Everyone is familiar with the age-old saying, “never judge a book by its cover,” but in Comics by the Cover that’s the exact task Caitlin Cass sets out for herself. Created as documentation of a 4-hour comic-making extravaganza at the Thomas Crane Public Library in Quincy, Mass., Comics by the Cover offers 15 comics Cass drew based on the covers of books people brought to her. The books came from people’s homes, book sales, and from inside the library itself. Admittedly my favourite comic in the bunch is the one she cheated on by taking a glimpse inside The Hawkline Monster: A Gothic Western and basing her comic on a quote from the book. (Truthfully if I were handed a gothic western I would cheat too!)
I would be interested to see if the tone of the comics might change if Cass was given different types of books — maybe a scientific tome or an encyclopedia. (Amber Landgraff)
Comic, Caitlin Cass, greatmomentsinwesternciv.com