Big Little Book fans, rejoice!  Here, at long last, in this 296-page, 3 1/2" x 4 1/2" Little Giant Book, is a truly worthy descendant.  Jim Woodring's Quacky is the first (and possibly only, for all we know, but we hope someone else steps up*) in a series that "gets" the format's unique æsthetic appeal, and even tweaks it somewhat with a smyth-sewn binding and semi-stiff cover that is halfway between the original hardcover and the later softcover Big Little Books. The paper here is a thick and toothy cream colored stock that provides a similar tactility to the originals but allows for better reproduction, and the font is spot on.  So, get ready for a rollicking ride back in time to the center of your mind, with Quacky – and Cunningham, the bonus back-up feature!

And, it's not just the format.  The content here provides an eerie look at a metaphysics that can be considered to be grounded in an epistemology that is derived from the historical reality represented by Big Little Books; yielding a sort of BLB Consciousness.  It is as though the BLB universe had been evolving along with our own all these years, but in a parallel dimension that we were unable to access... until now.  Frank, Pushpaw and Pupshaw's adventures with the enigmatic philosopher king, Quacky burrow deeper and deeper into the subconscious reality that underlies our physical universe (currently situated within a capitalistic frame), leading readers deep into an existential angst – in a manner somewhat akin to that of Steven Millhauser – and then back out again.  The back-up feature, Cunningham, reveals the rich tradition of hi-jinx funny animal antics in a harsher, contemporary (black) light.  An object of dark veneration.

*(Maybe Bob Burden, who always threatened a Flaming Carrot Big Little Book...)