A few years ago I taught at an inner city school. I contacted local celebrities and invited them to come down to the school and read for a while with the kids. I got in contact with the good folks over at Dark Horse to see if they could put me in touch with any creators who might be available and willing to come down and read. The editor and I were talking, and we both agreed that Frank Miller (who was working on Sin City at Dark Horse at the time) would probably not be the best person to put in front of a room full of children.
Which brings me to Garth Ennis.
Next to Frank Miller, I cannot think of another creator less likely to write a book appropriate for children than Garth Ennis. I mean, what is there about Ennis’ body of work that screams, “Children’s Book Author”???
Arseface?
Crossed?
Punisher?
I guess he just does not strike me as the kind of guy who wants to write a children’s story. But, guess I was wrong!
ERF is the story of four friends at the dawn of time; Figwillop, KWAAAH!, the Booper, and Erf himself, and their adventures in the primordial world of long ago. The four take their first nervous steps out of the ocean and onto the shore, and are soon exploring the exciting new lands beyond. But danger lurks in the prehistoric jungle, and soon our heroes come face to face with the mighty and terrifying Colossux . . . An evolutionary tale of love and loyalty for children aged four and up.
And who wrote ERF?
Garth Ennis is a British comic book writer living and working in New York. Best known for the Vertigo series Preacher, his other credits include The Boys, Battlefields, Crossed and a successful run on Marvel Comics’ The Punisher. He has won the Eisner award for Best Writer.
Ennis and artist Rob Steen have put the project on Kickstarter to produce a run of 1500 – 2000 copies of the book. Right now there is only a little over $2500 of the $12,000 needed to fund the project.
Fans of his comics may be surprised to find his strength for writing about friendships and loyalty translates into a perfectly age-appropriate and touching children’s book.
Wait. Isn’t this the guy whose first arc on the MAX Punisher title revolved around Frank Castle being betrayed by his long-time friend, Micro Chip???
