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I honestly didn't realize that this was the second book of a trilogy until I'd finished it. Apparently the first was Kill My Mother, which I've heard much praise for but have yet to read, and the third book is still in progress as of this writing. I suppose I need to track down a copy of Mother and see if it sheds any sort of a different light on this volume.The story stands just fine on its own. The setting is early 30's California, not in Hollywood itself, but nearby. Sam is a police detective...
Terrific! It seems I've been reading Feiffer all of my conscious reading life. I didn't realize this was second in a trilogy and that the graphic novel is the latest new direction in this artist's long and splendid career. I'll catch up on the first and await the third in the trilogy. Superb story teller and of course he's always had a way with a line.
Masterwork from a master: highest recommendation.
I am not a graphic novel fan but I used to love Feiffer's cartoons back in the 60's. I think you have to be a graphic novel enthusiast to like this. Otherwise, meh. Perhaps a graphic novel enthusiast can explain it to me; reading this one was pretty much like reading a comic book, slightly more sophisticated. Attempt at 1930's noir. Fails the "so what" test.
Read it first, found Kill My Mother after that; Having read both I'm confused on the continuity of Cousin Joseph, how it follows KMM, so a re-read is in order.But what an artist of course, with a great ability to portray movement
Everybody knows that the problems of a guy and his doll don't mean a hill of beans in this crazy world, but they sure make for an amusingly insightful read. Loved this book even more than its predecessor "Kill My Mother". In this era of disparate versions of "the real America" and how to make it great again, this book couldn't be more timely and yet, sadly, timeless. Because ever since I can remember, try as we might, we can rarely live up to the ideals and principles this country was founded on...
Jules Feiffer raises many questions in this GN which we are struggling with today: what is the definition of 'American' and who gets to codify that definition? 1931 finds dissent brewing in a country that seeks to come to terms with systemic change: detective Sam Hannigan is a world weary cop who has taken a side job that seeks to control the pictures that Hollywood makes by bribing directors not to make pictures that portray America negatively. With union strikes looming in his hometown - lead
Jules Feiffer, the legend. Writing and cartooning for 70 years. Cousin Joseph, the graphic novel, his most recent, published in 2016 at Feiffer’s current age of 87. Wait. Let me repeat. Feiffer, at age 87, published the second of a trilogy of graphic novels (don’t worry, it can be read as a stand alone), every bit as biting as anything he has done in the past. The man is unstoppable.Cousin Joseph, which takes place in 1931, is 111 pages of hard-boiled graphics and gritty dialogue. In a short spa...
Film noir mystery isn't a genre I have ever been interested in, so I wasn't sure I'd like this. As it is, I'm glad I gave it a chance. A short but intriguing read - I haven't been this genuinely interested in a mystery in a long time. Can't say I cared for the art, though - I know it's a stylistic thing but it seemed sloppy and a bit difficult to tell what was going on and who was being up whom.Just as a side note, people have said this is the second in a trilogy, and it is by publication date,
Sigh. Like a beautiful movie with a terrible script.Nobody draws expressive body language better than Feiffer, and the way he does baggy suits is just to die for. I really like the not-quite-monochromatic coloring. The book is very well produced/printed. Feiffer seems to be having fun, and I'm glad he’s doing what he wants to. But ...The storytelling is so clumsy. There are some good scenes. They’re outweighed by cringeworthy exposition scenes. The message-y stuff isn’t stirring enough as propag...
The author is the same Jules Feiffer my father and I loved in The New Yorker fifty years ago; the nostalgia induced by that discovery had me delighted for the first few pages. Then the story took over. It's intricately plotted, almost choreographed, with lots of action and memorable characters leading noir and therefore sometimes brief lives in the early 1930's. This is the first book in a trilogy; the second was written first and is available. I may have to wait for the third one to find out wh...
Jules Feiffer turns 88 on the 26th of January. This graphic novel is book one of a trilogy. In 2015 , Kill My Mother, the second book was published. My birthday wish for this talented man is a wish for good health and the zeal to continue his art. I have enjoyed his work since experiencing The Phantom Tollbooth as a kid. Patiently I await book three.
The second in Jules Feiffer's planned trilogy. As much as I enjoyed the 2014's Kill My Mother, I am tempted to say that this is a more solid narrative. This book is, in certain ways, more ambitious than the first, especially in the ways Feiffer engages with cultural/political history. That's embedded in the story much more so than in the early work. What's more, Cousin Joseph ends much more ambiguously...including with the mysteries surrounding the titular figure. We reviewed this book on The Co...
I know and follow Jules Feiffer many years - saw a play in NYC years ago based on something he wrote. He writes and sketches and has a great wit. This book and I didnt know this is #2 of a trilogy so I didnt read the first one. This is bizare and yet very appropriate for these times.
I liked the story and the mystery and the buildup and the characters, it was all very good.BUT I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO CONTINUALLY ANGRY FOR THE ENTIRE DURATION OF A BOOK.I hated Sam cause at first it sounded like he was a hypocrite, then I hated cousin Joseph cause he's shady as all hell, I hate old man Knox cause he's a corporate jerk, I hate Elliot cause he's an even bigger corporate assistant jerk, I hate Neil for being so useless, but most of all I hate Addie. If I could I'd be after Addie.
My sister gave me this for Christmas (knowing I like graphic novels), turns out it is the middle book of a trilogy. Now I need to read the first book, and then wait for the third to come out, and wrap it up. Totally taken by surprise, as I did not know Jules Pfeiffer had started a series of graphic novels, much less one so intense. So odd to see his recognizable style adapted to this new material, so far from the work that he did all these years. But of course, he's brilliant, so it works.
This series is unique, a graphic noir from a great artist who, in age, was close to the events of the story. Feiffer was born in 1929 so he has nostalgia for the time in which he was very young (we all do), and that gives a special flavor to this 1930s story of a tough detective, a super tough dame, commies, Jew baiting, and workers' riots. This was even better than the first one, Kill My Mother.
A graphic novel set in 1930s California; this volume is a prequel to Kill My Mother but is #2 in the trilogy.I confess I don't have Feiffer lodged in my awareness as a cultural touchstone; I didn't grow up with his work. Does that affect my lack of appreciation for these graphic novels? They just don't seem to be reaching me, or touching me. It's partly the hard-boiled genre, the corruption and crime, and also partly the number of unrecognizable characters and disparate plot threads in this nove...
I recently read Cousin Joseph by Jules Feiffer.This is a pretty well-done noirish book that is the second part of a trilogy by the author. I didn’t know it had a introductory book, but it worked pretty well by itself until the end, where there was a bit of a cliffhanger. I might look for the other books in this series.
Pretty darn good if not especially enjoyable. Dark. Violent. And very 30's noir, which I generally like. Pretty wordy, but still vivid. And the over sized hardback definitely works for this material. There are bits of the plot which could have been a little clearer. 3.5 of 5.