Originally published in November 1939, two months after World War II officially began, James Thurber's parable in pictures-- a graphic novel ahead of its day--about eternal cycles of war, peace, love, and the resilience of one little flower remains as relevant today as it was then. The New York Times called it "at once one of the most serious and one of the most hilarious contributions on war."
    Civilization has collapsed  after World War XII, dogs have deserted their masters, all the groves and gardens have been destroyed, and love has vanished from the earth. Then one day, "a young girl who had never seen a flower chanced to come upon the last one in the world." Written among the sorrow and chaos of war, dedicated to this only child " in the wistful hope that her world will be better than mine." The new printing will feature new scans of Thurber's original 1939 drawings.

The author of nearly forty books,including essays, short stories, fables,plays, and children's stories, James Thurber (1894-1961) created and acerbic world of beleaguered husbands, domineering women, and fabulous animals; no one before or since has drawn dogs like he did. A native of Columbus, Ohio, he worked as a newspaperman before joining the staff of the New Yorker. A self-proclaimed "painstaking writer who doodles for relaxation," he began his career as a cartoonist when E.B. White, his office mate, rescued his drawings from the trash.

 “It’s important to remember while reading this book that it was created just as the Nazi jackboots were beginning to stomp over Europe. Thurber took that staccato rhythm and used it as the underlying beat of his antiwar fable and you can feel it every time you turn the page. Combine that with a handful of hen-scratched pen lines and a few well-chosen words and you have a graphic work that manages to convey vulnerability, despair, and renewed hope—all with the trademark Thurber charm. Sadly, it is a work that is as relevant today as it was when ?rst published.”—Seth, author, Wimbledon Green

 “James Thurber’s The Last Flower expresses a simple but deep truth: the unending cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. It is an uncynical tale but not a toothless one, and its idealism feels hard-won. The humor has the typical Thurber charm, and even a bit of absurdity, but it is never merely whimsical; rather, it is leavened with the sorrow and gravitas of an uncertain world that was teetering on a very real, perilous edge, and this gives both the spirited drawings and the heartfelt sentiment an undeniable power and nobility.”—Ivan Brunetti, editor, An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories