Comics: Easy as ABC

Best Young Readers 2020 Eisner Award Winner
​Booklist Top 10 Arts Books for Youth of 2019
​A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

★ “This volume distills every major lesson a young doodler, comic book reader, or graphic novel enthusiast would ever need. … Drawing guides have never been so appealing. A must.”
—School Library Journal, Starred Review

★ “Toon books condenses the vast experience, talent, and child-friendly energy on display in its graphic novels into this comic-creation intensive. Comprehensive in its comics theory but pitched to its readership of young would-be cartoonists, this slim volume offers a new lesson on nearly every page. This design allows kids to follow it step-by-step and evolve their skills (with lots of practice) or to jump around to the examples that most pique their interest. … While it is conceptually ambitious, it doesn’t skimp on the details and small devices … highlighting that it’s the small things that bring individual style forward and make a comic tight and clear. … Brunetti, with his crystalline design sense (think Chris Ware for kids) was the perfect choice to spearhead this project.”—Booklist, Starred Review

“An idiosyncratic guide to drawing comics packs a lot of information into relatively few pages … offering readers a working vocabulary about what it is, exactly, that comics do… The mix of words and images effectively moves from entry-level techniques to difficult concepts as the book progresses.”—Publishers Weekly

“Both newbies and graduates of Ed Emberley’s classic manuals or, more recently, James Sturm and Co.’s Adventures in Cartooning series will find plenty of beneficial insights (“stick people aren’t as easy as they look”) and inspiration. First and next steps for budding graphic artists and illustrators.”—Kirkus Reviews


“With instructional drawing from Master cartoonist and educator Ivan Brunetti, this book is for comics fans and budding cartoonists. Comics: Easy As ABC will encourage you to put pencil to paper, and draw, draw, draw! In addition, educators, parents, and librarians will find invaluable information and resources on comics and literacy. This book will stay in my library for a long time, for both reference and inspiration.”—Michelle Ollie, The Comics Journal

“… This volume … is basically Cartooning 101 for precocious kids … And it’s an invaluable resource for kids (like mine) who are always writing, always drawing, and always trying to marry the two.”—Jamie Greene, The Roarbots

“Comics: Easy As ABC! is a step-by-step-how-to, covering everything from basic shapes and faces to perspective and the vocabulary of comics presented in a straightforward way that is easy to follow and engaging for kids. At the same time, Françoise Mouly … and others dedicate themselves to (once again) holding up comics as a valid medium, a complex and rich medium and, basically, a medium of book that it’s o.k. for kids to read . . . The message that kids love comics and kids can make comics is clear – and valid. While the pages of this book feel packed with ideas and images, the progress and layout makes perfect sense for newbies and kids who have experience with drawing and sequential storytelling. Best of all, Brunetti’s illustration style makes his lessons feel extremely doable. Getting more technical, body type, body language, comics language, point of view and perspective are tackled. At every step, contributors offer words of advice, encouragement and humor. “—Books4YourKids