Status
Available
Call number
Publication
Vertigo (2005), Edition: First Edition, 104 pages
Description
""Pekar's most poignant and satisfying effort to date."--THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW"Dean Haspiel. . . .performs with virtuoso flair in THE QUITTER"--THE NEW YORKER"Brutally honest."--ROLLING STONE★"A searingly honest memoir. . . . Pekar's work dignifies the struggle of the average man."--PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, starred In this virtuoso graphic novel, Harvey Pekar -- whose American Book Award-winning series American Splendor was the basis for the celebrated film of the same name -- tells the story of his troubled teen years for the first time, when he would beat up any kid who looked at him wrong just to win the praise of his peers. And when he failed to impress, whether on the football team, in math class, in the Navy or on the job, he simply gave up. A true tour-de-force, THE QUITTER is the universal tale of a young man's search for himself through the frustrations, redemptions and complexities of ordinary life.With gritty, atmospheric artwork by indie-comics luminary Dean Haspiel (American Splendor, Opposable Thumbs), THE QUITTER is both Pekar's funniest and most heart-wrenching work yet, an unforgettable graphic novel for all those, like Pekar, who have tried, failed and lived to quit another day.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member ggarchar
A surprising life story; self-referential:
It's been a long, weird trip from my days as a school kid fighting all over the place to doing jazz criticism and finally comics, and seeing my picture in the New York Times and USA Today.
It's been a long, weird trip from my days as a school kid fighting all over the place to doing jazz criticism and finally comics, and seeing my picture in the New York Times and USA Today.
LibraryThing member grunin
Like much of Pekar's work, this is autobiographical, though here he sets out to write a longer narrative than usual. It's very good, maybe even a good starting point for those new to his comics.
LibraryThing member savageknight
It's a little hard to believe it's taken me this long to get to Harvey Pekar and Dean Haspiel's THE QUITTER, especially after all the hyping I've done of this project while it was still in development. (But then again, what with the projects I was working on during the last months, it's not that
Sometimes I feel like I'm one of the very few who have not read any of Pekar's earlier works OR seen the American Splendor movie. Be that as it may, THE QUITTER was my first exposure to Pekar both the creator and the person. Now, I understand one of the most fearful things about an autobiographical book is that you are completely opening up your life, warts and all, to anyone who can come across it. This means that there could literally be thousands of strangers suddenly learning about and judging you.
Personally, I love autobiographies. I love finding out about the lives of people who's works I respect and enjoy. It makes them more "real" to me. Sadly, in the case of THE QUITTER, I would have preferred being left in the dark. Harvey Pekar, the man I learn about in this book, is not someone I would like to be around, much less know anything about. It's obvious he's had a rough childhood and suffers from a learning disability, but I could not find anything about him worth rooting for as he got older. I don't like who he is and I'm definitely not a fan of folks with defeatist attitudes. I prefer people who overcome their troubles and take a stand, not continue to whimper "into the night".
The only thing that saves this book from being tossed away is Dean Haspiel's gorgeous art. I love Dino's style and can easily lose myself in the "time" he portrays. Ignoring all the words and just looking at the book as a "silent movie" gets me to care about all the characters we are shown and the events they have to live through. His linework is clean and his characters are expressive and distinctive. I know this book is helping to make him known a lot more in the industry and I really hope this means he'll get more work because he deserves it. Bottom line, I bought this book for Dean. It's great to have seen it grow from his pencils to this finished product and for that reason I'll always enjoy it. The story, unfortunately, is a Loser.
Show More
incredible to believe I was too busy :)) I wish I could say it was worth the wait, unfortunately.Sometimes I feel like I'm one of the very few who have not read any of Pekar's earlier works OR seen the American Splendor movie. Be that as it may, THE QUITTER was my first exposure to Pekar both the creator and the person. Now, I understand one of the most fearful things about an autobiographical book is that you are completely opening up your life, warts and all, to anyone who can come across it. This means that there could literally be thousands of strangers suddenly learning about and judging you.
Personally, I love autobiographies. I love finding out about the lives of people who's works I respect and enjoy. It makes them more "real" to me. Sadly, in the case of THE QUITTER, I would have preferred being left in the dark. Harvey Pekar, the man I learn about in this book, is not someone I would like to be around, much less know anything about. It's obvious he's had a rough childhood and suffers from a learning disability, but I could not find anything about him worth rooting for as he got older. I don't like who he is and I'm definitely not a fan of folks with defeatist attitudes. I prefer people who overcome their troubles and take a stand, not continue to whimper "into the night".
The only thing that saves this book from being tossed away is Dean Haspiel's gorgeous art. I love Dino's style and can easily lose myself in the "time" he portrays. Ignoring all the words and just looking at the book as a "silent movie" gets me to care about all the characters we are shown and the events they have to live through. His linework is clean and his characters are expressive and distinctive. I know this book is helping to make him known a lot more in the industry and I really hope this means he'll get more work because he deserves it. Bottom line, I bought this book for Dean. It's great to have seen it grow from his pencils to this finished product and for that reason I'll always enjoy it. The story, unfortunately, is a Loser.
Show Less
LibraryThing member rfisher2861
Great autobiography on how someone dealt with his obsessive compulsive perfectionism.
LibraryThing member Stevil2001
The Quitter covers Harvey Pekar's childhood growing up in Cleveland. Some of this material was previously covered in American Splendor, but not much of it; that tended to focus on Harvey's later life, which only comes in at the very end here. What can I say about it beyond that it might be my
Pekar's short works resist "messages," but The Quitter has one, sort of, even if it's just that someday you might find something where you don't quit. Barely a message, but it's somehow uplifting, and I found myself feeling better about myself after finishing The Quitter, and I don't often like books that overtly try to do that to me.
Dean Haspiel might just be my favorite artistic collaborator for Pekar so far; his work is cartoony, but gritty, which suits Pekar's "neo-realist" style more so than some of the more realistic art I've seen in American Splendor, which tends to be too stiff to work as good comics. Lee Loughridge-- who I know as Gotham Central's fabulous colorist-- accentuates the whole thing with good use of "gray tones."
Surely one of the better graphic memoirs I've ever read (and at this point, I've read too many!).
Show More
favorite Pekar comic yet? He fills in his life in broad sketches, focusing into specific moments only a couple times, but this story really resonated with me-- as indeed, I suspect it would with anyone who's ever tried to do something and ended up giving up because it was hard. Or maybe just because of stupid reasons. The Quitter details Pekar's attempts to find something he won't give up at.Pekar's short works resist "messages," but The Quitter has one, sort of, even if it's just that someday you might find something where you don't quit. Barely a message, but it's somehow uplifting, and I found myself feeling better about myself after finishing The Quitter, and I don't often like books that overtly try to do that to me.
Dean Haspiel might just be my favorite artistic collaborator for Pekar so far; his work is cartoony, but gritty, which suits Pekar's "neo-realist" style more so than some of the more realistic art I've seen in American Splendor, which tends to be too stiff to work as good comics. Lee Loughridge-- who I know as Gotham Central's fabulous colorist-- accentuates the whole thing with good use of "gray tones."
Surely one of the better graphic memoirs I've ever read (and at this point, I've read too many!).
Show Less
LibraryThing member Grandville
An autobiography of an atypical man of letters that tells an American success story; good luck trying to convince Harvey that it's a success story though.
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2005-11-01
Physical description
104 p.; 9.3 inches
ISBN
9781401203993