Humongous Zits: A Zits Treasury »

Zits comes from two veterans who have proven they know what's funny: Cincinnati Enquirer editorial cartoonist Jim Borgman is a 1991 Pulitzer Prize winner, and Jerry Scott also keeps families laughing as cocreator of the award-winning Baby Blues strip. Borgman lives in Cincinnati; Scott resides in Malibu. Zits appears in more than 800 newspapers around the globe.

Adolescence is a time of painful growth and unpredictable change, when kids come packaged in a jumble of baggy jeans, rolling eyeballs, and grunting communication. Cartoonists Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman have captured the humor of that challenging time with Zits, in which they chronicle the life and times of the typically exasperating yet ever lovable Jeremy Duncan.

In this first Zits treasury, faithful fans of Jeremy's world will get a glimpse behind the scenes with never-before-seen sketches and the stories behind the strips. Sunday cartoons appear in full-color, highlighting the strip's acclaimed drawing style. Even though the teenage terrain is rocky, Zits is warm and sympathetic.

"The highest compliment we hear from readers is, 'You must have a camera hidden in our house!'" says Borgman.

KLIATT

The trials and tribulations of adolescence are wittily chronicled in this collection of past installments of the popular syndicated cartoon strip. It features 15-year-old Jeremy, his family, his best friend Hector, and his love interest Sara (who prefers to think of Jeremy as "a salvageable male" rather than as a boyfriend), and readers will cringe with him as he suffers through life. For example, in one strip Jeremy's well-intentioned but terminally embarrassing parents comment on his changing voice and his changing complexion, and blithely ask what else is changing. "Possibly my address," Jeremy mutters darkly. The drawings (mostly b/w, with some in color), particularly the expressive faces, are as clever as the dialogue. My 16-year-old son stayed up late into the night reading this. The collection includes cartoons from Zits and Growth Spurt, the two previous collections of Zits cartoons. KLIATT Codes: JS—Recommended for junior and senior high school students. 2000, Andrews McMeel, 256p, illus, 22cm, 99-68663, $14.95. Ages 13 to 18. Reviewer: Paula Rohrlick; September 2000 (Vol. 34 No. 5)