Craig Thompson

Blankets is the story of a young man coming of age and finding the confidence to express his creative voice. Craig Thompson's poignant graphic memoir plays out against the backdrop of a Midwestern winterscape: finely-hewn linework draws together a portrait of small town life, a rigorously fundamentalist Christian childhood, and a lonely, emotionally mixed-up adolescence. Under an engulfing blanket of snow, Craig and Raina fall in love at winter church camp, revealing to one another their struggles with faith and their dreams of escape. Over time though, their personal demons resurface and their relationship falls apart. It's a universal story, and Thompson's vibrant brushstrokes and unique page designs make the familiar heartbreaking all over again.

Craig Thompson spent three months traveling through Barcelona, the Alps, and France, as well as Morocco, researching his next graphic novel, Habibi. Spontaneous sketches and a travelogue diary document his adventures and quiet moments, creating a raw and intimate portrait of countries, culture and the wandering artist.

From ages 10 to 20, Craig Thompson (the author of Blankets) and his little brother Phil, toiled in Wisconsin farms. Weeding and harvesting ginseng—an exotic medicinal herb that fetched huge profits in China—funded Craig’s youthful obsession with comic books. Comics in turn, allowed him to escape his rural, working class trappings. Now, for the first time in his career, Thompson is working in serial form, in a bimonthly comic book series. Part memoir, part travelogue, part essay—all comic book—Ginseng Roots explores class divide, agriculture, holistic healing, the 300 year long trade relationship between China and North America, childhood labor, and the bond between two brothers.

From the celebrated author of Blankets and Habibi comes a new graphic memoir exploring the class divide, childhood labor, family, and our globalized world—all centered on Wisconsin's ginseng farming industry When Blankets first published in 2003, Craig Thompson's seminal memoir about first love and faith lost in rural Wisconsin débuted to rapturous acclaim. The winner of two Eisner and three Harvey Awards, it is considered one of the all-time great works of graphic storytelling. Now, in Thompson's long-awaited return to the autobiographical form, comes the story that Blankets left out. Ginseng Roots follows Thompson and his siblings, who spent the summers of their youth weeding and harvesting rows of coveted American ginseng on rural Wisconsin farms for one dollar an hour. In his trademark breathtaking pen-and-ink work, Thompson interweaves this lost youth with the 300-year-old history of the global ginseng trade and the many lives it has tied together—from ginseng hunters in ancient China to industrial farmers and migrant harvesters in the American Midwest to his own family still grappling with the aftershocks of the bitter past. Stretching from Marathon, Wisconsin, to Northeast China, Ginseng Roots charts the rise of industrial agriculture, the decline of American labor, and the search for a sense of home in a rapidly changing world.

Cresciuto in una famiglia modesta e molto religiosa, Craig ha lavorato dai dieci ai vent'anni nei campi di ginseng del Wisconsin. Ma che ci fa una millenaria radice medici-nale cinese nel cuore rurale degli Stati Uniti? È un po' quello che, guardandosi allo specchio, si chiede il giovane «Ma che ci faccio qui?». Ogni centesimo guadagnato raccogliendo ginseng, lo spende per com-prare fumetti, un hobby che gli permetterà di lasciare quel piccolo mondo di sacrifici e rimpianti. Oggi, molti anni dopo, parlando con il padre, la madre, il fratello Phil, la sorella Sarah e molta gente del suo paesino d'origine (la cui economia da anni ruota at- torno al ginseng), Thompson scava nei propri ricordi, ripensa al dolore che un'opera nuda e travolgente come Blankets ha inflitto a chi gli ha sempre voluto bene e va alla ricerca delle proprie radici. Radici che a volte, proprio come il ginseng, con-tengono il segreto per guarire ogni male.*********************** Questo eBook è ottimizzato per la fruizione su tablet; se ne sconsiglia pertanto la lettura sui dispositivi eReader.

The Harvey Award-winning debut graphic novel from the internationally acclaimed author of Blankets —about a turtle who heeds his inner voice to leave his fishing village and his best friend to embark on a life-changing journey.   This here be the first ever “graphical novel book” by Craig Thompson. It was winnning a Harvey Award, no less. It documentates the once upon a time in our fishing village town and a short turtle lad name of Chunky, last name Rice.   Mister Chunky Rice be living in the same rooming house likewise myself, only that boy be restless. Looking for something. And he puts hisself on my brother Chuck’s ship and boats out to sea to find it. Only he be departin’ from his bestest of all friends, his deer mouse, I mean, mouse deer chum Dandel.   Now why in a whirl would someone leave beyond a buddy? Just what be that turtle lad searchings for? I said you best read the book to find out. Merle said, “Doot doot.”

From the internationally acclaimed author of Blankets , a highly anticipated new graphic novel. Sprawling across an epic landscape of deserts, harems, and modern industrial clutter, Habibi tells the tale of Dodola and Zam, refugee child slaves bound to each other by chance, by circumstance, and by the love that grows between them. We follow them as their lives unfold together and apart; as they struggle to make a place for themselves in a world (not unlike our own) fueled by fear, lust, and greed; and as they discover the extraordinary depth—and frailty—of their connection. At once contemporary and timeless, Habibi gives us a love story of astounding resonance: a parable about our relationship to the natural world, the cultural divide between the first and third worlds, the common heritage of Christianity and Islam, and, most potently, the magic of storytelling.

Uma das graphic novels mais premiadas dos últimos tempos, Retalhos é um relato da vida no Meio Oeste americano. Thompson retrata sua própria história, da infância até o início da vida adulta, numa cidadezinha de Wisconsin, no centro dos Estados Unidos, que parece estar sempre coberta pela neve. Seu crescimento é marcado pelo temor a Deus - transmitido por sua família, seu colégio, seu pastor e as trágicas passagens bíblicas que lê -, que se interpõe contra seus desejos, como o de se expressar pelo desenho. Ao mesmo tempo Thompson descreve a relação com o irmão mais novo, com quem teve de dividir a cama durante toda a infância. Conforme amadurecem, os irmãos se distanciam, episódio narrado pelo autor com rara sensibilidade, e que pontua toda a formação afetiva de Thompson. Na adolescência, seus desejos se expandem e acabam tomando forma em Raina - uma garota vivaz, de alma poética e impulsiva, quase o oposto total de Thompson - com quem começa a relação que mudará as visões que ele tem da família, de Deus, do futuro e, enfim, do próprio amor. Retalhos trata da tragédia e das dores, físicas e morais, de crescer sentindo-se diferente do ambiente que o cerca, e a coragem necessária para questioná-lo e seguir rumos distintos dos que lhe são pregados. Como história de amor, Thompson dedica páginas e páginas a representar um única sensação: nas frias noites de nevasca, como é dormir pela primeira vez com alguém que você ama, em um universo conjunto sob as cobertas. Traz, enfim, as dores e as paixões dos melhores romance de formação - mas dentro de uma linguagem gráfica própria e extremamente original.

Pour Violette, la famille est ce qu’il y a de plus précieux dans toute la galaxie. Alors le jour où son père disparaît au cours d’une mission dangereuse, hors de question d’attendre sagement son retour : oubliant toute prudence, elle se lance à sa recherche, accompagnée d’une bande d’amis un peu "spatiaux"... Mais l’espace est vaste et dangereux, et Violette va vite découvrir que son père est dans une situation TRES périlleuse, sa vie ne tenant qu’à un fil !! Dès lors, rien n’arrêtera Violette dans sa quête pour le tirer d’affaire et sauver sa famille. Space Boulettes conjugue les thèmes de la famille, de l’amitié et de la loyauté, tout en invitant le lecteur à s’interroger sur les défis sociaux et écologiques de notre monde.

Highly acclaimed graphic novelist Craig Thompson's debut book for young readers about a plucky heroine on a mission to save her dad. For Violet Marlocke, family is the most important thing in the whole galaxy. So when her father goes missing while on a hazardous job, she can't just sit around and do nothing. To get him back, Violet throws caution to the stars and sets out with a group of misfit friends on a quest to find him. But space is vast and dangerous, and she soon discovers that her dad is in big, BIG trouble. With her father's life on the line, nothing is going to stop Violet from trying to rescue him and keep her family together.Visionary graphic novel creator Craig Thompson brings all of his wit, warmth, and humor to create a brilliantly drawn story for all ages. Set in a distant yet familiar future, Space Dumplins weaves themes of family, friendship, and loyalty into a grand space adventure filled with quirky aliens, awesome spaceships, and sharp commentary on our environmentally challenged world.