Books That Belong On Paper first appeared on the web as Wink Books and was edited by Carla Sinclair. Sign up here to get the issues a week early in your inbox.

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MŒBIUS LIBRARY: THE WORLD OF EDENA

Mœbius Library: The World of Edena
by Mœbius
Dark Horse Books
2016, 176 pages, 8.7 x 1.1 x 11.1 inches, Hardcover

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I have been wanting to read Mœbius’ comics for years, but until recently they’ve been fairly expensive to acquire. Thankfully, Dark Horse is reprinting his work as part of the Mœbius Library. While I’d never read any of his comics, I was very aware of the impact he’s had on Sci-fi and pop culture. Jean Giraud or his pseudonym Mœbius is a French artist who has helped design movies like Dune, Alien, Tron, The Fifth Element, and The Abyss, just to name a few. The World of Edena was a great introduction to his work, and definitely left me wanting more.

The story mixes sci-fi adventure, with deeper philosophical exploration. After crash landing and finding their way to an alien ship, highly evolved A-sexual beings Stel and Atan find themselves in a Garden of Eden like world. They quickly start to experience new feelings like hunger, pain, and sexual urges. What’s incredible is that this story started as an ad for the Citroën car company, you’d be hard pressed to find a car company still making anything remotely close to this.

The artwork’s fantastic, you can definitely see how modern filmmakers were influenced by this style. This collection also includes the final chapter in the story, printed in English for the first time. If you’re already a fan of Mœbius and haven’t read this yet, or are as curious about his work as I was, this is definitely a great book to pick up.

– JP LeRoux

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HADDON HALL: WHEN DAVID INVENTED BOWIE — A GRAPHIC NOVEL ABOUT THE CREATIVITY STRUGGLE IN THE LATE 60S

Haddon Hall: When David Invented Bowie
by Néjib
SelfMadeHero
2017, 144 pages, 7.5 x 0.8 x 10 inches, Hardcover

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It’s hard not to use a word like “groovy” when it comes to describing Haddon Hall: When David Invented Bowie. There’s the setting: a crumbling estate in swinging London, where David Bowie, his wife Angie, and assorted others are living and creating in the late ‘60s. There’s the loose, freewheeling quality to both the lettering and drawings, which use simple outlines and pops of color. And there’s the sly humor, which comes through in both the dialogue and breaks from the main story (which show us how to be a music snob, how to be a fashionista, etc.)

One of the joys of this book is seeing the time period come to life. People like producer Tony Visconti, T. Rex frontman Marc Bolan, original Pink Floyd member Syd Barrett, and dissatisfied Beatle John Lennon pass through these pages. They worry about their music, experiment with sexual identities, and try to fend off feelings of creative envy. And, if they’re Bowie, they develop their most iconic persona (Ziggy Stardust) while dealing with poignant family issues (the hospitalization of his schizophrenic brother Terry).

This book is a delight. I learned plenty about Bowie despite having already read a biography, but Haddon Hall doesn’t feel educational. It shows in its not-too-serious way that creativity can be a grind, and that none of us — not even David Bowie — was born a fully formed artist.

– Christine Ro

08/20/24