“One of the many virtues of Michael Tisserand’s richly illustrated biography of George Herriman, the creator of “Krazy Kat,” is its evocation of the early 20th-century newspaper world from which it sprang.” — Wall Street Journal
“Essential reading for comics fans and history buffs, Krazy is a roaring success, providing an indispensable new perspective on turn-of-the-century America.” — Kirkus (starred)
“Who was the man behind “Krazy Kat”? This fascinating biography and guide to the work of the cartoonist, who passed for white, tells the full story.” — New York Times
“Tisserand … has written the rarest kind of book: scholarship that is accessible and captivating, genuinely fun to read. His prose sparkles, smooth and flowing, rich with metaphor and invention.” — Chicago Tribune
“... one of the year’s best biographies.” — Boston Globe
“Krazy, so rich in anecdote and so warm in affection, succeeds in adding a good deal to the wonder of George Herriman’s legacy – mainly by putting the artist in last place on Earth he liked to be: in the spotlight, center stage.” — Christian Science Monitor
“It’s one of the best true stories told in 2016.” — Philadelphia Inquirer
“... engaging, revealing…. Herriman’s adventures in newspapering in the early years of the 20th century are alone worth the price of the book.... Whether you’re a longtime Krazy Kat fan, as I am, or a new acquaintance, this biography will enrich your knowledge of the Kat and its creator.” — Tampa Bay Times
“Perhaps no one in his field is as deserving of a top-notch, in-depth biography as Herriman. And with Michael Tisserand’s Krazy we now have a most valuable, studiously researched, and, indeed, definitive profile of the man that does him full justice.” — Print
“Herriman’s delight in anarchic transformation and gentle subversion had personal roots, as Michael Tisserand reveals in this scrupulously researched, luminously written and eye-opening biography.” — The Times Literary Supplement
“A visionary strip. Who drew it, and wherefrom? Tisserand’s robust research illuminates, without diminishing, the mystery.” — Roy Blount Jr.
“An athletic feat of scholarship and an effort of love—like one of Ignatz’s bricks to the head. Tisserand’s immaculately researched and super-readable biography captures the madcap modernist Herriman and the weird America of surreal racial realities and publishing superpowers that shaped his revolutionary art.” — Hillary Chute
“George Herriman was a poet in a new visual language. As a man, he was an enigma to match his greatest creation, the sublime Krazy Kat. Michael Tisserand has done a masterful job of illuminating this life lived in the shadowy borderlands of racial identity; along the way he also gives a brilliant overview of the golden years of American cartooning. Krazy is a monumental work of biography about a true American genius.” — Tom Piazza
“This is a gripping read at the intersection of pop culture and American history.” — Publisher’s Weekly
“An absorbing study of a genius with a secret.” — New Orleans Times-Picayune
“Rich in original research, New Orleans writer Tisserand’s encyclopedia biography of Krazy Kat artist George Herriman is also an enlightening history of modern comic strips.” — Shelf Awareness
“Tisserand presents a well-researched, engaging biography of George Herriman (1880-1944), creator of the comic strip Krazy Kat.... At every step, this work brilliantly re-creates the milieu of its subject’s life by shading in the historical context. A significant book for comics scholars and those interested in tracing Herriman’s development from novice to master of the medium.” — Paul Steins, Library Journal