As I try to make pretty clear on this website, comics are a big part of both my teaching and research. In 2006, I wrote a short piece for Random House explaining why comics are important to me as a teacher. In 2007 and 2008, three longer pieces of my comics-related writing have come out, including my first book. Here are their descriptions with links to more information about them:
This Book Contains Graphic Language: Comics as Literature. New York: Continuum, 2007.
This is the book that I've been working on for several years, and it is now available. In the book, I make the argument that comics are an important artistic medium by analyzing how they reflect and expand upon important features of various "respectable" literatures like memoir, journalism, film, and--for lack of a better term--the "classics." It's a richly-illustrated book, and I discuss vintage comics like Frontline Combat, Two-Fisted Tales, and Classics Illustrated; independent comics like Eightball, Love and Rockets, American Splendor, Maus, and Palestine; and mainstream titles like Sandman and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. My hope for this book is that it will find an audience that is made up not only of comics enthusiasts, but also of people interested in all forms of literature.
EC Archives Two-Fisted Tales, Volume 2. West Plains, MO: Gemstone Publishing, 2007.
In the 1950s, EC produced some of the most revolutionary comics the medium has ever seen (for my discussion on these comics elsewhere on this website, click here). Beginning in 2006, Gemstone Publishing has been re-releasing these comics, six issues at a time, in prestige hardbound volumes. I was lucky enough to be asked by the series editor, Russ Cochrane, to write the foreword and six one-page essays for Two-Fisted Tales, Volume 2 (see above). It was a real honor for me, especially when I discovered that people like John Carpenter, Steven Spielberg, and George Lucas had written forewords for other volumes.
This book collects some great ideas and classroom activities for using visual materials--such as comics--to develop important literary skills in students. I contributed one of the chapters, entitled "'Literary Literacy' and the Role of the Comic Book."
Other writings:
"How Comic Books Can Change the Way Our Students See Literature: One Teacher's Perspective." English Journal 91.2 (November 2001): 61-67.
"Jack Cole and Plastic Man: Forms Stretched to Their Limits!" (Book review). International Journal of Comic Art 4.1 (Spring 2002): 307-09.
"Tintin: The Complete Companion" (Book review). International Journal of Comic Art 4.2 (Fall 2002): 339-41.