Explorer 1. The mystery boxes

Seven clever stories answer one simple question: What’s in the box?

Funny, fantastic, spooky, and suspenseful, each of these unique and beautifully illustrated short graphic works revolves around a central theme: a mysterious box and the marvels—or mayhem—that is hidden inside.

Artists include middle school favorites Kazu Kibuishi, Raina Telgemeier (Smile), and Dave Roman (Astronaut Academy), as well as Jason Caffoe, Stu Livingston, Johane Matte, Rad Sechrist (all contributors to the groundbreaking comics anthology series Flight), and Emily Carroll.

Award-winning artist Kazu Kibuishi’s selection creates a mixture of laughs and creeps (with some philosophy) as well as the kind of graphical triumphs expected from Kibuishi’s other collections. With gorgeously detailed full-color artwork, there is a spooky tale of a sinister doppelgänger invading a girl’s life by up-and-coming comics star Emily Carroll; Dave Roman and Raina Telgemeier’s comedy of wizarding errors and online bidding wars; and Rad Sechrist’s romp involving a teenage girl, an introduction to the basics of Shintoism, and a manic butter thief driving a grandma to the brink.

So, don’t hesitate. Come and open the box. You’ll be amazed. You’ll be entertained. You’ll be scared. And then you’ll want to read each story over again!