Bloom County: Best Read On The Throne

Like nearly all Bloom County fans, I was thrilled to have Bloom County back. And actual Bloom County - pretty much everyone accounted for short of Hodge Podge and Portnoy (sad omissions). The first two books were good. It was the strip of old, just with a lucid Berkeley instead of the 4am cable watching maniac trying to hit his 5am flight deadline to DC. There's no getting that back and I am ok with that.However, this book has shed nearly everything that made Bloom County great. It's now considerably more saccharin and like Opus's place of rest at the end of the Opus strip - almost like this new Bloom County is Opus's dream than actually the Bloom County he "lived" through. The addition of Frank the Magic Janitor adds nothing but a sappy blanket to each story line. The strip morphed from Bloom County, when it returned, to Opus, now, and frankly, Opus is Berkeley's worst strip. And what the heck did he do to Lola Granola?!Where is the topical humor? Halfway through, I knew we'd never see Dr. O. Spock receiving boxes of dough or cat sweat hair tonic ever again. With a ripe, ripe topic of Trump, hardly anything is done with him. Even Binkley's nightly updates are impotent and dull. At least the few threads at the Bloom Picayune were the highlights of the book and felt like old Bloom County.I did not really enjoy reading this collection. It stays above one star simply because it's Bloom County and I can't possibly give it one, but it was close.

Berke Breathed continues to be a genius! He remains at the top of his game with his amazing artwork, sharp sense of humor and skewering jabs on modern topics. Breathed can also display quite the soft, emotionally heartfelt side of things as well. If you’ve been a fan of Bloom County and Outland you will love this book. If you don’t know of Breathed’s work from the ‘80s and ‘90s (What’s WRONG with you?! Go get the earlier books!) you should still be able to enjoy this satirical look at life in the 21st century.

It was not readily apparent to me that this was an online "book." Let's be honest short humorous books are most often read in a particular room of the house, and it makes a heckuva lot of sense for the books to be independent of computer capability. There is one room in the house where I am least likely to have my cell phone, and where I never take my laptop. I haven't opened the book, and, frankly, I may not get around to opening it.

I have loved Bloom County since I was but a wee lad, have read every panel Mr Breathed has ever inked, and nothing so reliably brings a smile to my face and a twaddle to my turnips than a new collection such as this. His joyful absurdity and the optimism (opusism?) of his central character are much needed antidotes to the dark swaths of roomful newspaper headline ink spilled over the three years since Breathed rejuvenated Bloom County. He makes me remember the necessity of dragging myself away from my phone alerts to watch a simple sunset. So … buy his books.

What is there NOT to Like about Bloom County! GREAT BOOK! I laughed my @$$ off! Ack! Vote Republican! Berke Breathed for President! Anything is better than "Let's Go Brandon!" Bill the Cat for President! Opus the Penguin for Secretary of State! Quote of the day, "OH, sweet Jehosaphat...I'M SICK OF LIVING IN A COMMUNE FULL OF LEFTY SOCIALIST NUTJOBS!" Steve Dallas for U.S. Attorney General!

Everything this man writes about is great, I can't say anything about the rest of what he does in life because I don't know him...for all I know he always leaves the toilet seat up.

Somehow, I'd not been aware of the return of Bloom County a couple of years ago. This was a real pleasant surprise, and I enjoyed this book. The world climate is much darker than it was the last time he was in print, but at least Breathed gives us something to laugh at as it spins out of orbit.....

I LOVE THIS BOOK....any time the state of the country gets me depressed, I open this book. BB addresses so many of the absurdities in our politics & government now. His whimsy and imaginative characters & story lines are entertaining, enlightening, and soul soothing.

A great read, I would highly recommend Bloom County to everyone

I loved Bloom County over the years. The new books have a harder edge on them and sometimes the language is not what I want my kids repeating. Guess I'm old-fashioned, but I don't enjoy crass language in public. Other than that, the characters are as great as always and one always ends up wishing for simpler times and a nice meadow to chill in with a penguin or two.

I read through the whole book the day it arrived. Awesome! I especially loved the political and social commentary. Lots of timely stuff.

I have always loved Bloom County as it mixes humour so well with the joys and angst of daily life. Is it wrong to identify with a penguin? Not when that penguin is Opus :)

It’s apparent why Berkeley Breathed is a Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist..his wit and satirical style is carrying us through these trying times.