The Great Big Book of Tomorrow: A Treasury of Cartoons

If you think that your heart will explode with rage whenever you hear anything said by anyone remotely connected with our Shrub-in-charge (or anyone supportive of same), be comforted, there are many people who feel the same way. Tom Tomorrow is one of those people. His comics are short little distillations of rational outrage, done so cleverly and with such clarity that you will love him for it. In addition to this collection, you can sustain yourself on his recent catalogue of strips, which can be found on Workingforchange.

I highly recommend this book for three reasons: entertainment, truth, and long-lasting flavor.First, if you're a fan of Tom Tomorrow's work as I am, you'll have more than a simple collection of past and recent work to enjoy -- you'll also find out how he got started as a cartoonist, complete with reprints of some early 'zine work. Cartoonists often reprint early work so that fans can see the development of the characters (and the cartoonist's illustration and writing skills) over time. In this book, however, Tom's earliest work turns out to be unusually polished and really, really funny from day one. I'm reasonably sure the work from his early 'zine has escaped the notice of all but his hardest-core fans. To me, that material alone was worth the price. This was an unusual and pleasant surprise.Second, it was equally surprising (although not nearly as delightful) to experience the starkness and clarity with which Tom's early and recent works present the realities of the society we live in, not just from a political perspective, but from a sociological one. Is his work biased? Absolutely, and without a doubt. It is, however, a consistent and exceptionally well-informed bias that servers to reinforce the underlying truths of his work. No matter what end of the political -- or social -- spectrum you place yourself at, you'll find much to make you laugh, and many things to make you reconsider, or at least momentarily question, your own beliefs and behaviors.Third, and finally, this book seems to last longer than it should. I consume books at a rapid pace, and cartoon compendiums such as this tend to go through me like water. With this book, however, I found myself bookmarking the page with the expectation that I was nearly at the end, only to discover that I had at least half the book to go. I know that sounds trite, but let's face it: if you're having a good time, you don't want it to end.Well worth the money, and I recommend it highly.

As a Tom Tomorrow fan for about a decade now (his wonderfully undiplomatic cartoons about Newt Gingrich and Rush Limbaugh were a breath of fresh air in the depressing 104th Congress era, and he's only gotten better), I can't say enough good things about this collection. These cartoons are as biting and persuasive as they are funny, and are often informative to boot - although, as the artist himself often concludes, it's sad to think telling the whole truth behind the news is so often left up to a talking penguin in a weekly comic strip!Some of the cartoons collected here were previously published in earlier collections. But there's plenty of material reprinted here for the first time, including specials for the Village Voice and other alternative newspapers, and pre-"This Modern World" cartoons dating back to the mid-1980s. Most interesting of all (to me at least, and I expect to other longtime fans as well) is one of the very first strips published under the TMW name, circa 1987. Back then it was a science-fiction serial rather than a political strip, although it was topical in its own way then as now, and the trademark `50s kitsch was even more prominent. Add to that fifteen years of biting political wit, and you've got one of the smartest comics collections of, well, of this modern world!

Tom Tomorrow gathers his past cartoons, and plenty of rarely-seen or never-seen artwork also, into the first This Modern World compendium. A winner for those unfamiliar with his biting satire, or people who want to sample an overview of his career, or die hard fans. His social and political commentary is right on, and even the older stuff is still timely and relevant. Trace the development of Tom's signature style! See edited and banned cartoons! Choke with laughter at the pointed barbs at ...well, just about everybody!Covers the Reagan years, bush, Clinton, and the begining of Bush 2 with straightforward criticism, honest humor, and biting satire (Act now and we'll throw in the Irony and Sarcasm COMPLETELY FREE) Tom (aka Dan Perkins) adds commentary and background for many of the strips, especially trhe older ones. Worth every penny, and indispensible fo lovers of political and satirical humor, or just people who miss Bloom County. Haven't laughed this hard since the Dysfunctional Family Circus was operating. Buy two.

If you've never read a collection of Tom Tomorrow's work, this book covers everything in the This Modern World history. If you own any/all of Tom's previous books, you're getting more than your money's worth with stuff that's never been printed before: aside from a 12-year selection of TMW's best, the book's got a color section with (finally!) reprints of all the great stuff he's done for the Prospect and the Village Voice (unless you lived in NYC like I did, odds are you never saw the "Sensation" and Impeachment full-pagers in glorious full-color before- now you can!) and even early pre-Sparky cartoons."The Great Big Book of Tomorrow" is perfect for long-time readers eager to be rewarded for their long-time devotion, while offering an ample opportunity for newbies to enter the wonderful world of subversive cartoons that exceed any single-panel simplicity ever published in the mainstream press. If you're going to start reading intelligent cartoons, you might as well start with the best and the brightest.