The Lexicon of Comicana Paperback by Mort Walker, foreword by Chris Ware, edited by Brian Walker

Product Details

• Publisher: New York Review Comics (2025-09-30)
• Language: English
• Paperback: 128 pages
• ISBN-13: 9781681379562
• Item Weight: 374.22 grams
• Dimensions: 10.99 x 8.49 x 0.39 cm

A new edition of Beetle Bailey creator Mort Walker’s riotous and immensely influential handbook for drawing and reading cartoons—a book that’s both a parody of humorless how-to guides and a genuine (and genuinely instructive) ode to the art of making comics.

In a cartoon, what do you call the sweat drops shooting off a character’s head? Those are “Plewds.” What about when you see a character wagging their tongue out of their mouth? Oh, that’s a “Protusilation.” How about the lines coming off a freshly baked pie? That’s a “Waftarom.” This sort of playful comics nomenclature abounds in The Lexicon of Comicana, the revered 1980 cartooning handbook authored by Mort Walker, creator of the legendary daily comic strip Beetle Bailey.

Both a send-up of lofty how-to-draw books and a sincere and hilarious love letter to the art of drawing cartoons, the Lexicon is a joyously exhaustive cheat sheet to key comics visuals that has been referenced and treasured by generations of cartoonists. This new edition includes a foreword by Chris Ware and a meticulous appendix by Mort’s son Brian Walker, who delves deep into the visual language of comics.

With the help of The Lexicon of Comicana, you’ll come away a better, wiser, richer, and funnier artist. Plus, you’ll learn what a “Morf” is—Mort’s favorite part.

About the Author

Mort Walker (1923–2018) was the creator of several iconic American comic strips, mostly famously Beetle Bailey and Hi and Lois, both of which are still in newspaper syndication today.

Chris Ware is the author of the Acme Novelty Library series and several highly regarded graphic novels, among them Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth and Rusty Brown.

Brian Walker is the son of Mort Walker and part of the creative team that now produces new strips of Beetle Bailey and Hi and Lois.