Dash Shaw Books In Order

Publication Order of Candlestick Books

Publication Order of Cosplayers Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Anthologies

Dash Shaw is an American comic author, animator, and cartoonist living in Brooklyn, New York. Some of his notable books include New School, Bodyworld, and Bottomless Belly Button. Shaw’s animated films to his name include Sundance Selection and Sigur Ros video. His comic short stories have appeared in many anthologies, magazines, and newspapers. The comics are best known for their lyrical logic, emotional, and innovative design. At the age of 19, Dash was named as one of the top 10 artists at the 2002 Small Press Expo.

Bodyworld

Bodyworld is a superhero science-fiction comic book. It features Professor Paulie Panther, a botanist crazy enough to perform drug experiments on his body, and the effects of the drugs make him act a little bit crazy.

Paulie is tasked with researching about a weird plant growing behind the school. But the professor will soon discover a new drug that comes with telepathic properties. Where did the drug come from?

Further research shows the new drug could be from outer space and part of a larger plan by aliens looking to take over the planet. There is no doubt that something sinister is imminent, and things are quickly getting out of control. So who exactly is Professor Paulie and what could be the root cause of his madness. Is he just okay, or is the professor a part of the insanity threatening to take over the town? Is the professor the cause of the craziness, or are the aliens to blame? Are drugs paramount for insight and happiness? Find out about all this and so much more in this thrilling comic.

The professor’s job as a tester reveals a few truth that leaves him, and others puzzled. He discovers that the unknown plant comes with two black leaves that contain a hallucinogen. Upon smoking it, Professor Paulie gains a telepathic connection to those around him. He not only feel what the other person is feeling but also remembers things the other person remembers as well as says the things that those near him want to say. This discovery entangles the cast in a craze that threatens to take over the entire town.

Bodyworld is set in a small town and is centered on high school life. The year is 2060, and a civil war that changed the country has just ended. Notable among the cast is Miss Jem, the science teacher; Billy Borg was otherwise known as Jock and Pear Peach, a stubborn and rebellious girl who is bored to death by small-town life. It’s interesting to see how Professor Paulie uses drugs to explore psychic exchanges on the body and mind. In a peculiar body world, would it be possible to inhibit another person’s body and mind? While sexuality is part of the exploration in this novel, this brave new world is a little scary. The comic highlights the adverse effects that drugs and aliens have on the future.

This is an original comic of a strange vision concerning the conservative world. The story brings high school and science-fiction vibes to create a book that appeals to the young-adults audience. The characters here come in mangled drawings made up of bright colors that go beyond the panel borders and containing lines. Despite all this, the pages are easy to read. The story flows in a steady rhythm from the beginning to the end.

Bottomless Belly Button

Bottomless Belly Button is a comedy graphic novel. It details the adventures of the dysfunctional Loony Family. The parents have just announced their divorce, and the Loony decide to come together for a week in their beach house. After 40 years of marriage, the paternal hierarchy of this clan is set to go separate ways. The one week together turns out to be a period of strained familial bonding as the couple waits to sign the final divorce papers.

From this story, it is easy to see that the Loony clan is made up of eccentric personalities. Dennis, the eldest of the Loony’s family children, is having marital problems of his own as he majorly ignores his son and fat wife throughout the week. Instead of spending time with his family, Dennis chooses to dedicate his time searching for secret tunnels and trap doors in the family’s estate. Claire, who is the middle child, is single, and a mother to a troubled teenage girl named Jill. Aside from struggling to connect with her sixteen-year-old daughter, Claire still bemoans her relationship and divorce from her selfish ex-husband. Peter, the youngest of the children and a filmmaker by profession, is insecure thanks to the indifference he gets from his siblings and parents. His insecurities lead him to start an unorthodox romance with a daycare counselor on their week-long stay on the beach.

Despite all the chaos surrounding this family, it is not all gloom for all of them. Peter, who is mostly portrayed with a frog head momentarily, reverts to a human head when he discovers that not everyone views him as a freak. While Peter sees himself as a frog boy, he finds that his new girlfriend thinks highly of him. The book also shows a few more other instances where the characters have distorted self-images. Despite the insecurities and struggles that the family members are going through, the family is still able to survive an entire week under one roof.

Bottomless Belly Button is a 700 pages comic that is engaging to the end. It’s easy to get engrossed reading about the flawed characters and their struggles with self under challenging circumstances. The story comes with comic exaggerations that make light of an otherwise tough situation characterized by marital despair, unhappiness, and failure. Get this book is you are looking for a compulsive read on family and the drama that comes with it. The cartooning leans more to the “beautiful, ugly” side characteristic of comics by Shaw, among other notable comic writers. The author does an excellent job of telling the story of many modern families and the issues those individuals in these households struggle with daily.