It's a Good Life, If You Don't Weaken: A Picture Novella

An Acknowledged Classic returns gorgeously re-designed.

In his first graphic novel, It's a Good Life, if You Don't Weaken–one of the best-selling D & Q titles ever–Seth pays homage to the wit and sophistication of the old-fashioned magazine cartoon. While trying to understand his dissatisfaction with the present, Seth discovers the life and work of Kalo, a forgotten New Yorker cartoonist from the 1940s. But his obsession blinds him to the needs of his lover and the quiet desperation of his family. Wry self-reflection and moody colours characterize Seth's style in this tale about learning lessons from nostalgia. His playful and sophisticated experiment with memoir provoked a furious debate among cartoon historians and archivists about the existence of Kalo, and prompted a Details feature about Seth's "hoax".

Seth is the cartoonist behind the graphic novel Clyde Fans. His comics have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Best American Comics, and McSweeney's Quarterly. His illustrations have appeared on the cover of The New Yorker, The Walrus, and Canadian Notes & Queries. He designs collections of work by Charles Schulz, John Stanley, and Doug Wright, and was the subject of a National Film Board documentary entitled Seth's Dominion. Seth lives in Guelph, Canada in a house he has named Inkwell's End.

ISBN: 9781896597706
Format: Paperback
Pages: 176
Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly Publications
Published: July 01, 2003

“[Seth] invites the reader to linger cozily in his ruminative, patient stories, each of which grows from Seth's obsession with the past.” —The Village Voice

“Rich, evocative...characterized by small moments revealing the author's sharp eye for detail” —The Globe and Mail