Description

Ho Che Anderson spent over 10 years researching, writing, and drawing King, a monumental graphic biography that liberates Martin Luther King Jr. from the saintly, one-dimensional, hagiographic image so relevant in pop culture. Here is King – father, husband, politician, deal broker, idealist, pragmatist, inspiration to millions – brought to vivid, flesh-and-blood life. Out of print since 2006, King is our most-requested reprint. In recognition of the advances made in American social equality that has made it possible to elect America’s first black President, and in time to celebrate Martin Luther King Day (January 26, 2010), Fantagraphics Books is publishing King: The Special Edition, a newly designed volume that includes the original 240 page graphic biography, as well as nearly a hundred additional pages of "extras," including: "Black Dogs," a 14 page prelude to King, a dialogue between a young black couple expecting a child, living in LA in the aftermath of the Rodney King upheaval; excerpts from the diary and notebook the author kept when researching and writing King, with interstitial notes written specifically for this volume; preparatory sketches, discarded images and pages, an interview with the author, and excerpts from the draft of the script; an epilogue titled "Assassin," written and drawn for this new edition, in which Anderson explores the question of whether James Earl Ray actually shot King.