Giant Days, Vol. 4 by Allison and Sarin

I go back and forth about putting full author names in the titles of my posts, especially with comics. Is that title too long? Is this one too terse and uninformative? Today's book has a short title to begin with, and only two major contributors (well, unless you count cover artist Lissa Treiman, inker Liz Fleming, colorist Whitney Cogar, and letterer Jim Campbell, which I guess I am, now), so throwing a "John" and a "Max" into that title would have been just fine.

But I just typed a damn paragraph about how I didn't include those in the title, so I'll be damned if I go back on it now.

Anyway: Giant Days, Vol. 4. The latest collection of the comics series written by John Allison, penciled by Max Sarin and everything-elsed by the people I mentioned above. (See my reviews of volumes one, two, and three.) It's loosely related to Allison's webcomics Scarygoround and Bad Machinery -- the former slightly, the latter not really at all other than sharing a world. But you don't really need to have read any of that.

Esther, Susan, and Daisy are students in their first year at a minor British university, sometime in the spring semester as winter is losing hold. They're looking at housing for the next year, since they don't want to be stuck in the dorms with girls like they were six months ago. They're variously getting over failed love affairs, looking for jobs, and trying to pass their classes. They're normal people, the kind that are still rare in comics.

They're also very funny and real and interesting -- and so are their friends and the various background people they run into. Allison writes zingy dialogue like no one else, and the art has a slightly animation-derived energy and verve.

Look, if you ever were a college student, you'll find a lot to love. If you are one now, even more so. If you're female, I expect you'll identify with at least one of the core trio. And if you're male, you still might. (I myself am totally a Susan and am not ashamed to admit it.)

These books come out quickly, since each one only collects four issues. I'm going to keep reading them and telling you how great they are. You might as well catch up now, while it's easy.