Collection
Publication
[Portland, OR] : Sparkplug Comic Books, c2007.
Description
Ripped from today's headlines, Bookhunter fires off and you can't quit reading. The excitement is fulfilling. The year is 1973. A priceless book has been stolen from the Oakland Public Library. A crack team of Bookhunters (aka. library police) have less than three days to recover the stolen item. It's a race against the clock as our heroes use every tool in their arsenal of library equipment to find the book and the mastermind who stole it. Will the detectives catch this scoundrel? Find out in Bookhunter, the greatest comic of the new millennium. What a roller coaster ride of excitement! What an unexpected twist takes place! Do not begin Bookhunter unless you are prepared to finish it in one sitting.
Language
User reviews
LibraryThing member kristenn
I've been meaning to read this since it came out. Too bad it went out of print so quickly. I knew to expect zany, action-packed fun but wasn't sure he'd carry it off so well. It started with an unexpectedly violent bit but didn't continue in that vein. Very police procedural. And library
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procedural, although that's not usually a genre. Standard twists but well-executed. The use of patron records did keep making me wince, even if he was within the system. Great dynamic art. Show Less
LibraryThing member nkmunn
Using the card catalog drawers as stairs, using the compact shelving to crush the criminal makes for just terrific scenery and funny library action. The payphones, cbs, card catalogs, circ cards, two way radios, the data tapes, the imagery of aging tech in use by line drawn characters will bring
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smiles from aging library techs, programmers, and luddites everywhere. I am going to test the reponse that they get from the younger generation for whom these items have never been ubiquitous! Show Less
LibraryThing member MeriJenBen
In 1973, the library police keep books from disappearing. When a rare early Bible goes missing, it falls to Marshall Ball to find the perp; before the Library of Congress wants their book back. Using all of the technology at hand, the library police team of investigators narrow in on a suspect.
I
Technically, this book is very well done. The sepia toned artwork, combined with the roundness of Shiga's art, really combine to give a sense of place and time. Although there is nothing in this to keep it out of the hands of teens, I don't know that they'd get the humor.
I
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love this book, it's funny and sarcastic. However, I don't know if anybody who doesn't remember libraries in the 1970's or know something about how libraries work today will find it nearly as entertaining as I did. I think this graphic novel was intended as a satire of police procedurals; I used it as a fantasy where police in riot gear knock down the door of book theives. Technically, this book is very well done. The sepia toned artwork, combined with the roundness of Shiga's art, really combine to give a sense of place and time. Although there is nothing in this to keep it out of the hands of teens, I don't know that they'd get the humor.
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LibraryThing member zzshupinga
Being a librarian I’m always interested in seeing comics based upon libraries/librarians and unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) there aren’t that many of them out there. So when I heard about Bookhunter by Jason Shiga, himself a former library employee, I had to give it a read. Bookhunter
The year in 1973 in Oakland California (and everywhere else as well.) It’s a dangerous time for libraries as book thieves are on the loose. But luckily the Bookhunters, aka. the library police, are always on the case and ready to stop evil in its tracks. Their newest mission: to recover a priceless rare bible stolen from the Oakland Public Library and with just a deadline of three days. And the thief knows all of the tricks in the book and does everything possible to elude them, including swapping a circ card with another book and tapping into the library’s computerized system to twist it to her needs. Can Agent Bay and his crack team find the missing bible in this tight timeline? Or will the thief get away with his loot?
I’ve read one of Jason’s other works, Empire State, and I wasn’t the biggest fan of it so it was with some amount of trepidation that I dove into this work. And I’ll admit, he surprised me with a decent storyline and a subtle sense of humor of how libraries work (and what I’m sure some librarians wish could really happen.) There are a few places in the story where Jason’s characters make inconsistent statements, such as calling the thief a he in the beginning and then suddenly switching to she and never really explaining why the switch (even the depictions of the thief in their imagination switch to female.) But, the characters were entertaining and really remind me of the folks on crime shows, CSI Miami in particular. In part because Agent Bay reminds me so much of Horatio Caine, but also because they have their own fingerprint gal and a scientist/nerd that can track down when books were made and how (and is very passionate/excited about it.) The biggest issue that I find with the work, is the use of some of the terminology or procedures that non librarians or non library workers may have difficulty in understanding what it is. Heck I had trouble with some of the terminology since the story is set in the 1970’s and some of those things haven’t seen light of day in 20 years. Overall though it’s an enjoyable if somewhat violent story (there are a couple of death scenes.)
I’ll just come out and say it I’m not a fan of Jason’s art style. It’s simplistic and rounded shapes which create some rather unusual looking characters and even stranger facial expressions. While I don’t mind simple, Jason’s line work just puts me off, especially in depicting facial expressions. I’m also not the biggest fan of the monochromatic color scheme either as it just doesn’t bring much life to the characters or the story. It may appeal to some folks, but…it just doesn’t work for me.
If you’re a librarian or have worked in libraries before, then this might be an entertaining read and you’ll be able to appreciate the humor/terminology found within it. If you aren’t one of those two…then some of the terms used may sound a bit…odd…and you might need a librarian or a good dictionary by your side to read it. I’d give this story 3 out of 5 stars.
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tells the story of Agent Bay and his crack team of library police that track down those that steal books and this is the mother of all cases for the team. It’s a wild and somewhat crazy ride into the world of libraries. And as an added bonus to readers this book can be found in it’s entirety on Jason’s website.The year in 1973 in Oakland California (and everywhere else as well.) It’s a dangerous time for libraries as book thieves are on the loose. But luckily the Bookhunters, aka. the library police, are always on the case and ready to stop evil in its tracks. Their newest mission: to recover a priceless rare bible stolen from the Oakland Public Library and with just a deadline of three days. And the thief knows all of the tricks in the book and does everything possible to elude them, including swapping a circ card with another book and tapping into the library’s computerized system to twist it to her needs. Can Agent Bay and his crack team find the missing bible in this tight timeline? Or will the thief get away with his loot?
I’ve read one of Jason’s other works, Empire State, and I wasn’t the biggest fan of it so it was with some amount of trepidation that I dove into this work. And I’ll admit, he surprised me with a decent storyline and a subtle sense of humor of how libraries work (and what I’m sure some librarians wish could really happen.) There are a few places in the story where Jason’s characters make inconsistent statements, such as calling the thief a he in the beginning and then suddenly switching to she and never really explaining why the switch (even the depictions of the thief in their imagination switch to female.) But, the characters were entertaining and really remind me of the folks on crime shows, CSI Miami in particular. In part because Agent Bay reminds me so much of Horatio Caine, but also because they have their own fingerprint gal and a scientist/nerd that can track down when books were made and how (and is very passionate/excited about it.) The biggest issue that I find with the work, is the use of some of the terminology or procedures that non librarians or non library workers may have difficulty in understanding what it is. Heck I had trouble with some of the terminology since the story is set in the 1970’s and some of those things haven’t seen light of day in 20 years. Overall though it’s an enjoyable if somewhat violent story (there are a couple of death scenes.)
I’ll just come out and say it I’m not a fan of Jason’s art style. It’s simplistic and rounded shapes which create some rather unusual looking characters and even stranger facial expressions. While I don’t mind simple, Jason’s line work just puts me off, especially in depicting facial expressions. I’m also not the biggest fan of the monochromatic color scheme either as it just doesn’t bring much life to the characters or the story. It may appeal to some folks, but…it just doesn’t work for me.
If you’re a librarian or have worked in libraries before, then this might be an entertaining read and you’ll be able to appreciate the humor/terminology found within it. If you aren’t one of those two…then some of the terms used may sound a bit…odd…and you might need a librarian or a good dictionary by your side to read it. I’d give this story 3 out of 5 stars.
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LibraryThing member Othemts
This graphic novel is a crime procedural set in an alternate universe of 1970s Oakland where the public libraries have a criminal investigation unit. Many of the procedures used to solve crimes are totally antithetical to librarian ethics, but otherwise it is an enjoyable adventure where the
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clichés of detective stories are mimicked in a library setting. Show Less
LibraryThing member librarybrandy
It's a 1970s action movie, using real library lingo--correctly! It might not be historically accurate (tattle tape, magnetic security gates, early computers storing records--were these things around in 1973? I sure wasn't, so I have no clue.), but it is a lot of fun.
LibraryThing member ThothJ
Librarians are Guardians of the First Amendment. We need more books like this. And I need to join the Library Marshals.
LibraryThing member ThothJ
Librarians are Guardians of the First Amendment. We need more books like this. And I need to join the Library Marshals.
LibraryThing member ThothJ
Librarians are Guardians of the First Amendment. We need more books like this. And I need to join the Library Marshals.
LibraryThing member ThothJ
Librarians are Guardians of the First Amendment. We need more books like this. And I need to join the Library Marshals.
LibraryThing member lostinalibrary
It is 1973 and a serious crime has been uncovered at the Oakland Public Library – a rare Caxton Bible on loan from the Library of Congress has been replaced by a forgery. Time to call in the Library Police to solve this nefarious crime or, as they quickly discover ‘basically…three concentric
If you are looking for the perfect graphic novel for your favourite librarian or bibiliophile, look no further than Bookhunter by Jason Shiga, a wonderfully over-the-top but clearly fond poke at the profession. It combines a mystery, some heavy duty SWAT action by the library police, and the real threat of deadly paper cuts as punishment for crimes against the public library system with some very funny inside jokes that perhaps only librarians can fully appreciate but still had me, just a poor librarian wannabe, giggling out loud. For anyone with a love of books and libraries, this is just a whole lot of zany fun.
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locked-room mysteries’ and they have only three days to do so. If you are looking for the perfect graphic novel for your favourite librarian or bibiliophile, look no further than Bookhunter by Jason Shiga, a wonderfully over-the-top but clearly fond poke at the profession. It combines a mystery, some heavy duty SWAT action by the library police, and the real threat of deadly paper cuts as punishment for crimes against the public library system with some very funny inside jokes that perhaps only librarians can fully appreciate but still had me, just a poor librarian wannabe, giggling out loud. For anyone with a love of books and libraries, this is just a whole lot of zany fun.
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