One of the many comics professionals who will be down in Miami is Bill Zimmerman, who’s written a great book for young guys and comics, Your Life in Comics. I had the pleasure of meeting Bill in person at New York Comic Con several weeks ago and was impressed by the timeliness of his book. It definitely fills a necessary gap right now. Check below to read his interview and find out much more about the book.

Carol and I talked just before she left, and as we closed our conversation, we got talking about one of our favorite shows: "The Walking Dead". I’ve been a fan of the series for ages, but I honestly had no idea that the TV version of it would be this good. The “it” that the comics series possesses has definitely been gotten by the TV producers: The show has “it” too. That’s made me incredibly happy…and riveted to the screen. Carol and I were discussing it and going over the various plot points when she said, “If you had told me four months ago that I would be a fan of this show, I would have told you you were crazy.” That’s what I love about the show and the comic itself: Yes, you can sum it up in one easy sentence (“People try to cope with the collapse of society after a zombie infection spreads around the globe”), but in reality, it’s not about that. It’s so much more, in the same way that, say, "The Sopranos" was not really just about a mob boss or "Dexter" is not just about a serial killer who murders bad guys. Those are just premises, situations that serve as a launching pad to something far greater and at the same time far simpler: something really human. In essence, it’s what all of my favorite graphic novels, books, movies, and TV shows do.

All that aside, I do have one major complaint about the TV version of "The Walking Dead": This first season is only six episodes long. I know this was an expensive and risky show for AMC to take on, but come on; a few more episodes couldn’t have been squeezed in? Luckily, we’ve got season 2 to look forward to, but I’m no fan of waiting…but then again, there’s still the jaw-dropping monthly series to keep me on the edge of my seat.

Speaking of riveting series, I would like to give you a heads-up about The Reconcilers, a new sci-fi series from a really talented group of creators. I have an interview with two of them in this week’s update, Erik Jensen and R. Emery Bright, and before you read the interview, I thought I’d let you know how much I’m enjoying their work. They’re starting a large and ambitious storyline here, and they’ve used some of the most pivotal sci-fi works of print and film as their inspiration in several areas. I like what they’ve begun, and if you’re a sci-fi fan, I think you will too.

With that, I will wish you and yours a very warm and happy Thanksgiving (or, if you’re one of our non-American readers, I’ll just say so long, till we meet back here again in two weeks).

Happy reading,

John Hogan (John@bookreporter.com)

Through his interactive website and his multiple books, author Bill Zimmerman has tried to reach out to kids and inspire them to write, draw, and get creative. His latest, Your Life in Comics, is an incredibly timely book that integrates comics and learning in an exciting way. By John Hogan

Enter today for your chance to win all four books in the Robot City series! English artist Paul Collicutt’s Robot City series combines his love for painting with his adventurous spirit for writing children’s stories. The ongoing series focuses on a town where robots and humans live and work together with ease. Here’s what Collicutt had to say about the various books in the series and how much fun the books are to work on. By John Hogan

-Click here to enter to win all four books in the Robot City series.

Monster, Vol. 1–3 by Naoki Urasawa
Dr. Tenma risks his career as a physician to save the life of a wounded boy. What he doesn’t realize is that this boy is a serial killer and now Dr. Tenma is under investigation for the boy’s murders. Reviewed by Danica Davidson

Black-Winged Love by Tomoko Yamashita
This collection of mostly dark stories that stray off the conventional yaoi path. Reviewed by Snow Wildsmith

Anima by Dany & Dany
A jaded journalist finds unexpected love with a ballet dancer, but the dancer’s secrets may drive them apart. Reviewed by Snow Wildsmith

How to Draw Shoujo Manga by various

This nuts-and-bolts manual is not for the beginner, but the talented amateur with ambitions to get published --- maybe even in Japan --- will find a wealth of information here. Reviewed by Brigid Alverson

Carmine Infantino: Penciler, Publisher, Provocateur by Jim Amash and Eric Nolen-Weathington

Carmine Infantino is one of comics’ greatest names. If you’ve read the comics of any major superhero, Infantino has probably drawn a definitive version of them at some point. Recognizing his major contributions to the Silver Age of comics from Deadman to The Flash, Carmine Infantino: Penciler, Publisher, Provocateur explores his life’s work by way of extensive interviews and graphics. Reviewed by Collin David

Bakuman, Vol. 1 by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

Moritaka Mashiro has given up on his dream of drawing professionally. Ever since his manga artist uncle passed away, he knew that his parents would never allow it. He braces himself for a boring future, but when a proposal from a classmate offers to make his dreams come true, Moritaka decides that it's time to throw caution to the wind and go for it. Reviewed by Courtney Kraft

Demon Sacred, Vol. 1 and 2 by Natsumi Itsuki
The second series to be published in English by standout manga creator Natsumi Itsuki, Demon Sacred is a complexly constructed piece of sublime shoujo entertainment. Reviewed by Casey Brienza

X-Men: Second Coming by Mike Carey, Craig Kyle, Chris Yost, Matt Fraction, and Zeb Wells

Since her birth, Hope has been hunted across the world and through the devastated ruins of the future. The first mutant birth since M-Day, a genocide that reduced the mutant population from several million to less than 200, she has been proclaimed a messiah that will either bring about a new day for mutantkind or the demise of humanity. A year after her disappearance, Hope has returned, bringing with her a day of reckoning that will determine the fate and future of the X-Men in the conclusion to the Messiah saga. Reviewed by Michael Hicks

K’ON! Vol. 1 by kakifly

The much-anticipated new four-panel manga about four high school girls who form their own pop music club delivers diversion with charm and good cheer. Reviewed by Casey Brienza

Saturn Apartments, Vol. 1 by Hisae Iwaoka
Mitsu is a window washer on the satellite ring orbiting the Earth --- the only home that humans now have after leaving the Earth behind to allow it to heal. Reviewed by Snow Wildsmith

Summoner Girl, Vol. 1 by Hiroshi Kubota

A fourth-grade girl named Hibiki, with the help of cute shikigami, searches for six magical jewels. But what’s up with her scary grandmother? Reviewed by Danica Davidson

Amelia Rules! True Things (Adults Don’t Want Kids to Know) by Jimmy Gownley
Amelia McBride is still coping with her parents’ divorce and the fact that she now has to live in a small town rather than her beloved Manhattan. Plus, she has to deal with popularity issues, schoolwork, and the attentions of a rival school’s popular boy…who may or may not be a good guy. Reviewed by John Hogan

We share news, updates, tips, personal observations, and more. Keep up-to-date by checking our blog entries.

Kirkus Unveils Its Best of 2010

GGNFT Nominations Are Out

Lynda Barry on Talk of the Nation

Toon Takes on Bullying (and Offers a Contest)

The first trailer for next summer's blockbuster Green Lantern movie is here! Check it out here!

28 Days Later, Vol. 2: Bend in the Road
Boom! Studios

The Alchemist
Hyperion

Anita Blake, Book 3: Executioner (paperback)
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Archie Americana Series, Vol. 11: The Best of the ’80s, Book 2 (paperback)
Archie Comics

Athena (paperback)
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Bigfoot
Drawn and Quarterly

Boy Commandos
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The Boys Definitive Edition, Vol. 3
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The Boys, Vol. 7: The Innocents (paperback)
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Castle: Waiting, Vol. 2
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CBGB (paperback)
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Charmed, Vol. 1 (paperback)
Zenescope Entertainment

Complete Paradise Too (paperback)
Abstract Studios

Danny Husk: The Hollow Planet
IDW Publishing

Dark Shadows: The Complete Series, Vol. 2
Hermes Press

Darkwing Duck, Vol. 1: Duck Knight Returns (paperback)
Boom! Studios

Dead Space Salvage (paperback)
IDW Publishing

Deadpool: Wade Wilson’s War
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Deepak Chopra Presents Buddha: Tale of Enlightenment
Dynamite Entertainment

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep: Dust to Dust, Vol. 1
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Echo, Vol. 5 (paperback)
Abstract Studios

Elmer
Slave Labor Graphics

Farscape, Vol. 2: Strange Detractors (paperback)
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Frank Miller's Sin City, Vol. 6: Booze, Broads, and Bullets, Third Edition(paperback)
Dark Horse

Franklin Richards, Son of Genius: Ultimate Collection, Book 2
Marvel Comics

Fubar
Alterna Comics Inc.

G.I. Joe: Cobra, Vol. 2 (paperback)
IDW Publishing

G.I. Joe: Hearts and Minds, Vol. 1 (paperback)
IDW Publishing

Gantz, Vol. 14 (paperback)
Dark Horse

Girls & Goddesses: The Pin Up Art of Joseph Michael Linsner (paperback)
Image Comics

Gotham City Sirens: Song of the Sirens
DC Comics

Gravel, Vol. 3: Last King of England
Avatar Press

Green Lantern Omnibus, Vol. 1
DC Comics

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 4: Realm of Kings (paperback)
Marvel Comics

Henry and Glenn Forever
Microcosm Publishing

Incredible Hercules: New Prince of Power (paperback)
Marvel Comics

Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files: Storm Front, Vol. 2: Maelstrom
Dynamite Entertainment

Kato, Vol. 1: Not My Father’s Daughter (paperback)
Dynamite Entertainment

King of the Flies, Vol. 2
Fantagraphics

Lady Death: Origins, Vol. 1 (paperback)
Boundless Comics

The Last Days of American Crime (paperback)
Radical Publishing

The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck Companion
Boom! Studios

Luna Park (paperback)
DC Comics

Madman Atomica
Image Comics

Manhunter: Faceoff (paperback)
DC Comics

Mascots
Fantagraphics

Outsiders: The Road to Hell (paperback)
DC Comics

Philip K. Dick’s Electric Ant
Marvel Comics

President Evil: I Have a Scream Pocket Manga (paperback)
Antarctic Press

Rip Kirby, Vol. 3
IDW Publishing

Salvatore, Vol. 1: Transports of Love
NBM

Shockrockets
IDW Publishing

Siege: Battlefield (paperback)
Marvel Comics

A Single Match
Drawn and Quarterly

Sky Doll: Space Ship
Marvel Comics

Smurfs, Vol. 3: Smurf King (paperback)
Papercutz

Spawn: Origins Deluxe Edition, Vol. 2
Image Comics

Spider-Man: The Osborn Identity (paperback)
Marvel Comics

Stargate: Vala Mal Doran (paperback)
Dynamite Entertainment

Stingers (paperback)
Zenescope Entertainment

Thor: Across All Worlds (paperback)
Marvel Comics

Tick: Giant Christmas Cavalcade (paperback)
New England Comics

Tonoharu, Vol. 2
Top Shelf Productions

Tracker, Vol. 1 (paperback)
Dreamwave Productions

Transformers: Best of Grimlock (paperback)
IDW Publishing

Transformers: Spotlight on Nefarious, Vol. 1 (paperback)
IDW Publishing

Treasure Chest, Vol. 1 (paperback)
Bluewater Productions

Vampirella Archives, Vol. 2
Dynamite Entertainment

Vampirella Masters Series, Vol. 2: Warren Ellis
Dynamite Entertainment

The Walking Dead, Vol. 13: Too Far Gone (paperback)
Image Comics

Acts of Vengeance Omnibus
Marvel Comics

Archie Firsts
Dark Horse

Avengers: The Coming of Beast
Marvel Comics

Batman: Dead to Rights
DC Comics

Battle Chasers Anthology
Image Comics

Booster Gold: The Tomorrow Memory
DC Comics

Brightest Day, Vol. 1
DC Comics

Captain America: War & Remembrance
Marvel Comics

The Chronicles of Conan, Volume 20: Night of the Wolf and Other Stories
Dark Horse

Civil War: The Underside
Marvel Comics

The Classic Comics Archives, Vol. 1: White Indian
Dark Horse

Cowboy Ninja Viking, Vol. 2
Image Comics

Deadpool Team-Up, Vol. 1: Good Buddies
Marvel Comics

Devil
Dark Horse

Doctor Who Classics, Vol. 6

Fables, Vol. 14: Witches
Vertigo

Frank Miller's Sin City, Vol. 7: Hell and Back, 3rd Edition
Dark Horse

Gorilla Man
Marvel Comics

Incredible Hercules: New Prince of Power
Marvel Comics

Iron Man: War of the Iron Men
Marvel Comics

Justice Society of America: Axis of Evil
DC Comics

Motel Art Improvement Service
Dark Horse

My New New York Diary
Picturebox

On the Line
Image Comics

Planetary, Book 4: Spacetime Archaeology
Vertigo

Proof, Vol. 5: Blue Fairies
Image Comics

Sci Spy: The Complete Series
Image Comics

Siege: The Avengers Initiative
Marvel Comics

Star Wars: The Clone Wars—The Deadly Hands of Shon-Ju
Dark Horse

Super Friends: Head of the Class
DC Comics

Tank Girl: We Hate Tank Girl
Image Comics