Goodbye Caucescu

by Romain Dutter, Paul Bona, Bouqé

Comme Beaucoup, Romain Dutter a été marqué par les images du procès
expéditif et de l'exécution sordide du couple Ceausescu le 25
décembre 1989. Depuis, il a développé une passion pour les pays
d'Europe de l'Est, l'histoire du communisme, la musique tsigane et
les fanfares balkaniques. Lorsqu'il confie vouloir écrire sur la
Roumanie, il se heurte aux idées reçues de ses proches : Dracula,
misère, dictature, Roms "voleurs de poulets", le groupe O-Zone, tout
y passe. Afin de tordre le coup aux clichés, Romain est parti à la
rencontre des Roumains, avec une question en tête : " C'est quoi
vivre dans un pays post-communiste? ". Avec Goodbye Ceausescu, il
livre un témoignage documenté et un regard personnel sur ce pays, ses
difficultés (démocatie imparfaite, crise économique, émigration
massive vers l'Europe occidentale) mais aussi ses forces, mettant en
limière son dynamisme, la sympathie de sa population, son attachement
aux traditions malgré un fort attrait pour l'Occident et la beauté de
ses paysages.

Genres: Nonfiction, Graphic Novels, Bande Dessinée, Comics, France, History, Romania

192 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2021

Reviews

[Olga · Rating 4 out of 5]

Later edit : I still keep thinking about the book... it would make for a good present for foreigners interested in Romania or communism and it's afermath in society.
There are two subjects that are quite predominant and the author touches upon them in multiple chapters: the overall feeling of inferiority of Romanians and their treatment of Rroma people.
While not reaching definite conclusions as to why the majority of Romanians consider Rroma people not Romanian and why the Romanian Government doesn't allow further funding for this matter the book identifies several actions of individuals who are trying to make some changes.
......
I was very much looking forward to reading this one!
A graphic novel about Romania and how communism shaped and continues to influence the Romanian people and the working of society itself.
... who would have thought... a book about Romania without mentioning communism... not going to happen in this lifetime

In all seriousness I thoroughly appreciated the graphic novel, the author's interest in the country and its people, the graphic style and the different chapters.
Furthermore, the novel depicts travels made in a span of several years and several cities and regions. From busy Bucharest and bustling Timisoara to the serene Danube Delta and Bucovina's monasteries. Flashbacks to events happening during the communist period are there to give insights and to explain today's outlooks.

Finally, as a Romanian myself, it is sad to see that the issues that permeate most from Romanian society are still alive and kicking. From the ever present sexism and bribes, to the underdeveloped tourism, culminating with Romanians' lack of awarness for environmental issues.
It is difficult to see hope taking into consideration the ammount of people who emigrate in search for a better situation.

[Jovi Ene · Rating 4 out of 5]

„Ceaușescu n-a murit!
Ne veghează îndârșit
Ceaușescu e o școală
Ceaușescu e o boală”

De fiecare dată când aud versurile Adei Milea, îmi dau seama de adevărul lor, așa cum mi le aduc aminte atunci când citesc diferite statistici și rezultate ale unor sondaje de opinie care ne spun cât de mulți români trăiesc într-un fel de nostalgie după vremurile comunismului și ne spun: Ce bine era atunci, aveam cu toții serviciu, „ne descurcam”, cât de multe a făcut ceaușescu!
Acești oameni nu-și dau realizează cu adevărat ceea ce spun, așa cum nu-și dau seama că, în comunism, nici nu aveau dreptul să spună ceea ce cred cu voce tare. Așa că e nevoie de orice fel de formă de comunicare (literatură, film, conferințe, evenimente) pentru a ne spune adevărul despre comunism și despre ce a venit după acesta, mai ales primele decenii de post-comunism.
Iată un exemplu: Un roman grafic excelent realizat de un francez care a călători de multe ori în țara noastră în perioada recentă, ce surprinde aproape perfect felul în care arată și a arătat România în ultimii 30 de ani. Chiar dacă este perspectiva unui străin, ea este mai obiectivă și mai exactă decât felul în care ne percepem noi țara, punând accentul și pe calitățile, dar și pe defectele noastre, inclusiv în privința rasismului trecut și prezent. De citit și de reflectat!

[Bogdan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent graphic novel about the life of the romanians now, but also there are some images about the old communist regime. Highly entertaining and an enjoyable read. The graphic style is also top notch.

Great stuff! I will search other books by this writer, but also by it`s artist.

[Alex Donţu · Rating 5 out of 5]

The history i wish i’d learned in school. Go read this, such a fun and informative one!

[Andreea Ursu-Listeveanu]

Cel mai tare mi se pare ca aceasta carte a fost scrisa de un strain. Am aflat destul de multe lucruri si despre locuri de care nu stiam. Imi place mereu sa ascult povestile strainilor despre tarile noastra, insa Dutter a mers destul de departe dorindu-si foarte tare sa descopere si cultura si istoria noastra. I-am citit-o copilei, desi nu e chiar pentru copii de 9-10 ani, si am avut muuuulte discutii faine si la fel de muuuulte pauze ca mi-a luat vreo doua luni sa o termin in ritmul asta.

[Sandra Saade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nu am citit foarte multe romane grafice (traduse) în limba română, dar Goodbye Ceaușescu e foarte bine documentat, cu o serie considerabilă de recomandări de văzut, ascultat și citit. Am învățat și lucruri pe care nu le știam, oferă un volum optim de informații istorice, iar ilustrațiile sunt foarte frumoase. Capitolele sunt delimitate în funcție de regiunile din România care sunt vizitate, iar fiecare dintre ele este însoțit de textul unei melodii cunoscute, mi s-a părut o super idee.
M-a bucurat tare cartea, deși am fost puțin rezervată când am văzut-o pe raftul librăriei.

[Lotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started off strong by destroying some stereotypes about Romania, but then started lagging a bit when the author/main character actually visits Romania, mainly because his views still stay very French-oriented. I wish he'd stayed with more locals and less (French) expats. But it is still a good gateway into Romanian recent history, with tons of resources at the back.

[W · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nu pot spune ca sunt cel mai avid cititor de literatură comunistă - postcomunistă dar, dat fiind contextul actual in care tot mai mulți indivizi sunt înclinați să preaslăvească această perioadă istorică, cred ca este un punct de plecare mai mult decât decent. Abordările rasiale, presărate ici-colo nu sunt chiar pe placul meu si par a avea un alt scop decât cel general al cărții. Apreciez totuși referințele de la final, abordarea mai mult sau mai puțin serioasă a unor subiecte "grele" dar și ilustrațiile (până la urmă e o - un? - "BD"). Per total aș zice că recomand.

[Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Étant donné mes origines roumaines de par ma mère, je suis toujours à la recherche de récit pouvant me reconnecter à ce pays et mieux comprendre le vécu de ma mère.

Cette BD suit un road trip dans diverses régions de la Roumanie et exposent les différences de chaque recoin, des anecdotes, des moments d'histoire à travers le regard de locaux ou de personnes y vivant depuis quelque temps.

J'ai trouvé cette BD très complète et très divertissante. Elle se lit très rapidement et donne la possibilité de creuser un peu plus le sujet via quelques références.

J'ai la sensation de ressortir de cette lecture avec un bon aperçu du pays et une envie d'y retourner !

[Crina · Rating 4 out of 5]

i'd read a book like this about every country on this earth, i found it such a nicely conceived little crash course on romania. and i appreciate that it comes from a country that is notoriously nasty towards us, and that the french audience saw it first and hopefully learned a little something from it. i learned quite a bit too, and i really appreciated all the recs for further reading and watching at the end.
though.. i think sometimes it did slip into a type of comedy i didnt like. it was like, ha ha, yeah, romania kinda sucks, i know, but it's not That bad and here's why! and it feels like, idk, you could have executed this book very well without falling into this kind of stupid comedic approach that does nothing but nudge at all the nasty prejudice the french already have against us, and that without challenging it in any way. and also, yes, there is a big (at least historically so) french cultural impact on romania, and that's interesting and relevant to mention, but i just can't believe that that many people actually professed their love and respect for france to you. it genuinely feels like a bit too much of a focus on how france is perceived in romania and oh, you, people of france, look at these people you so dislike... cause they adore you! will you now reconsider how you feel about them? if not for the fact that you've misjudged their entire nation and are extremely xenophobic towards them and you, idk, shouldn't .... then at least for the fact that they really admire you! maybe i just hate france, but this felt at times annoingly like the french blowing their own trumpet about how romanians view them.

[Ioana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ceaușescu și regimul comunist din România continuă să fascineze o mulțime de oameni din întreaga lume. Așa se face că francezul Romain Dutter decide să își ducă curiozitatea mai departe și să realizeze un road trip documentar prin țara noastră. Ce a ieșit este un volum grafic extrem de interesant, de citit nu doar de străinii interesați de postcomunismul românesc, ci și de compatrioții noștrii.
"Goodbye Ceaușescu" (traducere de Mihaela Dobrescu) conține nu doar părerile clasice ale străinilor cu privire la România, unde Dracula și romii fac legea, ci și punctele de vedere ale românilor cu privire la viața de după comunism și cum văd ei viitorul nostru.
Mai multe am scris într-un articol publicat pe blog despre cartea citită, din întâmplare sau, pe 1 decembrie.
https://ciobanuldeazi.home.blog/2023/...

[Maëch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alors c’était super intéressant d’apprendre et comprendre des choses sur ce pays, son histoire complexe et les peuples qui l’habitent et défaire certains stéréotypes notamment sur les Roms mais wow les apartés « humoristiques » de l’auteur étaient souvent d’une LOURDEUR c’est vraiment dommage.

[Kai Stanciu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall this book did quite a good job of presenting some things about Romania to a French audience. It’s still quite French-gaze but that makes sense, I think the scope was quite ambitious and the execution was mostly good. The author clearly cared about representing Romania as accurately as he could (and also went to multiple regions to see different views).

…however, my neighbourhood in Bucharest was called “quite ghetto, with a lot of violence and drugs” which…what? I’ve seen more drugs being offered in Paris lol

[Vonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite accurate representation of Romania, colourful art style but pretty basic.

[Ioana Bucur · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid 3.5 I think.

[Andràș-Florin Răducanu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un roman grafic superb, s-ar potrivi perfect la istorie în liceu și gimnaziu. Stilul în care e desenat e destul de simplist, dar fain, și firul narativ este bine alcătuit. Chiar a fost o lectură scurtă și bună.

[Ana-Maria Lungu · Rating 5 out of 5]

- o lectura foarteeee lejera si placuta
- un mic recap al istoriei Romaniei, intr o maniera jucausa
- referinte muzicale top
- narator glumeț
- acopera multe obiective turistice importante din Ro, precum si experienta multor minoritati (f cool imo)
10 cu felicitari

[Vlad Forsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

E mereu foarte interesant să vezi ceva foarte familiar prin ochi străini. În cazul acesta, cum încearcă să înțeleagă un tânăr francez România post-comunistă. Acea Românie este ceva în care (noi românii) trăim zi de zi și pe care o cunoaștem foarte bine, însă ca să fie explicată de la zero, e nevoie de o multitudine de perspective și păreri. Apreciez, deci, efortul autorului de a străbate România pentru a înțelege cât mai mult din ea, trecând prin Dobrogea, București, Transilvania, Banat și Moldova.

Un aspect care a mai adus un pic de profunzime poveștii a fost micul confilct între convingerile de stânga ale autorului și realitatea unei dictaturi comuniste care a dus la disprețul unei țări întregi față de socialism. Nimic care să dărâme credința autorului, dar mi s-a părut interesant.

Foarte de apreciat includerea unor note explicative, linkuri de muzică, filme și cărți, cât și fotografii la finalul cărții. Ca desen însă, nimc impresionant.

[Laure Vierne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Condescendant et plutôt méprisant envers la Roumanie et ses habitants, un regard franco-centré (explicable par la source de financement du projet sans doute...) d'un homme blanc français qui va à l'étranger. Tout ce que je déteste profondément dans les récits de voyage donc. J'ai presque envie de m'excuser pour ce compatriote assez hautain envers la Roumanie et les Roumains 🤷🏻‍♀️
En revanche, j'aime le graphisme et les choix de couleurs, dommage donc pour l'auteur de BD qui partage la couverture.

[Ramona Cantaragiu · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is an interesting experiment to see your country through the eyes of a foreigner. I found the aspects he touched upon salient and still true today even if the book is a bit older now, but also a bit too much focused on two aspects: one, the prejudice against Roma people (which still exists, there is no denying this), and two, the inferiority complex that Romanians feel (and in this case I feel that the novel leant a bit too heavily on presenting the French as a people adored and looked up to by Romanians, a country where nothing bad ever happens, which is clearly not true). For example, since the author is French, why not present the issue of the Roma people in comparison to the issue of the numerous Muslim migrants and refugees who also experience various forms of discrimination in France? Why emphasize the fact that we tend to think that bad things only happen here.... Anyway, another aspect which was very jarring was a result of the fact that the story involves multiple trips to Romania taken during different years, and the fact that I could not actually pinpoint when the discussions took place and why certain people complained about certain specific stuff (it would have been better to just write the year to give a bit of context for Romanian readers). There is also an emphasis on the fact that the transition from a totalitarian regime to a democratic one took place very suddenly and that his destabilized us completely. However, I can still remember talks year after year about the fact that we were in a period of transition and that it will take us an X number of years to become a fully democratic country. Maybe if he had more talks with Romanians who lived in the country for the transition period the book would have been quite different. But he mostly talked to French people who settled here or with Romanian people who spent quite some time abroad.

[Andrei Vajna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book aims to depict Romania in a half-subjective, half-objective manner. The author is a Frenchman, who travels to the main parts of Romania (The Black Sea Shore and the Danube Delta, Bucharest, Timisoara and Banat, Transsylavania, Moldova) and the interacts with the locals, some of which have French ties, either being Frenchmen who came to Romania, or Romanians who spent some time in France, in order to paint a better picture than what the average Frenchman has about the country.

I find that it does a great job of letting the picture draw itself. It really does feel like it's a live action documentary, but the comic book form brings a lot of charm to it. The focus is on how things have evolved in 30 years of democracy, and I feel like the consensus is that it's definitely better, but the abrupt switch to capitalism has had its toll, too, that things should be better especially for the less fortunate. And these views come from people of various backgrounds. It's not about the system, it's about the people, the mentality. Freedom does not solve anything; it only enables the people to act towards a better life for all.

The story is fun to read with delightful quips along the way. I read the Romanian translation, and even from that it's clear that the book was crated for foreigners to learn and understand more about Romania and its citizens. But even for me, it was quite interesting. The story doesn't try to guide towards a specific outcome, it doesn't hide the bad parts or bad people (like the taxi driver trying to rip him off), and some of the opinions I didn't fully agree with, but that is the charm of having the complete picture. And that I did resonate with. And I also found out a few things I didn't know about.

[Roxana Chirilă · Rating 4 out of 5]

I own the Romanian translation (my French is atrocious). Alas, Goodreads no longer allows non-librarians like me to add new editions.

Anyway! Pretty good volume, although a bit short, so it feels slightly rushed. But - well - it's a comic. They're a lot harder to make than they are to read.

It's a neat intro to Romania as a post-communist country; Romain Dutter travelled through all the regions, talked to Romanians and French expats, visited museums and landmarks, got in touch with musicians, guides and humanitarian workers, and asked about everyone's views regarding politics and communism. His journey is described as a simplified sketch rather than a detailed landscape (with some humor sprinkled in), but it's a pretty accurate representation of the country today, in my opinion.

[Elsa Pacella · Rating 5 out of 5]

This graphic novel is excellent. It touches everything regarding Romania but above all it investigates how people were living under Communism and how the legacy is still impacting today's life. Ceausescu was a dictator who via the "Scuritate" was depriving Romanians of their liberty. Yet, some of them have this sense of nostalgia of that time because everyone had a work and didn't need to leave the country for miserable jobs and leave their children in the "internats".

For those who want to learn more about post-communist bloc and in particular about Romania, I highly recommend to read this graphic novel - the authors dedicated years to collect all info on Romania and documenting via travels to the country. I wish we could have a graphic novel like this on other countries.

[Alix Blue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Une BD bien construite qui raconte l'histoire de l'auteur, qui passionné par la Roumanie, est parti à la découverte de ce pays et de ses habitants. On l'accompagne à la découverte de plusieurs pans de l'histoire de la Roumanie, en passant par les arts, l'architecture, la musique et le rapport à l'écologie.
Romain Dutter retranscrit ses échanges avec des Roumains, et des Français habitant en Roumanie. Il compare nos deux pays, et s'interroge sur le racisme envers la communauté Rom dans les deux nations.
Un voyage rédigé avec passion et respect qui se déroule dans le pays et dans la mémoire du peuple roumain qui cherche encore aujourd'hui comment vivre avec les séquelles du gouvernement communiste de Ceausescu.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first shock I had after starting this graphic novel was related to how Ceausescu was drawn. Although I started school after the revolution, you could find school books and pictures with Ceausescu and the image I had of him does not match the one from the book.

I think he captures quite well the situation from Romania, but still fails to get out of some stereotypes about Romania. I did not like that he presented only French people as his baseline in what concerns doing good and fighting for the right causes in Romania. There are a lot of native organizations that do a lot of good work but they were never mentioned in the book.

[Fekete Macska · Rating 4 out of 5]

Une chouette BD avec plein de références pour en savoir plus sur la Roumanie.
Les observations sont en général très justes même si le chapitre sur Bucarest m'a fait lever le sourcil plus d'une fois, mais j'y vis depuis longtemps, c'est peut-être pour ça. Les personnages sont un peu trop souvent des expatriés installés en Roumanie, mais ce petit point noir est rattrapé en fin d'ouvrage avec le point de vue des roumains sur les français.
Il n'empêche, un super ouvrage pour s'éloigner des clichés sur la Roumanie ou en savoir plus.

[GG · Rating 5 out of 5]

O incursiune in timp in istoria postcomunista a României, aceasta BD scrisă de către un francez ilustrează într-un mod idilic aproape România de astăzi. Sigur ca nu are cum sa între in profunzimi și nuanțe românești, dar exemplifica o Românie a contrastelor, afectată de tranziția brutala de la comunism la capitalism. Fiecare capitol reprezintă călătoria lui Dutter in diferite orașe din Romania și dialogurile lui cu prieteni romani localnici sau străini care s-au împământenit. Abia aștept sa descopăr locurile underground din București menționate in carte.

[Mădălina · Rating 3 out of 5]

What it does well: maps the history a bit throughout communism, a bit here and there afterwards.
What not: middle of the book feels more to be about Roma people than Romanians. I know that this was the misconception French people have, and clarifying it was a good thing. It’s important to highlight the on-going clash between Romanians and Roma, therefore insisting a lot on this isn’t really what I thought this book would be about.
Oh and also: we have more cheeses than cascaval, do your homework Romain :)

[Noémie Gomez · Rating 4 out of 5]

J’ai trouvé le regard porté sur la Roumanie un peu naïf (et énervant) au début, mais finalement on trouve des informations intéressantes et l’auteur donne la parole à beaucoup de protagonistes. J’aurais aimé que certains sujets soient creusés davantage (inégalités, état de la démocratie actuelle, nostalgie du communisme, etc) mais j’imagine que ce n’était pas le but. Il faut consulter les ressources citées en fin d’ouvrage pour aller plus loin.

[Horia Calborean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recognized the people depicted in this book. I see them on the streets, on the television. I don't know if the book shows Romania as it is, but it gets a lot of the things right. Other people that read it complained that the book shows romanians as racist against gypsies. My own experience shows that we are racist.