The Big Belch is a very funny graphic novel by artist, writer, and radio show host, Kay Wood, about our seriously insane fossil fuel mania - featuring baby boomers, a crime fighting parrot, a super lovable Frenchie, and a cast of assorted villains and general screw-ups.
Will a major oil company's greed and foolishness spawn an environmental disaster so serious it could threaten the earth itself? And can this horror be foiled by two baby boomers, a parrot, and a French bulldog? That's the plot of The Big Belch graphic novel.
The Big Belch (title refers to a giant methane blast that could be triggered if a wonkers experiment goes awry), received start-up funding from a successful Kickstarter appearance. Kay Wood was also recently honored with a Leeway Foundation grant to help bring the project to fruition.
Planet Philadelphia is a radio show about our environment – where we all live, work, and play – produced and hosted by Kay Wood on Gtown Radio here in the heart of Germantown. It’s a mix of news, interviews, music, poetry, and reporting. Listen to the dynamic informative and sometimes shocking interviews and more on Planet Philadelphia; live streaming every 1st and 3rd Friday at 4:00 p.m. on gtownradio.com or podcasts on planetphila.com.
What People Are Saying About The Big Belch
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"Kay Wood's graphic novella pits a gang of haplessly humorous activists against an environmental Armageddon in the making. In the "Big Belch", the stakes are high but so are the spirits of characters bumbling their way to a better world." — Singe Wilkinson, Pulitzer Prize winning political cartoonist
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The Big Belch: Big Fun, Serious MessageThis graphic novel features a team of superheroes, including a parrot named Fletcher. — Amanda Lafond“The Big Belch is not your usual graphic novel. While typically this medium seems to feature heroes who are nearly exclusively young, Kay Wood’s work takes a different approach. When the plans of a big oil company put the earth in danger, it’s not a superhero who saves the day, but two baby boomers, a bulldog and a parrot…” to see more go to: http://www.birdchannel.com/bird-news/2014/06/23/kay-wood-the-big-belch.aspx
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The Big Belch is “…great stuff!” — Stanford Professor Robert Proctor
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"Irreverent and hilarious, the Big Belch is a graphic novel you won’t be able to put down. Replete with quirky characters and mad-cap adventures, this book reveals the power of individual citizens against corporate greed and greenwashing. Yes, there’s a critical environmental message, but it’s embedded in humor rather than heaviness. This is the kind of storytelling we need right now: the kind that pulls you in by the funny bone." ~ Marybeth Holleman, author of The Heart of the Sound
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The Big Belch (Paperback) (VINE VOICE)
“I couldn't get over the premise; a real-life graphic parody made up of the usual cast of world characters; the unconscionable, greedy, desperate and sloths to name a few, fused in with the go-green globalatarians and humanitarians, and of course the naïve, all trying to save the world, or not save the world for a mix of reasons.This being the first graphic novel I've read, there were some eye coordination challenges I had to first familiarize myself with, absorbing the virtuoso sketches, and riotous dialogue. Between the hawk, little Frenchbo Fletcher (Francois to his playmate) and the other supporting casts, not excluding the main two...or three characters... my favorites; Maureen, Monty, and Harold... each with their distinct nuances and motives, kept my eyes...and mind, in horizontal REM motion. Yes! Imagine that.And still, for as challenging as it was wanting to take my time turning pages, the story made it impossible. I found myself in a race wanting to know what was going to happen to Harold, and the Microgreene young head hunchos, and Ja'mon...or Lance, and the powers-to-be players that kept this story moving. A truly a remarkable experience and entertaining story!” — RYCJ (Bryn Mawr) publisher, OSAAT Entertainment
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“... Kay Wood has authored a page-turner of a graphic novel called The Big Belch. She makes us laugh, and makes us cringe as she weaves a story about fossil-fuel addiction, big oil, and our love-hate relationship with gas guzzling cars and get-it-right now lifestyles. How will our baby boomer aged hero's and band of misfit characters survive the Big Belch? ...” — 350 Philadelphia
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"Great stuff! I love the asides,little extras, and details that flesh things out and make it richer...I also like it that you show that too little knowledge is dangerous, and that there are loonies on both sides of the story... Go for it! An excellent start. I look forward to the next one, can't wait..."— Tess Frost
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“The book is a wonderful lighthearted way to learn about why the goal of a healthy environment and climate can be so challenging, and about the kind of spirit needed to overcome challenges. Kay Wood is a great story-teller; you don’t want to put the book down once you start. The characters and illustrations are quirky and delightful. Really fun to read!” — Judy Morgan, former Public Participation Coordinator for the NJ Department of Environmental Protection Division of Water Resources.
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“…book is terrific I was laughing throughout the read and the mountain of drawings was excellent.” — Steve Donegan
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“Entertaining, funny, and enlightening, with wonderfully drawn characters who reveal their personalities as the story progresses. Greedy, ignorant, hapless, or sincere, they all seemed to learn what they needed to in this story whether they wanted to or not. The animals, so much a part of the crowd in this tale, are as real as the people…quirky individuals each with their own personal agendas. Only the parrot seems to have his head on straight throughout…and seems to be at the head of the line as far as genius is concerned.
The illustrations are not the standard fare for graphic novels. They are uniquely the work of this artist, and go far beyond the call of duty in terms of expressiveness and the complex details of interior spaces and landscapes, I spent a lot of time just looking at the pictures. I loved this book.” — Elissa Gold, artist
