The Story of the Jews: A 4,000-Year Adventure-A Graphic History Book - Softcover

Mack, Stan

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1580231551 ISBN 13: 9781580231558

Verlag: Jewish Lights, 2001

Inhaltsangabe

Book by Stan Mack

Über diesen Titel

Críticas

http: //www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/religion/article/67522-at-jewish-lights-two-graphic-novels-exceed-expectations.html--Evan Phail "Publishers Weekly "

Jewish Lights, a Vermont publisher specializing in books on Jewish traditions and culture, doesn't publish a lot of graphic novels, but the two released by the house have managed to exceed all reasonable expectations.

First published in 2006, Steve Sheinkin's award-winningRabbi Harveygraphic novel series, eccentric tales about a funny and very wise Rabbi in the old West, has sold more than 50,000 copies across its three volumes. And in 2001, the house acquired rights to formerVillage Voicecartoonist Stan Mack's out-of-print work, The Story of the Jews: A 4,000-Year Adventure, a graphic history of the Jewish people originally published by Villard, which has gone on to sell more than 20,000 copies in the Jewish Lights edition.

That's a lot of sales for a book Matlins almost didn't publish. He rejected the manuscript after he read it the first time. Undaunted, two years later Sheinkin resubmitted the book to Jewish Lights; this time Matlins passed the manuscript on to his staff. To his amazement, everyone loved it and Matlin agreed to publish.According to Stuart M. Matlins, publisher and editor-in-chief atJewish Lights, a book appealing to the niche Jewish market can be considered a success if it sells 5,000 copies. The Rabbi Harvey graphic novels (three books between 2006 and 2010), have been in print for nearly 10 years and sold tens of thousands of copies in the U.S. and international markets combined.

The appeal of theRabbi Harveygraphic novels lay in Sheinkin's hilarious (and educational) combination of classic Jewish folktales with the tropes of the Hollywood western. The books offer a comic version of Talmudic wisdom applied to a succession of crazy problems and riddles brought to the good Rabbi by neighbors looking for advice. Add Sheinkins' wacky stick-figure drawing style and the result is a series of charming Jewish "Westerns" starring the clever rabbi.

Matlin said the Jewish Lights is dedicated to finding books that help people, "find meaning in their lives," and the Rabbi Harvey titles seem to do just that. And while the books are popular with children, Matlins said, Sheinkin's comics appeal to ministers, priests, rabbis, indeed, the whole family. The series has also been translated into French and Portuguese. Matlins suggested that because the Jewish communities are smaller in those countries, the books are finding success by attracting readers from other communities.

It's a different story for Stan Mack's smart and funny history of the Jews. Matlin said he loved the book when it was first published by Villard in 1998. "I wished we had published it. It's inordinately brilliant, clever, and absolutely historically accurate," he said. When he found out the book was out of print, "It took only seconds for me to accept and we published it in paperback."

While these two graphic novels have found success, Matlins said the bigger problem is finding more comics content that is appropriate for Jewish Lights.

These days Steve Sheinkin is writing history-related books and has put theRabbi Harveyseries on hold since 2010. But Jewish Lights is excited to be working with two new graphic novelists on original work. Matlins declined to provide more information about the two artists at this time, but said the house has worked for two years with one of the authors, who has been inspired by the Rabbi Harveyseries. He expects to publish one of the authors in 2016 and the other in 2017.

Looking back, Matlins described both Sheinkin and Mack's works as unique, noting that he'd never seen comics like this before. Comics, once a niche market, have found a much bigger audience by offering broader, more diverse content. Besides, he said, "any time you do anything new or different, not everyone will like it, but those who do like it willreallylike it."

--Evan Phail "Publishers Weekly "

Reseña del editor

A Fresh Look at 4,000 Years of Jewish History—Authoritative, Complete...Funny Through witty, illustrated narrative, celebrated artist Stan Mack will take you on a rewarding pictorial journey through 4,000 years of ups and downs in Jewish history. The first "graphic history book" of its kind, The Story of the Jews celebrates the major characters and events that have shaped the Jewish people and culture, illustrating what it means to be Jewish. You will visit all the major Jewish happenings from biblical times to the twenty-first century—from Abraham and Sarah on the banks of the Euphrates to the Diaspora, intermarriage, and the State of Israel. Moses receiving the Ten Commandments, The triumph of King David, The creation of the Talmud, The rise of Christianity and Islam, The Crusades, The Inquisition, The Enlightenment, Life in the new Babylon (the United States), The birth of the state of Israel, And—of course—the world's first “Oy!”

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Jewish Lights
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2001
• ISBN 10: 1580231551
• ISBN 13: 9781580231558
• Einband: Tapa blanda
• Sprache: Englisch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 292