"Ducks,” the Canadian cartoonist Kate Beaton’s new graphic memoir | Hacker News Reader

"Ducks,” the Canadian cartoonist Kate Beaton’s new graphic memoir

newyorker.com

100 pointsprismatic21 comments

Kate Beaton must have a brilliant publicist. Over the past few weeks there’s been a “Ducks” blitz in the outlets I follow: email newsletters, websites, magazines. “Ducks” even made the front pages of Ars Technica and HN despite no obvious tech connection.

I’m sure it’s a quality work and I actually look forward to reading it. But I’d also like to read the companion piece by her agency:

“The Making of Ducks — how we got people who read about GPUs to care about a comic set in Alberta”

It's probably not that complicated nor really that related to an agency. The simple fact is probably more that for a certain type of nerd with a literary bent Kate Beaton and Hark a vagrant hold a similar place in our heart as Randall Munroe and XKCD.

For this level of exposure, probably both?

"Ducks" seems to be published simultaneously by Drawn & Quarterly in North America and Penguin Books in the UK. These two together have enough money and experience to mount a good PR campaign.

What steerpike is trying to say is that you don't really need a major PR campaign for this. The people who work at those media outlets probably have a close attachment to Kate's previous works, so they'll gladly cover a new release without much prodding.

The ideal situation is when it looks organic that way but is also a carefully orchestrated PR campaign behind the scenes.

I think you're suggesting they have a terrible publicist.

A good publicist would get you in front of people who are interested in your work.

I think that's what's happened here.

You seem to think that they've shoved it in front of random people, which would be a waste of time.

No, I’m saying that I’m interested in this book, didn’t previously know about it (or even the author), and this publicity blitz has successfully put the book on my buy list.

I’m not sure how the praise in my original comment could be interpreted as the opposite. Did it seem ironic? Not the intention.

Read this as a fan of her work and a friend of several female geologists with stories from remote work camps. I was struck by the even-handedness of it. Really interesting exploration of labour, gender, and home. The artwork is also phenomenal at conveying the personality of the characters and the sheer scale of the jobsites.

Her sensibility suits well the readership here. Enjoy her web comic archive -

http://www.harkavagrant.com/archive.php

A favorite:

http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php?id=5

Also, given the book title and its author:

      Aww
       Yiss,

     Kate Beaton's
    motha fuckin
     memoir

http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php?id=125

I had to look it up, and wow… Charles Babbage really did hate musicians…

https://www.famousscientists.org/babbage-rage-musicians-reve...

I mean, that looks a lot like he hated buskers which is not the same thing. Indeed, it is an attitude I'm extremely sympathetic to. Noisy intrusive music that one cannot avoid is pretty damned unreasonable imo

The topics are heavy, but the book isn't trying to oppress you, the reader. The tone is downright conversational even when it's talking about terrible events or life-and-death decisions.

And the pacing is perfect. I opened to the middle and read 60 pages before I looked up.

Tangentially related: I can't imagine how hard writing this book must have been. Not only are the main topics heavy, but even some side characters and one-off jokes feel ominous knowing where life would take her. And then having to do media tours and interviews to relieve them all every other day? Oooff.

Pretty realistic and frank memoir of being female in isolated and overbearingly male workspaces.

Mining, military, etc.

I wonder what it would be like if I had to work in some remote place where the workspace is dominantly female. I cannot imagine it to be a wonderful experience.

You're concerned about gang rape with near zero support from management and a general culture of disinterest from law enforcement?

Forty years on FiFo culture here is slowly changing, but it's been a hard road:

https://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/king/media-re...

Kate Beaton’s “Hark, a Vagrant!” is some seriously fun intellectualism and the historical references will only date you if you’re 300 years old. Such a fun book if you have some sense history.

Just finished a reading. (Ordered after seeing this post.)

It’s not my normal cup of tea. I will never forget it.

Ordered the hardcover immediately, looking forward to spending a weekend chunking through it

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