The New York Review of Books (NYRC) has launched a new comic imprint: New York Review Comics. Its first titles, planned for Spring 2016, include works by Mark Beyer, Glen Baxter, and French cartoonist Blutch.

Mark Beyer is best known for his work in Art Spiegelman’s Raw, as well as his work on MTV’s Liquid Television.  Agony is a dark, humorous look at urban despair, originally published in 1987. The new edition will feature an introduction by Colson Whitehead.  The 192-page paperback has an MSRP of $15.95. Release is planned for March.

In April, a new translation of French cartoonist Blutch’s Peplum, done by Edward Gauvin will release. The historical saga of ancient Rome follows a group of bandits who find the body of a beautiful maiden encased in ice.  One of the bandits takes the frozen maiden to Rome, hoping to find power and glory, as the world unravels in a hallucinatory nightmare around him. The 160-page paperback has MSRP of $24.95.

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English cartoonist Glen Baxter is known for his absurdist drawings and use of literary nonsense, and counts among his fans John Cleese, Edward Gorey, and Ed Ruscha.  Almost Completely Baxter is a collection of new and selected work.  The 160-page hardcover has an MSRP of $22.95. Release is planned for May.

In the fall, Soft City by Norwegian pop artist Pushwagner will release.  The surreal office dystopia was drawn and then lost in the early 1970s. The new edition will include an introduction by Chris Ware.  Also planned for late 2016 release is Belgian artist Dominique Goblet’s experimental memoir Pretending is Lying, translated by Sophie Yanow; and Abner Dean’s What Am I Doing Here?.

The new imprint will publish a wide range of titles, from intimate memoirs and  experimental titles to graphic novels, “united in their affirmation of the strange and wonderful things that only comics can do.”  NYRC plans to release titles in both hardcover and paperback, in a variety of trim sizes.