What a year it’s been for Avery Hill Publishing. From the Ignatz-nominated Comic Book Slumber Party Deep Space Canine anthology to Something City, the hugely acclaimed debut graphic novel of Ellice Weaver, it’s been yet another remarkable twelve months for the South London publisher.
But AHP are not resting on their laurels in 2018 with no less than six new books announced today. Below we have the official press releases – plus preview pages of the projects – alongside plenty of links to related Broken Frontier articles…
On A Sunbeam by Tillie Walden
Release date: Autumn 2018
Avery Hill Publishing is proud to announce that it has acquired the UK + British Commonwealth rights to publish On A Sunbeam, the Eisner- nominated, hit webcomic by long-time Avery Hill collaborator Tillie Walden.
This will be the fourth Tillie Walden book from Avery Hill, a partnership that began when Tillie was 18, with the publication of her debut graphic novel The End of Summer in 2015. Since then they have released two editions of Walden’s I Love This Part and her third book, A City Inside. It is a collaboration that has garnered many accolades, including two Ignatz Awards and two Eisner nominations.
Walden began publishing her weekly webcomic On A Sunbeam in autumn 2016, reuniting her with Avery Hill’s Ricky Miller as editor. Described as a ‘queer space opera,’ it tells the story of Mia, from her life as a rebellious schoolgirl, to her time as part of the crew on the ship Aktis, out in the deepest reaches of space, rebuilding beautiful and broken down structures.
Part love story, part epic space adventure, and dealing with Tillie’s now signature themes of sexuality & gender, the individual in landscape, first love and awesome cats; On A Sunbeam is a masterpiece of modern comics and arguably Tillie’s greatest artistic statement so far.
“Every now and again, there’s a comic that will stop you dead in your tracks and consume your time until you take in every last page and dialogue bubble. That’s the case with Tillie Walden’s fantastic On A Sunbeam.”
– Andrew Liptak, The Verge
“Gorgeous… Walden is far and away one of the best cartoonists working today. She crafts such simple stories and images, but they hold universes of emotion and meaning.” – Mey Valdivia Rude, Autostraddle
“Walden echoes classic comics genres while rendering them in her own unique visual language… she’s an evolutionary leap forward in cartooning, fearless, assured and, most astonishingly, just getting started.”
– Heidi MacDonald, Comics Beat
“Breathtaking artwork.” – Rob McMonigal, Panel Patter
Read our Broken Frontier On a Sunbeam interview with Tillie Walden.
Follow Me In by Katriona Chapman
Launching September 2018
Kat had no responsibilities and nothing to tie her down. But she had graduated university with no plans. She was an artist who hadn’t drawn in five years.
She was lost.
What’s more, she’d been avoiding admitting to herself something that all of those around her knew; that her boyfriend, Richard, had some serious problems with alcohol.
Looking for a fresh start, the two of them quit their jobs and embarked on a journey to Mexico for what what they expected to be an adventure of a lifetime. It led to experiences that changed both of their lives and to Kat rediscovering a love of art, a lifelong attachment to Mexico and the strength to move on.
The debut graphic novel from Katriona Chapman is a beautifully illustrated recounting of a trip she made around Mexico back in 2003, interspersed with pages of her sketchbook from that time, as well as explorations of the cultural and bio-diversity of Mexico and its fascinating history. Follow Me In is part memoir, part coming of age story, part love letter to Mexico and is undoubtedly a major work from one of the best illustrators and comics makers in the UK.
248 pages
Read a recent BF review of Katriona Chapman’s Katzine.
The Great North Wood by Tim Bird
Launching June 2018
Long ago the whole of Southern England was covered in forest. Over time, this woodland has been gradually cut back, but small patches remain amidst the suburban sprawl of South-East London. A few ancient oaks still stand in gaps between housing estates, alongside railway lines and acting as boundary markers on roundabouts.
The magic that once filled the ancient forest can still be felt even when the trees are long gone. Memories of the Great North Wood are recorded in the place names – Forest Hill, Honour Oak, Norwood. Stories are told of the bandits, outlaws and gypsies that once roamed the forest, and their presence can sometimes be sensed when the hum of the city is quiet.
Tim Bird’s longest work to date continues his interest in psychogeography and how memories live on in the landscape, a theme which his work has explored before including in his 2015 British Comic Award winning comic From The City To The Sea.
68 pages
Read an artist’s commentary about his work from Tim Bird at Broken Frontier.
Permanent Press by Luke Healy
Launching April 2018
Luke is depressed, afflicted by a severe case of metaphoritis and deadlines that don’t really exist.
Afraid of being forgotten by the comics community and unable to find motivation in anything besides jealousy, he sets out to create an award-winning comic that will remedy all of his problems.
Exploring themes of art and existence through worlds of words and numbers both real and imagined, Luke Healy’s new graphic novel includes the Ignatz Award and Slate Cartoonist Studio Prize nominated story The Unofficial Cuckoo’s Nest Study Companion.
136 pages
A Projection by Seekan Hui
Launching June 2018
A young woman starts a job as a family photographer and live-in nanny for a couple who have a fixation on preserving their children’s memory and legacy in print. She stumbles on a recently broken shrine and starts to notice an apparition in the photographs she exposes…
Avery Hill are delighted to present Bristol based writer and illustrator Seekan Hui’s short story, A Projection. A meditation on memories; making them, preserving them and keeping them secret.
40 pages
Metroland #4 by Ricky Miller and Julia Scheele
Launching March 2018
Pop stars are dying, the world is coming to an end and everything seems to lead back to a forgotten seventies musician called David Bowie…
Yes, it’s the double-sized final issue of the first arc of Metroland! Ricky Miller and Julia Scheele’s twisting tale of music, friendship and a sadness that you just can’t explain.
As the rest of the band start to contemplate a future without Jessica Hill and Ricky Stardust, Kevin the Roadie continues his investigations into the mysterious record label that controls the world’s greatest musicians; bringing him into contact with the man who may hold the solution to the whole mystery. Meanwhile, we go to work with Diana, Stardust’s struggles with his memory come to a head and we finally enter the place between worlds known only as Metroland… All this plus the secret origin of Jessica Hill!
It’ll be worth the wait, we promise.
52 pages
Read Ricky Miller’s Metroland creator commentary at Broken Frontier.
For more on Avery Hill check out their website here and their online store here.
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