A Contract with God: And Other Tenement Stories

By Will Eisner

Book Overview

Will Eisner was present at the dawn of comics. In the 1940s, he pushed the boundaries of the medium with his acclaimed weekly comic strip The Spirit, and with the publication of A Contract with God in 1978, he created a new medium altogether: the graphic novel. It was unlike anything seen before, heralding an era when serious cartoonists were liberated from the limiting confines of the comic strip. Eisner's work was a shining example of what comics could be: as inventive, moving, and complex as any literary art form.

Eisner considered himself "a graphic witness reporting on life, death, heartbreak, and the never-ending struggle to prevail." A Contract with God begins with a gripping tale that mirrors the artist's real-life tragedy, the death of his daughter. Frimme Hersh, a devout Jew, questions his relationship with God after the loss of his own beloved child. Hersh's crisis is intertwined with the lives of the other unforgettable denizens of Eisner's iconic Dropsie Avenue, a fictionalized version of the quintessential New York City street where he came of age at the height of the Depression.

This centennial edition showcases Eisner's singular visual style in new high-resolution scans of his original art, complete with an introduction by Scott McCloud and an illuminating history of Eisner's seminal work. Now readers can experience the legendary book that launched a unique art form and reaffirmed Will Eisner as one of the great pioneers of American graphic storytelling.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393609189
• ISBN13: 9780393609189
• Release Date: March 2017
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 1.54 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 7.2" x 10.1"

Customer Reviews

Simply perfect

This is the absolute best of the Will Eisner collection. Don't we all in our deepest heart of hearts have a contract with the Almighty?

Magnificent simplicity yet concentrated

Magnificent simplicity yet concentrated in humanistic mechanics. Will Eisner's creation delivers the 1930s in a single drop - the culture, the depression, human relations, the dynamism of emotions. The stories of Fremme Hersch, the Jew who had a contract with God, the saga of the street singer's ill fortune, the tale of emotions as chance intertwines people - all tied by the common element of tenement dwellers gives a glimpse of life in 1930s almost in its exactitude. As the first of its genre, you will be proud to own it and after reading it, you will be saddened to learn that not much has changed for relationships and delighted that not all needs to die.

Jewish fables from the grand master

Will Eisner is, unquestionably, the best comics artist in the world. This book is historically significant because it is called "the first graphic novel." Four stories, each with their own pacing, visual style, and themes.This would make a great gift for anyone who likes comics or Jewish stories. There is, however, nudity and sex (which is treated with the utmost realism -- this isn't pornography!), so beware of that.This and all other Eisner is highly, highly recommended. // koby c.

One of the Greatest Comics Ever Written

I was lucky enough to meet Will Eisner this summer and get my copy of A Contract With God autographed. It is one of the most amazing pieces of comic art I have ever read. His characters are amazingly real, the stories are everyday tales of life you can relate to. Even though the stories take place almost 70 years ago, they retain a timelessness that is unusual in today's pop culture.

Comics masterpiece by the same creator of Spirit

Contract with God shows Eisner at his best, putting together an excelent story with Eisner's great art. The book brings up the idea : if I'm a good person loyal to God, will He treat me alright ?