'Reincarnation Stories', compared, say, to the hard-edged and dark 'Shadowlands' (I guess there was a clue in the title), which makes this a more joyous and life-affirming work. There are many little 'easter eggs' - references back to recent and not so recent yarns, which for an avowed fan like me are equivalent to knowing winks and waves of the hand from dear Kim. There are also lovingly rendered and kind of moving appearances from now sadly deceased 'underground comix' artisists, Spain and Jay Lynch. The Spain sequence was particularly welcome because I have been a fan of his work since Trashman, but never had much biographical knowledge. It was a heart-warming surprise to learn that Spain and Kim collaborated closely in the early days of their careers (now, of course it all makes sense) - and who knew that they were fans of Jack Kirby?! Well, I didn't - that's for sure. More treats - there is a surprise colour section in this beautifully presented volume - sorry to spoil the surprise for you. And of course Waldo makes an appearance , as does Kim's partner, Pam Butler, and various little known stars of the silver screen from the early 20th century. If you are actually reading this review, you must be halfway to buying this book, so just do it. It's gorgeous.Ok, now for a gripe.Why is it that every single volume in the Kim Deitch ouvre is a different size and format???? I would love to have a KD section on my bookshelves with all his works in a neat little row. But there are big tall ones and small pb ones and magazine size thin ones and thick landscape shaped ones. He has probably done this on purpose. I wouldn't put it past him.