In the rest of the world, comics are relegated to children or rather childlike adults. In France, they are viewed as the "ninth art" and are produced and read by adults. Grove (French, of U. of Glasgow, Scotland) takes into consideration French comics from the Bayeux Tapestry to contemporary examples, focusing on definitions and component parts, formal specifics, from the Bayeaux Tapestry to Töpffer's Teachings, the nineteenth century (in photos. funnies, and films), the twentieth century (comics' rise, fall, and rise), contemporary innovators' designs for the mass market, the consecration of the ninth art, and cultural studies. This includes a French-American rodent, a urinal, and a prehistoric warrior who is really Zinedine Zidane. Annotation ©2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)