Product Description

The complete WWII cartoons of the greatest cartoonist of the Greatest Generation, in a beautiful, oversized, two-volume slipcased set. During WWII, the closest most Americans ever came to the war was through the cartoons of Bill Mauldin, the most beloved enlisted man in the U.S. Army.

Fantagraphics Books brings together Mauldin’s complete works from 1940 through the end of the war. This collection of over 600 cartoons, most never before reprinted, is more than the record of a great artist: it is an essential chronicle of America’s citizen-soldiers from peace through war to victory. Bill Mauldin knew war because he was in it. He had created his characters, Willie and Joe, at age 18, before Pearl Harbor, while training with the 45th Infantry Division and cartooning part-time for the camp newspaper. His brilliant send-ups of officers were pure infantry, and the men loved it. With their heavy brush lines, detailed battlescapes, and pidgin of army slang and slum dialect, Mauldin’s cartoons and captions recreated on paper the fully realized world of the American combat soldier. Their dark, often insubordinate humor sparked controversy among army brass and incensed General George S. Patton, Jr.

Presented in a deluxe, beautifully designed two-volume slipcased edition of over 700 pages, this tome is edited by Todd DePastino, Mauldin’s official biographer. Willie & Joe contains an introduction and running commentary by DePastino, providing context for the drawings, pertinent biographical details of Mauldin’s life, and occasional background on specific cartoons (such as the ones that made Patton howl). 650 b/w illustrations.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #41418 in Books
• Published on: 2008-04-28
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 650 pages

From Booklist
*Starred Review* To the generation that lived through World War II, Mauldin’s iconic infantrymen Willie and Joe personified the beleaguered, resigned dogface who won the war. Mauldin began drawing for his division’s newspaper shortly after joining the army in 1940. Three years later he landed in Sicily, and his work began appearing in the military newspaper Stars and Stripes as well as on the home front. His bristle-faced foot soldiers endured life on the frontlines with heavy-lidded weariness and resigned humor. Mauldin’s ink-laden drawings conveyed the harsh conditions the troops endured, although military censorship prevented him from showing the true horrors of combat. While his cartoons were beloved by the soldiers, he frequently ran afoul of the brass, most famously General Patton, who thought that Mauldin’s goal was to “create disrespect for officers.” His battlefield efforts were recognized stateside when Mauldin became the youngest Pulitzer Prize winner in history, and they launched a career as an editorial cartoonist that continued four decades after the war. These two lovingly designed, khaki-green, slipcased volumes collect all 600-plus Mauldin WWII cartoons. They’re an essential complement to editor DePastino’s Bill Mauldin: A Life Up Front (2008)—and to every good WWII collection. --Gordon Flagg

Review
Bill Mauldin was my first artist hero… [Willie & Joe: The WWII Years] reminds me why. (Steven Heller, The New York Times Book Review)

Mauldin was arguably the greatest war correspondent of his day. (Steven Grant, Comic Book Resources)

The cartoonist’s humanistic brush paints a sober picture of war that a news camera can never achieve. (James Sturm, Print Magazine)

There’s a sad wisdom on virtually every page here. (Jeff Salamon, The Austin American-Statesman)

These gritty, existential cartoons—everything Mauldin published during the war that still exists is compiled here—are the real deal and then some. (Laurel Maury, NPR)

This collection of all of Mauldin’s World War II work stands out…a worthy platform for a series of brilliant strips drawn with a lively hand. (Rob Clough, High-Low)

This compilation of his cartoons helps bring Mauldin’s talent and his life at the front lines both to historians and a new generation. (Samuel M. Baker, ARMY)

About the Author
Born in 1921, Bill Mauldin squeezed several lifetimes into his eighty-one years. In addition to cartooning, he acted in Hollywood movies, ran for Congress, piloted airplanes, wrote several books and hundreds of articles, and won two Pulitzer Prizes, the first for his wartime cartoons. He died in 2003.

Todd DePastino is the author of Citizen Hobo: How a Century of Homelessness Shaped America and Bill Mauldin: A Life Up Front, and the editor of the cartoon collection Willie & Joe: The WWII Years. He teaches history and writes and lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Customer Reviews

A soldiers opinion
As a veteran of the army (1st Bn 75 Inf ) I could relate to the situations that Willie and joe found themselves in.The humor that soldiers see in different situations can be appreciated by soldiers and civilians alike. Mr. Mauldin illustrates these situations very well and has clever captions to go with them. If you ever wondered what army life is like or want to remember some of the situations you as a soldier were in, then take a look at these two books. If you enjoy them half as much as I do then you will be very happy you bought them. Happy reading.
"Rangers Lead The Way"

Mauldin Fans Rejoice!
This is an excellent set of books, with a wonderful and informative introduction by Todd DePastino. The reproduction quality of Mauldin's cartoons is quite good, especially considering the original source material in some cases. One can tell that this was a true labor of love. To see everything in one place is a real treat. Thank you Fantagraphics and Todd DePastino!

Memories of WWII
For those who lived through World War II, this is a sweet reminder of Bill Mauldin's fight to show the mud and toil of the war.