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My Brain is Hanging Upside Down

Part of Pantheon Graphic Library

Author David Heatley
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Hardcover
$24.95 US
Knopf | Pantheon
8.27"W x 12.1"H x 0.71"D   | 28 oz | 12 per carton
On sale Sep 30, 2008 | 128 Pages | 9780375425394
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One of the most promising young talents in cartooning makes his debut with a dazzling collection—part freakish dreamlife, part quirk-o-rama autobiography, all genius.

Long a fixture in comics anthologies, David Heatley's deceptively crude, wickedly observant drawings have begun showing up on the New York Times op-ed pages and the cover of the New Yorker, introducing him to a vast new audience, Now, in My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (title courtesy of the Ramones song), we are treated to the full range of Heatley's remarkable, wildly unique voice and vision.

My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down is Heatley's life story told in six different but connected narrative threads. "Sex History" describes every sexual encounter dating back to kindergarten, with details that would make a therapist blush. "Black History" is an unflinchingly honest meditation on his own racism. "Portrait of My Mom" and "Portrait of My Dad" are beautifully paced vignettes, skewering and celebrating his lovably dysfunctional parents. "Family History" tells the story of his family from his great-great-grandparents' lives and closes with the birth of his own children. Woven in and around the larger pieces are "dream comics" that expand on the same themes with a baffling unconscious logic. Every inch of My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down is filled with visceral art and emotionally resonant storytelling at once stunning, truthful, and uncomfortably hilarious.
“Riveting.... A beautifully unsettling mosaic.”
—The New York Times Book Review

“Takes readers deep into the uncomfortable psychological undercurrents of everyday American life.... David Heatley is a double threat with a pen: both words and drawings are adventures in style.”
—The Millions

“Utterly mesmerizing.... Impressive not just because it’s funny and entertaining in an unexpected way, but because of the warmth and sweetness Heatley manages to convey in between the difficult moments. It’s not pretty or safe or easy, but like life itself, it’s worth the effort.”
—The Irish Times
 
“Heatley is one of the most promising cartoonists of his generation. His work, notable for its disarming frankness, is always charming and filled with big-hearted enthusiasm for its chosen form.”
—Daniel Clowes, author of Patience
© Greg Kessler
DAVID HEATLEY's comics and drawings have appeared on the cover of The New Yorker and in every section of The New York Times. His work has also appeared in Granta, McSweeney's, Best American Comics (cover artist), Nickelodeon Magazine, and Time Out, among many others. His first graphic memoir, My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down, was published in the US, UK, France, Spain and Belgium.  He lives in Jackson Heights, New York, with his wife Rebecca Gopoian and their two children. View titles by David Heatley

About

One of the most promising young talents in cartooning makes his debut with a dazzling collection—part freakish dreamlife, part quirk-o-rama autobiography, all genius.

Long a fixture in comics anthologies, David Heatley's deceptively crude, wickedly observant drawings have begun showing up on the New York Times op-ed pages and the cover of the New Yorker, introducing him to a vast new audience, Now, in My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (title courtesy of the Ramones song), we are treated to the full range of Heatley's remarkable, wildly unique voice and vision.

My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down is Heatley's life story told in six different but connected narrative threads. "Sex History" describes every sexual encounter dating back to kindergarten, with details that would make a therapist blush. "Black History" is an unflinchingly honest meditation on his own racism. "Portrait of My Mom" and "Portrait of My Dad" are beautifully paced vignettes, skewering and celebrating his lovably dysfunctional parents. "Family History" tells the story of his family from his great-great-grandparents' lives and closes with the birth of his own children. Woven in and around the larger pieces are "dream comics" that expand on the same themes with a baffling unconscious logic. Every inch of My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down is filled with visceral art and emotionally resonant storytelling at once stunning, truthful, and uncomfortably hilarious.

Praise

“Riveting.... A beautifully unsettling mosaic.”
—The New York Times Book Review

“Takes readers deep into the uncomfortable psychological undercurrents of everyday American life.... David Heatley is a double threat with a pen: both words and drawings are adventures in style.”
—The Millions

“Utterly mesmerizing.... Impressive not just because it’s funny and entertaining in an unexpected way, but because of the warmth and sweetness Heatley manages to convey in between the difficult moments. It’s not pretty or safe or easy, but like life itself, it’s worth the effort.”
—The Irish Times
 
“Heatley is one of the most promising cartoonists of his generation. His work, notable for its disarming frankness, is always charming and filled with big-hearted enthusiasm for its chosen form.”
—Daniel Clowes, author of Patience

Author

© Greg Kessler
DAVID HEATLEY's comics and drawings have appeared on the cover of The New Yorker and in every section of The New York Times. His work has also appeared in Granta, McSweeney's, Best American Comics (cover artist), Nickelodeon Magazine, and Time Out, among many others. His first graphic memoir, My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down, was published in the US, UK, France, Spain and Belgium.  He lives in Jackson Heights, New York, with his wife Rebecca Gopoian and their two children. View titles by David Heatley

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