The 2025 Angoulême Festival’s Official Selection has arrived! 84 works released in the French-language over the past year all up for awards across six categories. The Beat has once again gone through the whole lot and marked out work available in English, and spotted familiar titles translated into French.
For analysis, read on – or to jump straight to the lists themselves scroll down.
DIGGING INTO THE DETAILS — US, UK, Canada, and Japan
As ever, the mix remains pretty international despite the natural broad skew toward work by original French language (usually French or Belgian) authors. In the Anglosphere, we counted 14 books from US, 4 from Canada (including a French Canadian), and 4 from the United Kingdom. Japanese manga in translation remains strong in France with 8 books selected by the Angouleme judges. Other translated titles have come from Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Czechia, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey.
As mentioned, the USA is represented by 14 titles. Four books in the Official Selection (of 44), three in the Kids Selection (of 18), two in the Suspense category (of 7), and five in the Heritage Selection (of 8).
In the main Official Selection list we have Maltese-American Joe Sacco‘s latest graphic reportage (not yet in English) on political violence in India, Souffler Sur Le Feu [tr. ‘Fanning the Flames‘] alongside Brian Azzarello & Eduardo Risso‘s Moonshine (first published by Image, 2016-2021); and Void Rivals by Robert Kirkman & Lorenzo de Felici (first published by Skybound in 2023). The latter title made a second appearance in the Lycéen (high school vote) category, which is typically drawn from the Official Selection. Frenchman Manu Larcenet‘s adaptation of Cormac McCarthy‘s The Road (published by Abrams in English) scores a technical fourth place in the Official Selection.
In the Kids category the US is represented three times – Mason Dickerson‘s younger readers title Housecat Trouble (first published by Random House Graphic, 2022); Molly Knox Ostertag’s YA adventure The Deep Dark (published by Graphix, 2024); and another technical third point goes to Nicolas Pitz’ French adaptation of the 2011 novel Okay for Now by American author, Gary D. Schmidt.
In Polar (Crime/Thriller) there are two US-published books by international teams – both originally from Image Comics in English but with different French publishers. Phantom Road by Canadian-Spanish team Jeff Lemire & Gabriel Hernandez Walta (English release 2024); and The Good Asian, by US/Thai-French team Pornsak Pichetshote & Alexandre Tefengki (English release 2021). They were respectively published by Panini Comics and Komiks Initiative in France.
Vintage reprint material from the US dominates the Heritage category with Lynda Barry‘s Come Over Come Over (Drawn & Quarterly, 2022); Trina Robbins‘ Flapper Queens (Fantagraphics, 2020); Alex Toth‘s Eerie & Creepy work (based on the 2015 Dark Horse collection); Noel Sickles’ Scorchy Smith (based on IDW/Library of American Comics collection, 2008); and Frank Tashlin‘s The World That Isn’t (Simon & Schuster, 1951). Sadly the latter two titles are (long) out of print Stateside.
The UK is having a very good year with no less than four British books making an appearance. Three in the 44-book Official Selection – Lizzy Stewart‘s Alison, (Serpent’s Tail/Fantagraphics, 2023); Bryan Talbot‘s Grandville: Force Majeure (Jonathan Cape/Dark Horse 2017; Will McPhail‘s In (Sceptre/Mariner Books, 2021) – and one (Raymond Briggs’ 1982 apocalyptic graphic novel When the Wind Blows, Penguin UK) in the Heritage Selection. Interestingly, with 2024 Grand Prix Posy Simmonds presenting an exhibition, Bryan Talbot in the Official Selection, and Raymond Briggs in the Heritage Selection – all three of the founders of the British graphic novel flavour are represented at Angoulême 2025.
Canada lands three books in the Official Selection with Ryan Heshka‘s Mean Girls Club (Nobrow, 2018); Chris Oliveros‘ Are You Willing to Die For the Cause? (Drawn & Quarterly, 2023); and Guy Delisle‘s newest graphic novel Muybridge (coming to English next year) – the latter of which got an extra chance at a prize in the Lycéens (high school vote) category. Jeff Lemire scored a place for Canada in the Polar category as writer on creator-owned, US (Image Comics) published book Phantom Road.
Manga is often a pretty interesting category. In years prior the French market – considered the largest manga market in the world outside Japan – has often got the jump on English readers. This year five of the eight manga titles across all lists are now available in English (in some cases first!). Those five are:
- Berserk vol 42, by Studio Gaga & Kouji Mori, based on the work of Kentaro Miyura [OFFICIAL SELECTION] — English edition published by Dark Horse
- Dementia 21 vol 2, by Shintaro Kago [OFFICIAL SELECTION] — English edition published by Fantagraphics, 2020
- Hirayasumi vol 4, by Keigo Shinzo [OFFICIAL SELECTION] — English edition now serialised by Viz and catching up
- The Summer Hikaru Died vol 3, by Mokumokuren [OFFICIAL SELECTION] — English edition by Yen Press
- Shinkirari [Talk to My Back], by Murasaki Yamada [HERITAGE SELECTION] — English edition from Drawn & Quarterly, 2022
Note on the lists – we have endeavoured to check every title for a solicited or existing English-language edition. Those that do will have their official English title in brackets [ ], if not we provide an approximate translated title via DeepL/Google Translate. If no English edition but a previous work by same author is found we will reference in notes.
OFFICIAL SELECTION – 44 titles
- Adieu Mon Royaume [tr. ‘Farewell, My Kingdom’], by Marcel Shorjian (Six pieds sous terre)
- Alison: À Coups de Pinceaux [Alison], by Lizzy Stewart; translated from English by Nadia Aeberli (Helvetiq) — originally published in 2023 by Serpents Tail (UK) and Fantagraphics (US)
- Antipodes, by Éric Lambé & David B. (Casterman)
- Au-Dedans [In], by Will McPhail; translated from English by Basile Béguerie (404 Éditions) — originally published in 2021 by Mariner Books (US) and Sceptre (UK)
- Ballades [tr. ‘Ballads‘], by Camille Potte (Atrabile)
- Berserk vol 42, by Studio Gaga & Kouji Mori, based on the work of Kentaro Miyura (Glénat) — available in English with Dark Horse
- La Camarade Coucou [tr. ‘Comrade Cuckoo‘], by Anke Feuchtenberger; translated from German by Monique Rival (Futuropolis) — 2023 German graphic novel not available in English but Feuchtenberger’s collaboration with Katrin de Vries, W the Whore, was published by NYRC in 2023
- Comme une Pierre [tr. ‘Like A Stone‘], by Luckas Iohanathan; translated from Brazilian Portuguese by Thomas Dassance (Ilatina) — not available in English but the author self published an English translation of their second book I Buried Them All In My Backyard on Kindle earlier this year
- Connexions vol 2: Châteaux de Sable [tr. ‘Connections vol 2: Sandcastles‘], by Pierre Jeanneau (Tanibis)
- Contes de la Mansarde [tr. ‘Tales from the Attic‘], by Elizabeth Holleville & Iris Pouy (L’Employé du moi)
- Les Contes de la Pieuvre vol 4: Fannie la Renoueuse [tr. ‘Tales of the Octopus vol 4: Fanny the Weaver’], by Gess (Delcourt) — none of this series is available in English but Gess’ work on The Cimmerian story The Man-Eaters of Zamboula is available from Ablaze
- Cornelius: La Vie Pleine de Joie du Triste Chien [Cornelius: The Merry Life of a Wretched Dog], by Marc Toricès; translated from Spanish by Karine Louesdon, Fernanda Rivera and José Ruiz-Funes (Actes Sud BD) — English edition to be published by Drawn & Quarterly in June 2025
- Croissant Amoureux [tr. ‘Loving Crescent’], by Yasutoshi Kurokami (The Hoochie Coochie)
- Dementia 21 vol 2, by Shintaro Kago; translated from Japanese by Baptiste Neveux (Huber) — both books are available in English from Fantagraphics in a tidy box set.
- Deux Filles Nues [tr. ‘Two Girls Nude‘], by Luz (Albin Michel)
- L’Écran Blanc [tr. ‘The White Screen‘], by Enrico Pinto; translated from Italian by Laurent Lombard (Presque Lune)
- En Territoire Ennemi [tr. ‘In Enemy Territory‘], by Carole Lobel (L’Association)
- L’Expert [tr. ‘The Expert‘], by Jennifer Daniel; translated from German by Paul Derouet (Casterman)
- Grandville vol 5: Force Majeure, by Bryan Talbot; translated from English by Philippe Touboul (Delirium) — first published in English in 2017 by Jonathan Cape (UK) and Dark Horse (US)
- La Forteresse Volante [tr. ‘The Flying Fortress‘], by Lorenzo Palloni & Miguel Villa; translated from Italian by Aurélie Breuil (Sarbacane)
- La Harde [tr. ‘The Herd‘], by Marijpol; translated from German by Charlotte Fritsch (Atrabile)
- Hirayasumi vol 4, by Keigo Shinzo; translated from Japanese by Sylvain Chollet (Le Lézard Noir) — English language edition from Viz began earlier this year, vol 4 will release February 2025
- Immatériel [tr. ‘Intangible‘], by Jérôme Dubois (Cornélius)
- Impénétrable [tr. ‘Impenetrable‘], by Alix Garin (Le Lombard) — not available in English but earlier work Forget Me Not was published digitally by Europe Comics in 2021
- Lucky Luke: Les Indomptés [Lucky Luke: Untamed], by Blutch (Dargaud) — available in English with Cinebook
- L’Intranquille Monsieur Pessoa [The Disquiet of Senhor Pessoa], by Nicolas Barral (Dargaud) — available in English digital-only via Europe Comics
- Land vol 7, by Kazumi Yamashita; translated from Japanese by Miyako Slocombe (Mangetsu)
- Madeleine, Résistante vol 3: Les Nouilles à la Tomate [tr. ‘Madeleine, Resistant vol 3: Tomato Noodles‘], by Dominique Bertail, Jean-David Morvan & Madeleine Riffaud (Dupuis)
- Mean Girls Club: La Vague Rose [Mean Girls Club: Pink Dawn], by Ryan Heshka (Les Requins Marteaux) — published in English by Nobrow in 2018
- Les Météores: Histoires de ceux que ne font que passer [tr. ‘Meteors: Stories of those just passing through’], by Jean-Christophe Deveney & Tommy Redolfi (Delcourt)
- Moonshine, by Brian Azzarello & Eduardo Risso; translated from English by Jérémy Manesse (Urban Comics) — first published by Image Comics, a complete collection released in 2023
- Mourir pour la Cause: Révolution dans le Québec des Années 1960 [Are You Willing to Die for the Cause? Revolution in 1960s Quebec], by Chris Oliveros; translated from English by Alexandre Fontaine Rousseau (Pow Pow) — first released 2023 with Drawn & Quarterly
- Pour une fraction de seconde: La Vie Mouvementée d’Eadweard Muybridge [Muybridge: For a Fraction of a Second], by Guy Delisle (Delcourt) — English edition coming from Drawn & Quarterly in April 2025
- La Pythie Vous Parle: Sept Conseils de Vie [tr. ‘The Priestess Speaks to You: Seven Tips for Living‘], by Liv Strömquist; translated from Swedish by Sophie Jouffreau (Rackham) — not available in English but two previous books by Strömquist have been published by Fantagraphics
- Le Roi Méduse vol 1 [tr. ‘King Medusa‘], by Brecht Evens (Actes Sud BD) — not available in English but Drawn & Quarterly have published three earlier books by Evens
- La Route [The Road], by Manu Larcenet; based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy (Dargaud) — English edition published by Abrams ComicArts
- Saint-Elme vol 5: Les Thermopyles [tr. ‘Saint Elme vol 5: Thermopylae’], by Frederik Peeters & Serge Lehman (Delcourt) — not available in English but a number of prior works by each author separately are.
- Saturn Return vol 10, by Akane Torikai; translated from Japanese by Alexandre Goy (Akata) — not available in English but Torikai’s previous series Sensei’s Pious Lie was published by Vertical in 2022
- Souffler Sur Le Feu: Violences Passées et à Venir en Inde [tr. ‘Fanning the Flames: Past and Future Violence in India‘], by Joe Sacco; translated from English by Sidonie Van den Dries (Futuropolis) — published first in French, English edition forthcoming
- Terrible: L’Enfant, La Jeune Fille et la Sorcirère [Terrible: The Girl, Her Little Brother and the Witch], by Gaël Henry (Dupuis) — digitally available in English via Europe Comics
- The Summer Hikaru Died vol 3, by Mokumokuren; translated from Japanese by Manon Debienne & Sayaka Okada (Pika) — series available in English with Yen Press
- Les Travailleurs de la Mer [Toilers of the Sea], by Michel Durand, based on the Victor Hugo novel (Glénat)
- Void Rivals, by Robert Kirkman and Lorenzo de Felici; translated from English by Julien Di Giacomo (Urban Comics) — first published in English by Skybound/Image
- Walicho, by Sole Otero; translated from Argentine Spanish by Anne Plantagenet (Çà et Là) — not available in English but Fantagraphics recently released Otero’s 2023 award-winning debut Mothballs
Kids Selection – 18 titles
- Boris, Babette et tous les Squelettes [tr. ‘Boris, Babette and a lot of Skeletons‘], by Tanja Esch; translated from German by Lyse Leroy (Nathan)
- Le Caillou [The Magic Pebble], by Marion Bulot & Joachim Hérissé (Dargaud) — available digitally in English via Europe Comics
- Chaton Mignon vol 1: En Action [Housecat Trouble vol 1], by Mason Dickerson; translated from English by Fanny Soubiran (Gallimard BD) — originally published 2022 by Random House Graphic
- La Cuisine des Ogres: Trois-Fois-Morte [tr. ‘The Ogres Kitchen: Three-Times-Dead‘, by Fabien Vehlmann & Jean-Baptiste Andreae (Rue de Sèvres) — not in English but a number of works by each author are
- Elliot au Collège vol 3: Alice en vrai [tr. ‘Elliot in Middle School vol 3: Alice in Real Life‘], by Théo Grosjean (Dupuis)
- Émilie Kado vol 1: Le Secret des Araignées [tr. ‘Emily Kado vol. 1: The Secret of the Spiders‘], by Antoine Dodé (Éditions de la Gouttière)
- Gosse vol 2: Gosse et son ami Taigne [tr. ‘Gosse vol 2: Gosse and his friend Taigne‘], by Lucas Méthé (Dupuis)
- La Grande Aventure de Pepik [tr. ‘Pepik’s Big Adventure‘], by Pavel Čech; translated from Czech by Jean-Gaspard Palenicek (Éditions l’Œuf)
- Jusqu’ici tout va bien [Okay for Now], by Nicolas Pitz, based on the novel by Gary D. Schmidt (Rue de Sèvres) — not available in English but Schmidt’s original 2011 novel is
- Lili met les Voiles [tr. ‘Lily Sets Sail‘], by Clara Hervé (Biscoto)
- Luca, Vétérinaire Draconique vol 1 [tr. ‘Luca: Dragon Veterinarian‘] , by Yuna Hirasawa; translated from Japanese by Karine Rupp Stanko (Glénat) — not in English but Hirasawa’s transgender autobio manga My Journey to Her was digitally released by Kodansha earlier this year
- Magda Cuisinière Intergalactique vol 3: Par-delá les Étoiles [tr. ‘Magda, Intergalactic Chef vol 3: Beyond the Stars‘], by Mathilde Van Gheluwe & Nicolas Wouters (Sarbacane) — Lerner/Graphic Universe will start publishing the series April 2025
- Les Merveilles [tr. ‘Wonders‘], by Marta Cunill (Bang)
- Rebis, by Irene Marchesini & Carlotta Dicataldo (Le Lombard) — will be published in English by First Second in April 2025
- Retour à Tomioka [tr. ‘Return to Tomioka‘], by Laurent Galandon & Michaël Crouzat (Jungle)
- Rwama vol 1: Mon enfance en Algérie [tr. ‘Rwama vol. 1: My childhood in Algeria‘], by Salim Zerrouki (Dargaud)
- Silence vol 2, by Yoann Vornière (Kana) — the series will be released in English as part of Abrams’ Kana US imprint in 2025
- The Deep Dark, by Molly Knox Ostertag; translated from English by Romain Galland (Kinaye) — simulpublished with Graphix earlier this year
Heritage Selection – 8 titles
- Come Over Come Over, by Lynda Barry; translated from English by Fanny Soubiran (Çà et Là) — collection first published by Drawn & Quarterly in 2022
- Eerie et Creepy Présentent Alex Toth, by Alex Toth; translated from English (Delirium) — collection first published by Dark Horse in 2015
- Garçonnes: Les Autrices Oubliées des Années Folles [Flapper Queens: Women Cartoonists of the Jazz Age], by Trina Robbins; translated from English by Marie-Paule Noël (Bliss) — first published by Fantagraphics in 2020
- Le Monde Qui N’est Pas [The World That Isn’t], by Frank Tashlin; translated from English by Anne-Sylvie Homassel (Éditions du Sonneur) — long out of print but some other works by Tashlin are available
- Pepito vol 3, by Luciano Bottaro (Cornélius) — series not available in English but Bottaro’s Disney work is part of the Fantagraphics Disney Masters collection
- Quand Souffle Le Vent [When the Wind Blows], by Raymond Briggs; translated from English by Patrick Marcel (Tanibis) — this 1982 British classic is published by Penguin UK, not widely available in the US
- Scorchy Smith et le Génie de Noel Sickles [Scorchy Smith And The Art Of Noel Sickles] vol 1, by Noel Sickles; translated from English by Marie Renier (Éditions Barbier) — published by IDW and the Library of American Comics in 2008. It is now long out of print
- Shinkirari – Derrière Le Rideau, La Liberté [Talk to My Back], by Murasaki Yamada; translated from Japanese by Jérôme Wicky (Kana) — English edition published in 2022 by Drawn & Quarterly
Fauve Polar SNCF Voyageurs Selection
(Suspense and crime category, winners voted by French rail passengers) – 7 titles
- À Mourir Entre les Bras de ma Nourrice [tr. ‘To Die in My Nurse’s Arms’], by Mark Eacersall,Henri Scala & Raphaël Pavard (Glénat)
- Les Âmes Noires [Stained Souls], by Aurélien Ducoudray & Fred Druart (Dupuis) — digitally available in English via Europe Comics
- Autreville, by David de Thuin (Sarbacane)
- Phantom Road vol 1, by Jeff Lemire & Gabriel Hernandez Walta; translated from English by Laurent Laget (Panini Comics) — first published by Image Comics in 2023
- Revoir Comanche [tr. ‘Return to Comanche‘], by Romain Renard (Le Lombard) — spiritual sequel to beloved Franco Belgian western series Comanche by Greg & Hermann. Neither in English but Renard’s Melville was published by Pegasus Books in 2020
- The Good Asian, by Pornsak Pichetshote & Alexandre Tefengki; translated from English by Benjamin Viette (Komiks Initiative) — first published by Image Comics in 2021
- Vénus Privée [A Private Venus], by Paolo Bacilieri, adapted from the novel by Giorgio Scerbanenco; translated from Italian by Laurent Lombard (Ici Même) — the original novel has been translated into English, Bacillieri’s only translated work was Fun, published by SelfMadeHero in 2017
Éco-Fauve Raja Selection
(Environmental/sustainability themed work) – 7 titles
- Alyte, by Jérémie Moreau (2024)
- Au Loup! Chronique d’un Retour [tr. ‘Wolf! Chronicle of a Return‘], by Troubs (Rackham)
- Le Bruit de l’Eau: Discussions dans la Vallée de la Roya [tr. ‘The Noise of Water: Conversations in the Roya Valley‘], by Laurent Bonneau & Alain Bujak (Futuropolis)
- Tepe: La Colline [tr. ‘Tepe: The Hill‘], by Firat Yasa; translated from Turkish by Zeynep Diker (Çà et Là) — not in English but two of Yasa’s earlier works were digitally released in English via Europe Comics
- Terra Animalia, by Patrick Mallet & Tom Tirabosco (La Joie de Lire)
- Vert de Rage: Les Enfants du Plumb [tr. ‘Green with Rage: Lead Children‘], by Martin Boudot & Sébastien Piquet (Michel Lafon) — not available in English but artist Piquet was had an English release in 2023 with In Search of Gil Scott-Heron (Titan)
- Zone Critique [tr. ‘Critical Zone‘], by Philippe Squarzoni, based on the work of Bruno Latour (Delcourt)
Fauve des Lycéens Selection
(High schooler vote) – 10 titles
- Adieu Mon Royaume [tr. ‘Farewell, My Kingdom’], by Marcel Shorjian (Six pieds sous terre)
- Antipodes, Éric Lambé & David B. (Casterman)
- Contes de la Mansarde [tr. ‘Tales from the Attic‘], by Elizabeth Holleville & Iris Pouy (L’Employé du moi)
- Croissant Amoureux [tr. ‘Loving Crescent’], by Yasutoshi Kurokami (The Hoochie Coochie)
- Deux Filles Nues [tr. ‘Two Girls Nude‘], by Luz (Albin Michel)
- L’Intranquille Monsieur Pessoa [The Disquiet of Senhor Pessoa], by Nicolas Barral (Dargaud) — available in English digital-only via Europe Comics
- Pour une fraction de seconde: La Vie Mouvementée d’Eadweard Muybridge [Muybridge: For a Fraction of a Second], by Guy Delisle (Delcourt) — English edition coming from Drawn & Quarterly in April 2025
- Terrible: L’Enfant, La Jeune Fille et la Sorcirère [Terrible: The Girl, Her Little Brother and the Witch], by Gaël Henry (Dupuis) — digitally available in English via Europe Comics
- Les Travailleurs de la Mer [Toilers of the Sea], by Michel Durand, based on the Victor Hugo novel (Glénat)
- Void Rivals, by Robert Kirkman and Lorenzo de Felici; translated from English by Julien Di Giacomo (Urban Comics) — first published in English by Skybound/Image
