Jew Gangster #[nn]

Joe Kubert writes, draws, and inks this graphic novel entirely his own, bringing an unflinching noir sensibility to a story framed as "A Father's Admonition." The cover says everything about its mood: a gloved fist thrusting a tommy gun toward the viewer, rendered in stark black and yellow with the gritty urgency that only Kubert can deliver. It's a bold, personal work from one of comics' most accomplished storytellers, published in 2005 at a time when the medium was hungry for exactly this kind of serious, street-level drama.