A while back I read the graphic novel, Tomboy by Liz Prince. It was a fun memoir about being a kid that made me wonder about adult Liz. Who is she now? Or at least when her works were published. I found 2018 as the most recent autobiographical work, 2023 for Science Comics: Frogs: Awesome Amphibians (from First Second) and Adventure Time Compendium Vol. 1 in 2024 with other contributors.
Adult Liz is not much different than kid Liz. A bit awkward, weird, funny, has her own sense of style and has people around her that embrace that. More importantly she embraces her weirdness with both barrels and is locked and loaded for adventures. You see in (or you would if you read these books) Will You Still Love Me If I Wet the Bed?; Delayed Replays and Look Back and Laugh all the everyday, mundane things, but also the adventure that is being an adult in the world.
Each one is about the day in the life of Liz. They are funny, silly and even serious. The three books include the two main themes of relationships and everyday life. She talks about picking her nose, celery smelling armpits, eating at the Indian buffet every first of the month, sex, seduction, her cats, insomnia, traveling for her work, buying a house, the joys of winter and even peeing when your partner is listening/watching you. Look Back was a project she did for fans who signed up for a comic a day. (The great thing? She was able to find people who wanted a comic a day. The worst thing? She had to draw a comic a day).
Enough humor is packed into seriously small books. One is so small I could almost fit it in my jeans pocket (I wouldn’t as it was a library book and it would be hard to replace). Most of these books you’d have to find in a library or a preloved store. You might be able to get Be Your Own Backing Band at Silver Sprocket (or library as I am trying) or perhaps your local independent store might have it, but it looks iffy (why I went the library route). And with Alone Forever: The Singles Collection (the other book I’m looking for) I had to go to the library for interlibrary loans. I’m still waiting for them, so I’ll let you know the results. In the meantime, I’ll be putting in a request for Coady and the Creepies as seriously, I can’t get enough of this gal!