SEAN MICHAEL WILSON is a comic book writer from Scotland, currently
based inJapan, who has written fourteen books of comics and manga.
His work includes aversion of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol
(with artist Mike Collins); Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights; Oscar
Wilde's A Canterville Ghost; The Japanese Drawing Room (with RING
horror manga artist Sakura Mizuki); and the documentary bookIraq-
Operation Corporate Takeover (with artist Lee O'Connor).
CARL THOMPSON is a cartoonist based in Minneapolis. A graduate of
the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, he has worked with
writer Sean Michael Wilson on the political comic strip "Green
Benches," published monthly in the British magazine Blue and Green
Tomorrow.
"This graphic novel challenged me to think through new ideas as
well as the world we live in. Even better it did so in a way I
didn’t find boring or grating to read, much like some of the works
referenced within it. Parecomic is a fine example of how
far the comic medium has come. It’s no longer ruled by only heroes
in tights, it’s now a tool in our greater understanding of the
world and further education."
—Graphic Policy
"This is an accessible and serviceable introduction to the
principles of parecon and the vision of one of its founders.
Recommended for readers interested in alternative economic models
and the legacy of the radical 1960s."
—Library Journal
"As a primer on the history and theory of participatory economics,
this title is never short on ideas, tracing the development of
Michael Albert’s theories on self-management, social justice, and
internationalism, and their origins in the civil disobedience and
consciousness-raising movements of the late ’60s and early ’70s. As
a student at MIT, Albert was inspired by the culture of activism to
found Z magazine, ZNet, and the International Organization for a
Participatory Society. Some readers may wonder why Wilson (AX:
Alternative Manga) and Thompson (the webcomie Green Benches) have
chosen Albert’s story for treatment as a visual narrative, and that
treatment definitely makes some of book’s issues more palatable to
a wider audience. Artist Thompson is also very adept at marrying
the literal and the symbolic to allow Wilson’s prose, and therefore
Albert’s ideas, to resonate with readers. There are moments,
though, when the book stalls and readers find themselves wading
through lengthy, text-heavy panel sequences featuring shots of
Albert discussing a given issue. Still, Thompson and Wilson can be
very inventive with their effects. Parecomic is inspired at times,
and as a treatise on participatory economics, it’s pretty great. As
a comic, though, it’s just pretty good." —Publisher's Weekly
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