A Japanese salaryman decides to ditch everything and go to
a remote island to produce salt. A rocker plays with local
clubs at night while working as a garbage man by day. An
award-winning manga author earns extra income by
working at a retirement home to maintain his authorial
integrity. On the weekend, a father goes to the nearby
swimming pool with his disabled son… Eleven poetic views
of ordinary, everyday life in contemporary Japan, far from
geishas, robots, otaku, panty vending machines and other
preconceived visions of the land of the rising sun. Eleven
stories set mostly in the typical residential district of
Suginami ward, west of Tokyo, around the Iogi train station,
edited by acclaimed Czech comics author Václav Šlajch and
written by Czech-French poet Jean-Gaspard Páleníček.

Eleven artistic styles by artists from Czech Republic,
Slovakia, Ukraine and Russia.
Stories: Jean-Gaspard Páleníček
Artists: Ondřej David, Daniela Herodesová, Matej
Jurkáček, Adam Kaňovský, Matěj Kolář, Marina Kudinova,
Jozef Pavelka, Jakub Lang, Dominika Lizoňová, Petra
Ramešová, Petra Šestáková, Václav Šlajch

Japan International Manga Award 2021, bronze
Muriel Awards 2023, nominations in the categories Best
book, Best script, Best short story (“Undercurrent”, written
by Jean-Gaspard Páleníček, art by Matěj Kolář)

Jean-Gaspard Páleníček (1978), poet, translator,
exhibition curator and composer. In 1997-2001, he has
acted in the orfeus Theatre in Prague. In 2004-2017, he was
the artistic director of the Czech Centre in Paris. Since
2017, he is a freelance writer and art curator active mainly
between Prague, Paris and Tokyo. He is the author of
several poetry collections, most recently Mater speciosa
(2022), the novel The Birches (2008), the theatre play
Balzac’s Household (2009) or the poetic diary One
Sentence (2013).
Václav Šlajch (1980), comic author and illustrator, head of
the Media Illustration Studio at the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty
of Design and Art of the University of West Bohemia in
Pzeň. He belongs to the so called Generation 0 of Czech
comics, along with creators such as Jiří Grus, ToyBox or
Vladimír 518. In 2010 and 2022, he received the prestigious
Muriel comic book award in the Czech Republic. He
collaborated with director Jan Svěrák on several projects: he
is the author of the graphic version of the fairy tale Three
Brothers (2014). His most recent significant work is the
comic book Štefánik (2021).

A graphic novel based on real events, as captured in his journals by a young Czech explorer and botanist, Alberto Vojtěch Frič. In the winter of 1908 he returned to Europe from Paraguay accompanied by Cherwuish, a member of an indigenous tribe afflicted by a mysterious disease. A captivating story depicting the encounter between two men from two entirely different cultures whose paths crossed for a short time. A fascinating comic-form narrative laced with humour and melancholy.

Lucie Lomová is the best-known woman Czech comic art author of the new, postcommunist generation, with three coveted Muriel Prizes for comic art to her name. She is also a prolific illustrator, and her books have been translated into German, French, Hungarian and Polish.

The story of Cherwuish is a true story. And it was in every respect as incredible, amus- ing and bittersweet as Lucie Lomová has drawn it. First published in instalments in the popular Czech journal Pestrý týden in 1943, it was written in his old age by the leg- endary explorer and collector of cacti A.V. Frič. In those days, as a protest against the German occupation of Czechoslovakia, he grew a full beard of the kind favoured by South American barbudos, and would not leave his house. During World War II writing became one of the few sources of his in- come. The adventures of a savage in the civi- lised world, written with grace, humour and empathy, gradually expanded into a great existential narrative – not just that of Cher- wuish but equally of Frič’s own personal sto- ry. The tale of a brave adventurer, a free spirit who sometimes acted impulsively, a dreamer and a brawler, an intrepid explorer of blank spots on the global map and in the human mind, endowed with a great gift for obser- vation and also for asking good questions, an interpreter of truths experienced at first hand, a defender of the values of otherness.

Frenk Meeuwsen is a Dutch painter and draughtsman who has long been interested in Far Eastern philosophy and martial arts – he has a black belt in karate. In the mid-1990s, he lived in the temple district of Kyoto, where many of the Japanese sketches in his first graphic novel “Zen Without a Master” are located. The book is a collage of various materials: Meeuwsen’s childhood in the Netherlands, Japanese everyday life, the history of Buddhism, instructions for meditation and reflections on drawing. How and whether a European can delve into the doctrine of Zen is the

guiding principle. Overcoming internal violence can be a drive for this; Frenk Meeuwsen tells of a boyhood desire to take revenge on a classmate and how this student later actually dies without Frenk’s involvement – a situation which haunts his dreams for a long time. Banishing the randomness and cruelty of life through reduction and ritualisation is one of the temptations of Zen Buddhism. The search for a subjective way into meditation.

In all attempts at approximation, he comes to the conclusion for himself and the many other European enlightenment seekers in Japan: they remain exotic there and can only approach Japanese thinking in their own way. The book title “Zen Without a Master” alludes to this, Frenk Meeuwsen shows that you have to and can look for your subjective way into meditation. Despite his fascination, Frenk Meeuwsen also looks at the dark sides of the Zen tradition in Japan. Zen monks blessed the planes of the Kamikaze pilots in World War II, “enlightened” Zen masters expressly supported Japanese authoritarianism of that time. In modern Japan, he hardly finds any remains of an authentic Zen culture.

Frenk Meeuwsen draws all this in simple black and white, in reduced realistic pictures, in which he very skilfully incorporates the possibilities of the comic: different panel sizes and perspectives on the events, surreal dream worlds, massive font blocks that harass characters. Meeuwsen has arranged his material in very short chapters with a book that meanders through time. This creates attractive, directionless storytelling, similar to the form of teaching of Zen Buddhism; the reproduction of short, incoherent “Kōans” with statements by the Zen masters.

It all began when everything was in the same place. We don ́t know how it appeared, but we do know that the Universe started in a very small space. It seems impossible, but it’s true: when it all began, all the big things were very little.
IMPOSSIBLE tells us the Universe’s history since the Big Bang to the birth of plants, animals and humans. Catarina Sobral’s first non-fiction book is a colorful journey through particles, stars, dinosaurs and our genealogical tree.

Under an ever-present orange sun illuminating a desert landscape, two artisans, one for glass the other for clay, meet every day for lunch and chat. Both are sleepwalkers, but experience this phenomenon in drastically different ways.

This existential graphic novel draws us into the world of a Prague thirty-something who’s just been dumped by his longtime girlfriend. What does it mean to be single at a time when everyone around you is starting families? Is it a blessing or a curse? And what to do now? Think about the past, seek yourself, try to redefine your existence? A lot of questions, not a lot of answers. The single is free, but against his will. And it’s this very freedom which brings him stories and experiences which he’d never go through otherwise. A strange trip to Rome with a friend that didn’t go as planned. A brief but nonetheless intense relationship with a racist football fan. And many other scenes which play out in his head as memories during a purgative voyage across the Arctic Ocean. The single is like an iceberg waiting for a fateful Titanic to strike.

A richly textured story of a mysterious evil hovering above two ageing sisters. It’s mood is reminiscent of Charles Burn’s Black Hole, but in a particularly Czech way.

A horror detective story about two sisters, whose world is created from the surreal visions of Vojtěch Mašek, one of the most acclaimed Czech comics authors. When one of the Dietl sisters ends up in hospital after what appears to be a brutal attack, leaving her with a mutilated face and unable to move, Mašek leads the reader on a detective story exploring change of identity, doppelgängers, deformation, hallucination and altered states of mind in contrast with idyllic family life. This comics takes place in a fictional world woven from dreams, hazy and distorted memories of childhood fears, fear of the unknown and the desire for a safe hiding place. Reality constantly disrupted by doubts, changing points of view, the neurotic need to find objective truth. All this is contained in the story about the Dietl sisters – many theories, many possibilities but seemingly with only one solution. Mašek employs a unique multilayered art style, combining backgrounds created from various texts, newspaper cuttings and patterns with the main plot taking place in the foreground. The connections and juxtapositions between these two levels brilliantly evoking the main themes of the book.

With her previous books (including published in English ‘Dear Rikard’), Lene Ask got a lot of attention, especially for her personal and humorous descriptions of her own life. ‘Next time everything goes right’ is Ask’s first cartoon that is not about herself. The artist handles the transition to the new format excellently. She tells the story about the village girl Marte who has moved to Oslo to study and work at a library. When her father dies, Marte has to go home again, and among other things try to find out her relationship with the strictly religious mother. With persistent idealism, she strives to make the right choices, but throughout history gets new insights into what is important in life.
Lene Ask again shows her ability to describe people with great empathy and credibility. She glides freely between the big existential themes and the small everyday events. Her clear drawings and effective use of colour drive the story forward and support the characters’ characteristics.

We’re launching a book sale, all proceeds from which will be donated to help Ukraine.

There are 7 comic books and children’s books from Eastern Europe (including 4 from Czechia) in English and one Czech comic book in Ukrainian.

Many thanks to our friends from our warehouse in Great Britain who offered to pack and send your orders at no profit, thus supporting our action!

Comic books for children
Forest Beekeeper and the Treasure of Pushcha by Tomasz Samojlik
The story takes place after the third partition of Poland, when the king of Russia wants to present a piece of ancient forest to his general in recognition of his merit, but the general wants to cut the forest and sell it for timber. The eco-warrior Ignat and his helper Lucja protect the forest against the Russian invaders.

Puppet, Plum Pit, Plum, Log and Back to Puppet by Vojtěch Mašek, Chrudoš Valoušek
A Czech version of Pinocchio. Winner of the 2019 Bologna Ragazzi Award. An anti-utopia with elements of political satire.

Discovery That Never Was by Mārtiņš​ ​Zutis
A smart and funny book for children from one of the brave Baltic Baltic countries – Latvia.

Silence of The Hippo. Black Folktales by David Böhm

Another beautiful Czech graphic book.
African tales collected by the illustrator’s sister, who worked in an African school. Award for the most beautiful Czech children’s book of 2009.

Comic books for adults
Moscow by Øystein Runde, Ida Neverdahl
A very politically incorrect (2015) comic book by two Norwegian authors who spent a few shocking days in Moscow. Vladimir Putin makes a frequent appearance. The comic is impossible to forget!

So Far So Good by Jan Novák, Jaromír 99
A true story about how a group of Czechs fled to West Berlin in the 1950s, triggering the largest police manhunt in the history of the Cold War. The book was also published in Ukrainian.

Wake Up
An anthology of comics from Frame Festival in Prague, then still organized by us. Almost one hundred works on the theme of awakening, some metaphorical, others very political. Last copies.

Panic!’ tells the story about the three months quarantine of Diego and Viola, in a little flat in the suburbs of Bologna.

Diego is afraid of everything and he wants to lock himself in his house for ever. Viola only wears pajamas and she’s afraid that her family will become infected. They have a dog named Panic that will grow exponentially during lockdown, and they clean the grocery with the disinfectant gel. This comic is a magnifying glass on Viola and Diego’s ecosystem: their home. It’s the story of their anxiety. Panic is an autobiographical story, and it tells that even a home can be a crowded place.

Pinocchio, Carlo Collodi’s peppy impish wooden puppet, must encounter many adventures before finally coming to his senses… But what must a plum pit endure before it can become a puppet? This adventurous and comic tale told by a talking plank recounts the winding and capricious life story of a plum pit given to escapades. Screenwriter, comic book creator and author, Vojtěch Mašek, exhibits a sense for lively, nearly theatrical, storytelling and returns absurdist humor and biting levity to the children’s literary scene. Abundant linocut illustrations and graphics by artist Chrudoš Valoušek are, as always, stunning.

The beloved puppet of children’s literature, a figure that has been a continuous inspiration for artists all over the world, here presents an entirely new gallery of heroes and adventures. The graphic design plays with scale. The pages are peopled with historiated initials reminiscent of illuminated manuscripts, giant page numbers, avant-garde references and a medley of geometrical characters, their neon colours boldly outlined in black. Spread after spread, the mix of different layouts and the uncommon use of line-cut technique make for a truly extraordinary picturebook.

The Jury of Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2019

The true story of three Czech men whose daring exploits of anti- Communist resistance and 1953 flight to West Berlin set off the largest manhunt in the history of the Eastern Bloc.

The story of the Mašín brothers and their band waging guerilla war against the Communist regime in the early 1950s could be the most dramatic Czech tale of the 20th century. After their activities in Czechoslovakia, these young men headed west – facing off against twenty thousand East German Volkspolizei and shooting their way to freedom. In the novel So Far, So Good, Jan Novák wrote the story like a thrilling Czech Western and won the Magnesia Litera prize for Best Book of the Year. After the runaway success of the previous collaboration with an illustrator Jaromir 99, Zátopek, the authors return with an even more explosive comic book.

Ready… Steady… Go!!! And we’re off. 50 amazing Athletes pushing their minds and bodies in the great competition of sports. Who will win the medal and who will win the hearts?

Daria moves to Sweden to reset her life. She looks for a job and starts working under the table as a waitress in one of Malmö’s many restaurants. She soon discovers that things aren’t quite as they should be. Together with a journalist and her union, she starts to investigate the employment practices at her workplace – and many things in her life change. 

Wage Slaves is a story about union struggle when you are somebody marginalized by society. But also the story of a journey to a new country. Daria tries to get a new life and make new friends. She parties falls in love, works, learns the new language and starts a band. 

Daria Bogdanska tells the story of the precarious generation without employment security that she herself is a part of and the underground scene in Malmö. A tale of everyday life and politics. About alienation in a new city, longing for love and justice and trying to feel at home far, far away from home. The book is based on true events. 

Over 89 works were received for The A competition during 1st Prague Comics Art Festival „Frame”. The anthology includes 96 works by artists from Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Macedonia, Mexico, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Sweden, The Netherlands, Turkey, UK, USA

We are so proud to present a new book from Prague, Africa???

Please follow this link  for more info