Summary: The Fart Party is the unfortunately named but frequently hilarious autobiographical comic of twenty-something smartass San Franciscan Julia Wertz. Volume 1 is less of a graphic novel and more of a collection of one-off comics on the daily absurdities of life and relationships, although the end of the collection deals with her boyfriend Oliver leaving for law school in Vermont.

Review: Wertz's humor is not for everyone; it is unapologetically crass, and it features a fair amount of swearing, booze, sexytimes, and fantasizing about ripping off the limbs of that one really annoying person at work. But if all of that is a-okay by you, then Wertz's comics are hilarious, and what's better, hilariously recognizable. Her vignettes mostly feature things that happen to everyone: getting mad at someone because of something they did in a dream, dancing around your house in your pajamas, making big plans for the day but getting sidetracked and suddenly realizing it's midnight... but somehow they're much funnier when they're happening to her. Her artwork is black & white pen and ink, uncomplicated and straightforward in a way that works really well with the comic timing of her strips. Most of the comics in this volume I'd already read on her website, but I didn't mind revisiting them... and it all still made me giggle, even the second time around. 4 out of 5 stars. ( )

wow. that was wildly inappropriate! i wish i could find a girl like julia all for myself. ( )

I love Julia Wertz. I subscribe to her comic/website. Needless to say, it goes without saying that I will love this book even though I haven't read it yet. Plan to. Very soon. If you want to read some of her comics (and I highly suggest you do) you can read them here. Be forewarned, her humor is sarcastic and a bit dark at times, which is what I love about it.