Promotions - Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles 2023 -

Organized into three geographical sections, "East Asia," "Southeast Asia," and "South Asia," this thorough survey of Asian political cartooning provides a fascinating introduction to historical and geopolitical influences on political cartooning in Asia. In addition to summarizing historical factors and artists who contribute to a particular cartooning culture, Lent (a distinguished scholar of cartooning, comic art, and animation) traces connections between political cartooning in these regions, lending coherence to an otherwise sweeping topic. Lent emphasizes this by juxtaposing academic/historical analysis of the topic interviews and observational accounts of cartoon production. Vignettes devoted to people and places provide brief but in-depth discussions of contemporary political cartooning throughout Asia, demonstrating how the broader historical and topical discussions in the volume can be synthesized into compelling critical insights. Also noteworthy is the quality and number of illustrations, in both color and black and white. An appendix of interviews conducted by the author and an index conclude the volume. In addition to be being a superior one-stop introduction to Asian political cartooning, this book is a pioneering and invaluable resource for visual culture in Asia.Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers.