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Rapide Blanc
Award-winning Quebecois cartoonist Pascal Blanchet’s graphic novel is a compelling account of the rise and fall of the small northern town of White Rapids. In the first English translation of his work, Blanchet seamlessly blends fact and fiction as he weaves together the official history of the town and snapshots of the quotidian life of its residents. Founded in 1928 in an isolated region of Quebec forest, the town was conceived and constructed by the Shawinigan Water & Power Company to function as a fully equipped, self-contained living community for workers at the nearby dam and their families. Intended as an incentive to lure workers to the remote and inaccessible region, White Rapids provided its residents with all the luxuries of middle-class modern life in a pastoral setting—until the town was abruptly shut down in 1971, when the company changed hands.
Blanchet’s unique, streamlined, retro-inspired aesthetic draws on art deco and fifties modernist design to vividly conjure up idyllic scenes of lazy summer days and crisp winter nights in White Rapids, transporting the reader back to a more innocent time.
Blanchet’s unique, streamlined, retro-inspired aesthetic draws on art deco and fifties modernist design to vividly conjure up idyllic scenes of lazy summer days and crisp winter nights in White Rapids, transporting the reader back to a more innocent time.
151 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2006
169 people want to read
About the author
Pascal Blanchet
18 books21 followersPascal Blanchet est né à Trois-Rivières en 1980. Il possède un intérêt marqué pour le design du 20e siècle, l’architecture et le jazz. Illustrateur autodidacte, il réalise des illustrations pour des journaux et magazines américains et canadiens. Il a notamment travaillé pour Penguin Book, The San Francisco Magazine, The New-Yorker et le National Post.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
March 28, 2024
Superb 50's modernist style artwork. Absolutely wonderful to just look at.
The book basically just loosely documents the true story of a power company in Montreal, Shawinigan Water and Power, creating the small isolated town of Rapide Blanc for their 250 employees to construct and maintain a hydroelectric dam.
The book basically just loosely documents the true story of a power company in Montreal, Shawinigan Water and Power, creating the small isolated town of Rapide Blanc for their 250 employees to construct and maintain a hydroelectric dam.
December 15, 2025
Read this at the same time you see/read Our Town by Thornton Wilder. The life and death of a town is portrayed in a way that will have you thinking about your own community. Not to go too far off track, but I think many of the problems we face today are due to loss of 'anchoring' within out communities. This GN portrays this problem in a fresh and unique way.
September 18, 2011
In the early `20s, the Shawinigan Water & Power Company decides to make more money by setting up a dam further upriver near Quebec in an isolated region. In order to make the dam work they decide to build a town in the area for the workers and it's called Rapide Blanc. The dam and town are built and the workers move in. The town and company prosper from the dam and live well through the years until 1971 when the Shawinigan Water & Power Company is sold and the dam shut down. With the dam shut, the workers leave Rapide Blanc to seek work elsewhere and the town becomes all but abandoned. This is the story Pascal Blanchet writes and draws beautifully in this book.
While the story might be a bit light as to almost be no story at all, merely a retelling of facts that happened in the 20th century, it's the art that really grabs the attention. Blanchet's style is reminiscent of `50s art-deco and it's really well produced here. Every scene is lovingly brought to life like Christmas parties, office meetings and holidays and yet exaggerated to suit the style of flamboyant storytelling. The President of the Shawinigan Water & Power Company and the goings on in that office are similar to the Coen Brothers' film "Hudsucker Proxy" both aesthetically and in tone.
It's a really well produced book and the rise and fall of Rapide Blanc mirrors similar stories of towns that flourished and then emptied such as mining towns in the UK. Blanchet does well to tell a familiar story well and imbue it with a distinctive appearance to enrich it for the reader. Not particularly essential reading but enjoyable nonetheless.
While the story might be a bit light as to almost be no story at all, merely a retelling of facts that happened in the 20th century, it's the art that really grabs the attention. Blanchet's style is reminiscent of `50s art-deco and it's really well produced here. Every scene is lovingly brought to life like Christmas parties, office meetings and holidays and yet exaggerated to suit the style of flamboyant storytelling. The President of the Shawinigan Water & Power Company and the goings on in that office are similar to the Coen Brothers' film "Hudsucker Proxy" both aesthetically and in tone.
It's a really well produced book and the rise and fall of Rapide Blanc mirrors similar stories of towns that flourished and then emptied such as mining towns in the UK. Blanchet does well to tell a familiar story well and imbue it with a distinctive appearance to enrich it for the reader. Not particularly essential reading but enjoyable nonetheless.
September 3, 2008
White Rapids is a graphic novel that defies description in many ways, for to even call it a graphic "novel" seems a bit of a misnomer. The book gives an account of life in the small, idyllic town of Rapide Blanc, a place that was at once both pastoral and filled with modern conveniences, both isolated from the world and perfectly in tune with the ideals of the time. It is in many ways the paragon of 1950s ideals, like an image straight out of Leave it to Beaver or The Andy Griffith Show, and thus it seems almost too good to be true, so much an archetype that it must have been constructed.
And it was in fact constructed, but that also doesn't prevent it from being true. Rapide Blanc was a real town built in the late 1920s in a secluded area of Quebec by a Canadian power company. The Shawinigan Water and Power Company had put up a dam on the St. Maurice River, and they erected the town as a home for the workers there. As an incentive to entice their employees to move to such a remote location, the company made sure that the town was fully stocked with all manner of luxuries and amenities, as well as every convenience necessary for modern life.
The book then is a stunning portrait of this setting, brimming with nostalgia. Pascal Blanchet, the artist behind White Rapids, is primarily known as an illustrator, and it shows in his work. His Art Deco depictions of the town look like they could have leapt directly out of magazine advertisements of the time period. Similarly his use of color throughout the book is inspired, as he limits his color palette to orange and brown, casting everything with a sepia hue that evokes a feeling of a bygone era.
Blanchet also brilliantly uses the montage technique of combining his narration with the pictures, actually working the words into the image itself. A key example can be found in the early parts of the book, when he places his narration of the board meeting in which the town's construction was planned in the office directory of the company's corporate headquarters. In another instance, he fits his narration of the town's trips to the local cinema into the image of closing credits rolling across the silver screen, juxtaposed with a recreation of an iconic image from Singing in the Rain.
There are no characters to speak of in the book, however, save for the head of the Shawnigan Water and Power Company who orders his architects to build the village and approves the plans. (A case could be made that the only other "character" in the book is a fish nicknamed the General, whose mammoth size and uncanny ability to elude capture becomes the stuff of local legend.) The plot is similarly threadbare and focuses simply on how the town was initially built in 1928 and why it was eventually shut down in 1971.
Instead Blanchet fills the book with snapshots of life in this beautiful little town, showing us charming visions of life in the 1930s as the people of Rapide Blanc shop at the Co-op, clown around at the local "beach," and throw elaborate dinner parties. On every page, he uses his picturesque imagery to send the reader back to a simpler time, as he does when he shows the town in winter in the ‘40s: children frolicking in the snow and building snowmen, people kissing under mistletoe at Christmas gatherings, a boy perched on Santa's lap.
If there is one drawback to the book, then, it is that it seems in some ways a bit inconsequential. As stated in the beginning, it is difficult to classify this book as a graphic "novel" when there is so little to it in the end, and at a price of $27.95 the book's gossamer "plot" might not seem worth the steep price to some. But cost not withstanding, White Rapids is still a superlative work of art that fondly recalls the days of yesteryear and sends its readers back to a scenic setting that seems to have sprung from dreams.
And it was in fact constructed, but that also doesn't prevent it from being true. Rapide Blanc was a real town built in the late 1920s in a secluded area of Quebec by a Canadian power company. The Shawinigan Water and Power Company had put up a dam on the St. Maurice River, and they erected the town as a home for the workers there. As an incentive to entice their employees to move to such a remote location, the company made sure that the town was fully stocked with all manner of luxuries and amenities, as well as every convenience necessary for modern life.
The book then is a stunning portrait of this setting, brimming with nostalgia. Pascal Blanchet, the artist behind White Rapids, is primarily known as an illustrator, and it shows in his work. His Art Deco depictions of the town look like they could have leapt directly out of magazine advertisements of the time period. Similarly his use of color throughout the book is inspired, as he limits his color palette to orange and brown, casting everything with a sepia hue that evokes a feeling of a bygone era.
Blanchet also brilliantly uses the montage technique of combining his narration with the pictures, actually working the words into the image itself. A key example can be found in the early parts of the book, when he places his narration of the board meeting in which the town's construction was planned in the office directory of the company's corporate headquarters. In another instance, he fits his narration of the town's trips to the local cinema into the image of closing credits rolling across the silver screen, juxtaposed with a recreation of an iconic image from Singing in the Rain.
There are no characters to speak of in the book, however, save for the head of the Shawnigan Water and Power Company who orders his architects to build the village and approves the plans. (A case could be made that the only other "character" in the book is a fish nicknamed the General, whose mammoth size and uncanny ability to elude capture becomes the stuff of local legend.) The plot is similarly threadbare and focuses simply on how the town was initially built in 1928 and why it was eventually shut down in 1971.
Instead Blanchet fills the book with snapshots of life in this beautiful little town, showing us charming visions of life in the 1930s as the people of Rapide Blanc shop at the Co-op, clown around at the local "beach," and throw elaborate dinner parties. On every page, he uses his picturesque imagery to send the reader back to a simpler time, as he does when he shows the town in winter in the ‘40s: children frolicking in the snow and building snowmen, people kissing under mistletoe at Christmas gatherings, a boy perched on Santa's lap.
If there is one drawback to the book, then, it is that it seems in some ways a bit inconsequential. As stated in the beginning, it is difficult to classify this book as a graphic "novel" when there is so little to it in the end, and at a price of $27.95 the book's gossamer "plot" might not seem worth the steep price to some. But cost not withstanding, White Rapids is still a superlative work of art that fondly recalls the days of yesteryear and sends its readers back to a scenic setting that seems to have sprung from dreams.
May 25, 2018
Most of the stars are for the amazing design.
Story-wise, it's not much. It's about the small town of White Rapids, a company town built for the employees of a hydro-electric dam.
But the way Pascal Blanchet uses images to tell a story is amazing.
Story-wise, it's not much. It's about the small town of White Rapids, a company town built for the employees of a hydro-electric dam.
But the way Pascal Blanchet uses images to tell a story is amazing.
April 19, 2024
Short and sweet with a beautifully simple design and color palette.
Read
March 9, 2021Less graphic novel, more historical vignette, almost an exhibition in book form. Love the limited color palette and fun period evocative art. Clever page layouts and playful uses of type (though I would quibble with some of the type combos).
September 7, 2008
I absolutely love this book and have now read it twice (it doesn't take long.) It tells the rise and fall of White Rapids a town in Canada that springs up after a hydro-electric dam is built in a remote area in the 20s and 30s.
The visuals and type in this book are like nothing I've seen in a graphic novel. The back cover describes is as a "streamlined, retro-inspired aesthetic [that] draws on Art Deco and fifties modernist design..." That sounds about right.
This book reminds me of a Richard Russo novel. We don't get to know any of the townfolk like we would in one of his books, but the setting and feel are similar.
If you want to see some interiors of the book go to
http://tinyurl.com/5mjvd4
and you can check out Pascal Blancet's website here:
http://www.pascalblanchet.ca/
The visuals and type in this book are like nothing I've seen in a graphic novel. The back cover describes is as a "streamlined, retro-inspired aesthetic [that] draws on Art Deco and fifties modernist design..." That sounds about right.
This book reminds me of a Richard Russo novel. We don't get to know any of the townfolk like we would in one of his books, but the setting and feel are similar.
If you want to see some interiors of the book go to
http://tinyurl.com/5mjvd4
and you can check out Pascal Blancet's website here:
http://www.pascalblanchet.ca/
February 19, 2017
Absolutely gorgeous and creative artwork, remniscent of the illustration of the era this story depicts, although "story" seems a generous term here. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop during this story of a small, idyllic village being built around a power plant--surely, disaser will strike? Surely, SOMETHING will happen? It doesn't. The village is created, then eventually the plant closes, and everyone moves away, abandoning the town. It wasn't clear to me what the point of this really was. Did the author have ties to this village? What's going on with the village now? (I'm just assuming the village was real--is it?) The story end just as what feels like the REAL story -- the village's aftermath -- is meant to begin.
December 5, 2009
Great graphic novel--an excellent choice (a must read) for someone who wants to experience the variety that graphic novels offer.
Wonderful Art Deco and fifties illustrations using only brown and orange hues.
Craftwise- Uses news articles, maps, "discography," dialogue and more. I’ve seen company towns and this book shows them well, from the individuals to the community, to the fish no one can catch. Emotional power of no words right after page “1971” to 3 spreads showing empty rooms in house, then people leaving. Great page turns and great use of blank pages.
Perfect example of a book without a “real” character; the town is the character.
Wonderful Art Deco and fifties illustrations using only brown and orange hues.
Craftwise- Uses news articles, maps, "discography," dialogue and more. I’ve seen company towns and this book shows them well, from the individuals to the community, to the fish no one can catch. Emotional power of no words right after page “1971” to 3 spreads showing empty rooms in house, then people leaving. Great page turns and great use of blank pages.
Perfect example of a book without a “real” character; the town is the character.
December 18, 2021
I thought this was great - a narrative in graphic novel form about a town that was created by an electrical generating company (Shawinigan Water and Power Company) along the St. Maurice River in remote upper Quebec in the 1930s, but then shut down when technology (ability to remotely access the sluice controls - via a microwave transmission link) made the need for actual personnel at the electrical generating station (a dam) unnecessary. Since the location was so remote, the town of White Rapids (or, Rapide Blanc) had been created to house the company employees and their families and included substantial brick houses, and a number of amenities, such as a food coop, two churches, a school; subsequently, a real community developed during the decades that the town existed. The book describes the activities of the community - festivals, parties, fishing, trips to a beach at a lake - and the regret/sadness that set in when the town was closed by the company (actually, the company that created the town, Shawinigan, was absorbed by State-owned Hydro Quebec in 1963, and it was Hydro Quebec that subsequently implemented the microwave links to its remote dams in 1969; automation made the employees redundant but they were offered other positions within Hydro Quebec - the entire process of placing/relocating the employees and closing the town took two years.)
I thought the style of the graphic novel was great - extremely flat, stylized, simplified but highly effective, with a color palette limited to woodsy shades of tan/brown/beige/rust. I loved this graphic novel and would recommend it to anyone interested in Canada, hydro power, or just an interesting, somewhat sad, but overall extremely well-done, excursion into hydroelectric power generation, at least one aspect of it - perhaps a story of capitalism vs. community in a remote corner of Canada, a story that´s both poignant and uncanny - how a community can ¨instantly¨ spring up courtesy of a company spending millions to construct it in order to house its employees, and then almost as quickly turn into a ghost town.
I thought the style of the graphic novel was great - extremely flat, stylized, simplified but highly effective, with a color palette limited to woodsy shades of tan/brown/beige/rust. I loved this graphic novel and would recommend it to anyone interested in Canada, hydro power, or just an interesting, somewhat sad, but overall extremely well-done, excursion into hydroelectric power generation, at least one aspect of it - perhaps a story of capitalism vs. community in a remote corner of Canada, a story that´s both poignant and uncanny - how a community can ¨instantly¨ spring up courtesy of a company spending millions to construct it in order to house its employees, and then almost as quickly turn into a ghost town.
September 4, 2018
This is a beautiful graphic novel about a small, very isolated Quebec town that was created in the 1930s in order to staff a hydroelectric dam project, and eventually destroyed when the project no longer needed staff. Based on a combination of history and imagination, there is not so much a story here as a set of idyllic impressions -- the town being founded, community life, how people kept busy during the harsh winters. I enjoyed it for the clever, heartfelt art, which is very much a take on the period it is portraying, but I did not find that it left much behind when I had finished reading except for a curiosity about the real town behind these nostalgic images.
May 16, 2024
Muy fan de los libros de Drawn & Quarterly. Este en particular es una oda en voz baja a una era perdida. Una compañía de electricidad decide crear a principios del siglo xx un pueblo in the middle of nowhere para acomodar a sus trabajadores y a sus familias pues ha invertido a lo grande en plantas hidroeléctricas. Todo marcha sin problemas hasta que el gobierno decide adquirir el negocio y borrar al pueblo del mapa. Poco texto, gran trabajo tipográfico, colores pasteles y apagados. Al final incluye una playlist que te va a reconciliar con el mundo, con la vida.
June 17, 2017
Livre difficilement classable (bande-dessinée à ma bibliothèque) , une véritable oeuvre d'art! J'aurais aimé voir un petit supplément à la fin du récit du genre entrevue avec des gens ayant vécu à Rapide-Blanc.
July 24, 2018
I have never read anything with this kind of structure before. I found it really fascinating and enjoyable. However, I did find some of the text difficult to read. Would still recommend this book though.
January 12, 2019
The story of a little town in Quebec that is built to support a hydroelectric power plant, and is subsequently shut down 50 years later when the government nationalizes all electricity and automates the dams.
July 17, 2019
What an beautifully designed book this is!
I admire Pascale Blanchet's artistic talent immensely.
That said the story is not very deep or satisfying. It had no resonance for me personally.Which is too bad, because as i said it is very pleasing to look at..
I admire Pascale Blanchet's artistic talent immensely.
That said the story is not very deep or satisfying. It had no resonance for me personally.Which is too bad, because as i said it is very pleasing to look at..
December 20, 2017
What a lovely little book. The storytelling is sparse, which is just fine because the stylistic beauty totally carries this little tale of a short-lived, rural Canadian town.
January 4, 2018
I like a graphic novel now and then - this one was more about the images and less about the text. The images are amazing, clean design. The story is an interesting piece of history I hadn't known.
January 3, 2018
J’ai adoré ce livre! Histoire, images, la justesse, petit bonheur de vacances des Fêtes! Merci!
August 7, 2020
Pas aussi touchant et étoffé que La Petite Russie, un livre sur une problématique similaire, mais finement illustré et tout aussi captivant.
September 5, 2024
Awesome. Highly recommended.
Blanchet's art is what grabs you most. The story is about the birth and disappearance of a small Canadian town called Rapide Blanc (White Rapids), which was created in 1928 as a home to workers who were employed in the operation of a dam far from the Canadian road system.
Done in the style a pastel, 1950s advertising/pop/design-intense poster, each page is a single illustration. Blanchet incorporate's the town's history into the design of each page, and casts Rapide Blanc as a idyllic image of smalltown utopia. Such was probably not really the case in a far north Canadian village, but White Rapids is more style and beautiful artwork than fully rounded narrative.
It's a beautiful book. If you see a copy, I strongly recommend paging through it. Nothing can sell you more than seeing the pages themselves.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Reading this again after seventeen years, I'm still awestruck by the design and artwork. (Although I'll add that some of the text/font choices don't entire work against the backgrounds.) The story isn't deep. The power company wants to build a hydroelectric dam far up the river. It's the 1920s and that part of Canada isn't well developed yet, so they build an entire town to support the labor force. Eventually, the power is nationalized, the roads are enhanced, and automation is introduced, leading to the the town closing. No big twists (unless you count that fact that ALL the employees were offered other jobs!), no shocking developments. It's just a pastel, sweet remembrance of a pastel, sweet town. And it's a helluva showcase for Blanchet's amazing illustration.
Blanchet's art is what grabs you most. The story is about the birth and disappearance of a small Canadian town called Rapide Blanc (White Rapids), which was created in 1928 as a home to workers who were employed in the operation of a dam far from the Canadian road system.
Done in the style a pastel, 1950s advertising/pop/design-intense poster, each page is a single illustration. Blanchet incorporate's the town's history into the design of each page, and casts Rapide Blanc as a idyllic image of smalltown utopia. Such was probably not really the case in a far north Canadian village, but White Rapids is more style and beautiful artwork than fully rounded narrative.
It's a beautiful book. If you see a copy, I strongly recommend paging through it. Nothing can sell you more than seeing the pages themselves.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Reading this again after seventeen years, I'm still awestruck by the design and artwork. (Although I'll add that some of the text/font choices don't entire work against the backgrounds.) The story isn't deep. The power company wants to build a hydroelectric dam far up the river. It's the 1920s and that part of Canada isn't well developed yet, so they build an entire town to support the labor force. Eventually, the power is nationalized, the roads are enhanced, and automation is introduced, leading to the the town closing. No big twists (unless you count that fact that ALL the employees were offered other jobs!), no shocking developments. It's just a pastel, sweet remembrance of a pastel, sweet town. And it's a helluva showcase for Blanchet's amazing illustration.
July 23, 2016
Two stars for the story, and an extra for the artwork. The latter is pretty fly: all art deco-y and 1950's modern-ish. The layout and text integration are also interesting.
The story follows the rise and demise of a community built for employees of a Quebec hydroelectric company. We see the community's inception in the company's office tower (heavily reminiscent of Hudsucker Industries), watch the little village grow and flourish, and finally bid it adieu, as improved transportation between company headquarters and the dam it supports makes it irrelevant.
An interesting enough tale in theory, but as it's presented isn't wildly absorbing. I just never...felt it. I didn't give a dam (heh!) about any of the townsfolk and their weird little experiment in forging a community out of whole cloth or the subtle tragedy of relocation. In more capable storytelling hands, I get the sense that this coulda been something.
Mostly, this book is real purty to look at.
The story follows the rise and demise of a community built for employees of a Quebec hydroelectric company. We see the community's inception in the company's office tower (heavily reminiscent of Hudsucker Industries), watch the little village grow and flourish, and finally bid it adieu, as improved transportation between company headquarters and the dam it supports makes it irrelevant.
An interesting enough tale in theory, but as it's presented isn't wildly absorbing. I just never...felt it. I didn't give a dam (heh!) about any of the townsfolk and their weird little experiment in forging a community out of whole cloth or the subtle tragedy of relocation. In more capable storytelling hands, I get the sense that this coulda been something.
Mostly, this book is real purty to look at.
September 5, 2015
Drawn and Quarterly books all have this smell to them. This book smells exactly like It's a Good Life if you Don't Weaken by Seth, which happens to be one of my favorite comics ever, so I semi-consciously was associating this book in that favorable light.
Blanchet is similar to Seth and Chester Brown, though. This book, in an amazing, visually compelling retro style, full of interesting lettering and 50s modern design, tells the story of the creation of a small town in Quebec (built when a dam was put in nearby and workers were needed to live there) and the lives of the residents. It's very quiet in a way similar to Clyde Fans, while also reminding me of Louis Riel.
Blanchet is similar to Seth and Chester Brown, though. This book, in an amazing, visually compelling retro style, full of interesting lettering and 50s modern design, tells the story of the creation of a small town in Quebec (built when a dam was put in nearby and workers were needed to live there) and the lives of the residents. It's very quiet in a way similar to Clyde Fans, while also reminding me of Louis Riel.
December 6, 2010
White Rapids tells the story of the rise and fall of a small Canadian company town. Founded in 1928 as a community for workers at the nearby dam and power plant, White Rapids provided a slice of middle class life for Quebecois until the town was shut down under the government plan to automate the plant. The story was on the thin side but the highlight of the novel was the art deco/50s modernist style of the illustrations. I really liked the brown/orange/gray color scheme, the stylized people (especially the tiny feet) and the monumental buildings/industry. I would recommend this for people interested in graphic novels but not interested in superhero or tortured adolescent stories.
May 23, 2012
This is the kind of book either you will love it for the design of it or you will hate it for the same. Having a stake in design myself, I fit in the first category. Basically the whole book is more like a picture book than a graphic novel but the graphics itself are gorgeous. The typography and the use of the art are the stars of this book and if you're looking for a big long story, you'll likely be disappointed. Still, it gives you a lovely, nostalgic view of life in White Rapids and has a distinctively Canadian feel to the scenes. I really is a piece of art and it's recommended to those people out there who want to look at pretty things.
March 14, 2012
Art déco graphic novel from one of the best graphic novel artist in Quebec. Blanchet with a quasi monochrome palette of dark almost black brown, to bright orange tells the story of a 'company town' up north on the St-Maurice river, Rapide Blanc. Built to house the employees of the water and energy company operating the hydro damp, Rapide Blanc became a ghost town in 1971 when the hydro damp now own by Hydro Québec went for automated operations.
It's a somber, yet clear look at a way of life that was completely out of touch with the rest of the province.
I liked it a lot.
It's a somber, yet clear look at a way of life that was completely out of touch with the rest of the province.
I liked it a lot.
June 6, 2012
Mad Men + Michel Rabigliati + I dunno, maybe a bluegrass song on Prairie Home Companion = this book. The story of a sweet little company town, told broadly through full page (and double-page!) panels in color -- like mid-century advertisements for the town itself. A perfect way to capture a haze of nostalgia about the town, about Canadian childhood, about the power and transience of community, really simply and effectively. Basically, it's just really pretty and sharp and gets its point across without any fluff. Pick it up, yo!
July 6, 2015
what basically amounts to a beautifully illustrated micro-history of the town of white rapids. the language is spare. the use of space and color is provocative and emotional. this book is everything an overdense artist like joe sacco isn't. blanchet punctuates the quiet of his broad high angled art with impactful language where sacco interrupts the low din / chaos of people's voices with rich visuals. i bring in sacco because that's the only comix writer/artist i can think of who had this kind of impact on me. really great stuff. highly recommended.
November 7, 2007
This graphic novel has some of the most wonderful illustrations I have ever seen. I love retro style illustrations and in that department this book definitely does not disappoint.
The storyline isn't the type of book that I normally read but the artwork makes this a book definitely worth picking up!
About a town in Quebec that was created, lived in, loved and then forced to shut down and be abandoned.
A great gift idea for that Dad, Grandpa or Uncle on your Christmas list.
The storyline isn't the type of book that I normally read but the artwork makes this a book definitely worth picking up!
About a town in Quebec that was created, lived in, loved and then forced to shut down and be abandoned.
A great gift idea for that Dad, Grandpa or Uncle on your Christmas list.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews