1000 Comic Books You Must Read

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I first heard about Tony Isabella’s new book in Cap’s 10/23 blog and bought a copy when it shipped last week. As Cap described it, Isabella offers “brief information or commentary on important books, oddball titles or just personal favorites.” The comics he chose to include (and those he left out) could spark endless debate. For example, he does not list Fantastic Four #1. What won me over is that he included not Hulk #181 (first Wolverine) but Hulk #82 (Cracka-Jack Jackson). I have long maintained that #181 was just one of a string of fine issues, but it’s the one that gets all the attention. I will take exception to Cap’s assessment that “it’s a fun tour and a quick read” (at least the “quick read” part). As when Krause’s Standard Catalogue of Comic Books first shipped, I have spend hours poring over the entries in random fashion. In fact, I like Isabella’s book better than the Standard Catalogue because it doesn’t waste space on a price guide, using it instead on full color illustrations. Someday perhaps I will read it from cover to cover, but right now I’m using it as a coffee table book, skipping around from decade to decade reading entries at random. But even if/when I do get around to reading the whole thing, I don’t expect it to be a quick read!