Once Upon a Time in France
Ivanka Hahnenberger author Fabien Nury author Sylvain Vallée illustrator
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Naval Institute Press
Published:30th Sep '19
£14.95
Available to order, but very limited on stock - if we have issues obtaining a copy, we will let you know.
For some, he was a villain. For others, a hero.
Based on a true story, Once Upon a Time in France follows the life of Joseph Joanovici, a Romanian Jew who immigrated to France in the 1920s and became one of the richest men in Europe as a scrap-metal magnate. During the German occupation of France, he thought his influence could keep his family safe, but he soon finds that the only way to stay one step ahead of the Nazis is to keep his friends close and his enemies closer. Though he plays both sides of the fence as a Nazi collaborator and French resistant, a tangled web of interests forms around him that proves it will take a lot more than money to pay for the survival of his family.
An international bestseller with over 1 million copies sold, the French series Once Upon a Time in France, collected here in one omnibus edition, has won the BDGest'Art Best Scenario Award, BDGest'Arts Album of the Year, and Angoulême International Comics Festival Best Series Award, among many others.
“Nury's story is gripping, brutal, and morally complex, dramatizing the fleeting nature of power. The first chapter spills out a jumbled chronology, presenting this complicated man as an overturned jigsaw puzzle, and the pages that follow fill in the blanks and tighten like a noose. Vallée's art has the cartoonish realism and cinematic verve of Steve Dillon. Thrilling, haunting, superb.”— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“A chapter in this powerful work begins with Nietzsche’s quote: ‘Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster.’ This tale’s fascinating characters desperately try to remain untarnished as they navigate a hazy line between what’s altruistic and what is sinfully selfish. The beautiful visual storytelling and dialogue blend together perfectly.”— Carl Potts, Former Marvel Comics Executive Editor, School of Visual Arts professor
“Once Upon A Time In France is a fully realized example of the medium to depict drama and thematic development through the language of comics. Just as novels, films and paintings offer endless possibilities to a creative artist, so, too, do comics. Once Upon A Time In France belongs on a list of genuinely great comics.” — Jewish Herald-Voice
"Nury’s fine dialogue and the excellent illustrations by Sylvain Vallée bring an almost cinematic perspective to the book that keeps the reader turning pages. This book is highly recommended." — Historical Novel Society
ISBN: 9781682474716
Dimensions: 274mm x 213mm x 20mm
Weight: 1182g
368 pages