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Introducing Émile Garreau, French, retired and widower. He now and then goes for a drink and a chat at the village café or watches a TV game show, but most of his days he spends fishing with his friend Edmond. Lately, that’s about all his life has to offer. Peaceful and predictable. But all that changes after Edmond’s unexpected death.
French comic book writer Pascal Rabaté tells the epic story of an old man on his quest, in search of a cure for his loneliness and rediscovering the pleasures of life.
When you’ve traveled through the countryside of Central France before, taking the slow and winding routes départementales instead of the faster autoroutes (motorways, toll roads), you’ll certainly recognize some of its typical ingredients in this book: green pastures, somnolent villages, big supermarkets, sand coloured houses with fenced gardens…
Our hero has to fight against the demons of conformism, embarrasment and taboo (should old people still have sex?), and the fear of staying behind, alone.
Great story! Some of the situations Émile ends up in are really hilarious. This comic book should be obligatory reading in any home for the elderly! Rabaté’s Les petits ruisseaux (Futuropolis, 2006) is translated in Dutch as Een tweede jeugd (Oog & Blik, 2007). I don’t know if there’s an English version available, but if not, they’d better get it published fast.
1st Edition, May 2008
N – Neuhaus: Inventor of the Praline (1912), the famous Belgian chocolate delight with its creamy filling and thin chocolate coating. I must confess, I’m a bit of a chocoholic myself.
O – Olympic Games, 2008 Beijing: To boycott or not to boycott, that’s the question. While our politicians are still making up their minds, our athletes are busy doing their warm-ups.
P – Pastry, on Sunday: In Belgium most bakeries are open on Sunday morning, selling fresh pastries, sweet pies and crispy rolls. Hmm… very tempting! And the bakery is right next door.
Q – Quote: Ilya Prigogine (1917-2003), Belgian physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize Chemistry 1977: “The future is uncertain… but this uncertainty is the very heart of human creativity”.
R – Rock Werchter: Music festival, held every year in the little village of Werchter (Belgium), received in 2008 the ILMC Arthur Award for Best Festival for the fourth time in five years.
S – Surrealism: Painter René Magritte is Belgium’s best know surrealist (Ceci n’est pas une pipe), but I’m convinced that all Belgians by nature carry a chunk of surrealism within themselves.
T – Tintin: Comic book hero Tintin (a young Belgian reporter who’s adventures started in 1929) and his creator Hergé are known all over the world. Their albums are translated in over 50 languages.
U – UFO Sightings: On several occasions in 1989 and 1990 all across Belgium people reported having seen a UFO. The sightings where confirmed by radar stations and chased after by F-16s.
V – Vineyards: As a result of global warming, Belgian wine making is now a growing business. The Hageland and the Hesbaye region are producing mostly white wines, some even with AOC label.
W – War: Many battles were fought on Belgian soil: Napoleon’s Waterloo in 1815, the Ypres Salient during WW I (In Flanders Fields…), the Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Offensive) during WW II… probably making Belgium Europe’s number one battlefield.
X – Xenophobia: The success of the extreme right-wing anti-immigrant Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) party resulted in the widespread idea that Belgians are inhospitable and xenophobic.
Y – Youth delinquency: We’ve seen an increase in juvenile delinquency, from throwing rocks to even stabbing a student for his MP3 player. Why the f*ck are all these kids so f*cked up?
Z – Zaventem: Village where Brussels Airport is situated, which in the past few years was proclaimed several times as Best Airport in Europe. My number one gateway to the rest of the world.
