The preeminent anthology of painting and the illustration arts.

BLAB! is an annual coffee-table showcase of fine art, illustration, and comix, and a gold-standard in the work of the professional visual arts. This new volume features Geoffrey Grahn's "The Man Who Saved the World," which tells the tale of Vasily Arkhipov, the Russian sub brigade commander, who, during the Cuban missile crisis, kept a cool head when his superior on the sub gave orders to begin firing nuclear torpedoes at the U.S., thereby saving the world from nuclear war.

Laura Levine's "Veronica" recounts the life of the beautiful, enigmatic and tragic 1940s movie star, Veronica Lake (she of the "Peek-A-Boo" hair). Peter and Maria Hoey present "Lost Liner Notes," a story comprising six separate, interlocking pages, which examine the lives of jazz musicians who played in the be-bop era of the 1940s and early '50s. Tragic lives and truncated careers may have pushed their musical contributions to the margins, but this comic tells the story of Fats Navarro, Dodo Marmarosa, Serge Chaloff, Dick Twardzik, Wardell Gray, and Sonny Criss, all of whom made some of the greatest music you never heard.

This volume also features new work by Sue Coe, Judith Brody, Sergio Ruzzier, Mats!, Spain, Peter Kuper, Marc Rosenthal, Gary Baseman, The Clayton Brothers, Bob Staake and more. Covers by Tim Biskup.