SlowpokeBlog

A couple books coming out this year feature my cartoons. One is the Field Guide to the U.S. Economy: A Compact and Irreverent Guide to Economic Life in America, Revised and Updated Edition, due out in August. I think this will be fun.

Another book with some Slowpoke action, out now, is Proud to Be Liberal, an anthology edited by Robert Lasner and Elizabeth Clementson, which also includes works by Eric Alterman, Will Durst, Neal Pollack, David Rees, Tom Tomorrow, and many others.

While I completely support the point of the book -- that we recognize liberalism has a noble history and that things for damn sure aren't going to change until our leaders stop being ashamed of not being Republicans -- practically-speaking, I'm not so sure the L-word itself can be reclaimed. I know we whatchamacallits are into takin' the language back, but easier said than done, you know? I tend to use the word "progressive" myself. Anyone beg to differ, drop me a line.

Also, an old college friend of mine, Ben Sisario, has a new book out about the Pixies, a band we both love. It's called The Pixies' Doolittle (33 1/3). I'm fairly certain his career as a music writer for the NY Times and other publications has all been part of a carefully-mapped master plan to get to drive around Oregon with Frank Black, as he has done for this book.