We Became Wild

We Became Wild by H. D. Carver introduces readers to Midge McCracken, the abrasive, self-destructive pessimist every office has. Not to mince words, she's a bitch: bitter, mistrustful, racist, and completely unfiltered in her words and thoughts. However, there's a backstory to this in her upbringing with hateful, racist parents, suffering sexual abuse as an adolescent, experiencing an unwanted pregnancy, etc. Did we mention that this is a comedy?

Roberta Gregory's unflinching sense of humour is the engine driving Bitchy! This mammoth tome collects Gregory's "Bitchy Bitch" stories, presenting a life from childhood into middle age, following the character through multiple decades. Along the way, Gregory's wider cast of characters are introduced, notably Bitchy's suffering and insufferable coworkers: the obnoxiously cheerful Sylvia (who never met a problem that positive vibes won't cure); the upwardly mobile and power-hungry Pam (aka Bitchy's boss); the intolerant, God-fearing Marcie; her hapless friend-with-benefits, Kenny; and many more.

In 1976, Roberta Gregory released Dynamite Damsels - the first underground solo comic created and self-published by a woman. After contributing regularly to the influential anthologies Wimmen's Comix and Gay Comix throughout the 1980s, she launched Naughty Bits in 1991 while working as a production artist at her publisher, Fantagraphics. It became the longest-running solo alternative comic book series by a female cartoonist, concluding in 2004 after an influential and pioneering 14-year, 40-issue run. The Bitchy Bitch stories remain the pinnacle of a historic career, and a high-water mark in comics and graphic novels over the past 40 years.