About David Hopkins
Location: Arlington, TX
Occupation: comic book writer, essayist, teacher
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Posts: 35
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As a kid, I was a joiner. Always starting one club after another, I had a bike club, a tree climbing club, a G.I. Joe club, an X-Men fight club. (We used to pretend we were X-Men characters and beat each other up. The club ended abruptly one day, when Wolverine kicked me in the head.) In high school, there was never a moment where I wasn’t in a band or doing something with the literature club we started. Yeah, I was in the literature club. Big surprise? I was the editor of our ‘zine, the Ten-Six. Joined the environmentalist club, because of a girl. In college, I joined the NAACP. That joiner mentality is still hard wired into me. I simply like being part of something.
Generally speaking, I’ve never been good at book clubs. My reading patterns are so erratic. It’s hard to keep me on any sort of monthly schedule to sit and discuss. And nevermind the fact I’m embarrassingly slow at reading novels. However, a graphic novel book club? I could get behind that. I have an appetite for comics that is eclectic, and insatiable. I read about 300 pages worth of comics on a good week. The Dallas Museum of Art does a monthly Comic Book Club that is very cool. I went once. But unfortunately, since I had my daughter with me, I wasn’t able to stay for the duration. Next opportunity, I’m going.
A good story is magnified when you’ve able to discuss it with others. Comic book message boards thrive on these conversation, the minutia of every character and plotline. And while, I’ve had my share of the Batman vs. Superman debate (Superman wins). I haven’t had many opportunities to discuss some of my favorite independent, small press, and alternative graphic novels. Since Beneath the Underdog is all about the indie comics, it seems appropriate to start my own “Graphic Novel of the Month”. Oh yes, think: Oprah.
We’ll see if this takes off. Ideally, I’d like to feature the selected book at the beginning of each month in my column, and discuss it on the Pop Syndicate forums. It’d be cool if we could get retailers to spotlight this book in their store for that month, maybe even offer a discount or coupon for Pop Syndicate readers who want to purchase the book? I’d like to create a graphic that we could send to creators and to retailers denoting this special honor. In short, add some real credibility and value to our monthly pick, maybe partner with Fanboy Radio and feature it on their monthly Indie Show? (I’ll talk with Scott.) We probably need a name for the accolade.
And so, our first book for the currently-untitled-graphic-novel-of-the-month-determined-by-the-tyranny-that-is-David-Hopkins-as-condoned-by-Pop-Syndicate is…
FUN HOME: A FAMILY TRAGICOMIC by Alison Bechdel
If you haven’t already, go get this book. Start reading, and come over to the Pop Syndicate forum to discuss. The thread will be located in the “Beneath the Underdog” section. What can be said about this book that hasn’t already been said? Critics, outside of the comic book ghetto, are going nuts about this book. While within, a lot of comic book retailers and readers are still lagging far behind. Could it be that this frank memoir from a lesbian author is still too much for the average comic geek? Has mainstream comic culture’s only exposure been with the recently outted Batwoman? Or possibly, has the issue of homosexuality overshadowed a story that presents homosexuality in the context of the author’s own life and identity, and her complex relationship with her father. It’s a subtle form of homophobia to bestow ambassadorship to any and every gay or lesbian public figure. Fun Home is not the authoritative guidebook to all things you ever wanted to know about homosexuality. In her own words, the book is about “my creative apprenticeship to my father. It was about becoming an artist.”
And of course, she doesn’t need anyone to defend her. The book’s doing just fine with or without my support. This Houghton-Mifflin book is a no-brainer pick for Eisner, Ignatz, or Harvey nominations. I’m guessing if they nominate another graphic novel next year for the National Book Award, it’s going to Fun Home. This year a nomination went to Gene Yang, #9 on my It List—which I did before he got the call from the National Book Award (I tell you I’ve got a nose for this stuff). The new Fun Home jacket cover reads: “New York Times Bestseller and Los Angeles Times Bestseller”. When has that ever happened in comics? Not often.
I don’t want to write too much about the story itself, because it’s most effective when you go into it blind. She has a clever way of telling a story, and then going back to fill you in on important information you should have known, but didn’t. Thus, completely changing the way you see the circumstances. Our view of the father changes as often as Alison’s own opinion of him, and by doing so, we are completely within the mind of the author. I will say some of the most fascinating moments in the story dealt with her own obsessive compulsive disorders, echoing her father’s odd nature. If we were to compare this memoir to another, it has a similar sensitivity as Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis. Funny, heart warming moments intermingled with mixed opinions on the darker, more tragic aspects. Both coming-of-age stories about young girls caught in familiar, yet strange, surroundings.
There you go. Our first book: Fun Home. Let me know what you think. I’m hardly a reviewer, but when something is good, I like others to join in.
