From Powells.com
The Best Books of 2019 (So Far)
Staff Pick
DeForge's new collected edition of his web comic Leaving Richard's Valley may just be his most spectacular work to date. A haphazard crew of animals are kicked out of the valley they call home by Richard, their Fabio-esque quasi-cult leader, as a punishment for saving their friend's life without his permission. Shenanigans galore ensue, both in the valley and as we follow our protagonists on their quest to find a new home. A five-star read that's so good, it hurts. Recommended By Haley B., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
WHEN A GROUP OF OUTCASTS HAVE TO LEAVE THE VALLEY, HOW WILL THEY SURVIVE THE TOXICITY OF THE BIG CITY?
Richard is a benevolent but tough leader. He oversees everything that happens in the valley, and everyone loves him for it. When Lyle the Raccoon becomes sick, his friends — Omar the Spider, Neville the Dog, and Ellie Squirrel — take matters into their own hands, breaking Richard’s strict rules. Caroline Frog rats them out to Richard and they are immediately exiled from the only world they’ve ever known.
Michael DeForge’s Leaving Richard’s Valley expands from a bizarre hero’s quest into something more. As this ragtag group makes their way out of the valley, and then out of the park and into the big city, we see them coming to terms with different kinds of community: noise-rockers, gentrification protesters, squatters, and more. DeForge is idiosyncratically funny but also deeply insightful about community, cults of personality, and the condo-ization of cities. These eye-catching and sometimes absurd comics coalesce into a book that questions who our cities are for and how we make community in a capitalist society.
Review
"[DeForge's] drawings consist of simple lines, flat perspective, and a limited palette of bright colors, but the worlds therein are a profusion of organic shapes that suggest a richness of interior emotion." The Believer
Review
"DeForge is a machine; his work never stops being strange and beautiful and dark. I heard so many people talking about this strip before I stumbled across it and I couldn't help but consume it. You should read this and buy it for your friends AND enemies." Tommi Parrish, cartoonist of The Lie and How We Told It
Review
"Leaving Richard's Valley highlights the value of finding one’s place in a world that is constantly growing and changing....DeForge has skillfully created a twisted, bitingly funny parable about community and friendship in tough times." Winnipeg Free Press
About the Author
Michael DeForge was born in 1987 and is currently on a treadmill.