Artbabe
Fantagraphics. Written and drawn by Jessica Abel.
Soundtrack: Short Stories 1989-1996 (Vol. 1, 1-5).
[From Fantagraphics: Soundtrack collects the best of Jessica Abel's
self-published Artbabe series, one of the most exciting comic books to emerge
in the late-1990s. Prior to joining the Fantagraphics line in 1997, Abel
self-published five issues of Artbabe. The first four were self-xeroxed
efforts, and led to a prestigious Xeric Grant in 1996, enabling her to publish
a more professionally-packaged fifth issue. Though little-seen by her fans,
it was this self-published series that led to an offer from Fantagraphics
and her current success, and this volume presents the best of these five
comic books, as well as other short strips, to a larger audience for the
first time. Abel's stories are peppered with hipsters, fashion, and trendy
locales - all of which have contributed to her considerable appeal - but
don't let the generational trappings fool you. Her intuitive ear for dialogue
and characterization have made Artbabe a hit amongst people of all ages,
especially women. JANE magazine reports, "You'll like it. We promise."
Abel's Fantagraphics series as well as her Xeric-financed self-published
issue led to an honored Harvey Award for "Best New Talent" in
1997. Soundtrack, however, proves that Abel was a prodigous talent well
before 1997.] 
Mirror, Window (Vol. 2, 1-4). [From Fantagraphics:
MIRROR, WINDOW is the first book collection by Jessica Abel, one of the
most exciting young cartoonists to emerge in the late 1990s. Collecting
the first four issues of her ARTBABE series from Fantagraphics and more,
MIRROR,WINDOW proves Abel to be one of the brightest lights in comix to
watch as we proceed into the next century. Abel's stories are peppered with
hipsters, tattoos, piercings, trendy haircuts, and cutting-edge fashion,
but don't let the generational trappings fool you. Her intuitive ear for
dialogue and characterization have made Artbabe a hit amongst people of
all ages, especially women. JANE magazine wrote, "You'll like. We promise."
She has also been lauded by SPIN, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY, THE FACE and others.
MIRROR, WINDOW collects several short stories focusing on the infinte ways
that regret, insecurity and euphoria manifest in relationships. Abel began
creating self-published mini-comics in the early 1990s, and in 1996 won
a prestigious Xeric Grant to publish a full-sized comic edition of Artbabe.
That led to a publishing deal with Fantagraphics and a Harvey Award for
"Best New Talent" in 1997. Since then, Jessica has been commissioned
to do cartoon reporting for various publications, including The Baffler,
Chicago's New City, and Tower's Pulse! magazine, to name a few.]
