American Splendor Special: A Step Out of the Nest

Harvey Pekar, the master of quotidian autobiography, steps away from his usual Cleveland haunts in this single-issue comic from Dark Horse. Illustrated by frequent collaborator Joe Zabel, A Step Out of the Nest follows the writer as he travels to a rural writers' retreat, offering the same unvarnished, wryly observed slice of life that made American Splendor a landmark of independent comics. It's a quiet, characteristically Pekaresque look at the small anxieties and unexpected connections of stepping outside one's daily routine.