Miss Lasko-Gross

Miss Lasko-Gross
Lasko-Gross at the Comic New York symposium at Columbia University's Low Memorial Library on March 24, 2012.
Born	Melissa Lasko 1977 (age 46–47) Boston, Massachusetts
Nationality	American
Area(s)	Writer, Artist, Publisher
Notable works	Henni, Escape from Special A Mess of Everything
Awards	YALSA's 2008 Great Graphic Novels nominee Graphic novel named one of Booklist's Top 10 Graphic Novels of 2010

Melissa Lasko-Gross (known professionally as Miss Lasko-Gross) is an American comics creator, known for her semi-autobiographical graphic novels Escape from "Special" and A Mess of Everything.

Early life

Melissa Lasko was born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1977. She grew up reading comics, with her favorite ones ranging from Fantastic Four to Love and Rockets.^[1]

Career

In high school, Lasko-Gross began to create her own self-published comic series, Aim, which she promoted by doing consignments with local comic book stores. It was at this point that she became a member of the comic book community. She said she found more kinship with comic creators than with comic fans, as they could bond over the process of producing a comic.^{[citation needed]}

Lasko-Gross' first two graphic novels were Escape from "Special" and A Mess of Everything, both published by Fantagraphics. The first, based loosely on the author's life growing up as a Jewish girl in the suburbs, was published in 2008 and earned her a nomination for YALSA's 2008 Great Graphic Novel award. A Mess of Everything, a sequel of sorts to her first book, was also well received, as it was named one of Booklist's top 10 graphic novels of the year in 2010.^[2]

Lasko-Gross' graphic novel Henni, about "cute animals and religious fundamentalism in a horrible, twisted marriage",^{[citation needed]} was published by Z2 Comics in 2015. She is working on a long-term novel project that chronicles the experience of a burn victim of an explosion.^{[citation needed]}

Bibliography

• (with Kevin Colden) The Sweetness (4 issues, Z2 Comics, 2016)^[3]
• Henni. Z2 Comics. January 6, 2015. ISBN 978-1940878027.
• A Mess of Everything (Fantagraphics, 2009)
• Escape from "Special" (Fantagraphics, 2006)
• Aim (self-published, 1993–2001)

References

1. "Interview: Miss Lasko-Gross Discusses Henni". Graphic Policy. 2015-01-12. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
2. Olson, Ray. "Top 10 Graphic Novels: 2010". Booklist Online. American Library Association. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
3. Shiach, Kieran (March 28, 2016). "I Only Trust People With Weird Haircuts: Miss Lasko-Gross And Kevin Colden On The World Of 'The Sweetness' [Interview]". Comics Alliance.

External links

• Official website
• Miss Lasko-Gross at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
• Escape from Special and A Mess of Everything. Fantagraphics
• Miss Lasko-Gross Writers House
• Washington Post Interview