Click here to pay by cheque
Top shelf productions
A selection
of Comics, and Graphic Novels from one of the worlds most
respected Indy publishers.
If there are any Top
Shelf titles you want, that are not listed here, let me
know and I'll get them for you.
COVER ART
DETAILS
price
TITLE: AEIOU or ANY EASY INTIMACY
Creator: Jeffrey Brown, Pages: 224, Format: 4" x 6"
"It seems Jeffrey Brown has been anointed Our Next Great Cartoonist." -- Mark David Nevins
Originally printed as a limited edition with hand drawn covers, Top Shelf presents the final chapter of Jeffrey Brown's so-called 'Girlfriend Trilogy." AEIOU continues to explore the subtleties of relationships explored in CLUMSY and UNLIKELY, concentrating this time on the differences between knowing and loving someone, invoking the reader's relationship with the book as a parallel to being involved with someone. The story is told with Brown's trademark expressive drawings and juxtaposition of humor and heartache.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £7.99
TITLE: AMERICAN ELF
Creator: James Kochalka, Pages: 520, Format: 8.5" x 8.5"
Absolutely impossible to encapsulate into a single review, Kochalka’s eminently likeable SKETCHBOOK DIARIES are a singular experience in the world of comics ... Comics’ foremost optimist, Kochalka really distinguishes himself from his fellow cartoonists not only through deceptively simple and wonderful art, but also with a goofy, vulnerable cheerfulness. In a medium where many creators find life unbearably and predictably painful, he finds the extraordinary in the ordinary." —4-Color Review
Kochalka's diaries have utterly redefined the daily comic strip. His attempt to document the minutia of his life results in work that explores the full spectrum of human emotions. Drawn with verve and confidence by a cartoonist at the height of his powers, it is ambitious, hilarious, moving, and quite addictive! This astounding book follows the ups and downs of Kochalka's life through 5 full years of the strip, plus also includes 32 full color pages of supplementary comics and other artwork. Quite simply, this is Kochalka's masterpiece.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £17.99
TITLE: BIGHEAD
Creator: Jeffrey Brown, Pages: 128, Format: 160 x 230mm Perfect Bound
"Bighead is great, great fun to read; it crackles with energy and a love for the genre of the super hero. Brown takes the silly conventions that weigh down the “cape and tights” books and sets them free with a wink and an elbow." -- Shawn Hoke, Comic World News
Jeffrey Brown is back -- and with a BIGHEAD, no less! From the creator of CLUMSY and BE A MAN comes an irreverent and clever superhero parody, featuring the most amazing hero of all time: BIGHEAD. Witness inept villains clash with an all-too-emotional hero, in the epic graphic novel that will leap all clichés in a single bound. BIGHEAD brings together moral fable, social commentary and classic comic book action, featuring a superhero who must save an unthankful world while facing the demons of his own failures.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £8.49
TITLE: BLANKETS
Creator: Craig Thompson, Pages: 592, Format: 164 x 245mm Perfect Bound
"... a rarity: a first-love story so well remembered and honest that it reminds you what falling in love feels like … achingly beautiful." -- Time Magazine
"I thought it was moving, tender, beautifully drawn, painfully honest, and probably the most important graphic novel since JIMMY CORRIGAN." -- Neil Gaiman
"This is a genuine graphic novel, with a universal appeal." -- Gordon Flagg, Booklist
Wrapped in the landscape of a blustery Wisconsin winter, BLANKETS explores the sibling rivalry of two brothers growing up in the isolated country, and the budding romance of two coming-of-age lovers. A tale of security and discovery, of playfulness and tragedy, of a fall from grace and the origins of faith. A profound and utterly beautiful work.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £17.99
6th Printing
TITLE: BOX OFFICE POISON
Creator: Alex Robinson, Pages: 608, Format: 165 x 145mm Perfect Bound
"A salute to comics, an exploration of the human condition, and a solid, absorbing, and riotously snide tale about at least half of the things that make life important." -- Tasha Robinson, The Onion AV Club
"Box Office Poison is a novel complex enough to provoke Book Talk. I even marked panels with post-it notes as I was reading so that I'd remember to show them to my friends." -- Kelly Sue DeConnick, Artbomb.com
Sporting a brand new cover, the award-winning and long-out-of-print BOX OFFICE POISON is back! This 608-page epic story of Sherman, Dorothy, Ed, Stephen, Jane, and Mr. Flavor is a true comics masterpiece. Alex Robinson's completely natural and inspiring knack for dialogue makes this story of dreary jobs, comic books, love, sex, messy apartments, girlfriends (and the lack thereof), undisclosed pasts, and crusty old professionals one of the most delightful and whimsical graphic novels to hit the stands in years.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £17.99
4th Printing
TITLE: CARNET DE VOYAGE
Creator: Craig Thompson, Pages: 224, Format: US Paperback
Thought provoking and touching." -- Publishers Weekly
Craig Thompson -- the award-winning creator of Blankets and Good-bye, Chunky Rice -- spent three months travelling through Barcelona, the Alps, and France, as well as Morocco. Spontaneous sketches and a travelogue diary document his adventures and quiet moments, creating a raw and intimate portrait of countries, culture and the wandering artist.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £9.49
2nd Printing
TITLE: CLUMSY
Creator: Jeffrey Brown, Pages: 232, Format: US Paperback
"Something about the way Jeffrey Brown draws these stories makes the saddest, dirtiest, most humiliating things that can possibly happen to a person seem weirdly innocent. The scratchy simplicity of the drawings makes the people in them all seem guileless and sweet. You feel like you're reading about some very well-meaning children who also happen to have sex, smoke pot and drink. Maybe it's just that Jeffrey Brown is a very nice man, and he projects this niceness onto everyone around him, even people who aren't treating him so well. You can open to any page and find something unusually bare and honest about these stories. They're surprising, even though half the moments in the book are ones you've probably experienced yourself. Hard trick to pull off." -- Ira Glass, This American Life, NPR
CLUMSY is Jeffrey Brown's debut work; a book praised by Chris Ware and hailed by James Kochalka as his "favorite graphic novel ever." CLUMSY is the bittersweet story of a year long, long distance relationship, told through snippets of everyday life, drawn in a simple and elegantly awkward style that heightens the emotional impact and leaves you reminiscing about your own past love affairs. It also has a lot of sex.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £6.49
Creator: Doug TenNapel, Pages: 208, Format: 182 x 266mm Perfect Bound
Good battles evil, and the world hangs in the balance! Resurrected by the Shroud of Turin, the zombified Dr. Jameson intends to finish what he started 150 years ago -- destroying the earth with a giant space eel. Standing in his way is Dr. Ong, a would-be pastor turned scientist who now works in a government research facility infamously known as "Creature Tech." Aided by an unlikely cast of rednecks, symbiotic aliens, and a CIA-trained mantid, Dr. Ong embarks on a journey of faith, love, and self-discovery. All in a day's work at Creature Tech! ... And, by the way, 20th Century Fox and New Regency are currently developing Doug TenNapel's Creature Tech for the sliver screen. We'll keep you posted as things develop.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £10.99
TITLE: MINIATURE SULK
Creator: Jeffrey Brown, Pages: 96
Format: 4 x 6.25 Paperback
Jeffrey Brown The author of the autobiographical classics CLUMSY and UNLIKELY takes a break from books about girls for this humorous short story collection featuring fiction, gags and autobiography. Included are such gems as 'My Brother Knows Kung Fu' and 'Action Television Show.'
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £5.49
TITLE: OWLY
Creator: Andy Runton, Pages: 160, Format: US Paperback
"Younger readers thrill to the wordless adventures of Owly." -- USA Today
"… the cutest comic you will ever see." -- Sean Scott, Mile High Comics
"Andy Runton may have created the single most charming graphic novel I’ve ever read. ... These stories will appeal to anyone who has ever experienced loneliness, heartache, true friendship or the sense of achievement one experiences when overcoming obstacles to do the right thing." -- Mike Bullock, Broken Frontier
Owly is a kind, yet lonely, little owl who's always on the search for new friends and adventure. The first graphic novel in the series contains two enchanting novellas, "The Way Home" & "The Bittersweet Summer," wherein Owly discovers the meaning of friendship, and that saying goodbye doesn't always mean forever. Relying on a mixture of symbols, icons, and expressions to tell his silent stories, Runton's clean, animated, and heartwarming style makes it a perfect read for anyone who's a fan of Jeff Smith's Bone or Mike Kunkel's Herobear and the Kid.
Books Available:
1:
2:
3:
Price: £6.49
TITLE: SPIRAL BOUND
Creator: Aaron Renier, Pages: 184
Format: Graphic Novel with Rounded Corners.
"Spiral-Bound is a lush magical landscape. It rekindles the quintessential childhood experience -- of exploring a mysterious new neighborhood street, or cozying up in a favorite tree-fort or secret hangout -- and revels in the details. It reminds us of the joy of discovery, and of finding oneself." -- Craig Thompson, Creator of Blankets
"Aaron's great drawings and strong story is just what this world needs. Especially now, because I have kids and I'd rather move to an igloo at the North Pole than raise them in a world without good comic books." -- Tony Millionaire, Author of Sock Monkey
"Renier has created an intense, suspenseful yet child-friendly mystery that is full of twists and turns ... if readers aren’t too careful, they might find themselves pondering some of life’s deepest questions along with the pleasure of the story." -- Cooperative Children’s Book Center
With an ensemble cast straight from a box of Animal Crackers, this delightful tale of ambition, morality, and self-discovery is the first major work by extraordinary newcomer Aaron Renier. Drawn in a decidedly beautiful fashion, reminiscent of Richard Scarry and Lewis Trondheim, Renier has given us a fully-realized and compellingly adventurous narrative, at once both achingly naive and profoundly worldly. This tightly crafted graphic novel is the real deal, and will charm your socks off. A remarkable debut. -- 184 pages, Graphic Novel with Rounded Corners.
Price: £9.49
TITLE: SUPER F*CKERS
Creator: James Kochalka, Pages: 32
Format: 6" x 6" Paperback
No, it's NOT a sex book! The Super F*ckers are the baddest teenage superhero team around, and everybody wants to join. They live in a big clubhouse, play video games on their state-of-the-art supercomputer, smoke their teammate Grotus' slime drippings, and fight amongst themselves like cats and dogs. Would-be heroes are lining up outside the door for a chance to try-out for a spot on the elite team. But why must they incessantly keep ringing the doorbell? The try-outs aren't until tomorrow. Somebody's got to stop them. This book is outrageously funny, vibrantly colored, and out of control. Just like America.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Available:
Book #1
Book #2
Book #3
Book #4
Price: £3.95
Creators: Robert Venditti and Brett Weldele, Pages: 32
Format: US Colour Comic
"Good science fiction is hard to come by, but Venditti’s blend of technology, crime drama and social commentary makes for the most original sci-fi mythology in years. The Surrogates should satisfy your post-‘Matrix’ itch. Accept no substitutes!" -- Jake Rossen, Wizard Magazine
"A classic sci-fi tale, in a similar vane to William Gibson or Harlan Ellison." -- Hilary Goldstein, IGN
"Venditti has woven a fascinating story … one that I'm eager to follow." -- Shawn Hoke, Comic World News
The year is 2054, and life has been reduced to a data feed. The fusing of virtual reality and cybernetics has ushered in the era of the surrogate, a new technology that lets users interact with the world without ever leaving their homes. It’s a perfect world, and it’s up to Detectives Harvey Greer and Pete Ford of the Metro Police Department to keep it that way. But to do so they’ll need to stop a techno-terrorist bent on returning society to a time when people lived their lives instead of merely experiencing them. Welcome to The Surrogates, a daring, five-issue, full-color miniseries from Top Shelf Productions.
In the tradition of William Gibson and Philip K. Dick, The Surrogates is more than just an action story with sci-fi trappings. Applying familiar tropes in unfamiliar ways, The Surrogates is about progress and whether there exists a tipping point at which technological advancement will stop enhancing and start hindering our lives. It is also a commentary on identity, the Western obsession with physical appearance, and the growing trend to use science as a means of providing consumers with beauty on demand.
The Surrogates also represents a number of firsts. For writer Robert Venditti, the miniseries will be his first published work. For Top Shelf, the award-winning literary publisher best known for such seminal graphic novels as From Hell, Blankets and Owly, this will be their first foray into mainstream comics, as well as their first in-house book. Venditti began working for Top Shelf on April 3rd, 2002, during the “twelve-hour miracle,” when he helped pack the thousand orders that came in that day, and since then he’s become the publisher’s first permanent staffer. Also an aspiring comics writer, Venditti gave the script for The Surrogates to Chris Staros and asked his advice on marketing it to more mainstream publishers. After reading it, however, Staros and co-publisher Brett Warnock were so impressed that they did one better: having long been on the lookout for a mainstream project worthy of bearing the Top Shelf logo, they decided to keep The Surrogates for themselves.
Now optioned as a mjor motion picture starring Bruce Willis!
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
1,
2,
3,
4,
5, (Last)
Price: £1.80
TPB: £12.99
TITLE: TRICKED
Creator: Alex Robinson, Pages: 352, Format: 165 x 145mm Perfect Bound
"Tricked does what a good graphic novel does best: Sucks your brain on all levels. ... Most indie film should be this good." -- Entertainment Weekly
"Tricked flexes the muscles of the comics medium with a brilliant, engaging narrative format. You'll probably read it in one sitting. Then, you'll want more. Go buy this right now." -- Kurt Amacker, Cinescape
From the Eisner award-winning creator of Box Office Poison (voted by Wizard magazine as the best indy graphic novel of all time), comes the all-new original graphic novel, Tricked. Four years in development and clocking in at 352-pages, Alex Robinson, "the master of true-to-life relationship drama" (Library Journal), has created another tour de force. Tricked follows the lives of six people -- a reclusive rock legend, a heartbroken waitress, a counterfeiter, an obsessive crank, a lost daughter, and a frustrated lover -- whose lives are unconnected until an act of violence brings them spiraling in on each other. Combining intriguing characters with a story structure that is both complex and innovative, Tricked is not to be missed! Now in its 2nd printing, sporting a brand new cover to boot!
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £11.49
2nd Printing
TITLE: UNLIKELY
Creator: Jeffrey Brown, Pages: 256, Format: US Paperback
"Mr. Brown seems to understand perfectly the day-to-day rhythms of the modern 'young adult' relationship. UNLIKELY, like his first book CLUMSY, is pretty much impossible to put down." -- Dan Clowes
"A
million little brilliant and honest moments are sewn into
the rough panels of Unlikely." -- Wil Moss,
NewCity Chicago
The follow-up to Jeffrey Brown's self-published debut hit, CLUMSY. UNLIKELY continues to explore the nature of relationships in this story of how Jeffrey Brown lost his virginity. A full-length graphic novel of excruciating detail and intimacy, drawn in an awkward style that both disarms the reader and heightens the emotional impact of the work.
RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS
Price: £9.49
To see samples of artwork, and to find out more about top shelf productions visit their website at: www.topshelfproductions.com