Hogarth's serial and satirical engravings are the great-great-grandparents of comic strips and graphic novels. Dover Publications sometimes promises more than it delivers, but this edition of 101 Hogarth engravings does not disappoint. It's a moderately priced, large-format, clearly printed volume with a commentary for each plate. The commentaries decipher the detailed and densely-packed prints for modern viewers. The only complaint I have is that most of the prints are positioned sideways, so you have to turn the book back and forth as you examine the pictures.

Includes A Rake's Progress, A Harlot's Progress, Marriage à la Mode, and Beer Street and Gin Lane. ( )

VG copy. Softcover.