Originally created for the pages of the Saturday Evening Post
by cartoonist Marge, Little Lulu achieved classic status in her comic book adventures. Written and laid out by John Stanley, with finished art by Irving Tripp, these little gems are timeless models of wry humor and unsurpassed comic timing as they explore the foibles of human nature. Dark Horse has thankfully made these stories available again in a series of trade paperbacks. Stanley's stories are told from a child's perspective, and like Peanuts
and Calvin and Hobbes
, they create an entire kids' universe of secret clubhouses, favorite soda fountain hangouts and fantastic menaces. As readers mature, they get the full force of Stanley's sly, deadpan humor. Lulu Moppet is a great heroine—she's vulnerable enough to burst into tears when she overhears the boys running down her looks, but self-reliant enough to realize after a makeover that great beauty can cause more trouble than it's worth. Her nemesis and playmate is Tubby Tompkins, a troublemaker in the Bart Simpson/Crayon Shinchan mold who leaves destruction and confusion in his wake. These stories provide a quaint window into a world where a dime could buy a milkshake, and their universal insights and humor should win over new audiences. (Nov.)
