The Angoulême Official Selection 2024 is here at last – the most respected critical barometer of the Franco-Belgian comics industry. As usual we have taken the time to parse through all 84 books to check what has an English language edition or translation currently available. To browse the lists themselves just keep on scrolling.
Translations from the English language market once again make a solid appearance on the lists – we spotted thirteen books overall.
- Graphic novels included: Julia Wertz‘ Impossible People [Les Imbuvables Ou Comment J’ai Arrêté De Boire], Nick Drnaso‘s Acting Class, Sammy Harkham‘s Blood of the Virgin, Daniel Clowes‘ Monica are big names – also the final instalment in Charles Burns‘ latest opus Daedalus [Dédales] that the lucky French were getting first (hopefully the complete edition will appear in English very soon). We also see the French edition of 2022 Grand Prix awardee Julie Doucet‘s Time Zone J [Suicide Total] made the cut.
- Mainstream and large indie titles: James Tynion IV, Alvaro Martinez Bueno and Jordie Bellaire‘s The Nice House on the Lake (originally published DC Black Label); Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples‘ Saga (originally published by Image); and Ed Brubaker, Marcos Martin, and Muntsa Vicente‘s Friday (original publication Panel Syndicate and Image Comics) show up in the lists.
- From the small press and indie circuit – Josh Pettinger‘s small press anthology series Goiter got a collection in French – and the critics dig it – likewise John Vasquez Mejias‘ woodcut comic The Puerto Rican War [Et L’Île S’Embrasa]. Reimena Yee‘s webcomic – and crowdfunded publication – The Carpet Merchant of Konstantiniyya [Le Marchand de Tapis de Constantinople] made an appearance in the Kids Selection list.
- In the Heritage Selection list is a translated Katzenjammer Kids collection featuring Harold Knerr‘s run on Rudolph Dirks‘ historic American comic strip [Pim Pam Poum (The Katzenjammer Kids) (vol 1): 1936-1942 from Urban Comics]. Surprisingly this currently is not available as a collected edition in English.
Manga continues to have a strong presence across the Angoulême Official Selection lists. We counted fifteen titles with only seven having an English edition available at time of writing. Those seven included: Tatsuki Fujimoto‘s Chainsaw Man (Viz), Katsuhisa Minami‘s The Fable (Kodansha, digital only), Moto Hagio‘s The Poe Clan (Fantagraphics), Henry Yoshitaka Kiyama‘s The Four Immigrants Manga: A Japanese Experience in San Francisco, 1904-1924 (Stone Bridge Press), Hayao Miyazaki‘s Shuna’s Journey (First Second), NAOE‘s Tokyo Aliens and Hiromu Arakawa‘s Tsugai – Daemons of the Shadow Realm (both from Square Enix Manga).
Manhwa also had a showing but only Yeong-shin Ma‘s Moms [Les Daronnes] is available in English, from Drawn & Quarterly.
The Angoulême Official Selection comprises French-language published works (including translations from other languages) available in bookshops and online platforms in France between December 1, 2022 and November 30, 2023.
Books are selected by three committees of comics experts – a General Selection Committee, a Youth Selection Committee, and a Series Selection Committee – and divided into six categories – the Official Selection, the Heritage Selection (Sélection Patrimoine), the Kids Selection (Sélection Jeunesse), the Crime-Thriller Selection (Sélection Fauve Polar SNCF), the Ecological Selection (Sélection Eco-Fauve RAJA), and the Student Selection (Sélection Fauve des Lycéens). Eleven prizes will be awarded from these lists, with five awarded to books in the Official Selection, two in the Kids Selection, and one apiece to the other selection lists at a ceremony taking place during the Angoulême 2024 weekend, January 25 to 28, 2024.
SELECTION COMMITTEE MEMBERS
The General Selection Committee is comprised the Festival Artistic Director Margeurite Demoëte; comics journalist Xavier Guilbert (du9.org); author Frédéric Lassagne/Terreur Graphique; journalist Anne-Claire Norot; bookseller Mathilde Llobet (Ombres Blanches, Toulouse), Head of Culture and News Development at the Paris Pompidou Centre Emmanuèle Payen; and Angoulême Festival scientific advisor Jean-Pierre Mercier.
The Youth Selection Committee comprises the head of the festival’s youth section Camille Goyens; Officer for Artistic and Cultural Education Romain Gallissot; bookseller Vo Song Nguyen (Librarie Millepages Jeanesse BD, Vincennes); bookseller Mimoun Larrssi (Librairie M’Enfin?!, Rennes), journalists Laurence Fredet and Lucie Kosmala; author Émilie Clarke.
The Series Selection Committee includes FIBD artistic director Fausto Fasulo; comics expert and journalist Fredereico Anzalone; comics author and journalist Hélène Beney (Canal BD magazine, Zoo, Disney Girl); journalists Rémi Inghilterra (BoDoï, Bubble, ATOM magazine), Laëtitia De Germon (France Info), bookseller Morgane Kerlero Du Crano (Librairie généraliste Les Parages, Paris); and web columnist Christophe Stupnicki.
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. If no English edition but a previous work by same author is found we will reference in notes.
ANGOULÊME 2024 OFFICIAL SELECTION — 45 books
- Acting Class, Nick Drnaso (Presque Lune) — originally published in English by Drawn & Quarterly, 2022
- Astra Nova, Lisa Blumen (L’Employé du Moi)
- Blood of the Virgin, Sammy Harkham (Cornélius) — published in English with Pantheon Graphic Library, May 2023
- Blue Giant Explorer (vol 1), Shinichi Ishizuka (Glénat) – the third series of Ishizuka’s jazz opus is not in English but Seven Seas has translated the whole first series in five omnibus editions between 2020 and 2022
- La Boucle [tr. ‘The Loop’], Vincent Vanoli (Ouie Dire)
- Chainsaw Man (vol 13), Tatsuki Fujimoto (Crunchyroll) — English edition from Viz
- Chair À Canon [tr. ‘Cannon Fodder’], Aroha Travé (Editions FLBLB)
- Chumbo, Matthias Lehmann (Casterman) — not yet in English but Lehmann’s previous book, Parallel, is available in English from Oni Press
- Le Ciel dans la Tête [tr. ‘The Sky’s The Limit‘], Antonio Altarriba (writer), Sergio Garcia Sanchez (artist), Lola Moral (colorist) (Denoël Graphic)
- Creuser Voguer [tr. ‘Digging Sailing‘], Delphine Panique (Cornélius)
- Les Daronnes [Moms], Yeong-shin Ma (Atrabile) — Moms was published in English by Drawn & Quarterly, in 2021 (and won a Harvey Award)
- Dédales [tr. ‘Daedalus’] vol 3, Charles Burns (Cornélius) – released in French as a three book series since 2019, this final volume could mean a complete English edition isn’t far behind
- Le Dernier Sergent (vol 1): Les Guerres Immobiles [tr. ‘The Last Sergeant vol 1: Still Wars’], Fabrice Neaud (Delcourt)
- Des Maux À Dire [tr. ‘Words to Say‘], Beatriz Lema (Sarbacane)
- Dum Dum, Lukasz Wojciechowski (çà et là)
- Emkla, Peggy Adam (Atrabile)
- Et L’Île S’Embrasa [The Puerto Rican War], John Vasquez Mejias (Ici Bas) — previously self-published in English, John Vasquez Mejias’ woodcut novelette will get a rerelease in May 2024 from Union Square & Co
- Evol (vol 3), Atsushi Kaneko (Delcourt) — Kaneko’s previous work Search and Destroy is currently being serialised on Mangasplaining Extra, with a print edition from Fantagraphics May 2024.
- The Fable (vol 13), Katsuhisa Minami (Pika) — digitally available in English through Kodansha
- Fleur De Lait [Milky Way], Miguel Vila (Preque Lune) — English edition coming from Fantagraphics December 5, 2023
- Goiter, Josh Pettinger (Ici Même) — French collection of Josh Pettinger’s self-produced ongoing anthology series published by Kilgore Books
- Hanbok, Sophie Darcq (L’Apocalypse)
- L’Homme Gêné [tr, ‘Awkward Man‘], Matthieu Chiara (L’Agrume)
- L’Illusion Magnifique (vol 1): New-York 1938 [tr. The Magnificent Illusion vol 1 – New York, 1938], Alessandro Tota (Gallimard BD) — no English edition but SelfMadeHero published a previous book by Tota, Memoirs of a Book Thief, in 2019
- Les Imbuvables Ou Comment J’ai Arrêté De Boire [Impossible People – A Completely Average Recovery Story], Julia Wertz (L’Agrume) — published in English with Black Dog & Leventhal, May 2023
- Jumelle [Twin] (volumes 1 & 2), Florence Dupré La Tour (Dargaud) — digital only edition produced by Europe Comics
- Kujo L’Implacable [tr. ‘Relentless Kujô’] (vol 3), Shôhei Manabe (Kana)
- Madones et Putains [tr. ‘Madonnas and Whores‘], Nine Antico (Dupuis) — not in English but a previous book by Antico, A Tale of Two Arthurs, was translated as a digital exclusive via Europe Comics in 2020
- Mary-Pain, Lola Lorente (Actes Sud BD)
- Monica, Daniel Clowes (Delcourt) — English edition published by Fantagraphics October 2023 (one month before the French release)
- Le Nécromanchien, Matthias Arégui (2024)
- The Nice House on the Lake (vol 2), James Tynion IV (writer), Alvaro Martinez Bueno (artist), Jordie Bellaire (colorist) (Urban Comics) — smash-hit DC Black Label series, won multiple Eisners this year; complete deluxe edition released October 2023
- Océan Express, François Ayroles (L’Association)
- Les Oiseaux De Papier [tr. ‘Paper Birds‘], Mana Neyestani (çà et là) — this first fiction graphic novel by Neyestani is not available in English but Uncivisized Books published his autobio An Iranian Metamorphosis in 2014
- Quelques Minutes Après Que Le Temps S’Arrête [tr. ‘A Few Minutes After Time Stood Still‘], Doublebob (Frémok)
- Saga (vol 11), Brian K. Vaughan (writer) & Fiona Staples (artist) (Urban Comics) — the Image Comics juggernaut that is Saga
- Saint Elme (vol 4), Serge Lehman (writer) & Frederik Peeters (artist) (Delcourt) — not in English but Serge Lehman has had some work translated with Titan; Frederik Peeters has seen translation with SelfMadeHero, and most recently Lupus, with Top Shelf in 2020
- Sibylla, Max Baitinger (L’Employé Du Moi) — not in English but a previous work, Röhner, saw translation with 2dcloud
- Slava (vol 2): Les Nouveaux Russes [tr. ‘Slava vol 2: The New Russians’], Pierre Henri Gomont (Dargaud) — Europe Comics translated the first volume which saw digital-only release January 2023
- Suicide Total [Time Zone J], Julie Doucet (L’Association) — published in English with Drawn & Quarterly
- Une Chouette Vie [tr. ‘A Good Life‘], Hideyasu Moto (Misma)
- Une Éducation Orientale [tr. ‘An Eastern Education‘], Charles Berberian (Casterman) — autobio book about Berberian’s childhood. He is better known in English for his partnership with Philippe Dupuy on the Monsieur Jean series published by Humanoids and Drawn & Quarterly
- Une Enfance De Paille (tr. ‘A Straw Childhood‘), Lika Nüssli (Atrabile)
- La Véritable Histoire de Saint-Nicolas [tr. ‘The True Story of Saint Nicholas‘], Thierry Van Hasselt (Frémok)
- Le Visage de Pavil [tr. ‘The Face of Pavil‘], Jeremy Perrodeau (2024)
HERITAGE SELECTION (SÉLECTION PARTRIMOINE) — 7 books
- Anthologie Imagex, Imagex (The Hoochie Coochie)
- Le Clan des Poe [The Poe Clan] (vol 1), Moto Hagio (Akata) — released in English with Fantagraphics in 2019
- Confidences d’Une Prostitutée [tr. ‘Confessions of a prostitute’], Takao Saitô (Akata)
- Dans Les Villages [tr. ‘In The Villages‘], Max Cabanes (Les Humanoïdes Associés)
- Désir Sous La Pluie [tr. ‘Desire in the Rain‘] (Oeuvres 1981-1985), Yoshiharu Tsuge (Cornélius) — Not in English yet but Drawn & Quarterly have been publishing the complete works of Yoshiharu Tsuge and should catch up soon
- Pim Pam Poum (The Katzenjammer Kids) (vol 1): 1936-1942, Harold Knerr (Urban Comics) — one of America’s landmark comic strips, surprisingly none of the series is currently in collected reprint in English
- Quatre Japonais À San Francisco 1904-1924 [tr. ‘Four Japanese in San Francisco, 1904-1924‘], Henry Yoshitaka Kiyama (Onapratut/Le Portillon) — published in English earlier this month with Stone Bridge Press as The Four Immigrants Manga: A Japanese Experience in San Francisco, 1904-1924
KIDS SELECTION (SÉLECTION JEUNESSE) — 18 books
- Bâillements de l’après-midi [tr. ‘Yawning in the afternoon‘] (vol 1), Shin’ya Komatsu (IMHO)
- Brume (vol 1): Le Réveil du Dragon [tr. ‘Mist vol 1: The Dragon Awakens‘] , Jérôme Pélissier (writer) & Carine Hinder (artist) (Glénat)
- Chassé-croisé au Val Doré [tr. ‘Crossover in Golden Valley‘], Lewis Trondheim (writer) & Serigio Garcia Sanchez (artist) (Dupuis)
- Eddie & Noé (vol 2): Les Agitateurs [tr. ‘Eddie & Noe, vol 2: The Agitators‘], Max De Radiguès (writer) & Hugo Piette (artist) (Sarbacane) — not in English but writer/cartoonist Max De Radiguès has a number of books in English including the Stig & Tilde series from Flying Eye/Nobrow
- L’Été Du Vertige [tr. ‘Dizzy Summer‘], Adlynn Fischer (La Ville Brûle)
- Friday, Ed Brubaker (writer), Marcos Martin (artist), Muntsa Vicente (colorist) (Glénat) — first serialised online with Panel Syndicate, print release by Image in two volumes 2021-2022
- L’Incroyable Mademoiselle Bang [tr. ‘The Incredible Miss Bang‘], Yoon-Sun Park (Dupuis)
- Le Marchand de Tapis de Constantinople [The Carpet Merchant of Konstantiniyya] (vol 1), Reimena Yee (Kinaye) — Eisner-nominated online comic, print edition crowdfunded and self-published through Unbound in 2019, conclusion of duology published in 2022
- Millie & Catsou À L’Ultra Fiesta [tr. ‘Millie & Catsou in Ultra Fiesta‘], Marie Spénale (Nathan) — not in English. A previous book by the author, Wonder Pony, was published by BOOM! kids imprint kaBOOM in 2020.
- Minigolf, Lisa Laubreaux (Maison Georges)
- Nunuche, Guillaume Bianco (writer) & Marie Kerascoët (artist) (Dargaud) — digital-exclusive English edition to be published by Europe Comics November 29.
- Pépin et Olivia (vol 1): La Grande Fête De Rien Du Tout [tr. ‘Pépin & Olivia vol 1: The great party of nothing at all’], Camille Jourdy (Dupuis) — not in English however Jourdy has had two books release in the past year – Juliette (July 2023, Drawn & Quarterly) and The Wondrous Wonders (November 2022, First Second)
- Les Petites Reines [tr. ‘The Little Queens’], Magali Le Huche (Sarbacane) — based on a 2017 novel by Clémentine Beauvais (available in English as Piglettes), no English edition of this adaptation is available but a previous work by the artist, Nowhere Girl, was released by Europe Comics in 2021
- Red Flower (vol 1): Le Jeune Coq et le Soleil [tr. ‘Red Flower vol 1, Young Rooster and the Sun‘], Loui (Glénat)
- Tokyo Aliens (vol 5), NAOE (Kana) — available in English with Square Enix Manga
- Tsugai – Daemons of the Shadow Realm (vol 1), Hiromu Arakawa (Kurokawa) — available in English with Square Enix Manga
- Voyage de Malade [tr. ‘Sick Trip‘], Josephine Mark (Gallimard BD)
- Les Yeux D’Or [tr. ‘Golden Eyes‘], Marie Desplechin (writer) & Lucie Quéméner (artist) (Delcourt)
CRIME-THRILLER SELECTION (SÉLECTION FAUVE POLAR SNCF) — 7 books
[Note: winner to be voted by French rail (SNCF) passengers]
- Alva dans la nuit [tr. ‘Alva in the Night’], Aksel Studsgarth (writer) & Daniel Hansen (artist) (Glénat)
- Contrition, Carlos Portela (writer) & Keko (artist) (Denoël Graphic)
- Cyan, Lucia Biagi (çà et là)
- Je Suis Leur Silence [tr. ‘I Am Their Silence’], Jordi Lafebre (Dargaud) — no English version but previous work Always Never, initially from Europe Comics then published by Dark Horse, won critical and awards attention this year
- La Méthode Gemini (tr. ‘The Gemini Method’), Magius (Misma)
- Simenon – Le Passager Du Polarlys [tr. ‘Simenon’s The Polarlys Passenger’], José-Louis Bocquet (writer) & Christian Cailleaux (artist) (Dargaud) — No English version of this adaptation of the 1932 Simenon novel (there have been selected, now out of print, translations of the novel itself – The Mystery of the ‘Polarlys’ in 1942, Danger at Sea in 1954). Bocquet has had a number of previous works released in English as the writer on graphic biographies for Kiki de Montparnasse, Josephine Baker and Alice Guy at SelfMadeHero. Illustrator Cailleaux has had two works released in English, both from Cinebook – Blake & Mortimer vol 27: The Call of the Moloch (written by Jean Dufaux) and U Ray sequel The Fiery Arrow (with legendary BD writer Jean Van Hamme)
- Utsubora (vol 2), Asumiko Nakamura (Akata) — first book released in English by Vertical in 2013 as Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist
ECOLOGICAL SELECTION (SÉLECTION ECO-FAUVE RAJA) — 7 books
- Frontier, Guillaume Singelin (Label 619) — English translation currently running on Kickstarter from Magnetic Press
- Inuit, Edmond Baudoin & Troubs (L’Association) — no English edition. Of the two authors, Baudoin has seen some translation: SelfMadeHero released one book in 2016, Dalí, and NYRC released Piero in 2018
- Michel et la Bataille des Dombarelles [tr. ‘Michel and the Battle of Dombarelles’], Pierre Maurel (L’Employé du Moi)
- Naturellement [tr. ‘Naturally‘], Yannis La Macchia (Atrabile)
- Neoforest (vol 1): Cocto Citadel, Fred Duval (writer) & Philippe Scoffoni (artist) (Dargaud) — English edition available digitally from Europe Comics
- Les Pistes Invisibles [tr. ‘Invisible Paths‘], Xavier Mussat (Albin Michel)
- Le Voyage de Shuna [Shuna’s Journey], Hayao Miyazaki (Sarbacane) – English edition published by FirstSecond in November 2022, won an Eisner in 2023
HIGH SCHOOLER SELECTION (SÉLECTION FAUVE DES LYCÉENS) — 10 books
[Note: winner to be selected by a jury of 10 French high school students]
- Creuser Voguer, [tr. ‘Digging Sailing‘], Delphine Panique (Cornélius)
- Des Maux À Dire [tr. ‘Words to Say‘], Beatriz Lema (Sarbacane)
- Emkla, Peggy Adam (Atrabile)
- L’Illusion Magnifique (vol 1): New-York 1938 [tr. The Magnificent Illusion vol 1 – New York, 1938], Alessandro Tota (Gallimard BD) — no English edition but SelfMadeHero published a previous book by Tota, Memoirs of a Book Thief, in 2019
- Jumelle [Twin] (volumes 1 & 2), Florence Dupré La Tour (Dargaud) — digital only edition produced by Europe Comics
- Mary-Pain, Lola Lorente (Actes Sud BD)
- Océan Express, François Ayroles (L’Association)
- Les Oiseaux De Papier [tr. ‘Paper Birds‘], Mana Neyestani (çà et là) — this first fiction graphic novel by Neyestani is not available in English but Uncivisized Books published his autobio An Iranian Metamorphosis in 2014
- Le Visage de Pavil [tr. ‘The Face of Pavil‘], Jeremy Perrodeau (2024)
