My new book Let’s Make Cocktails! is just a month away! I’m still working on drawing more of the “cutting room floor” cocktails that didn’t fit into the book’s page count. Today’s cocktail: the Toronto!

The Toronto is a slightly more obscure cocktail than most. In my experience, though, good bartenders are always pleasantly surprised when we ask for one! Fernet brings a mildly bitter and herbaceous flavor to this drink, but it’s uniquely delicious and very well balanced.

In a weird case of bizarre timing: I was in the middle of working on this comic when I got notice that I was accepted for this year’s Toronto Comic Arts Festival! TCAF is one of my very favorite comics shows, and I’m super excited to return this year.

I can’t believe how close we are to the release of Let’s Make Cocktails! These books take so long to make that it’s always a little bit of a shock to me when they finally hit the shelves. I can’t wait for this book to exist in the world!

Upcoming things:

With that said, I’m going to have a BUNCH of events when the book finally gets here! The full list of tour dates so far is here, but below is a quick list of April events. Come out and say hi! I will be very happy to see your faces and sign your books!

April 7: Release party at Billy Sunday, Chicago

April 11: Challengers Comics event! As a reminder, if you preorder the book through Challengers, you’ll get a free exclusive art print!

April 16: Bookends & Beginnings, Evanston, IL

April 20: Big Grove Brewery, Des Moines, IA

April 25: Left Bank Books, St. Louis, MO

What I’m into lately:

My book club is reading Roxane Gay’s Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body right now. I had been avoiding this one – I love Gay’s writing so much, but this book sounded so raw and personal and brutal, and addressed many of my own deeply entrenched issues, that I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to handle it. But I dutifully picked it up for book club and immediately tore through it. It is indeed raw and personal and brutal! But it is also beautiful and thoughtful and honest and poetic and so deeply, deeply meaningful. I finished it in three days. I honestly wish I had been brave enough to read this book earlier; her story was really healing for me to read.

What Toki’s into lately:

Did you know that your unfinished crochet project – the one you want to work on right now – makes the very best cat bed? You wouldn’t dare disturb the young prince by trying to finish this blanket, would you? Oh! Oh! Jail for mother!