Special Collections at Palm Beach Gardens LLRC: Comics and Graphic Novels

In 1920, Argentine author Roberto Arlt, while first developing his own quest as a writer, published an essay on his uneasy experiences with esoteric groups in Buenos Aires. Diego Arandojo and Jorge Fantoni's graphic novel The Hidden River tells the story of Fausto Dumrauf who, many decades later continues Ault's work, following in the footsteps if internationally renowned writers such as Leopoldo Lugones and Ernesto Sabatom, who also studied the esoteric classics and frequented secret societies. Dumrauf investigates and collects disparate anecdotes of secret societies, connecting strands of a plot hidden in the shadow of the great South American city, that extend out to entangle some of the most notable occultists of the 20th century. Dumrauf's research forms cartography of a hidden river on the Río de la Plata, whose waters can cure or madden, depending on the drinker. Will he reveal mysteries of the cosmos, or simply the weakness of his aging mind and body? The dark swirls of Jorge Fantoni's illustration depict the topography of Diego Arandojo's story like a relief map. Unfold and trace your own journey into the conspiracies.

A vibrant tableau of small-town life as seen through the eyes of a woman returning home from Paris. Juliette boards a train from Paris and comes back to her hometown hoping for a low-key visit with family and old friends. What she finds is anything but. Her sister, a caregiver and mother of two, is carrying on an elaborate affair with a man from a costume shop. Her parents, separated, are now estranged. Father is sure he's developing Alzheimer's, though it's more likely that he's simply getting old. Mother, on the other hand, revels in the second act of her life as a free woman, an artist with a show at their local gallery to prove it. Slowly, Juliette finds herself entangled with the unlikely Georges, a dyspeptic alcoholic who is stuck in his life. These divergent paths inevitably cross against a gloriously painted backdrop of eccentric small-town living. Camille Jourdy's beautiful watercolor pages provide an unfeigned mileu for the subtle dramedy at hand in Juliette. All too real human emotions, bittersweet and relatable in their rawness, come together to form a poetic realism.

Private investigator John Blacksad is up to his feline ears in mystery, digging into the backstories behind murders, child abductions, and nuclear secrets. Guarnido's sumptuously painted pages and rich cinematic style bring the world of 1950s America to vibrant life, with Canales weaving in fascinating tales of conspiracy, racial tension, and the "red scare" Communist witch hunts of the time. Guarnido reinvents anthropomorphism in these pages, and industry colleagues no less than Will Eisner, Jim Steranko, and Tim Sale are fans! Whether John Blacksad is falling for dangerous women or getting beaten to within an inch of his life, his stories are, simply put, unforgettable. * Dark Horse is very proud to present the first three Blacksad stories in a beautiful hardcover collection, completely relettered to the artist's specifications and with the latest album, Red Soul, in English for the very first time. * This internationally acclaimed series has won nearly a dozen prestigious awards -- including the Angoulame Comics Festival prizes for Best Series and Best Artwork-and is a three-time Eisner Award nominee.