Last week, we highlighted a number of trade paperback comic book collections, perfect gifts for friends and loved ones (or yourself) this holiday season.
If you haven’t already, you can check out that particular list right here.
But maybe you want to kick it up a notch this month.
Maybe you’ve got a special someone that really only likes hardcover books on the bookshelf. Or maybe you’re looking to find something that carries a slightly higher budget than softcover collections.
No worries. This week, we’ve got your back.
Here’s the second installment of our Holiday Gift Guide: Comic Book Collections!
The Fade Out – Deluxe Edition HC
Written and illustrated by industry titans, Ed Brubaker (Gotham Central, Criminal, Kill Or Be Killed) and Sean Phillips (Criminal, Kill Or Be Killed, Hellblazer), The Fade Out was a twelve-part monthly series, published about a year ago, and now collected in a must-have handsome, oversized hardcover.
It tells the murder-mystery story of an up-and-coming Hollywood starlet, during the early days of movie making. Here you’ll find blacklisted screenwriters, power-mad film producers, and undercover government agents seeking out anti-Americans. The Fade Out is absolutely brilliant, a compelling weave of human tragedy and historical drama, set within the golden glow of a by-gone era.
This collection also features added behind-the-scenes sketches and illustrations and riveting historical essays on some of your favourite actors and actresses. Surely you’ve got a loved one who would love this! You can pick it up at your local comic book shop or on Amazon for $33.58.
Dark Knight: A True Batman Story – HC
This Dark Knight story is an autobiographical one.
Written by Paul Dini, well known for his work in comics and on Batman: The Animated Series, and illustrated by fan favourite Eduardo Risso (100 Bullets), Dark Knight: A True Batman Story details Dini’s struggle to recover from a vicious beating that nearly took his life and left him unable to face the world. In his mind, that crime brought Batman and that entire characters rogues gallery to his bedside and during his arduous recovery process.
Dark Knight: A True Batman Story is a memoir that will surely affect all of those that delve deep within its pages. You can find it at your local comic book store or bookstore or at Amazon for a reasonable price of $15.29.
Neil Gaiman’s Troll Bridge – HC
We all know author Neil Gaiman (Sandman, American Gods, Coraline) and we all should know artist Colleen Doran (Sandman, A Distant Soil).
In this hardcover, Doran adapts Gaiman’s fantasy story with her lush and evocative illustrations. Troll Bridge is a coming of age story: as a young boy, Jack’s world is full of ghastly creatures, but it’s the troll that will haunt him into his manhood.
Now, as an adult, Jack must summon all of his courage and finally confront his adversary, once and for all.
Troll Bridge is a beautiful, whimsical and enlightening work that is sure to put a smile on the face of any loved one this holiday season, regardless of their age. You can find it at your local book shop or on Amazon at the affordable price of $13.40.
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth Artist Tribute – HC
OK. So this isn’t really a comic book.
But it’s definitely beloved pop culture and there are lots of comic book artists featured in this amazing hardcover book of one of the all-time cult classic fave films!
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth Artist Tribute honors the film’s 30th anniversary in a celebration of pen and pencil, ink and paint. The book features illustrations and testimonials from fan favourite artists and comic book newcomers alike including: Mike Allred, David Mack, Joelle Jones, Tula Lotay, Jill Thompson, Mark Buckingham, Faith Erin Hicks, Ramon Perez, Dustin Nguyen and many, many more.
If you love art and you love the film Labyrinth (or know someone who does), this is a can’t-miss book. Couple it with the 30th Anniversary Blu-Ray of the film and/or the novelization, and give it to a fantasy lover of a younger generation!
You can find Jim Henson’s Labyrinth Artist Tribute at your nearest bookstore or on Amazon for $16.50.
Superman: American Alien – HC
Writer Max Landis (Chronicle), took a stab at writing a six-issue mini series that detailed the story of Clark Kent growing up in Smallville: a scared and bullied kid from another planet who happens to also have hidden, impossible powers. That kid grew up to be Clark Kent, a reporter for the Daily Planet who had a nose for the truth.
This is not the Superman you know. Not yet.
What a great tag line!
Beyond detailing the early days of Clark’s life, the great thing about Superman: American Alien is that a different artist illustrates each chapter – all powerhouses in the comic book industry. They include: Jock, Francis Manapul, Jae Lee, Joelle Jones, Nick Dragotta and others.
Superman: American Alien collects that special series in a hardcover format and would be a welcome addition to an Superman fans reading collection. You can find it at your local comic book shop or on Amazon for $16.55.
Klaus – HC
Saved for the last entry on this particular list, what’s more Christmassy than showcasing Santa Claus as a brooding, shamanistic, Viking warrior?
Nothing, that’s what!
Under the pen of famed writer Grant Morrison (The Invisibles, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Happy!, Nameless), and joined by illustrator Dan Morra (Hexed), the hardcover edition of Klaus collects the original six-issue miniseries and is the origin story of the swashbuckling superhero, up against a totalitarian state and an ancient evil that sustains it!
Klaus answers the most important question: What does Santa do on the other 364 days of the year?
This is action-packed, adventurous, mind-bending fun – something that only Morrison could conceive! You can find Klaus at your local comic book store or on Amazon for $34.99.
Check with us again early next week when we showcase the final installment of your comic book-flavoured Holiday Gift Guide, this time with the most expensive offerings that you need to give—or give to yourself!
