The Forbidden Planet International Blog Log

As Tom Spurgeon would put it on Comics Reporter, if I were in London I’d go to this:

Belgian artist Judith Vanistendael’s semi autobiographical Dance by the Light of the Moon is one of the titles I’ve really been looking forward to in this autumn’s releases, not least because Wim has said good things of the original Belgian publication (it was nominated for the presitgious Angoulême Festival Grand Prix) and partly because we tend to get excited when any new SelfMadeHero titles are coming up as they consistently produce some seriously good comics work, be they very fine literary adaptations or, as here, translating some much-lauded work from Europe (SMH also translated one of my very favourite graphic novels of recent years, Kleist’s Cash: I See a Darkness). And it’s good to see more of the fascinating comics work in Europe being translated and republished for the English language readership.

SMH, with Paul Gravett and the Comica crew, Flanders House and the Flemish Literature Fund are bringing Judith to London for a launch, with an ‘in conversation’ event followed by a drinks reception at the Bar Music Hall in Shoreditch (appropriately enough this is a venue owned by a Belgian brewery, I’m told). The event is on Tuesday 22nd of September from 6.30 pm onwards and should be a great evening for comics readers (and admirers of Belgian beer), one to put in your diary if you are in town; full details on the SMH site and at Comica. And as Paul notes on the Comica page there’s more comics goodness from Belgium (along with France one of the spiritual homes of quality European comics work) to look forward to over the next few months with Drawn & Quarterly’s translation of Brecht Evens’ Wrong Place and Blank Slate’s translation of Randall C’s Sleepyheads to look forward to as well. Time to make more room on the bookshelves…