In My Badly Drawn Life by Gipi and translated by Jamie Richards, the cartoonist shares his personal history in what’s described as an “uncompromising autobiographical tale.” The 144 page hardcover will be published on March 22nd, 2022 by Fantagraphics Books, but you can get your first look at the graphic memoir today right here at The Beat.

My Badly Drawn Life

Gipi is the Italian cartoonist and filmmaker whose credits include the comic Appunti per una storia di Guerra (Notes for a War Story), which was awarded “Best Book” at the Angouleme International Comics Festival, and directing the 2011 movie The Last Earthling. He also designed and illustrated the card game Bruti. Previous comics by Gipi published by Fantagraphics include One Story and Land of the Sons, each also translated by Richards.

According to the Fantagraphics page for the graphic memoir, My Badly Drawn Life is a vivid and unflinching examination of the human condition.

“You’ve always got to laugh at tragedy,” Gipi is quoted. “That’s why I laugh about my ailment. Ailments. About being a sexual spastic. About my perennial, cowardly, tantalizing desire to die. You can laugh about almost anything. Almost.”

My Badly Drawn Life features work in Gipi’s signature scribbled ink style, which is punctuated by splashes of watercolor. Using both events that actually transpired as well as imagined narratives, the graphic memoir promises to provide a “kaleidoscopic journey into the depths of his psyche.”

Arriving March 22nd 

You can pre-order My Badly Drawn Life by clicking the link above and visiting the Fantagraphics shop.

Will you be picking up a copy of My Badly Drawn Life when it is released on March 22nd? What do you think of Gipi’s art in the pages included in the preview below?

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