The Acme Novelty Date Book: Sketches and Diary Pages in Facsimile

Loved his work. Whimsical, surprising, amazing talent.

Tho interesting in the way that all his stuff is interesting, I find getting into this a bit of a challenge. Sure, it is a sketchbook, which by its nature can be less than compelling story-wise, but man I was hoping for some of his trademark sad, lonely storytelling, if even in snippet form, because, ya know, I can relate to them (if you're looking at this item, you likely can too). I really don't relate to Robert Crumb's stuff, which is definitely what some of these (earlier?) sketches were aiming for. Still worth checking out for Chris Ware diehards.

Got this as a present for my SO, who really enjoys Chris Ware's other stuff, and he loved it. It's full of weird, random, silly, intriguing pictures and introspective notes about his artistic process at the beginning of his career. If you are or know a Chris Ware fan then I think this is an excellent gift.As a side note: there are several sexy drawing of people's fun time bits, so keep that in mind if you're getting for a younger/more sensitive crowd.

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Chris Ware is an amazing artist--one of the best in the comics industry. His books are something I treasure like a sweaty gold miner. He published this sketchbook in "response" to Bob Crumb's sketchbooks. In the intro, Ware states how influential those books were on him. The variety of styles Ware is capable of using is amazing. You'll also gain insight into the characters we've come to know and love (Quimby, Jimmy Corrigan, etc). If you're a Ware fan--get this book. If you are new to Ware, I'd probably start somewhere else like Jimmy Corrigan.**The one caution I would provide is that Amazon states that this is the 1st volume. However, the picture above is of volume 2. The 1st edition has a black cover and the 2nd edition cover is blue. The two editions cover different periods of Ware' life.

The book is a record of an absolute monster drawing talent!It collects tentative investigations, as a scrapbook of ideas and odds and ends. The amazing thing about it is its vitality.Anything and everything becomes a source of inspiration and investigation into the nature of drawing. A coffee cup, a telephone in a waiting room, a washing machine, such mundane things seem to begin as notations but are transformed by Ware's observation of line and tone into their inner vitality - much like Van Gogh's peasant shoes. There are beautiful portraits. And beyond the observed notes, the book is positively brimming with characters, mutations, and cartoons from his eccentric imagination. The fantastical musings and the observed notations blend, merge together, separate like DNA strands through the book, adding up to a rich record of creativity

beautiful drawings...no matter how self critical mr. ware was back in the day. the book really allows the reader into the head of a master illustrator. if you're looking more for a graphic novel, don't start with this one (try his first real freshman work jimmy c, or his ACME novelty library, probably my favorite - you get a real sense of what ware is all about - clean lines, insane, or better put, anal details). anyway, back to this one...great book, if you're a fan of ware, there's no reason not to get this one, and if you're not yet convinced, this is a nice piece just to have - these same drawings and doodles that once inspired ware himself, now get me thinking. love it.

This has been the best book purchase I've made this year. If you're a fan of Chris Ware and/or nursing your own comic project, I know of no book I'd recommend before this one. In his jumbled, crazy sketchbook pages are the riddle to his success.

I can spend hours just flipping through this (and the other) sketchbook drooling in awe at this mans talent. It's great to get your own creative juices flowing.

fab - great sketchbook stuff.

Excellent item as described. Prompt dispatch, safe and sound. Top marks.

Il diario grafico di Chris Ware nei suoi primi anni da appassionato di disegno, oltre a farci seguire lo sviluppo del suo stile personale, ci fa capire che se non è problematico l'artista difficilmente tira fuori delle storie e delle situazioni "interessanti" per il lettore…