Wobblies!: A Graphic History of the Industrial Workers of the World

The stories of the hard-rock miners' shooting wars, young Elizabeth Gurly Flynn (the "Rebel Girl" of contemporary sheet music), the first sit-down strikes and Free Speech fights, Emma Goldman and the struggle for birth control access, the Pageant for Paterson orchestrated in Madison Square Garden, bohemian radicals John Reed and Louise Bryant, field-hand revolts and lumber workers' strikes, wartime witch hunts, government prosecutions and mob lynching, Mexican-American uprisings in Baja, and Mexican peasant revolts led by Wobblies, hilarious and sentimental songs created and later revived--all are here, and much, much more.

The IWW, which has been organizing workers since 1905, is often cited yet elusive to scholars because of its eclectic and controversial cultural and social character. Wobblies presents the IWW whole, scripted and drawn by old-time and younger Wobbly and IWW-inspired artists.

Contributors include Carlos Cortez (former editor of the Industrial Worker), Harvey Pekar (author of American Splendor), Peter Kuper (MAD's Spy vs. Spy), Sue Coe, Seth Tobocman, Chris Cardinale, Ryan Inzana, Spain Rodriques, Trina Robbins, Sharon Rudahl, and the circle of artists for World War 3 Illustrated.

Author: Paul Buhle
Publisher: Verso
Published: 04/17/2005
Pages: 305
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.35lbs
Size: 7.90h x 7.90w x 0.90d
ISBN: 9781844675258


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 05/09/2005 pg. 65
Kliatt 07/01/2005 pg. 42

About the Author
Paul Buhle, formerly a senior lecturer at Brown University, produces radical comics. He founded the SDS Journal Radical America and the archive Oral History of the American Left and, with Mari Jo Buhle, is coeditor of the Encyclopedia of the American Left. He lives in Madison.

Nicole Schulman is an artist and activist on the editorial board of World War 3 Illustrated, to which she frequently contributes work. Her comics and illustrations have appeared in publications such as the New York Times, and are in the permanent collection of the Library of Congress. She lives in New York City.

Harvey Pekar is a comic book writer and author of the autobiographical American Splendor series, which was adapted into an Academy Award nominated film. Pekar is also a prolific jazz and book critic. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

Retired cartoonist and current comics historian Trina Robbins has been writing graphic novels, comics, and books for over 30 years. Her subjects have ranged from Wonder Woman and The Powerpuff Girls to her own teenage superheroine, GoGirl!, and from women cartoonists and superheroines to women who kill. She lives in a moldering 103 year-old house in San Francisco with her cats, shoes, and dust bunnies.

Spain Rodriguez is one of the most well-known artists in the comix underground. He (along with Robert Crumb) was one of the original members of Zap Comics and has a reputation as an outstanding political artist. He is the author of several other graphic novels, including the highly acclaimed Nightmare Alley. His work is prominently featured in BLAB!, an annual comic anthology that has also featured Charles Burns, Mark Mothersbaugh, Daniel Clowes, and Chris Ware.