EDWARD GAUVIN

“If there’s one thing people can’t stand having called into question, it’s their certainties,” writes prolific scripter Xavier Dorison, who in previous series such as The Third Testament and Red One has worked with renowned artists from Alex Alice to Terry and Rachel Dodson. In his preface to the 16th century swashbuckler Sword Master, with art by Joël Parnotte, he enjoins readers to imagine first “western civilization if all life, thought, and death were filtered through a single prism: God,” and then “an upheaval that made the invention of the wheel and the discovery of the New World seem trivial in comparison”: namely, the Protestant Reformation. The religious wars are the backdrop to this wintry adventure, which yielded the death of… a distant relative? (Spoiler alert: his head gets smashed to a pulp.)

Dorison sneaks other nifty historical aspects into this bitter tale, like the merits of bastard swords vs. rapiers, working technological change into characters’ personal worldviews and conceptions of honor.

It’s 1537. Deep in the mountains of the Jura, a group of fanatical Catholic mountain dwellers track a young Protestant and his guide. Big mistake. For his guide is no other than the former master-at-arms of Francois I, Hans Stalhoffer. After being defeated in an unfair fight, Hans had exiled himself from the court. Some years later, Gauvin, the surgeon who saved his life, and his young apprentice beg his help. They wish to travel undercover to Switzerland to publish a French vernacular Bible. The only possible route is to take the infamous Jura Pass. Hans, now a drunk drowning in debt, is willing to sacrifice a few days to guide the two men through the hostile mountains. But when the authorities get wind of the scheme, they launch a wide-scale manhunt led by his former court rival. Hunted, injured, and freezing, Hans now faces the hardest fight of his life.

This graphic novel is now available as a digital exclusive from EuropeComics on a number of platforms (Izneo, Kindle, Kobo, Google Play, and Comixology).

In the year 2082, beautiful Morea Doloniac is an ordinary employee in one of the world’s biggest multinationals, the DWC. A distant relative of company founder Nathan Doloniac. she is nearly killed one day when commando squads execute members of her family all over the globe. As the only survivor, she finds herself at the head of one of the main economic powers of the 21st century. Curiouser still, the attempt on her life was a success… And yet, she is still alive! Now she finds herself caught in an age-old war between two factions that have been manipulating humanity for centuries – the Angels and the Dragons, who possess powers beyond what human imagining…

In its tenth anniversary year, SelfMadeHero is delighted to announce the publication of HADDON HALL: When David Invented Bowie, a new graphic novel by Tunisian-born Néjib.

After releasing his first hit single, David Bowie moved into Haddon Hall, a sprawling Victorian house in London’s suburbs, with his girlfriend Angie. Part commune, part creative hub, it was in this bohemian atmosphere that he wrote many of the songs for Ziggy Stardust and Hunky Dory. Tunisian-born Néjib explores Bowie’s formative years in this evocatively original portrait of a young artist poised to create a musical revolution. A timely reminder of Bowie’s creative genius and influence, coinciding with the first anniversary of his death.

This slim and tender tribute, narrated by the titular house, both fits in well with and stands apart from the other artist bios I’ve translated for SelfMadeHero. Néjib, a graphic designer and comics artist, is the art director at Editions Casterman. His favourite David Bowie song is “Sound and Vision”, and in an interview, he cites as influences on the art and color scheme of this book Heinz Edelmann’s (Yellow Submarine) and Milton Glaser.

Stephen King meets superheroes in this heartfelt French tribute to such Americana as small towns, summer camp, kid friendship, and lasting loyalties. A ragtag group of pals reunites in middle age to save the world from a former child molester now turned political power broker. Vigilantes is written by Jean-Charles Gaudin, with art by Riccardo Crosa. The miniseries concludes in this final volume, Superheroes, now available as a digital exclusive from Soleil at Comixology.

After the Pittsgreen fiasco, Daryl, Zack, Curtis, and Jesse have to keep a low profile… While they prepare their final counterattack – The Vigilantes return in force to stop the serial killer once and for all. But will their superpowers be enough?

A big hearty hand to SelfMadeHero for turning 10 today! That’s a decade of excellent, inspiring indie comics like nobody else does’em: either in Britain or the rest of the English-speaking world (lookin’ at you, America!). My heartfelt thanks for letting me be part of their team for so long. Here’s to forever!

At her site Speculative Fiction in Translation, which with masterful comprehensiveness and unflagging enthusiasm charts and encourages all speculative fiction translated into English, Rachel Cordasco has a few kind words for Paul Willems’ The Cathedral of Mist:

In this collection of surreal, exquisitely-composed and expertly-translated stories, Belgian fantasist Paul Willems (1912-1997) offers us a multitude of dreamscapes both as delicate as gossamer and tangible as a mountain. Cathedrals made of mist, palaces of emptiness, dreams that melt into reality: you’ll find all of these within the six stories included in the slim volume (two essays about reading and writing are included at the end). Form and content work in harmony in a way that I’ve rarely encountered…

Thank you!

With Volume 5: Fight or Flight from BOOM! Studios, the final arc of the bestselling series The Killer by Matz and Luc Jacamon is finally out in English, bringing to a close a comic I’ve been working on as long as I’ve been a translator. Will the nameless titular hit man, an antihero for our late-capitalist times, get to face death, his constant companion, on terms of his own choosing? Preview pages at Comix Asylym and ICV2!

The 11th edition of Words Without Borders’ annual comics issue is now up, featuring my translation of “Men and Beasts” by Daniel Sixte and Sinzo Aanza.

All kudos to scholar Dominic Davies for turning me onto this work. Don’t miss his knockout essay “Comics and Graphic Narratives: A Cultural Commons”  contextualizing the comics in the issue!