EXTRACTS: Illustrators issue 23 © 2018 The Book Palace (96 PAGES in Full edition)

94 The Bookshelf: Steampunk, swashbucklers and reefers l illustrators is also available in the USA from budplant.com Degradation! Crime! Madness! Those were the results of indulging in marijuana between the 1930s to 1950s. Now thanks to the always dependable Craig Yoe we can see what some of the comics from the 1950s thought of this crazy drug, man. Although marijuana (reefer being a term for a marijuana cigarette) is now legal in most of the United States, back in the day (in fact, until this very century) it was considered a gateway drug to other, more dangerous destroyers of our youth. Read in today’s context, most of these stories seem slightly ludicrous, and are almost funny. Funny, in a weird sort of way, as they always lead to a life of crime, mayhem or murder. The artwork, for the most part, is rather crude, even if some big names pop up every now and then. Reproduction is on par with the many books Yoe puts out— that is to say, scanned from the actual comics, and printed on tanned paper. It gives you a view into the past, and the way comics were done back then—with not much care for the product. However, that’s why we love these books! Most stories are from crime series, but there are some superheroes thrown in too. Above The Timberline By Gregory Manchess Hardcover 240 pages Saga Press £22.05/ $29.99 From artist Gregory Manchess comes this illustrated novel, done in the same vein as James Gurney’s Dinotopia series, but with a different background. Taking place in the future when most of the world has frozen over, a famous explorer gets lost and his son searches for him through the remains of this gelid land. Told mostly through double-page spread, full-colour paintings, we follow this fascinating story through an icy world populated by species that have had to adapt to the climatic changes. Manchess has got a peculiar way of painting with flat, squared-tipped brushes, that he uses to full effect here. In doing so, he creates a sort of retro- future world, what might be referred to as “steampunk-fiction”. We are taken through journal notes and across almost cinematographic storyboard pictures on a breath-taking adventure that is sure to please adults and young audiences alike. It took Manchess several years to accomplish this, and it pretty much shows in the book. A high-adventure book with plenty of surprises for all audiences. Fans of Dinotopia will appreciate this book. The Three Musketeers Illustrated by Arturo del Castillo Edited by Steve Holland Soft cover 112 pages Book Palace Books £20.00 Readers of our magazine may remember seeing part of this book in issue number nineteen, where we included scans of the original artwork from the second chapter. After many years waiting, and due to some copyright issues, we finally get to see the adaption of Alexander Dumas’ ‘The Three Musketeers’ by one of the top international artists: Arturo Del Castillo. Although born in Chile, Del Castillo workedmainly for theArgentineanmarket where he excelled as an artist of western series (his popular western ‘Randall the Killer’ becoming ‘Ringo’ when published in the UK). By the early ’60s, like many of his compatriots, Del Castillo also worked for the British market. Although many of his western series were later translated and published in Britain, for Film Fun he took the task of working on an adaption of Dumas’ most famous work. There are adaptations of ‘The Three Musketeers’, ‘The King’s Musketeers’ and ‘The Man in the Iron Mask’ all beautifully illustrated by Del Castillo’s precious pen and ink artwork. The book is scanned from the actual weeklies, but also includes a section of scans from the original artboards. Reefer Madness Edited and designed by Craig Yoe Various artists Soft cover 200 pages Dark Horse £17.99/ $19.99