Your Vigor For Life Appalls Me

Yes! The famous Crumb correspondence book is back! Originally published in 1998, YOUR VIGOR FOR LIFE APPALLS ME collects R. Crumb’s correspondence with his old chums Mike Britt and Marty Pahls during his late teens and early twenties. The extraordinary title is only matched by the incredible insight into the iconoclast’s mind and the ultra-snazzy portrait of an early Crumb on the cover, sporting a corduroy jacket and tie.

I’m only a few pages in but here are my impressions so far: first, think you’re a comic nerd? Think again. No one comes close to Crumb in that respect. Second, young Crumb sure likes the word “clod”. I cannot wait to get to the later correspondence where he’s said to cover some intense stuff, such as the failure of his first marriage, his early adventures with Aline Kominsky, and his troubles with the IRS. A definite must-read for any Crumb fan.