Shanghai Dream

by Philippe Thirault, Jorge Miguel (Illustrator)

Overview

Berlin, 1930. Aspiring filmmakers Bernhard and Illo are madly in love, united by their passion for cinema...and now, on the eve of the Second World War, it could be the only thing they have left. As the streets heat up with the flames of violent antisemitism, the couple has no choice but to abandon their home and go into exile. With nothing but a screenplay and each other, they manage to board a ship headed for Shanghai—a bubbling and enigmatic city that holds the promise of freedom...but at what cost? A powerful humanistic take on World War II from the largely undocumented perspective of the forced Jewish immigration to China.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781643377780
Publisher:	Humanoids, Inc.
Publication date:	07/30/2019
Sold by:	HUMANOIDS INC - EBKS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	106
File size:	57 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Philippe Thirault is a French novelist and comics writer who was born in Paris in 1967. In the late 1990s, he published the novel Feathered Serpent, the trilogy Hemoglobin Blues, and his first comic series, the critically acclaimed Miss: Better Living Through Crime. He has since become a very prolific comic book creator, writing series such as Thousand Faces, The Hounds of Hell, Balkans Arena and Mandalay. He often writes stories with a historical or fantastic setting and runs writing workshops in Paris.
​Jorge Miguel was born in 1963, in Amadora, Portugal. He started as an illustrator and storyboard writer, but later turned to cartoons and printmaking. Later, watercolor became his favorite technique. At the Platano publisher, he made the comics Camoes and O Fado Ilustrado. At Les Humanoïdes Associés, he began by illustrating the comedy series The Z Word, written by Jerry Frissen. He then illustrted the thriller, Balkans Arena, a one-shot comic with Philippe Thirault. Most recently, he drew the first volume of the concept series Seul Survivant (Sole Survivor) before tackling in 2016 the graphic adaptation of Julia Verlanger's novel La Croix des Décastés with Corbeyran in the screenplay. Jorge currently lives in Portugal.​

Editorial Reviews

05/06/2019

With equal parts pluck and schmaltz, this graphic novel follows the filmmaking dreams of an enterprising young Jewish couple, Illo and Bernhard. In 1930s Berlin, the encroachment of Nazi thugs—held temporarily at bay by the war hero status of Illo’s aging father—forces the couple to attempt to relocate to a refugee community in Japanese-occupied Shanghai. An opportunity to leave early presents itself, but would require Illo to leave her father behind. Guilt-ridden, Illo disembarks as the ship leaves port, abandoning Bernhard. Thirault’s art echoes the characters’ cinematic aspirations in sumptuous layouts of soaring urban architecture and claustrophobic ghettos. Illo’s melodramatic screenplay-in-progress is cleverly imagined as if a real movie, which shifts with the first draft set in Berlin, then the New York of their imagination, and finally to Shanghai and the Chinese countryside. But the graphic novel suffers from the same syrupy tendencies as the film script, embodied by the cliché of too-good-to-be-true Lin Lin, who cleans Bernhardt’s room and conveniently has connections to the fledgling Shanghai film industry. The writing veers between genres, introducing then hurrying away from more violent scenes, as though to insulate the characters from the full scope of their horror. This curious project brings attention to a lesser-known Jewish refugee community via a tale about art as therapy and homage; though an uneven effort, it’s packed with details for historical fiction buffs. (July)

Publishers Weekly

""Packed with details for historical fiction buffs."" - PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

From the Publisher