The Photographer

The Photographer is the harrowing, true life story of Didier Lefèvre, a French photographer who accompanied a Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) mission into Afghanistan in 1986 during the Soviet Invasion. Along the difficult trek done mostly on foot, Lefèvre documented visits with local soldiers and civilians, beautiful scenery, dangerous obstacles, domestic scenes, makeshift medical stations, and treatments both severe and mundane. He saw children and adults whose lives were rocked by violence, enjoyed the limited amount of local hospitality, and witnessed the machinations needed to travel and acquire supplies in a war-torn country. This story is full of bleak conditions, resilient folk, and some grim humor.

This graphic novel is a combination of pictures and photographs, drawn from Lefèvre's work and journals during the trip. His photos appeared in a number of French magazines, and he died of a heart attack in 2007 just as his work began to reach a wider audience. Emmanuel Guibert and Frédéric Lemercier provided the drawings and coloring respectively. Guibert is a prolific French comics artist who has a number of books published in English, including Sardine in Outer Space and The Professor's Daughter.

This graphic novel has been well reviewed. Chris Hedges wrote in his New York Times review that the book is lengthy but "build[s] in power and momentum as it recounts the arduous trip into mountain villages, the confrontation with the devastation of war, the struggle to save lives and Lefèvre’s foolish and nearly fatal attempt to return to Pakistan ahead of the team." Douglas Wolk wrote that the book's images pack an "emotional wallop." Shaun Manning praised the book, saying that it belonged "among the comics medium's best-known and highest regarded stories."

An excerpt, reviews, and other information are available here from the book's publisher First Second.

Sardine in Outer Space

Another collaborative work from French graphic novelists Emmanuel Guibert and Joann Sfar, Sardine in Outer Space is the story of a little girl, Sardine, who is the most dangerous disobedient child in the universe. She is a member of a space pirate crew that includes her uncle Captain Yellow Shoulder, her cousin Little Louie, and her cat. The foursome travels through space having wild episodic adventures, dodging the authorities, visiting a galactic ice cream shop, shopping at a toy store, and escaping from a giant one-eyed, four legged beast.

The chief target of her actions is Supermuscleman, the "chief executive dictator of the universe," who looks like a mustachioed Captain Marvel--the Shazam! version--only without a cape. Supermuscleman is a tyrant who works with a mad scientist alien Doc Krok to capture Sardine, and it drives him crazy that this little girl constantly gets the better of him.

Guibert writes the stories here, and Sfar provides the art. Individually they have won multiple international awards for their works. For those inclined to learn more about him, Sfar keeps a blog where he shares his idiosyncratic and sometimes ribald thoughts.

Sardine in Outer Space has been received well. Brian Cronin appreciates that the children in the book are taken seriously as if they were adults and likens it to works by Roald Dahl, particularly Matilda. The Graphic Classroom's Kevin Hodgson appreciates the spunky protagonist and the humorous situations portrayed in the book. Kathleen Karr remarked on the creative use of literary stereotypes to create "clever, meandering plots" sprinkled with sight gags.

This is the first of a series of books, of which six are available in English. A preview and other reviews can be found here from the book's publisher First Second.

The Professor's Daughter

Imhotep IV, the mummy reanimated in this book is unlike many of his undead brethren. He is not an unthinking zombie, nor does he yearn for flesh or blood. He just wants to fit into 18th century British society and resume his regal lifestyle. He is abetted in this task by Lillian, the mischievous daughter of the professor who discovered him and brought him to England to display. He is enamored with this woman because she resembles his dead wife, a point of contention between the two. Among the exciting and zany things that happen to this unlikely couple: Imhotep III is also remarkably alive and up to seeming no good; Scotland Yard is after him for murder and rounding up all the mummies in town as suspects, and the pair must contend with her father's attempts to reclaim his prime display artifact. Also in the course of the story, Queen Victoria gets kidnapped in the hopes of her providing a pardon. Talk about a star-crossed romance...

This fantastical graphic novel was produced by two of France's premier comics creators, Emmanuel Guibert and Joann Sfar. Guibert is an artist capable of many styles who has been involved in writing the Sardine in Outer Space series as well as drawing Didier Lefèvre's The Photographer. The prolific Sfar has written and drawn hundreds of comics and graphic novels, including the acclaimed The Rabbi's Cat and The Little Vampire series.

As might be expected when two high caliber talents collaborate, the critics I have read largely celebrate this book. Susan L. Carr draws attention to the many whimsical details the story exposes about Victorian England. Heidi Dolamore from the School Library Journal praised Guibert's art as the best part of this "enjoyable melodrama." Gina Ruiz highly recommends this "bizarre, well told and completely wonderful" tale. Perosnally, I found the book funny, surreal, and slightly dark at times.

A preview is available here from the book's publisher First Second.