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Hergé: The Man Who Created Tintin
One of the most beloved characters in all of comics, Tintin won an enormous international following. Translated into dozens of languages, Tintin's adventures have sold millions of copies, and Steven Spielberg is presently adapting the stories for the big screen. Yet, despite Tintin's enduring popularity, Americans know almost nothing about his gifted creator, Georges Remi--better known as Hergé. Offering a captivating portrait of a man who revolutionized the art of comics, this is the first full biography of Hergé available for an English-speaking audience.
Born in Brussels in 1907, Hergé began his career as a cub reporter, a profession he gave to his teenaged, world-traveling hero. But whereas Tintin was "fully formed, clear-headed, and positive," Assouline notes, his inventor was "complex, contradictory, inscrutable." For all his huge success--achieved with almost no formal training--Hergé would say unassumingly of his art, "I was just happy drawing little guys, that's all." Granted unprecedented access to thousands of the cartoonist's unpublished letters, Assouline gets behind the genial public mask to take full measure of Hergé's life and art and the fascinating ways in which the two intertwine. Neither sugarcoating nor sensationalizing his subject, he meticulously probes such controversial issues as Hergé's support for Belgian imperialism in the Congo and his alleged collaboration with the Nazis. He also analyzes the underpinnings of Tintin--how the conception of the character as an asexual adventurer reflected Hergé's appreciation
for the Boy Scouts organization as well as his Catholic mentor's anti-Soviet ideology--and relates the comic strip to Hergé's own place within the Belgian middle class.
A profound influence on a generation of artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, the elusive figure of Hergé comes to life in this illuminating biography--a deeply nuanced account that unveils the man and his career as never before.
Born in Brussels in 1907, Hergé began his career as a cub reporter, a profession he gave to his teenaged, world-traveling hero. But whereas Tintin was "fully formed, clear-headed, and positive," Assouline notes, his inventor was "complex, contradictory, inscrutable." For all his huge success--achieved with almost no formal training--Hergé would say unassumingly of his art, "I was just happy drawing little guys, that's all." Granted unprecedented access to thousands of the cartoonist's unpublished letters, Assouline gets behind the genial public mask to take full measure of Hergé's life and art and the fascinating ways in which the two intertwine. Neither sugarcoating nor sensationalizing his subject, he meticulously probes such controversial issues as Hergé's support for Belgian imperialism in the Congo and his alleged collaboration with the Nazis. He also analyzes the underpinnings of Tintin--how the conception of the character as an asexual adventurer reflected Hergé's appreciation
for the Boy Scouts organization as well as his Catholic mentor's anti-Soviet ideology--and relates the comic strip to Hergé's own place within the Belgian middle class.
A profound influence on a generation of artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, the elusive figure of Hergé comes to life in this illuminating biography--a deeply nuanced account that unveils the man and his career as never before.
276 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1996
8 people are currently reading
176 people want to read
About the author
Pierre Assouline
91 books55 followersPierre Assouline is a French author and journalist.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
July 27, 2017
The 1920’s to 1960’s has been a time period that has been analyzed to death. Whether it’s through a historic perspective, politics, equality, science, technology, etc, etc; it is a time period that gets a lot of scrutiny. This is mostly due to the Second World War and the holocaust. A horrific and barbarous event that sadly hasn’t stopped people from carrying hate onward to new generations. Yet when we look at this time period, we often only look from historic moments or famous people(s) perspectives. How many of us know what the average citizen was thinking? Was going through? The events that occurred during this long and arduous time period can be seen as either horrendous and as evidence of the precipitation of humanity from our souls, or as ode to the imagination and creativity produced during bleak times. There are many who would say that art, the ability to create, is the only thing a person can be.
Enter Georges Remi alias, Hergé. A man who not only introduced new techniques to the comic book industry but also made the notion of reading comics an activity that can be enjoyed by anyone form the ages of 7 to 77. Written by Pierre Assouline and translated by Charles Ruas Hergé: The Man Who Created Tintin is a poignant yet authoritative tale unraveling the life of Hergé and the spirit of his work. Wiping the slate clean, Assouline tells to the reader exactly what Hergé’s life was like without taking sides, without trying to invoke any sympathy, nor holding the man on a pedestal. His craft in writing is akin to the illustrator’s style of drawing. Simplistic, direct, and focused.
Assouline takes you on a journey across Hergé’s 23 and a half books. Each book had its general plot discussed and most importantly, the events that transpired around the development and publication of each book. As the reader, I was shocked by just how much political affairs can effect something as simple as a comic book. Whether it was the German occupation of Belgium or Artist’s response to having their work censored or even the inciviques (loss of citizenship) that had occurred to many artists after the end of the war. Hergé, for the most part of the war, had no confrontations with Tintin during the occupation but he was dragged through hell after the war. The treatment of the Jews during the holocaust had turned the entire world into a macrocosm of the Salem Witch Trials. You were guilty until proven innocent and if you were an artist, well, better hope you have allies. Time and time again Hergé had to defend both himself and his work. People were throwing anything at his art (yes people, there were SJWs even back then) and this broke the man down. He developed anxiety and depression and often ran away to his refuge in Geneva where he would spend days just doing nothing.
The sad reality was that Hergé was just a child in the body of a man and he viewed his audience as such. Tintin was everything he wasn’t. Hergé was a man who valued and strove for perfection. A man who wanted the sole credit and refused to share the credit with others who worked with him. A man who was usually alone and conflicted with differing feelings, a characteristic he blames being a Gemini for. A man who was just as lost with his times as we are today upon looking back. So what do most lonely people who are unable to find any satisfaction nor happiness in anything but their work do? They sink into it. That’s exactly what Hergé did. To him Tintin was everything and since he was unable to follow the on goings of his world, he chose to enter into his own world. An action he would continue to take as his anger and disgust grew for the Belgium he once knew. An action he would be reprimanded for during his court trials at the end of the war.
Ironically, choosing his world of comics actually gave light to the readers of Tintin during the war. Many people read his works. Soldiers, prisoners, royalty, politicians. No one was excluded and Hergé always always thanked his readers with a signed copy. Years later when dying, Hergé read a letter from a young boy in India who told him about his love for Tintin. Hergé’s response was, “I don’t understand how a child form such a different culture can feel such interests in my characters.” But he was amazed and moved by this. Despite being in his own world Hergé was a man who was aware of the social reforms that were taking place and not only did he welcome them but also advocated them in his work and was always ready to make new versions of his books to keep up with the social reforms that were occurring. I think it is funny how such a humble man was dragged down by his own country and by outsiders, yet, it was his work that brought together the children of the world.
From this review, I’m sure you can tell how much the Tintin series means to me. It’s something that I grew up with and was the one of the few things that stayed with me during my own troubling times. Hergé inspired me through both Tintin and his own self. It’s amazing how a man who created just 24 books is so well known in the world both in his timeline and in ours. When I got to the last page in this book, I had a warble in my throat. Hergé was the type of man who broke down and cried in public when reunited with his friend after being separated from him for 46 years. He was also the man who had affairs yet was still attached to his wife until his divorce. Hergé was the man who made me think to separate humans from what they are known for because nobody is perfect. You may look at him as an artist. A pacifist. A moralist. An egoist. A philander. A true friend. A conflicted soul. Or as a human being.
The last words ever spoken by Hergé were, “I love you” To his wife, Fanny.
Enter Georges Remi alias, Hergé. A man who not only introduced new techniques to the comic book industry but also made the notion of reading comics an activity that can be enjoyed by anyone form the ages of 7 to 77. Written by Pierre Assouline and translated by Charles Ruas Hergé: The Man Who Created Tintin is a poignant yet authoritative tale unraveling the life of Hergé and the spirit of his work. Wiping the slate clean, Assouline tells to the reader exactly what Hergé’s life was like without taking sides, without trying to invoke any sympathy, nor holding the man on a pedestal. His craft in writing is akin to the illustrator’s style of drawing. Simplistic, direct, and focused.
Assouline takes you on a journey across Hergé’s 23 and a half books. Each book had its general plot discussed and most importantly, the events that transpired around the development and publication of each book. As the reader, I was shocked by just how much political affairs can effect something as simple as a comic book. Whether it was the German occupation of Belgium or Artist’s response to having their work censored or even the inciviques (loss of citizenship) that had occurred to many artists after the end of the war. Hergé, for the most part of the war, had no confrontations with Tintin during the occupation but he was dragged through hell after the war. The treatment of the Jews during the holocaust had turned the entire world into a macrocosm of the Salem Witch Trials. You were guilty until proven innocent and if you were an artist, well, better hope you have allies. Time and time again Hergé had to defend both himself and his work. People were throwing anything at his art (yes people, there were SJWs even back then) and this broke the man down. He developed anxiety and depression and often ran away to his refuge in Geneva where he would spend days just doing nothing.
The sad reality was that Hergé was just a child in the body of a man and he viewed his audience as such. Tintin was everything he wasn’t. Hergé was a man who valued and strove for perfection. A man who wanted the sole credit and refused to share the credit with others who worked with him. A man who was usually alone and conflicted with differing feelings, a characteristic he blames being a Gemini for. A man who was just as lost with his times as we are today upon looking back. So what do most lonely people who are unable to find any satisfaction nor happiness in anything but their work do? They sink into it. That’s exactly what Hergé did. To him Tintin was everything and since he was unable to follow the on goings of his world, he chose to enter into his own world. An action he would continue to take as his anger and disgust grew for the Belgium he once knew. An action he would be reprimanded for during his court trials at the end of the war.
Ironically, choosing his world of comics actually gave light to the readers of Tintin during the war. Many people read his works. Soldiers, prisoners, royalty, politicians. No one was excluded and Hergé always always thanked his readers with a signed copy. Years later when dying, Hergé read a letter from a young boy in India who told him about his love for Tintin. Hergé’s response was, “I don’t understand how a child form such a different culture can feel such interests in my characters.” But he was amazed and moved by this. Despite being in his own world Hergé was a man who was aware of the social reforms that were taking place and not only did he welcome them but also advocated them in his work and was always ready to make new versions of his books to keep up with the social reforms that were occurring. I think it is funny how such a humble man was dragged down by his own country and by outsiders, yet, it was his work that brought together the children of the world.
From this review, I’m sure you can tell how much the Tintin series means to me. It’s something that I grew up with and was the one of the few things that stayed with me during my own troubling times. Hergé inspired me through both Tintin and his own self. It’s amazing how a man who created just 24 books is so well known in the world both in his timeline and in ours. When I got to the last page in this book, I had a warble in my throat. Hergé was the type of man who broke down and cried in public when reunited with his friend after being separated from him for 46 years. He was also the man who had affairs yet was still attached to his wife until his divorce. Hergé was the man who made me think to separate humans from what they are known for because nobody is perfect. You may look at him as an artist. A pacifist. A moralist. An egoist. A philander. A true friend. A conflicted soul. Or as a human being.
The last words ever spoken by Hergé were, “I love you” To his wife, Fanny.
April 21, 2025
This excellent biography of Tintin's creator might be worth five stars but I am not sure that I know the subject well enough to be sure. The author explains in his goal was to examine all the skeletons in the closet ("cadavres dans le placard") (p. 12) without letting it detract from the book's main focus that of telling the story of a great artist. Included in the list of Hergé's sins are misogyny, racism and colonialism. The most serious however is that of having collaborated with Belgium's Nazi occupiers for which he was arrested 4 times without ever being formally charged. Remarkably Assouline achieves his goal of treating all the unpleasant issues thoroughly but not excessively.
For a Canadian reader, Assouline's analysis of a man implicated in the collaboration is one of the great strengths of the book as it is a topic that we hear a great deal about but have difficulty understanding. Assouline provides a nuanced portrait of a conservative catholic royalist who published his cartoons in a pro-Nazi paper not because he supported Nazism but because it was financially advantageous for him to do so and because he had no love for the liberal democratic regime that the occupier had overthrown.
Ultimately, Hergé's guiding ideals came not from the Roman Catholic Church as they did from the Catholic Boy Scout movement that he participated in energetically for a decade: "la philosophie du scoutisme est l'Alpha et Omega de sa propre morale." (p. 22) Hergé was not so much a misogynist as a romantic for whom the life of a Boy Scout troop represented the ideal.
Hergé unquestionably supported European colonialism but did that mean that he was also racist. In the case of Africans and individuals of African descent living in North America, the answer is a decisive yes. His American publisher insisted on changes to remove or modify virtually all of his African and Afro-American characters. In contrast, Hergé respected the Indians of the Americas and positively admired the Chinese.
The political discussion is lengthy but Assouline still does an admirable job describing the evolution of Hergé's career explaining the likely influence's of events in Hergé's personal life and contemporary politics on each album.
For a Canadian reader, Assouline's analysis of a man implicated in the collaboration is one of the great strengths of the book as it is a topic that we hear a great deal about but have difficulty understanding. Assouline provides a nuanced portrait of a conservative catholic royalist who published his cartoons in a pro-Nazi paper not because he supported Nazism but because it was financially advantageous for him to do so and because he had no love for the liberal democratic regime that the occupier had overthrown.
Ultimately, Hergé's guiding ideals came not from the Roman Catholic Church as they did from the Catholic Boy Scout movement that he participated in energetically for a decade: "la philosophie du scoutisme est l'Alpha et Omega de sa propre morale." (p. 22) Hergé was not so much a misogynist as a romantic for whom the life of a Boy Scout troop represented the ideal.
Hergé unquestionably supported European colonialism but did that mean that he was also racist. In the case of Africans and individuals of African descent living in North America, the answer is a decisive yes. His American publisher insisted on changes to remove or modify virtually all of his African and Afro-American characters. In contrast, Hergé respected the Indians of the Americas and positively admired the Chinese.
The political discussion is lengthy but Assouline still does an admirable job describing the evolution of Hergé's career explaining the likely influence's of events in Hergé's personal life and contemporary politics on each album.
January 7, 2015
I sought this out because I wanted to know how the mind that created Tintin worked. Unfortunately, this book suffers from poor translation, bad enough that sometimes I didn't understand what a given sentence even meant. Maybe Assouline's original text is great, but it's hard to tell. This is also a book that definitely needs illustrations, and there isn't a single one.
The sections about Hergé's activities around the Second World War are the strongest and came closest to providing genuine insight. During the German occupation, Hergé published Tintin in a collaborationist paper, Le Soir, that took orders from the German propaganda department. He himself did not include any overt political statements in his comics in this period, but Le Soir published editorials with fascist and anti-Semitic content and Tintin was one of the major attractions that kept people buying the paper. After the war, the editorial staff of Le Soir were prosecuted - except Hergé, who got out of it largely because Tintin was so popular with the former resistance partisans who were now in power that they got him off the hook. This is a really interesting moral case and Assouline doesn't spare the criticism, though he never sinks to vitriol. Hergé apparently never understood why people were upset with him about his choices. The quote below really struck me because of how well demonstrates the all-too-familiar kind of obtuseness privileged people often display in the face of oppression:
"Hergé would not relax his attitude, even to his close colleague Jacques Martin, who had spent two years doing forced labor as an engineer with Messerschmitt in Augsburg. Martin told him about the death camps he had seen during his stay in Germany ("The walking dead, the unbearable smell ...") and what the guards told him when he asked them ("These are common law prisoners!"). Hergé was incredulous. "You are not remembering correctly, it made an impression, you mistook what you saw.... And, first of all, how do you know they were Jews? They were surely common law criminals."
Martin spent an evening trying but failing to convince him that he had seen a death camp. Hergé challenged everything. It wasn't from lack of interest; he did not want to know. In the future the two men would avoid any mention of the war."
Unfortunately, the rest of the book isn't as interesting. The sketchy information about Hergé's childhood and later years left me skimming. Situating each Tintin volume within the historical events that were taking place when it was written is a good approach, but I still didn't feel that I came out of the book with a real understanding of how those events influenced the writing or who Hergé really was.
The sections about Hergé's activities around the Second World War are the strongest and came closest to providing genuine insight. During the German occupation, Hergé published Tintin in a collaborationist paper, Le Soir, that took orders from the German propaganda department. He himself did not include any overt political statements in his comics in this period, but Le Soir published editorials with fascist and anti-Semitic content and Tintin was one of the major attractions that kept people buying the paper. After the war, the editorial staff of Le Soir were prosecuted - except Hergé, who got out of it largely because Tintin was so popular with the former resistance partisans who were now in power that they got him off the hook. This is a really interesting moral case and Assouline doesn't spare the criticism, though he never sinks to vitriol. Hergé apparently never understood why people were upset with him about his choices. The quote below really struck me because of how well demonstrates the all-too-familiar kind of obtuseness privileged people often display in the face of oppression:
"Hergé would not relax his attitude, even to his close colleague Jacques Martin, who had spent two years doing forced labor as an engineer with Messerschmitt in Augsburg. Martin told him about the death camps he had seen during his stay in Germany ("The walking dead, the unbearable smell ...") and what the guards told him when he asked them ("These are common law prisoners!"). Hergé was incredulous. "You are not remembering correctly, it made an impression, you mistook what you saw.... And, first of all, how do you know they were Jews? They were surely common law criminals."
Martin spent an evening trying but failing to convince him that he had seen a death camp. Hergé challenged everything. It wasn't from lack of interest; he did not want to know. In the future the two men would avoid any mention of the war."
Unfortunately, the rest of the book isn't as interesting. The sketchy information about Hergé's childhood and later years left me skimming. Situating each Tintin volume within the historical events that were taking place when it was written is a good approach, but I still didn't feel that I came out of the book with a real understanding of how those events influenced the writing or who Hergé really was.
May 15, 2017
More than just a biography of Georges Remi (Herge), Assouline has also written a book that's a window into pre- and post-WWII Belgium: the context in which Herge created Tintin.
Relying on the Herge Foundation archives, Assouline explores the man and his life's work (Herge's personal life, compared to that of his creation, was turbulent) but also the Belgian publishing industry for children's books and periodicals.
Relying on the Herge Foundation archives, Assouline explores the man and his life's work (Herge's personal life, compared to that of his creation, was turbulent) but also the Belgian publishing industry for children's books and periodicals.
December 16, 2019
I thought this was a fascinating read.
Truth be told, all the Tintin books were a staple of my childhood and Tintin/Hergé were my number one hobby for years. I was generally familiar with many of the milestones in Hergé's life, but this book went into more detail than any others that I've read to date (the most significant being Adventures of Herge and Tintin: Herge and His Creation). I've had a hardback copy of the English translation sitting on my shelf since it was published in 2009, and the fact that it took me ten years to actually pick it up and read it was due to the lack of a digital copy.
Now that I have finally read it, I think it was well worth it. It provides more details and more insight into one of my favorite 20th century artists. I fail to understand the criticisms of the translation -- it was all clear to me and I breezed through this engaging book rather quickly. Thank you Charles Ruas, for your translation.
Yes, other than on the cover, there are no photos or drawings in this book -- who cares? If you'd like to see pictures of Hergé or others mentioned in the book, do an image search on the Interweb.
One complaint: Assouline, the author, gives certain Tintin books negative criticism that I found unwarranted. Does Tintin and the Picaros really lack soul? Hardly, in my opinion.
I suppose what I liked most about this book were the direct quotes from Hergé himself. The author clearly went to great lengths to scour as many sources as possible, and they are all well notated. The result is a very interesting portrait of a flawed but honorable man.
Truth be told, all the Tintin books were a staple of my childhood and Tintin/Hergé were my number one hobby for years. I was generally familiar with many of the milestones in Hergé's life, but this book went into more detail than any others that I've read to date (the most significant being Adventures of Herge and Tintin: Herge and His Creation). I've had a hardback copy of the English translation sitting on my shelf since it was published in 2009, and the fact that it took me ten years to actually pick it up and read it was due to the lack of a digital copy.
Now that I have finally read it, I think it was well worth it. It provides more details and more insight into one of my favorite 20th century artists. I fail to understand the criticisms of the translation -- it was all clear to me and I breezed through this engaging book rather quickly. Thank you Charles Ruas, for your translation.
Yes, other than on the cover, there are no photos or drawings in this book -- who cares? If you'd like to see pictures of Hergé or others mentioned in the book, do an image search on the Interweb.
One complaint: Assouline, the author, gives certain Tintin books negative criticism that I found unwarranted. Does Tintin and the Picaros really lack soul? Hardly, in my opinion.
I suppose what I liked most about this book were the direct quotes from Hergé himself. The author clearly went to great lengths to scour as many sources as possible, and they are all well notated. The result is a very interesting portrait of a flawed but honorable man.
February 3, 2015
As someone who enjoyed the Tintin stories, it was nice to get some context about how each of his stories were created, but on the whole it wasn't a very good book. Half of the last chapter is devoted to reciting revisions Herge made to a previous book about himself - I'm sure there's some sort of irony in that. As a piece of critical non-fiction it is lacking - the vast majority of references for this work come from Herge himself and the author often makes unsubstantiated inferences. It would have been better to get interviews, letters or notes from friends, colleagues and family rather than to write, "Well, he said X, so he probably was feeling Y."
June 20, 2012
I learned things I was glad to learn about Hergé but this is a disaster of a book.
Seems to have been translated by a robot and edited by a house cat, both locked in a room with no access to outside information, and neither of whom have any familiarity with or interest in the subject matter.
Maybe it's good in French (much of it is more transliterated than translated, so it flips the Francophone brainswitch anyway), and without the parts that were abridged.
Seems to have been translated by a robot and edited by a house cat, both locked in a room with no access to outside information, and neither of whom have any familiarity with or interest in the subject matter.
Maybe it's good in French (much of it is more transliterated than translated, so it flips the Francophone brainswitch anyway), and without the parts that were abridged.
February 11, 2023
I don't know how to properly review this. It was really interesting but at times it just dragged, I don't know if it was a translation thing or just that it was dry at times.
It was interesting though and I think adding in historical context to the times Hergé was writing in added to the understanding of who he was.
It was interesting though and I think adding in historical context to the times Hergé was writing in added to the understanding of who he was.
September 27, 2010
vaguely interesting, but poorly written
October 31, 2022
Tintin has been for me to express myself, to project my desire for adventure and violence, the bravery and resourcefulness within me. That was within me. The need to express my vision of the modern world, so much ugliness, immorality: arm dealers, the great international corporations sacrificing the lives of men without a second thought. Standing against them, a hero without fear, without faults. It is not Tintin himself who interests me, it is his actions, his adventures themselves...Tintin would like to become a man. People have often commented ironically to me " but he never grows up, your Tintin!" Alas, yes! He has matured without anyone noticing it. He has remained young in size, but he has grown up, matured to the point of wanting to go inside himself and to thus be able to contemplate the world!
Hergé
Hergé
October 8, 2020
Purchase Herge: The Man Who Created Tintin here for just $12!
This book is perfect for anyone who is a fan of Tintin. A fascinating insight into the man who created the well loved character. Highly Recommend.
Alicia, The Book Grocer
This book is perfect for anyone who is a fan of Tintin. A fascinating insight into the man who created the well loved character. Highly Recommend.
Alicia, The Book Grocer
October 31, 2024
Not my favorite book about Herge or the Tintin books, but still informative. Loved hearing about him reaching out to Walt Disney to adapt his books as well as discussing with Spielberg since the 80s. I also felt this book spent a lot of time on events going on during Herge's lifetime.
January 6, 2018
Probably the best of the Hergé biographies I’ve read. Most worth reading if you want to know the man.
September 16, 2020
A comprehensive and unflinching look at one of the most iconic artists of the twentieth-century.
July 19, 2021
A must read for fans of Tintin.
July 31, 2022
My first biography
January 20, 2025
Oh man oh man I'm shocked that the author of Tintin in the Congo turned out to be a "complicated" man. Very interesting though
August 28, 2025
Reveals many of Herge's faults which I usually like to see in a bio, and I did here as well, but the biographer could be a bit cruel at times though.
January 10, 2019
A fascinating read covering all areas of Herge' and Tintin life. Very well researched and written.
February 2, 2011
I am not a big fan of biographies, but I was curious to learn something about the creator of Tintin. I have always been a big fan of Tintin, Snowy, Captain Haddock, having learned about them and read the stories in French class at a young age. And now, having read this biography of their creator, I struggle with the question of just how much one can divorce the "creator" from the "created." And, how much one must do so in order to continue loving the created. Herge, the man, turns out to be less than admirable in many ways: brilliant cartoonist, yes, clearly; but conformist to authority and, as a result, "passive" collaborator during the Nazi occupation of Belgium. In some ways, his deliberately blind naivete and self-serving rationale for that behavior that he stubbornly clings to for the remainder of his life makes it all that much worse. Just how much of those bad traits are reflected in the character of Tintin and the stories of his adventures? Can those aspects overwhelm what's admirable about the character and the stories - friendship, loyalty, sense of adventure, etc.? Still kids the world over - from 7 to 77 - continue to love Tintin. Has he dimmed somewhat in my eyes? Maybe. But maybe I just need to reread the stories to bring back the magic since it's been a long time since I was a faithful reader. Even with a more critical eye of a cynical adult, I trust that Tintin, Snowy, Captain Haddock can still inspire and delight with their many adventures. I just hope that Spielberg doesn't f**k-up the forthcoming movie version of Tintin. I'd had enough disillusionment related to Tintin for now.
December 14, 2011
This book's a real shame, because the author's somehow managed to make an interesting person (in Hergé) appear dull. A more systematic way of recalling events past - i.e. rigorously chronological - would have suited the retelling of Hergé's life.
September 1, 2012
Interesting more for its subject than for its style, this exploration of Herge's life by French top biographer Assouline is completist, and does not shy away from the author's darker side; but is ultimately too long-winded and pleased with itself.
September 10, 2016
If you love Tintin (like I do), you should read this book! It's an excellent look at Herge, both as an artist and as a man. He had his imperfections in both areas, but it's great to know more about him. Also, see Spielberg's Tintin movie if you haven't; I loved it!
August 1, 2019
বিরক্তিকর ভ্যাজর ভ্যাজর লেখা, অগাছালো। তা সত্বেও হার্জের বা আর্জের জীবনের প্রথমভাগ নিয়ে প্রচুর তথ্য জানা যায়, তাঁর জীবনের বিভিন্ন ঘটনার ছাপ টিনটিন সিরিজে কিভাবে পড়েছে তা দেখা যায়। পাঁড় টিনটিনোলজিস্টদের উপযুক্ত বই।
June 14, 2011
Not that great. As far as biographies go, it was fairly by the numbers. To factual, not anecdotal enough.
August 30, 2014
It's really good. I'm glad to have more details regarding the world around Herge when he was writing these stories I love so much.
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