{"id":30263,"date":"2024-07-31T08:00:35","date_gmt":"2024-07-31T08:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=30263"},"modified":"2024-07-30T17:16:32","modified_gmt":"2024-07-30T17:16:32","slug":"glorious-summers-volume-3-little-miss-esterel-1962","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2024\/07\/31\/glorious-summers-volume-3-little-miss-esterel-1962\/","title":{"rendered":"Glorious Summers volume 3: Little Miss Esterel (1962)"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nBy Zidrou<\/strong> & Jordi Lafebre<\/strong> with additional colour by Mado Pe\u00f1a<\/strong>, translated by Lara Vergnaud<\/strong> (Europe Comics)
\nNo ISBN: Digital edition only<\/p>\n

Until comparatively recently, comics in the English-speaking world mostly countenanced comedic or numerous adventure sub-genres (crime, superhero, horror, sci fi), with only a small but vital niche of \u201creal world\u201d ventures, and those usually depicted via graphic biographies\/autobiographies like They Called Us Enemy<\/strong>, Love on the Isle of Dogs, Wage Slaves<\/strong> or Sour Pickles<\/strong> offering a different feel and flavour. Even historical sagas were treated as extraordinary moments with larger-than-life characters whenever possible.<\/p>\n

What we have never had – and still largely don\u2019t outside small press\/self-publishing – is a comics equivalent to general fiction, drama and melodrama. That\u2019s not so in Japan, South Korea or Europe, where a literal \u201canything goes\u201d attitude has always accommodated and nurtured human-scaled, slice-of-life tales with ordinary folk in as many quiet as extraordinary moments.<\/p>\n

Surely it can\u2019t be that hard to tell engaging stories in simple, recognisably ordinary settings? Medical traumas, love stories, school tales and family tragedies still play well on various-sized screens around the world, so why not in English-language comics?<\/p>\n

People being people is more than enough for our continental cousins. There appears to be an insatiable appetite for everyday moments aimed at properly \u201cmature readers\u201d, joyfully sans vampires, aliens or men in tights. These even have sub-genres all their own. For example, there\u2019s a wealth of superb material just about going on holiday. So, since we Brits are all too broke for any jaunts or une petite vacances<\/em> in Europe, let\u2019s stare covetously at them having a good time. After all, Over There<\/em> holidays are an inalienable right and they have some simply fabulous tales about the simple well-earned break. This one comes from one of the best series on taking it easy you will ever see \u2026<\/p>\n

An absolute exemplar of fantasy vacations made real, Glorious Summers: Southbound! (1973)<\/strong> was a nostalgia-drenched confection by Zidrou and regular collaborator Jordi Lafebre: a sublime example of idyllic group memory made into graphic sorcery in an everyday account utterly unafraid to temper humorous sweetness and light with real-world tragedy and suspense.<\/p>\n

Would sir et madame care for a soup\u00e7on of context? <\/em>Summer holidays – \u201cMidi\u201d – are a big deal in France and Belgium. The French divide into two tribes over the annual rest period, which generally lasts an entire month. Juilletistes<\/em> only vacation in July, wielding dogmatic facts like rapiers to prove why it\u2019s the only way to take a break. They are eternally opposed, heart, soul, and suntan lotion, by majority faction the Ao\u00fbtiens<\/em>, who recharge their batteries in August whilst fully reciprocating the suspicion, disdain and baffled scorn of the early-leavers. Many European sociologists claim the greatest social division today is not race, religion, gender, political affiliation or whether to open boiled eggs from the top or the bottom, but when summer holidays begin and end\u2026<\/p>\n

Les Beaux \u00c9t\u00e9s 1: Cap au Sud!<\/em><\/strong> was first in a string of family visits – six so far – that began in 2015 courtesy of scripter Beno\u00eet \u201cZidrou\u201d Drousie and Spanish illustrator Jordi Lafebre. Drousie is Belgian, Brussels-born in 1962 and was a school teacher prior to becoming a teller of tales in 1990. His main successes include school dunce series L\u2019El\u00e8ve Ducobu<\/em><\/strong>, Petit Dagobert<\/em><\/strong>, Scott Zombi<\/em><\/strong>, La Ribambelle<\/strong>, Le Montreur d\u2019histoires<\/strong><\/em>, a revival of Ric Hochet<\/em><\/strong>,<\/em> African Trilogy<\/em><\/strong>, L\u00e9onardo<\/em><\/strong>, Shi<\/em><\/strong> and so many more. His most celebrated and beloved stories are this memorable sequence and 2010\u2019s Lydie<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, both illustrated by Lafebre.<\/p>\n

That gifted, empathically sensitive artist and teacher was born in Barcelona in 1979 and has created comics professionally since 2001, first for magazines like Mister K<\/em><\/strong>, where he limned Toni Font\u2019s El Mundo de Judy<\/em>. He found regular work at Le Journal de Spirou<\/em><\/strong>, creating the romance Always Never<\/em><\/strong> and collaborated with Zidrou on La vieille dame qui n\u2019avait jamais jou\u00e9 au tennis et autres nouvelles qui font du bien<\/em><\/strong>, Lydie<\/em><\/strong>, and La Mondaine<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A combination of feel-good fable and powerful comedy drama, Glorious Summers<\/strong> depicts memories of an aging couple recalling their grandest family moments, beginning with a momentous vacation in 1973 where their four kids nearly lost their parents. The general progress is backwards, as the second tale – The Calanque<\/strong> – was set in summer of 1969, when heavily pregnant Maddie<\/em> Fald\u00e9rault<\/em> (imminently about to deliver precociously hyperactive Paulette<\/em> AKA \u201cPeaches\u201d<\/em>) once again had her holiday start late thanks to an inescapable deadline. Husband Pierre <\/em>is a comics artist and every summer break begins with him frantically trying to complete enough pages to take the time off…<\/p>\n

That time it left Maddie coping with three impatient kids (oldest girl Jolly-Julie<\/em>, dangerously forthright Nicole<\/em> and introspective toddler Louis<\/em>) and a newly-bereaved and lonely Spanish father-in-law…<\/p>\n

Here, however, third volume Mam’zelle Est\u00e9rel<\/em><\/strong> (translated for this criminally digital-only-edition as Little Miss Esterel<\/strong>) starts in the present day before setting the wayback machine to August 1962. Papa and Mama Fald\u00e9rault are finally selling the faithful Renaut 4L Hatchback which carried their ever-expanding family south to the sun for three memorable decades.
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\nIt\u2019s not that she\u2019s clapped out or knackered – in fact the vehicle is in immaculate condition. She has been lovingly cared for and is a valuable collector\u2019s item! – it\u2019s only that Peaches is all grown up now and the last chick preparing to leave the nest, so plucky, steadfast \u201cLittle Miss Esterel\u201d deserves an owner who will keep her on the road and having adventures…<\/p>\n

Of course, the transaction is charged with sentiment and sparks a flood of memories, and the scene shifts to 1969. Recently a mum for the second time, Maddie shepherds her two kids (toddler Jolly-Julie AKA \u201cZulie\u201d<\/em> and 6-month-old Nicole) and idiot husband. It\u2019s four days into the big holiday, and he\u2019s just finishing the emergency pages his abusive \u201cnamed-creator\u201d boss Garin<\/em> just dropped on him.<\/p>\n

The scenario is particularly aggravating as Maddie\u2019s martinet mother Yvette<\/em> LeGrand<\/em> and long-suffering, still-recuperating cardiac-case dad are staying with them. Having bought the young marrieds a car for family vacations, the snooty dowager has invited herself and gluttonous heart-attack survivor Henry<\/em> (dubbed forever after \u201cFat Pop Pop\u201d by Zulie) along on their eagerly-anticipated premier camping trip.<\/p>\n

Sadly, grandmama\u2019s haughty convictions and stern diktats don\u2019t just extend to how badly Madeleine is raising her children, how stupid Pierre\u2019s job is or what Henry can eat, drink or do. Before long she hijacks the d\u00e9class\u00e9 sun, sea-&-picnic worshippers\u2019 dreams: sternly inflicting upon them all a succession of hotels, restaurants and churches (all Michelin-starred!) for their own good and ultimate edification…<\/p>\n

Inevitably the situation is too much even for easy-going Pierre and poor historically-dominated Maddie… but then something small but wonderful happens to change and even explain those harsh years when Yvette raised her daughter all alone; and Pierre philosophically accepts that the Sun and Sea will always be there, but some things won\u2019t…<\/p>\n

Packed with heart, honest emotion and tons of pure sitcom comedy gold, this tale is another beautifully rendered and realised basket of memories stitched seamlessly together. It\u2019s funny, sweet and charming whilst delivering painful blows you never see coming. There aren\u2019t any spectacular events and shocking crises and that\u2019s the entire point\u2026
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\nIf you\u2019re British – and old enough – this series will stir echoes of revered family sitcoms like Bless This House<\/strong>, Bread<\/strong>, or Butterflies<\/strong> and even generational ads starring the \u201cOxo Family\u201d (and if that description doesn\u2019t fit you, I pity your browsing history if you look up any of that\u2026). The rest of you in need of an opening (but unfair) comparator might break out the Calvin and Hobbes<\/strong> collections and re-examine the bits with his embattled parents when the kid\u2019s out of the picture\u2026<\/p>\n

Lyrical, laconic, engagingly demure, debilitatingly nostalgic but unafraid to grasp any nettles on the beach, this holiday romance is another dose of sheer visual seduction wrapped in sharp dialogue and a superbly anarchic sense of mischief. Vacations are built of moments and might-have-beens, and come packaged here in compelling clips all making the mundane marvellous.
\n\u00a9 2018 -DARGAUD BENELUX (Dargaud-Lombard s.a.) \u2013 ZIDROU & LEFEBRE, LLC. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Zidrou & Jordi Lafebre with additional colour by Mado Pe\u00f1a, translated by Lara Vergnaud (Europe Comics) No ISBN: Digital edition only Until comparatively recently, comics in the English-speaking world mostly countenanced comedic or numerous adventure sub-genres (crime, superhero, horror, sci fi), with only a small but vital niche of \u201creal world\u201d ventures, and those … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Glorious Summers volume 3: Little Miss Esterel (1962)”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[115,113,239,63,122,125,127,132,148,254],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30263","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-biography","category-comedy","category-drama","category-european-classics","category-historical","category-humour","category-nostalgia","category-older-kids","category-romance","category-young-adult"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-7S7","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30263","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30263"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30263\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30267,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30263\/revisions\/30267"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30263"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30263"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30263"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}