Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Comics & Graphic Novels on Amazon Friday morning. See About the Amazon Top 50 Lists for more information on how this list is compiled.


1 (R). Watchmen (Kindle)
2 (-). Vader's Little Princess
3 (+3). Darth Vader and Son
4 (N). Injustice: Gods Among Us #18 (Kindle)
5 (-). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 7) (Kindle)
6 (+4). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8 (Kindle) *
7 (+5). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 7)
8 (+41). Dork Diaries 6: Tales from a Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker *
9 (-2). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
10 (-7). Injustice: Gods Among Us #17 (Kindle)
11 (-2). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 2
12 (+5). Injustice: Gods Among Us #1 (Kindle)
13 (+5). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
14 (+2). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6) (Kindle)
15 (-1). How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You
16 (-4). Dork Diaries 5 (Kindle)
17 (+4). Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search, Part 1
18 (-5). Big Nate: Genius Mode (Kindle)
19 (+20). Dork Diaries 4 (Kindle)
20 (-5). Saga Volume 1
21 (+2). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6)
22 (-11). Injustice: Gods Among Us #16 (Kindle)
23 (+5). Big Nate: Genius Mode
24 (-20). My Dog: The Paradox: A Lovable Discourse about Man's Best Friend
25 (+2). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5) (Kindle)
26 (-4). Batman Vol. 2: The City of Owls (The New 52)
27 (+3). Dog Days (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 4) (Kindle)
28 (+1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8 *
29 (-5). Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon
30 (+8). Watchmen
31 (-6). Batman: The Killing Joke, Deluxe Edition
32 (-4). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
33 (+4). Rodrick Rules (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2) (Kindle)
34 (+8). Big Nate Makes the Grade (Kindle)
35 (+6). The Walking Dead, Vol. 17: Something to Fear
36 (-2). The Walking Dead, Vol. 18: What Comes After *
37 (-6). Injustice: Gods Among Us #15 (Kindle)
38 (+2). Injustice: Gods Among Us #2 (Kindle)
39 (-7). Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (The New 52)
40 (+7). Dog Days (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 4)
41 (+9). Injustice: Gods Among Us #3 (Kindle)
42 (R). Dork Diaries 1 (Kindle)
43 (R). Marvel Encyclopedia
44 (R). Persepolis
45 (-12). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5)
46 (N). Walt Disney's Donald Duck: "The Old Castle's Secret" *
47 (-28). Naruto, Vol. 61: Uchiha Brothers United Front
48 (R). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books (1-5)
49 (R). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle)
50 (-15). Superman: Red Son


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks

Commentary:

• So how does the Kindle edition of Watchmen suddenly show up in the top slot this week? Amazon started offering it on sale for just $4, showing that at the right price a 25+-year-old acclaimed graphic novel can beat out adorable Sith Lords, video-game tie-ins, and Diaries by Wimpy Kids and Dorks.
• Last week's top comic, the pre-order for a Hyperbole and a Half collection, slides out of the top fifty entirely. While flash-in-the-pans like this are not uncommon for pre-orders for popular Webcomics collections, this is a rather extreme case. But don't worry, it'll be sure to be back on the chart again closer to its October release date.
• Injustice Watch: No surprise that the top debut this week is the latest issue of the digital Injustice: Gods Among Us. Seven of the eighteen extant issues of Injustice make the chart this week.
• The only other debut this week is the latest volume in Fantagraphics' collections of Carl Barks' Donald Duck material down at #46.
• Dead Watch: Only four Walking Dead collections on the chart this week, the same as last week. The second Compendium slips out of the top ten, and the first Compendium nearly does so as well.
• Diary Watch: The Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries franchises between them take up seventeen of the slots on the chart this week, up four from last week.
• Kindle Watch: Twenty of the chart positions this week are taken up by Kindle editions, up one from last week. 

Minicomics: The Secret History of the Space Monkeys

In March we held the Third Annual Mini-comics Day at the Dude! I created another 8-page mini-comic: "The Secret History of the Space Monkeys." It is the fourth installment in my ongoing series, preceded by "The B-Team Returns,"  "Too Many Monkeys!" and "Monkeys in Space!"

You can download and read it:

"The Secret History of the Space Monkeys" - high quality PDF for reading.

"The Secret History of the Space Monkeys" - print-and-assemble version, to make your own physical minicomic.

Once again I had a blast hanging out with all of the talented artists at Mini-comics Day.

Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Comics & Graphic Novels on Amazon Friday morning. See About the Amazon Top 50 Lists for more information on how this list is compiled.


1 (N). Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened *
2 (-1). Vader's Little Princess
3 (N). Injustice: Gods Among Us #17 (Kindle)
4 (R). My Dog: The Paradox: A Lovable Discourse about Man's Best Friend
5 (+1). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 7) (Kindle)
6 (-4). Darth Vader and Son
7 (-3). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
8 (N). When Do They Serve the Wine?: The Folly, Flexibility, and Fun of Being a Woman (Kindle)
9 (-4). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 2
10 (-2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8 (Kindle) *
11 (-8). Injustice: Gods Among Us #16 (Kindle)
12 (-5). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 7)
13 (N). Big Nate: Genius Mode (Kindle)
14 (-1). How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You
15 (-5). Saga Volume 1
16 (+6). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6) (Kindle)
17 (-1). Injustice: Gods Among Us #1 (Kindle)
18 (-3). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
19 (N). Naruto, Vol. 61: Uchiha Brothers United Front
20 (+1). Dork Diaries 5 (Kindle)
21 (-10). Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search, Part 1
22 (-8). Batman Vol. 2: The City of Owls (The New 52)
23 (-6). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6)
24 (-6). Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon
25 (+13). Batman: The Killing Joke, Deluxe Edition
26 (R). Relish: My Life in the Kitchen
27 (-). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5) (Kindle)
28 (-3). Big Nate: Genius Mode
29 (+8). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8 *
30 (+3). Dog Days (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 4) (Kindle)
31 (-22). Injustice: Gods Among Us #15 (Kindle)
32 (-12). Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (The New 52)
33 (+11). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5)
34 (-15). The Walking Dead, Vol. 18: What Comes After *
35 (+1). Superman: Red Son
36 (-1). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
37 (-5). Rodrick Rules (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2) (Kindle)
38 (+2). Watchmen
39 (-10). Dork Diaries 4 (Kindle)
40 (-10). Injustice: Gods Among Us #2 (Kindle)
41 (-18). The Walking Dead, Vol. 17: Something to Fear
42 (R). Big Nate Makes the Grade (Kindle)
43 (R). Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi Volume 1-Force Storm (Kindle)
44 (R). The Complete Calvin and Hobbes (paperback)
45 (N). Iron Man: Extremis
46 (N). World of Warcraft: Dark Riders
47 (-13). Dog Days (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 4)
48 (-22). Injustice: Gods Among Us #14 (Kindle)
49 (-25). Dork Diaries 6: Tales from a Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker *
50 (-11). Injustice: Gods Among Us #3 (Kindle)


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks

Commentary:

• It's always exciting when a new title debuts at the top of the chart. The pre-order for the collection of Allie Brosh's Hyperbole and a Half is at #51 on the overall Amazon chart, which is good enough to land it at #1 on the comics chart. This is one of those things that many people would not consider to be a comic; if you are one of those people, just pretend that Vader's Little Princess is enjoying its third straight week at #1.
• Also debuting in the top ten this week are the latest issue of Injustice: Gods Among Us; and the low-priced Kindle edition of When Do They Serve the Wine?, a collection of cartoons by New Yorker cartoonist Liza Donnelly. Had this snapshot been taken earlier in the week, When Do They Serve the Wine? would have been in the #1 position.
• In addition to the three titles that debut in the top ten, four more titles debut on the chart this week: the Kindle edition of Big Nate: Genius Mode (#13); the latest Naruto volume (#19); Iron Man: Extremis (#45); and World of Warcraft: Dark Riders (#46). The appearance of the Iron Man collection is no doubt due to its being part of the basis of the smash blockbuster Iron Man 3 movie. Granted it's way down at #45 and not in the top ten, but in Marvel terms that it is on the chart at all is something of a small victory.
• My Dog: The Paradox, by The Oatmeal's Matthew Inman, continues it's yo-yo journey on the chart. It is finally released this week and bounces back up to the #4 position.
• Dead Watch: Only four Walking Dead collections on the chart this week, down one from last week.
• Diary Watch: The Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries franchises between them take up thirteen of the slots on the chart this week, up two from last week.
• Kindle Watch: Nineteen of the chart positions this week are taken up by Kindle editions, down four from last week. 

Announcing: Comics, Collections, and the Common Core - A KRC Pre-Conference

Finally, the thing I have been working on for the past several months along with several awesome collaborators can be announced!

Comics, Collections, and the Common Core! A professional development pre-conference based around comics, libraries and K-12 education. It's happening on Friday, June 21, 2013, on the campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

In the morning, cartoonist and educator Jerzy Drozd will be offering a workshop on how to integrate comics into your curriculum.

In the early afternoon, you can attend two panel discussions: the first is a panel of librarians talking about how they select comics for their collections; the second is a panel of cartoonists (including the awesome Raina Telgemeier, creator of Smile & Drama, and Dave Roman, creator of Astronaut Academy) on how to read comics.

In the late afternoon, you'll have the choice of attending either a session at the UM Museum of Art about how comics relate to the wider world of visual art; or a session in the UM Library Special Collections about how comics have impacted and been impacted by social movements.

In the evening, there will be a meet-and-greet and giant draw wall at Dominicks, a local watering hole.

Best of all, it is FREE!

You an find out more about the day and the sessions and register for the sessions of your choosing at http://mlatcomics.com/krc/cccc

This pre-conference is a collaboration between Kids Read Comics, the Ann Arbor Book Festival, the Ann Arbor District Library, and the University of Michigan Library.

About the Amazon Top 50 Lists

Starting today, The Beat will be running excerpts from our weekly Amazon Top 50 Comics & Graphic Novels lists. So I figure that this might be a good time to go over some of the basics of how they are compiled and what the limitations are.

I compile the Chart once a week based on the list posted on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/books/4366/ which lists the current top 100 items in Amazon's Comics & Graphic Novels category. Amazon updates the list hourly-ish, so what I post here on YACB is basically a weekly shapshot based on one instance in time. This means that it is highly likely that when you look at the chart, it will be different from what I have posted. The time stamp on each blog post is the time that I accessed the list on the Amazon Web site.

Amazon includes things in their Comics & Graphic Novels category that you & I would probably not call comics, so I weed out those items from the list that I do not consider to be comics. It is quite likely that your definition of comics and my definition of comics do not coincide. In particular, I made the decision quite some time ago that the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books (and their imitators) would be considered comics for the purpose of these compilations, a decision with which many of you probably take issue.

Also, there are some things that are definitely comics that for some reason Amazon does not categorize as Comics & Graphic Novels. These items are not included on the list. There's not much that can be done about this from my end. (Although I know of at least one creator who, when he saw that his book was not categorized as a comic by Amazon, successfully petitioned them to make the change. YMMV.)

Amazon only reports relative sales rankings, not copies sold. It is entirely possibly that an item could be ranked #3 one week and #6 the next and have sold more copies in the second week than in the first. This means that you should be highly suspect of these weekly rankings and take the chart movements with a grain of salt. I would consider any movement of less than +/- 10 places to not be significant in terms of weekly sales changes.

Because these weekly compilations are shapshots, it is entirely possible for an item to have a huge one day sales boost on Monday, but by Friday when I compile the charts to barely make a blip. A couple of natural experiments over the years have shown that there is some kind of lingering effect on a book's position, but the exact nature is still unknown.

Amazon reports actual sales to customers (unlike the Diamond charts which report sales to stores). It also is fairly unique in that also includes pre-orders for items. Pre-order items are indicated by an asterisk (*) on the list.

Amazon also includes comics sold on its Kindle platform on the Comics & Graphic Novels list. I weed out free Kindle items that make the chart. Some items may make multiple appearances on the list because they are sold in multiple formats by Amazon (e.g. Kindle, paperback, hardcover).

I have been compiling these weekly snapshots since 2009. This has allowed me to do annual summaries of the Amazon sales data, which you can access: 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012. (You should take these with an even larger grain of salt than the weekly charts, seeing as they are an abstraction of an abstraction of a surrogate for sales.) You can also wade through all of the old charts by using the amazon tag on this blog.

Please do not take these weekly snapshots of the Amazon Comics & Graphic Novels charts for anything other than they are. I find them interesting because they offer a window into a market that is often different from the one that Diamond serves, and can tell us something about what comics are of interest to a general audience.

Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Comics & Graphic Novels on Amazon this morning. See About the Amazon Top 50 Lists for more information on how this list is compiled.


1 (-). Vader's Little Princess
2 (+5). Darth Vader and Son
3 (N). Injustice: Gods Among Us #16 (Kindle)
4 (-1). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
5 (-1). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 2
6 (-1). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 7) (Kindle)
7 (+1). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 7)
8 (N). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8 (Kindle) *
9 (-7). Injustice: Gods Among Us #15 (Kindle)
10 (-). Saga Volume 1
11 (+3). Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search, Part 1
12 (+9). Big Nate: Game On!
13 (+2). How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You
14 (-2). Batman Vol. 2: The City of Owls (The New 52)
15 (+3). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
16 (-3). Injustice: Gods Among Us #1 (Kindle)
17 (+2). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6)
18 (+7). Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon
19 (-3). The Walking Dead, Vol. 18: What Comes After *
20 (+2). Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (The New 52)
21 (-1). Dork Diaries 5 (Kindle)
22 (+1). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6) (Kindle)
23 (+1). The Walking Dead, Vol. 17: Something to Fear
24 (N). Dork Diaries 6: Tales from a Not-So-Happy Heartbreaker *
25 (N). Big Nate: Genius Mode *
26 (R). Injustice: Gods Among Us #14 (Kindle)
27 (+2). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5) (Kindle)
28 (N). New Moon: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 1 (The Twilight Saga)
29 (-1). Dork Diaries 4 (Kindle)
30 (-4). Injustice: Gods Among Us #2 (Kindle)
31 (+9). Injustice: Gods Among Us #12 (Kindle)
32 (-5). Rodrick Rules (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2) (Kindle)
33 (R). Dog Days (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 4) (Kindle)
34 (R). Dog Days (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 4)
35 (+2). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
36 (+6). Superman: Red Son
37 (-20). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8 *
38 (-3). Batman: The Killing Joke, Deluxe Edition
39 (-7). Injustice: Gods Among Us #3 (Kindle)
40 (-6). Watchmen
41 (+6). Injustice: Gods Among Us #7 (Kindle)
42 (+2). Avatar: The Last Airbender- The Search, Part 2 *
43 (+3). Injustice: Gods Among Us #13 (Kindle)
44 (-11). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5)
45 (R). Injustice: Gods Among Us #11 (Kindle)
46 (-7). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle)
47 (R). Injustice: Gods Among Us #8 (Kindle)
48 (-7). Injustice: Gods Among Us #6 (Kindle)
49 (-4). The Walking Dead vol. 1 (Kindle)
50 (-14). Injustice: Gods Among Us #4 (Kindle)


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks

Commentary:

• Jeffrey Brown has the top two slots on the Amazon chart this week. Vader's Little Princess is #51 on the overall chart this week, while Darth Vader and Son is #104 overall.
• Injustice Watch: The latest digital issue debuts at #3 on the chart. There are thirteen Injustice issues on the chart this week, up two from last week.
• Also debuting this week are the pre-orders for the Kindle version of Wimpy Kid 8, and Dork Diaries 6 and a new Big Nate collection in print; as well as the latest Twilight Saga graphic novel adaptation.
• Dead Watch: Only five Walking Dead collections on the chart this week, down two from last week.
• Diary Watch: The Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries franchises between them take up eleven of the slots on the chart this week, up four from last week.
• Kindle Watch: Twenty-three of the chart positions this week are taken up by Kindle editions, up two from last week. 

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover!

Gorilla Grodd and his fellow secret villains defend against an attack by Captain Comet on the cover of Secret Society of Super-Villains #11 (1977) by Rich Buckler.

(Standard disclaimer about villainous talking gorillas not really being monkeys applies.)

Image courtesy of Comic Book Covers. Click on the image for a larger version.

Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Comics & Graphic Novels on Amazon this morning. All the previous caveats apply.


1 (+6). Vader's Little Princess
2 (N). Injustice: Gods Among Us #15 (Kindle)
3 (+1). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
4 (+1). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 2
5 (+1). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 7) (Kindle)
6 (R). The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation
7 (+11). Darth Vader and Son
8 (+2). The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 7)
9 (+5). Big Nate: Game On! (Kindle)
10 (+1). Saga Volume 1
11 (N). The Wolves in the Walls
12 (+5). Batman Vol. 2: The City of Owls (The New 52)
13 (-5). Injustice: Gods Among Us #1 (Kindle)
14 (+2). Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search, Part 1
15 (+10). How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You
16 (+20). The Walking Dead, Vol. 18: What Comes After *
17 (R). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 8
18 (+20). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
19 (+10). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6)
20 (+10). Dork Diaries 5 (Kindle)
21 (+7). Big Nate: Game On!
22 (R). Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (The New 52)
23 (+10). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6) (Kindle)
24 (+10). The Walking Dead, Vol. 17: Something to Fear
25 (+6). Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon
26 (-14). Injustice: Gods Among Us #2 (Kindle)
27 (+8). Rodrick Rules (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2) (Kindle)
28 (+11). Dork Diaries 4 (Kindle)
29 (+12). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5) (Kindle)
30 (+10). Big Nate Makes the Grade (Kindle)
31 (R). Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind Box Set
32 (-17). Injustice: Gods Among Us #3 (Kindle)
33 (+10). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5)
34 (+11). Watchmen
35 (R). Batman: The Killing Joke, Deluxe Edition
36 (-17). Injustice: Gods Among Us #4 (Kindle)
37 (R). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
38 (-36). Injustice: Gods Among Us - Bonus Premium (Kindle)
39 (+11). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle)
40 (-31). Injustice: Gods Among Us #12 (Kindle)
41 (-14). Injustice: Gods Among Us #6 (Kindle)
42 (+7). Superman: Red Son
43 (-17). Injustice: Gods Among Us #5 (Kindle)
44 (R). Avatar: The Last Airbender- The Search, Part 2 *
45 (-13). The Walking Dead vol. 1 (Kindle)
46 (-33). Injustice: Gods Among Us #13 (Kindle)
47 (-26). Injustice: Gods Among Us #7 (Kindle)
48 (-). The Walking Dead, Book 1
49 (R). Relish: My Life in the Kitchen
50 (R). The Walking Dead, Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks

Commentary:

• Another new #1, as Jeffrey Brown's Vader's Little Princess is released and hits #57 on the overall chart. Last week's #1, the bargain-fueled Kindle edition of Wolverine, falls off the chart entirely.
• Injustice Watch: The latest digital issue debuts at #2 on the chart, but predictably the rest of the issues fall precipitously now that the game's release is a week and a half past. There are eleven on the chart this week, down four from last week.
• A few head-scratchers on the chart this week: Both the The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind Box Set return to the chart, and Gaiman & McKean's ten-year-old The Wolves in the Walls makes it first appearance. I can maybe see that last week's events in Boston fueled interest in The 9/11 Report, but I can see no reason for the other two (though they are both quality comics).
• Dead Watch: There are seven Walking Dead collections on the chart this week, the same as last week.
• Diary Watch: The Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries franchises between them take up eleven of the slots on the chart this week, down two from last week.
• Kindle Watch: Twenty-one of the chart positions this week are taken up by Kindle editions, down seven from last week.

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover!

Gorilla Man charges on the variant cover of Agents of Atlas #1 (2009) by Ed McGuinness.

(Standard disclaimer about charging gorillas not really being monkeys applies.)

Image courtesy of the Comic Book Data Base. Click on the image for a larger version.