The Sweeter Side of R. Crumb

by Robert Crumb

The "nasty, negative, misanthropic" comic genius proves he has a sweet side. Cute little kittens, angels, and babies? Flowers, ice cream cones, and German boy bands? Coming from, supposedly, the creepiest and most pessimistic artist of his generation? Yes indeed, there is a "sweeter side" to R. Crumb. These delectable illustrations―whether depicting Bernie the Cat pawing for his master's affection, the timeworn beauty of a French village cul-de-sac, or a quiet night chez Crumb―wonderfully exemplify the many tender moments that have, until now, played second fiddle to the cult icon's more raunchy sketches. Now Crumb harkens back to his humble American beginnings as a Cleveland greeting card illustrator, when his innate knack for the grotesque had to be suppressed for the perennial appeal of "cute." The result is this cheery and blue-skied world, where readers of every conceivable personality type, age group, even sexual persuasion can finally enjoy the artist's momentary lapse from naughty to nice. Color and black-and-white illustrations throughout

Genres: Comics, Art, Graphic Novels, Humor, Fiction, Comix, Pop Culture

112 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2006

About the author

Robert Dennis Crumb (born August 30, 1943)— is an American artist, illustrator, and musician recognized for the distinctive style of his drawings and his critical, satirical, subversive view of the American mainstream.

Crumb was a founder of the underground comix movement and is regarded as its most prominent figure. Though one of the most celebrated of comic book artists, Crumb's entire career has unfolded outside the mainstream comic book publishing industry. One of his most recognized works is the "Keep on Truckin'" comic, which became a widely distributed fixture of pop culture in the 1970s. Others are the characters "Devil Girl", "Fritz the Cat", and "Mr. Natural".

He was inducted into the comic book industry's Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 1991.

Reviews

[Ksenija]

Generalno sketchbook nekih svakodnevnih trenutaka, porodičnih situacija, portreta...
Kada se iz jednačine ukloni klasična Crumb tematika može polako da se uživa prosto u njegovoj crtačkoj veštini. Naročito su mi simpatični crteži razgovora sa ćerkom, a detalji na crtežima arhitekture i pejzaža su posebno uživanje.

*bez ocene

[Mark Plaid · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Sweeter Side of R. Crumb is really as sketchbook and provides little in the way of comics, for which Crumb is mostly known, and more one page illustrations. In case you didn't know, R. Crumb is the leading underground cartoonist from the first wave of underground cartoons back in the late 60s/early 70s. The best way to learn about Crumb is to check out the documentary film Crumb directed by Terry Zwigoff. It's easily available at most video stores and libraries usually carry it.

The best thing about this book is that it features a lot of drawings done since the turn of the millennium and shows a tidbit of how Crumb's life is in the South of France. Many of the illustrations are very tight and appear to be drawn when Crumb was relaxed and not pressed for time. I say this because a few comics he published around the time this book came out were loose and rushed and I thought the man was losing his touch. However, this book tells me otherwise. He must've made said comics in haste. Otherwise, in this book, the man is drawing better than ever.

Although the title of the book is clearly tongue in cheek and the liner notes are laden with sarcasm, I do think in some ways this really is Crumb's attempt to reconcile with women, who generally look to his work with much derision. The ironic thing about Crumb is that he truly is a misogynist but he is very attracted to strong, leftist, feminist type women. I don't think there's a really mean-spirited drawing in the book but it doesn't apologize or play down Crumb's fetishes and fixations. His intended targets tend not to be humorless and not very forgiving of anything less than perfect. So I imagine this book will be mostly read by dorky fans like me than any thick-legged, shelf-bootied feminist.

[Malbadeen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cover alone is 5 stars. The intro is funny too. I'm tired. goodnight.

[Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty much does what it says on the cover. A nice selection of his art

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This really is Robert Crumb’s sweeter side! This book is for anyone that is curious about his art, but not interested in the ugly stuff that can come with it.

[HeavyReader · Rating 2 out of 5]

There's not much of this book to read. 99% of it is made up of drawings by R. Crumb. Both the publisher and R. Crumb himself are up front that this book was conceived and produced in order to get women to buy it. I guess women are perceived to not like R. Crumb, so doing a book with his "sweeter" art was supposed to entice women to purchase it.

I picked up my copy at the public library. That's what I recommend others do to. The art in this book is nice to look at, but how many times am I really going to look through it? I looked through it twice, and I think that's about it.

I have to admit though, R. Crumb is a very talented artist. His work has such texture.

I did like these pieces, even though I don't think most of them fit under the heading "sweet." Maybe the title should have been "The Less Offensive Side of R. Crumb."

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't get why people are giving this book a hard time for being "marketed to women". Or that R. Crumb was trying to just cash in on something women would like, which is presumably art that is not super bizarre and sexual (women can appreciate that too fyi). I think if you like his style and you're not in the mood to look illustrations of scenes involving a woman and a dog or a baby and an old man, this is perfect for you because it's lighthearted, whimsical, and maybe the tiniest bit wholesome and cute. I enjoyed it.

[Anjanette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Intro? Hilarious! 🤣

R. Crumb was a whimsical illustrator, with a unique perspective. His style characterized a generation+ of underground. It’s nice to know that his art wasn’t always used to glorify the grotesque and debased. Included here are his family, children, musicians, travel memories, cityscapes. If you’re going to wonder about R. Crumb, this is a safe way to satisfy your curiosity. 🤔

[Fantods · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stupid framing to this book. Did enjoy the illustrations.

[Juan Fuentes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Básicamente diferentes ilustraciones de Crumb, apuntes del natural, etcétera.

[Turkka Kulmala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and great drawing, what else can you wish for!

[Tiffanie Pirault · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice collection

[Benny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crumb is really growing on me yknow. Dude just wants to be crushed by a giant woman and who am I to spurn him

[Greg L Goldstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely art, filled with some surprising studies and charm.
Like the title says, the sweeter side of Crumb.
Not sure why I hadn't run into it previously.

[Luke Stevens · Rating 5 out of 5]

More Robert Crumb being cute for a change !

[Meepelous · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very quick "read" this book is simply a collection of Crumb's sketches that have apparently been deemed sweet by the powers that be. While I have read a couple books by Crumb, I had never seen any of his more realistic works and so I was pretty impressed with the quality of his work. He doesn't just do his weird stylized stuff because he can't do anything else. Plus, it's not every day that I get to see such beautifully textured black and white drawings.

But then of course there's the introduction, ostensibly about how Crumb's publishers are trying to increase his appeal to women by scraping together all those things which women stereo-typically like aka all things cute and sweet. And while I should find all that hugely offensive and sexist, I really can't take it seriously. It just sounds far too over the top and maybe a touch sarcastic for that.

That said, I do need to pick up more of Crumb's comics again. Most of my exposure to his work came before I really started digging into women's representation in comics, so I'm not sure if I can take my lack of offense seriously. I think I can, but I really should double check.

Introduction aside, I found nothing to complain about in this collection. It was nice seeing a different side of Crumb, and his portrayl of women was overall quite respectful and enjoyable. There are several nudes and a handful of suggestive drawings of his wife, but I never felt like any of the subjects were being exploited against their will and none of them seemed terribly objectifying in my humble opinion. Many of these women come across as extremely powerful, and I loved how curvy fairly average they all were.

This is not to say that all of crumbs work is completely unproblematic. As I said earlier, I need to look into it further. But for now he will remain firmly under the banner of straight guys who actually do genuinely love women and aren't so insecure as to be afraid of strong women.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think a lot of the anger in these reviews is a little misguided. Crumb does produce a lot of nasty art. The introduction here confesses that the book was conceived by his wife to offer women a selection of his work that isn't drenched in his violent and disturbing fantasies. He says basically, offering a "sweeter side" will only serve to remind women of the nasty side, right? And isn't that manipulative? Pretty funny coming from him. Ultimately I think that introduction is just an anecdote and shouldn't be taken so seriously.

What I found here was not "the woman's R Crumb," because that doesn't make sense, and women aren't more or less likely to enjoy any of his work just because it's tailored to them. This book is really an offering of Crumbs unique style without the risk of running into any of his disturbing material, which I thought was nice of him to offer. Sometimes I want to see his dense cross hatching without coming across an anthropomorphic dog stuffing his foot in a woman's mouth.

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't have much to say about this book, it is after all a picture book of R. Crumb's work. There are a few comics in it, but mainly it is collection of R. Crumb's portraits and other sketches. As the name implies, this book is mainly focused on R. Crumb's "sweeter" more sentimental work. Which is some ways is kind of frightening because some of it is still pretty out there and slightly disturbing.

Nonetheless, This book shows how truly talented R. Crumb is. His artistic talent goes far beyond his counter culture comics.

The copy of the book that I have is very high quality and I got a great deal on it at the UW(ashington) book store.

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

R. Crumb wants you to know he’s more than psychedelic bearded dudes, jazz records, and oddly-proportioned women—he has a kinder, gentler side. The works in this book are not comics but rather portraits, scenery, and the like—more or less a peek inside Crumb’s sketchbook.

I enjoyed the portraits of old musicians and such most. I didn’t like the doodles starring a whiny child—I find toddler babbling maddeningly annoying even on paper. I’m also getting worn thin on Crumb’s predictable renderings of the female form—mostly because I hate asses and feet.

[David Gallin-Parisi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweeeeeeet. Portraits, landscapes, and parenting comics by the master of sexy awkwardness. R. Crumb's sweeter side still has the beautiful waverings among loneliness, existential moments, and sheer joy of observation. I noticed an abundance of quiet spots in here, like a night home alone, walking in a park to get away from it all, and reproductions of treasured vinyl records. This will brighten anybody's day, while tossing across shadows of everyday grotesque frustration. Recommended for adults, recovering jaded teens, or record collectors.

[Helen Damnation · Rating 4 out of 5]

"And so we here at MQ Publications... decided to see if we could come up with a book that would win over the ladies... and we think the experiment is a success: with this collection of drawings of much loved children, women and pet cats, lovely landscapes, quiet rooms, and honoured musicians."

Really? So, the marketing gets 0 stars, but this is a really beautiful collection of sketchbook drawings.

[Cody · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have very mixed feelings about Crumb's art, thus, in an attempt to avoid launching into a digressive rant, I'll just say that I enjoyed this book, and, having now thumbed through a lot of Crumb's work, I love his portraits of erstwhile musicians the best.

[Captain_Howdy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My sweet wife bought this book for me. Ain't she sweet?

I love his illustrations of old time musicians.

[charlie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a self-proclaimed effort to show readers, female readers in particular, the 'sweeter' side of R. Crumb and to 'win them over'. Being a huge fan of him already, I really didn't need winning over, this is just a nice piece of work to add to my growing R Crumb collection.

[Gonzalo Oyanedel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lejos de su pátina más directa y visceral, el presente volumen se centra en la mirada más sensible y vulnerable hacia la mujer (ajeno a la urgencia sexual que atraviesa su obra) junto con un repaso a varios héroes musicales del artista, muchos olvidados por el tiempo. Un Crumb inusual.

[Simon Sweetman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like it says on the box...the sweeter side, so loads of the portraits of musicians and some sketch-book things such as shots of his lounge or office, a lot of humour still but none of the filth. Well, there's always a little hint of it...amazing drawings. Just incredible.

[Tate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love R. Crumb and this book is particularly great. I has some really... well, sweet portraits of his wife, blues musicians, and strangers. I think my favorite is the man waiting for the bus.

[S · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like Robert Crumb's work anyways, but if you are easily offended then this book of drawings will familiarize you with his style without inducing political correctness-related seizures.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great drawings of folk bands.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, Crumb can sling ink!