If you happen to be up really early and going to the Harborfields public library, you can attend this great event with Mark Siegel, Raina Telgemeier, Jommy Gownlet, John Gallagher, and a ton of librarians.
Seriously: A Graphic Novel Symposium
Thursday September 6
Harborfields Public Library
Click above link for info.
Of all the panels at San Diego the one we most wanted to see podcast or transcribed or whatever was COMICS ARE NOT LITERATURE and now Newsarama has a report by Zack Smith, although two of the participants have already said it isn’t entirely accurate. Dammit, we should have been there.
Wolk criticized comics written by Joss Whedon, saying that, “the artists can’t create great actors on the page,” that is, people who bring extra layers to the characters the way a flesh-and-blood actor could. “You’re just reading a script with a bunch of crappy pictures on it – but it’s a great script,” Wolk said.
Wolk asked Grossman, who had brought some prepared statements, about whether there was anything in the definition of “sophistication” that could be useful to comics.
“One of the downsides of thinking of comics as a ‘low art,’ is that it makes you lazy,” Grossman said. “Let’s raise the game.”
Castellucci and Ryan agreed. “It’s about having a set of critical tools, and what you use the tools on is wherever people are making good stories,” Ryan said.
“Why don’t we just call it art?” Nadel said. “Sometimes cinema is art, sometimes it’s not. Sometimes a Bjork record is art, sometimes it’s not…” Castellucci and Ryan interjected that a Bjork album is always art.
Nadel went on to propose that he didn’t consider comics reading. “Why is that a big deal?” he asked. “Comics is about looking and reading. It’s not just about reading – it’s a dual process. It’s different from reading a novel, and it’s different from watching a movie.”
Douglas tells us he didn’t mention Joss Whedon specifically, and Cecil has her own footnotes.
BONUS: DO NOT MISS COMMENTS AFTER REPORT!
§ Dave Astor has several reports from the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists’s 50th Anniversary convention:
Can editorial cartoons survive?
Before audience members came up with the suggestions, the problem was described by editorial cartoonist Paul Fell — one of the session leaders. “Part of the reason the AAEC was founded was a concern about the dimimishing number of editorial cartoon positions in the U.S.,” said Fell, a Nebraska-based creator syndicated by Artizans. “Here we are 50 years later and we’re facing the same problem — only now there’s roughly 25% of the staff positions [about 80]compared to 1957.”
Plus: Tooners on blogging
• Comments from Beat hero Helen Thomas.
• 3 cartoonists honored
• Various issues regarding the Mohammed Cartoons.
§ Phil Yeh talks literacy: as always.
Troubled by the fact that so many Americans were functionally illiterate, he organized a group called Cartoonists Across America to encourage kids to dive into books. Beginning with a cross country tour to 34 states and two Canadian provinces, Yeh (pronounced, “Yay”) and his cohorts appeared at schools, shopping malls, and other public spots to paint murals, enlist literacy tutors, and give away original comic books with a reading-is-fun theme.
§ Minnie Driver is the new Lara Croft in Re\Visioned: Tomb Raider, a new animated series from GameTap, Turner Broadcasting’s video-game-themed broadband network.
§ Jack Black, ‘tooner.
“I’ve been a big fan of cartoons, and I actually got in there and did some animating when I was in high school,” he says. “I won a prize. I won a Rocky & Bullwinkle for my don’t-drink-and-drive cartoon.”
ICv2 goes to the American LIbrary Association show and reports findings to base:
The two hour “Teen Graphic Novels: Maintaining Your Collection for Maximum Impact!” panel on Saturday was the primary programming event on graphic novels. Teen librarian panelists Brenner, Pawuk, Angela Reynolds (Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia), and Todd Krueger (Baltimore County), along with moderator Anne Leon (Broward County) spoke to a packed room of 200 librarians, with over a dozen seated on the floor.
The range of sizes and interest in graphic novels on the panels was instructive, with the smallest graphic novel collection (Nova Scotia) only a few hundred books, and the largest (Baltimore) over 16,000 in teen graphic novel volumes alone.
Much more of great interest in the link.
First it was the actors; then it was the directors and musicians and TV show staff writers. Now it’s the famous novelists who think comics are the bees knees, as the AP reports. Clues as to state of the loooonnnnggg brewing OMEGA THE UNKNOWN by Jonathan Lethem and Farel Dalrymple (left) are also dropped:
“It was an interesting challenge,” Lethem said. “One of the things I concluded very quickly was that it’s not a written form. My primary task was to provide amazing things for artists to draw.”
The first six issues are in the can, and the series will have a total of 10, like the original, which debuted in 1976. No official release date has been given.
Greg Rucka, Brad Meltzer, Jodi Picoult, Stephen King and Michael Chabon. Meltzer sums up the trend:
Meltzer and his publishers also put excerpts of “Justice League” into the paperback edition of “Book of Fate,” the first time a comic book has appeared in a novel, he says.
He believes the medium shouldn’t matter, as long as the story is good.
“There has just been so much snobbery that has existed with comic books,” he said. “We’ve got to prove that these things are equal.”
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Because you demanded it! Retailers and fans have demanded that Marvel bring some of the most timeless, enduring novels to life in comic book form and we’re happy to oblige with Marvel Illustrated, the House of Idea’s new line featuring the best of classic literature as adapted by industry legend Roy Thomas & a slew of talented artists. Over the summer, fans of all ages will be able to thrill to such tales as The Last Of The Mohicans, Treasure Island, Man In The Iron Mask and more, as Marvel provides the most in depth graphic literature adaptations of these stories to date. Adapted in six full length issues, each limited series re-telling of these renowned tales will stay true to the source material while presenting each story in our unique mighty Marvel style.Beginning with May’s Marvel Illustrated: The Last Of The Mohicans, featuring the lush art of Marvel newcomer Steve Kurth and Denis Medri, James Fennimore Cooper’s 1826 novel is considered by many to be one of the great American novels. Exploring one of the most crucial periods in United States history, The Last Of The Mohicans explores the tensions between British colonists and the dwindling Native American population, all in the wild wilderness of the “New World.” Each issue will also feature special backup tales about series protagonist Hawkeye, an American who remains the mold for the definition of the word “hero.”
§ The LA Times looks at the rising sales for novels based on manga. Already a huge category in Japan, the novels are catching on the US as well.
The practice of adapting stories from manga and animation to prose has been growing in Japan. As Roland Kelts, the author of “Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S.,” put it, “What’s happening in Japan is that the shift from novelists to manga writers has gone backwards. Now you have established manga writers writing novels and publishing imprints capitalizing on this trend.”
§ the Detroit Free Press profiles Erin D. Russell who recently won the 2006 Charles M. Schulz Award for college cartooning, which comes with a $10,000 grant. Russell’s strip JADED JOY ran for two years in her college paper.
“When I was in high school, I worked for my high school paper, and I asked if they were interested in me drawing and they said yes. I did editorial cartoons. That’s how I started my career.”
She has studied art, cartooning, anime, metalsmithing and Japanese art, and toyed with the idea of becoming a video game designer because she loves gaming. Her current favorite is “Super Smash Bros.”
§ Literacy News looks at Phil Yeh’s latest literary tour , which will bring him to the BEA from June 1-3.
At this year’s BookExpoAmerica, booth #101, the two cartoonists Phil Yeh and Phil Ortiz will debut the 14th issue of Yeh’s Winged Tiger magazine which also features brand-new character creations from Ortiz, and an interview with Academy Award winning animator John Canemaker about Winsor McCay, the genius behind Little Nemo in Slumberland. The magazine is filled with new cartoon features and articles about their global tour. Phil Yeh, Phil Ortiz, and Alex Niño were invited as special guests for for the 3rd annual China Cartoon and Animation Festival in Hangzhou, China, held April 28 through May 4, 2007 and have great plans to expand their work throughout Asia in the coming years.
We missed this story last week about complaints in a New Zealand library over shelving CHOBITS (as identified by Dirk) in the kids section, but it appears things are being worked out with a plan to relocate the teen and graphic novel sections to a different art of the Wanganui library where children won’t have easy access to the materials:
Last week library borrower and part-time teacher Julie Gordon told the Wanganui Chronicle of her concerns that young people could access graphic containing sexually graphic material at the library.
Over the last two years Mrs Gordon had submitted four of the library’s novels to the Office of Film and Literature Classification.
Three of these had received R13 ratings and one had been rated R16.
In a report to the WDC Ms Patrick said she had made a request to the Davis library to relocate its teenage area and the graphic novel collection to an place which was clearly separated from the children’s area in order to “eliminate” future confusion.
In her recommendation to council she said that councillors should agree that the matter would be resolved once the teen area and graphic novels were moved.
Via PR
Even the U.S. Government can appreciate the classic political artwork of frequent New Yorker cover artist Eric Drooker. The Library of Congress has just purchased the original artwork of Drooker’s political masterwork, Flood! to rest in their public prints and photos collection. These pages have found a permanent home alongside graphic novel pioneer Lynd Ward’s 1930s originals, and the work of comics legend, Will Eisner.
“At first I was amazed that the U.S. Government would invest in a set of images so overtly critical of itself,” says Drooker, “but the Library of Congress represents a progressive wing of the government. Over the years, various collectors have tried to purchase original art from the book, but I never wanted to break up the cycle of engravings. I think it’s fantastic that now, scholars of future generations will be able to examine the original work in its entirety.”
To celebrate, Dark Horse Comics is proud to announce a new edition of this powerful graphic novel, with an additional chapter. An American Book Award winner and an Editor’s Choice of The New York Times, Flood! is a modern novel written in the timeless language of pictures, with an expressionist, film noir edge. Flood! explores all the joys and sadness of big city life, while prophetically gazing into the not-so-distant future.
In The New York Times Book Review, Pulitzer Prize winner Art Spiegelman (Maus) best described Flood! as “a complex, dream-charged vision of alienation in the wet, mean streets of New York City, where primal natural urges are suppressed in the lonely isolation of crowds. It’s a picture of a soulless civilization headed toward the apocalypse. It’s a poetic and lyrical novel—told virtually without words.”
He goes on to praise Drooker’s artistic storytelling. “Since images are usually open to broader interpretation than prose, each drawing in the sequence must work not only as a self–centered composition but also as a kind of hieroglyphic picture-writing. The page acts as a curtain to be raised, each page offering up new visual surprises. Mr. Drooker has discovered the magic of pulling light and life out of an inky sea of darkness.”
Drooker adds “Since Flood! was first published, the ‘graphic novel’ has emerged as a serious literary form. A number of sequential artists have created powerful dramas in words and pictures. My aim was slightly different: I was dispensing with the words—allowing the pictures alone to tell the story. The challenge to me, as a visual artist, was to explore how far I could communicate without resorting to words, to create a more powerful, universal tale.”
This special edition of Flood!: A Novel in Pictures features a bonus chapter, “After the Flood,” which includes thirty-two pages of new graphics, preliminary art, and an in-depth interview with the author. This definitive edition of Flood! is a unique record of our country’s turbulent past—and corporate present—and a must-read for students of graphic storytelling. This third edition also features a new cover by Drooker and a complete re-design. Flood!: A Novel in Pictures, was followed by Drooker’s acclaimed book, Blood Song: A Silent Ballad.
Flood!: A Novel in Pictures features art and story by Eric Drooker. This third edition arrives on sale April 25, carrying a retail price of $14.95.
For more information on the artist and his other works, please visit www.drooker.com.
A distinguished panel of librarian experts puts together a top ten list for the ALA:
1. Kampung Boy
2. The Legend of Hong Kil Dong : The Robin Hood of Korea
3. Missouri Boy
4. Girl Stories
5. Kristy’s Great Idea
6. Bumperboy and the Loud, Loud Mountain
7. To Dance : A Ballerina’s Graphic Novel
8. Castle Waiting
9. American Born Chinese
10. Oddly Normal : v.1
Commentary in link.
In case you missed it, here is the full story from the Marshall Democrat-News on the new Marshall, MO library policy and the fate of FUN HOME and BLANKETS which were removed from shelves following complaints over adult content. The books have been returned to circulation but will be shelved in the Adult section instead of the YA section.
And just like that, democracy and intelligence reign.
More in the link.
The comics blogosphere and press has been closely following the situation in Marshall, MO, where complaints over content led to FUN HOME and BLANKETS being removed from library shelves. The library began a long, thoughtful process of public hearings to decide on a new policy, one of which was held on Tuesday.
Now, a comment on a Beat posting on the matter from Amy Crump, the chief librarian at the Marshall Public Library states simply:
The Marshall Public Library Board of Trustees voted to return both ‘’Fun Home’’ and ‘’Blankets’’ to the library’s shelves on Wednesday, March 14, 2007.
We imagine a fuller story in the Marshall Democrat-Newws, which has covered this story extensively, will be along, but if true, this sounds like a triumph of the democratic process to us. Of course, we’re biased.
Meanwhile, back in Marshall, MOthe new library policy has its first reading and two citizen-democrats showed up to have their say.
Hird was wearing a button that said, “I read banned books.” He brought up the fact that several books that are vital to education have been challenged. They include “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, “The Catcher in the Rye,” by J.D. Salinger, “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker, “1984″ by George Orwell and others.
“There is nothing wrong in challenging books,” Hird said. He said he read the two books that have been pulled from the library’s shelves.
The other fellow felt different.
Blakely also applied the proposed policy to the banned books. According to Blakely, “Blankets” and “Fun Home” only meet one of the general criteria for selection — the timeliness of the subject matter.
The books go along with the timeliness of the gay/lesbian movement and you would find these types of trash along I-70, Blakely said.
YALSA’s complete list of 2007 Great Graphic Novels for Teens is up.
The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), the fastest growing division of the American Library Association (ALA), has announced its 2007 recommended list of Great Graphic Novels for Teens. The list, to be prepared annually, was released for the first time during the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, Washington, held January 19-23, 2007.
In beautiful downtown Seattle the 11-member committee worked hard to narrow its 141 official nominations down to the final list of 67 excellent adult and young adult graphic novel titles. The books, recommended for ages 12-18, meet the criteria of both good quality literature and reading appeal for teens.
The inaugural committee was dedicated to making a strong list that showcases a wide range of quality materials. The list includes everything from serious non-fiction to high fantasy, romantic manga to superhero parodies.
You should definitely go to the link for the names of the librarians who voted and more info, but we’ve also put the complete list in a sidebar listing. Congrats to everyone — this is a truly wide ranging list.
The Final YALSA list of top books for teens for 2007 is up, and there are several graphic novels in the list. We’ll let you click and find yourself. We will note that AMERICAN BORN CHINESE made the Top Ten list. Congrats again, Gene Yang and First Second!
ForeWard is a magazine covering the indie book scene, and this month it has a special section on comics, which you can read in .pdf form right here!
We haven’t had time to read it, but the ToC promises a solid round-up of basic info such as building a graphic novel library, using comics in the classroom, understanding manga genres, and a an overview of the field by Jackie Estrada.
If The Scotsman is to be believed, a graphic novel of Robert Louis Stevenson’s KIDNAPPED is all the rage, and it’s being given away free to encourage reading.
IT is one of the best-loved stories to come out of Scotland. Kidnapped has captivated generations with its gripping tale of high drama in the Highlands and the Capital.
Now, Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic is taking centre stage in Edinburgh’s first ever city reading campaign, which will see more than 15,000 copies of the book given away in the new year.
Writer Alan Grant and artist Cam Kennedy, the comic book creators best known for their work on Judge Dredd and Batman, have joined forces to transform the 19th-century blockbuster into a stunning graphic novel.
According to the story, a “Scottish language version” of the wee bookie is also being given away. Och, but we’d love ta see that, unless it’s just Alan Grant reading it aloud.
Thus reads the headline on a story , widely circulated via the AP which looks at the Marshall Library matter in a wider context:
The Chicago-based American Library Association said it knows of at least 14 graphic novel challenges in U.S. libraries over the past two to three years. Among the titles were “The Watchmen” by Alan Moore, which was challenged in Florida and Virginia as unsuitable for younger readers; “Akira, Volume 2″ by Katsuhiro Otomo, challenged in Texas for offensive language; and “New X-Men Imperial” by Grant Morrison, challenged in Maryland for nudity, offensive language and violence.
Even “Maus” and its sequel, “Maus II,” were challenged last year in Oregon as anti-ethnic and unsuitable for younger readers.
Sometimes the challenges are successful. In April, county officials in Victorville, Calif., removed from their library “Manga: 60 Years of Japanese Comics,” because the book included nudity and sexuality.
“Some people find graphical depictions of things more offensive than text,” said Carrie Gardner, a spokeswoman for the ALA’s Committee for Intellectual Freedom and a professor at Catholic University in Washington, D.C.
Of some interest is the note at the end which compares concern over graphic novels to parental unease when video tapes and internet access became part of library offerings.
While The Beat feels that parents are only being reponsible in showing concern over their kids reading habits, why does it always have to be major works of art like WATCHMEN, FUN HOME and CATCHER IN THE RYE that get caught in the net?
Zack Sims continues to faithfully chronicle the activities of the Marshall, MO library board, as another meeting to discuss their policy on material selection, with some progress made:
The committee had agreed to read the material selection policies of a number of libraries from around the state and the country and to take note of things in them that could be included in the new policy at the Marshall library.
The board discussed a large number of ideas and pulled quotes from a variety of the other library’s policies.
Some of the ideas discussed included wording to outline the responsibilities of the library, tools that should be used for selection, as well as the criteria used for the selection of library materials.
All of the ideas were written down and discussed. A task force made up of three of the committee members, Anita Wright, Jeanne Simonton and Priscilla McReynolds, was formed during the meeting. The task force will meet and condense the ideas discussed into a written document to bring back to the assembled committee to again discuss.
The next episode takes place on Thursday.
Margaret Atwood is one of Canada’s greatest living writers. The multiple-award winning novelist, essayist and poet is the author of such books as THE HANDMAID’S TALE and CAT’S EYE, and she also dabbles in comics, as Jim Dougan discovered on his LJ.
What I didn’t know was that, in addition to being the author of more than thirty-five books of fiction, short stories, poetry, literary criticism, radio and television scripts, she’s also a closet cartoonist. That’s right: Margaret Atwood DOES COMICS. In tone, they’re vaguely reminiscent of Stuart Immonen’s 50 REASONS TO STOP SKETCHING AT CONVENTIONS. As a drafts(wo)man, she’s no Winsor McCay, or Danielle Corsetto, even, but still - who knew?
Check out Atwood’s comics oeuvre here, and Tony Long? You can put this where the sun don’t shine.
The Kansas City Star looks at the recent controversy over FUN HOME and BLANKETS:
But the books are notable because they’re also graphic novels, stories told primarily with drawings instead of words. They resemble comic books, but graphic novels typically run hundreds of pages and often tackle mature subject matter. And as graphic novels have become more common in libraries and bookstores, they have started to run into critics who say they’re too easily available to young children.
Meanwhile, in King County, WA kids can’t get enough of the comics!
Graphic novels are enjoying a meteoric rise among readers young and old.
The books, many of which are attractively bound and printed on high-stock paper, fall into many genres, and they’re so popular that three-quarters of the Kirkland Library’s teen collection is checked out at any given time, according to library staff.
To cater to the growing demand, and in recognition of Teen Read Month, library staff have created a new teen graphic novel section to display the library’s collection of popular titles, from old superhero standards to edgy new manga, from mainstream to alternative.
Though often stigmatized as trivial or juvenile, many graphic novels today grapple with heavy cultural or political issues.
They just couldn’t resist: “And they’re not just for kids.”
§ Johanna has more commentary on ICv2’s Most Powerful People in manga list, including spots 11-20:
# Robin Brenner, Young Adwult Library Services Association
# Jim Chadwick, Editor in Chief, CMX
# Liza Coppola, Senior VP of Marketing, Viz Media
# Jason DeAngelis, Founder, Seven Seas Entertainment
# Rika Inouye, Senior Director of Licensing, Viz Media
# John Ledford, CEO, ADV Films (with the blurb “Although ADV’s launch of its manga line involved thrusting too many titles into a crowded market, the company still controls a number of great licenses and remains a player.? Which reads to me as wishful thinking)
# Kuo-Yu Liang, VP Sales & Marketing, Diamond Book Distributors
# Michael Martens, VP Special Markets, Dark Horse
# Charles Solomon, Journalist (?the leading commentator on manga (and anime) in the mainstream media?)
# David Wise, Editor in Chief, Go Comi
§ Mark Evanier reports on the debut of “The Sergio” and has pictures of Jack Davis AND the REAL Sergio.
§ Scott Kurtz and Mike Krahulik collaborate; world axis shifts?
§ An early play by Brian K. Vaughan will be performed in Chicago he reports at his news blog. He quotes the organizer:
DROP will be performed on October 26th, 27th, and 28th at 8:00 PM in the Francis X. Kinahan Theater at the University of Chicago.
5706 S University Ave
Chicago, IL 60637
Admission price is $6.
“Now wait!” you might say, “that’s a lot of money for a twenty-minute show!” Well, yes. Yes, it is. But there are three other shows going on: Strindberg One on One (”Pariah” and “The Stronger”), Edward Albee’s “Zoo Story”, and an adapted version of Ray Bradbury’s “The Wonderful Death of Dudley Stone”. DROP is simply going up first, so people can duck out afterwards if they’re just there for the BKV love.
§ One more SPX link, a photo which proves either that:
a) if you order a “crib” instead of a cot you will get…a crib
or
b) Indie cartoonists really are babies.
§ In case you’re wondering with this…”Nar-oo-toe” business is all about, Blogcritics has a review understandable by all:
Reading his adventures in graphic novel format, it didn’t take me long to discover the character’s appeal.
The series opens in an undefined period within a well-to-do village called Konohagakune. There, we meet our hero as he’s vandalizing the Rushmore-like mountain faces of the village’s four champions. “You don’t have what it takes to do something this low!” he taunts the outraged villagers, and it’s quickly established that orphaned Naruto is the local scapegoat (colloquialisms courtesy of onetime Marvel writer Mary Jo Duffy), the kind of kid who primarily seeks attention by either making mischief or by loudly bragging about himself.
§ Meanwhile, Salon on “How the World Works” :
But what really caught my eye was a clip from the animated series Naruto set to the soundtrack of a hip-hop song from an Asian American Berkeley duo called Magnetic North. The graphic novel series Naruto is a huge seller in the United States, a fact that is driven home for me every time I wake my son up for breakfast and his first conscious act is to pick up his latest installment and start reading. A Berkeley Asian-American duo providing the soundtrack to a Naruto video is just too close to my home territory to ignore. It’s like they’re rehearsing in my attic.
§ The New York Sun has a lengthy and interesting obit for Hilda Terry,
Marshall Democrat-News editor Chuck Mason takes a stand:
I’m no legal scholar but there is one thing I do know: censorship is censorship.
I have no qualms with Louise Mills of Marshall, who objected to the two books and filed the necessary paperwork to bring the matter to the attention of the board of trustees. Mills is a resident who has a complaint and she has the right to register it.
What I object to is pulling the books off the shelves.
The library board has essentially blinked in the harsh light of public discussion.
In case you missed it, The Marshall Democrat-News story on the library board’s decision to remove FUN HOME and BLANKETS from shelves until a book policy can be drafted.
Wright proposed the policy during her opening remarks at the meeting. Board members voted seven to one, with board member Connie Grisier voting against the motion to go forward with developing the new policy. A committee made up of most of the board members was formed to write the new policy.
“Research will be done to find out what other libraries throughout the state — and we can even inquire nationally if desired — have done in this arena.” Wright said during her opening comments.
Newsarama has the fullest account:
According to Zack Sims, Staff Writer for the Marshall-Democrat News, the meeting opened with the Board President, in her opening statement, suggesting that, in light of the recent developments, a committee be formed for write a formal “materials selection policy? for the library, to determine the guidelines the library will use to select titles for its collection.
No public comment was heard or asked for, as it was noted that the meeting on October 4th served as the public’s time to comment on the issue, and last night’s meeting was a Library Board Meeting – albeit with more people than normal in attendance.
The proposal was agreed to unanimously, and until the policy has been written and adopted by the Board, the two books will remain out of circulation. After the policy is formed, the two books will be evaluated as to their suitableness for the library.
Reaction is mixed. Tom says it’s “a smart way to go about it.” One of our email correspondents suggests “So, essentially, the books have [been] banned, without saying it.”
It is a disappointing result for those who find the idea of branding BLANKETS as pornography ludicrous, but it’s hardly surprising. The public was 3 to 1 FOR the books being removed, after all, and as the Supreme Court said, “community standards” are part of the test of material which appeals to “prurient interest.”
The decision will come as no surprise to those who live outside the more liberal coastal beltways. On our one car trip to Missouri, we were struck by the number of billboards along side the road advertising DNA clinics, who seemed to be doing a booming business in paternity tests. There was even one with a picture of an adorable tot, and the memorable headline “Who’s my daddy?” Perhaps if the youth of Marshall, MO were more busily engaged by reading challenging material they would not spend so much time getting knocked up. Just a thought.
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