In early May Abrams is publishing Erotic Comics: A Graphic History, an international historical survey of naughty comics from the Tijuana Bibles of the 1930s to the underground commix of the 1960s and the stylish Euro eroticism of the second half of the 20th Century.  Tim Pilcher, coauthor of the Essential Guide to World Comics, wrote Erotic Comics: A Graphic History with research aid from Gene Kannenberg, Jr.  Cartoonist Aline Kominsky-Crumb provided the foreword.

 

The 192-page hardcover, which has a cover price of $29.95, contains hundreds of illustrations by artists ranging from Jack Cole and R. Crumb to Franco Saudelli and Magnus as well as some surprising insights thanks in part to its trans-Atlantic focus.  For example the wide open sexuality of American underground comix had a parallel in Europe where sexy comics like Barbarella became hugely popular. Here's a "coffee-table" book that manages to be thoughtful, sexy and thoroughly entertaining.