British Library staging exhibition of comics in 'overdue' celebration of genre

Library chief, Roy Keating, says show will explore field from Misty comics and superhero classics to graphic novelsBoys in the late 1970s probably assumed the girls comic Misty was all boring romance, puppies and ponies. How wrong they were. They were full of "incredibly dark, weird, psychologically harrowing" stories with "trippy and odd" artwork, said John Harris Dunning.Dunning is co-curator, with Paul Gravett, of what will be the UK's biggest exhibition of British comics, taking in everything from newly discovered Victorian comics to modern classics such as V for Vendetta.The summer show, entitled Comics Unmasked: Art and Anarchy in the UK, is being staged by the British Library which holds the complete output of the British comics industry but said it had not in the past done the genre justice.Roly Keating, the library's chief executive, said: "It is fair to say, if we are being honest, that we haven't devoted to that sector of our collection the scholarly and curatorial effort we have devoted to some of the higher culture parts of our collection. This year we are addressing that with a vengeance."The exhibition will have sedition and rebellion at its heart, said Dunning. It will also aim to explode a few myths, not least that the publications are all about superheroes and that reading them is the pastime of boys, he added."When we first started to talk to people about this comic book show some people said 'it's only for boys'. It's garbage," said Dunning. "People... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Wirral libraries now "empty shells"

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Mon, 13/06/2011 - 15:23 Wirral's libraries, 11 of which were saved from closure after a high-profile local protest campaign in 2009, are now "empty shells" with a "skeleton" staff, according to the borough's new Labour administration. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Donaldson backs National Library Day

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 10/06/2011 - 14:53 The newly crowned children's laureate Julia Donaldson has given her support for National Libraries Day, the new initiative set to carry on the success of last February's Save Our Libraries Day. Donaldson said: "Hooray for... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Women's Institute will campaign for libraries

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Wed, 08/06/2011 - 15:16 The National Federation of Women's Institutes is to campaign on the issue of library closures, after voting in support of the issue at this afternoon's annual general meeting in Liverpool. Annie Mauger, chief executive of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Gloucestershire libraries "invoice" row continues

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Wed, 08/06/2011 - 09:20 The row over Gloucestershire library campaigners' attempt to invoice the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for the work they have done to protect the county's library service has continued, with the DCMS rebutting the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Browne warns "society will pay" for library closures

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Mon, 06/06/2011 - 08:59 The outgoing Children's Laureate Anthony Browne has warned society "will pay the price in the long term" for closing school and public libraries. In a letter to his successor, Browne urged them to campaign against their... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Council shuts New Cross library 24 hours early

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Tue, 31/05/2011 - 11:30 New Cross library remained closed on its scheduled final day of opening, Saturday 28th May, because of council fears that protestors would occupy the building. A council notice fixed to the shutters told library users: "We... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Duffy stages benefit for Poetry Book Society

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Tue, 31/05/2011 - 08:00 Poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy has organised a benefit for the Poetry Book Society, which faces an uncertain future following the withdrawal of all its Arts Council funding. The event, to be held at London's Institute of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Save the Libraries: ALA 2011

These are the books that defined my childhood. Encyclopedia Brown Takes the Case; The Secret of the Old Clock; Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret; Flowers in the Attic; Gone with the Wind. They thrilled me. They made me feel like I wasn't alone in the world. They told me about my history. They... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ofsted: libraries the key for 'keen readers'

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 27/05/2011 - 09:01 A new Ofsted report into the teaching of English, "Excellence in English", has highlighted schools' investment in books, home reading, book borrowing from the school library and events such as book fairs and storytelling... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hard line on legal aid for library battles

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 27/05/2011 - 12:34 Campaigners seeking legal aid to pursue judicial review claims against local library closures are being asked for "community contributions" of over 50% of costs by the Legal Services Commission (LSC). Isle of Wight... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Support for National Libraries Day

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Thu, 26/05/2011 - 15:50 An annual National Libraries Day looks set to become a reality after widespread support for the scheme at an early planning meeting held this morning (26th May). read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Deadline looms for Lewisham library closures

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Thu, 26/05/2011 - 08:55 Lewisham library campaigners have been left stranded as the 28th May closure date for New Cross library approached without word from the Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) to residents or the council. Residents... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bennett's Newsnight library defence becomes Twitter trend

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Wed, 25/05/2011 - 09:52 Author Alan Bennett trended on UK Twitter last night following a BBC2 Newsnight interview in which he reiterated his previously expressed view that closing libraries constitutes child abuse. Bennett told the programme that... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Mauger to urge WI to campaign for libraries

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Tue, 24/05/2011 - 08:38 Annie Mauger, chief executive of CILIP, is to call on the Women's Institute to campaign for public libraries when she addresses the organisation's annual general meeting in Liverpool on 8th June. The WI, which has a 210,000... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers "celebrating" after Waterstone's takeover

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Mon, 23/05/2011 - 09:40 The takeover of Waterstone's by Alexander Mamut is cause for celebration among the publishing industry, Faber c.e.o. Stephen Page has said. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Oxfordshire scraps December library cuts

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Mon, 23/05/2011 - 15:45 Oxfordshire council has confirmed it will not withdraw funding from libraries at the end of this year. Under plans unveiled in 2010, 20 libraries in the county were due to lose all funding at the end of December. While a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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"Unlawful" library closures head for court

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 20/05/2011 - 08:40 Shoddy consultations perfunctorily performed and disregard for equalities legislation or the requirements of the 1964 Public Libraries and Museums Act: such are the charges being made against councils planning library... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Random launches libraries "buddying" scheme

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Mon, 16/05/2011 - 15:26 Random House has soft launched a libraries "buddying" scheme and is in talks with The Reading Agency and others to roll it out for further publishers, the Book Industry Conference heard this morning (16th May). read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Support your library, CWA tells authors

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Thu, 12/05/2011 - 09:13 The Crime Writers Association (CWA) is asking each of its members to do at least three events a year for their local library as part of a campaign to support the public library service in the face of widespread cutbacks. "We... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Brent library campaigners ask for £5 donations

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Wed, 11/05/2011 - 16:12 Campaigners in Brent are asking members of the public to donate £5 apiece to fund the legal action over the council's library closures. The campaigners say they need £30,000 to take their case for a judicial review to the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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