Review by Booklist Review
Young journalist Adeline shows up at the French village home of Julien DuBois, hoping for a rare interview with the reclusive pianist. He refuses, but she wins him over by waiting the night in his garden, and a days-long conversation begins. Early on, Julien makes Adeline give a curious promise: that he won't be the subject of her finished article. Julien unfolds his life story as a child piano prodigy who leaves home after his mother takes up with a Nazi officer during France's WWII occupation. Living as a starving artist in Paris, he performs in a restaurant and eventually rockets to stardom as a cheesy variety-show host and ballad crooner. Fellow pianist Francois Samson floats in and out of Julien's life, haunting Julien with his superior skill, and eventually the two men are irrevocably connected. Melo's twisting and suspenseful story is well matched by Cavia's bright and sensitively rendered cartoons, reminiscent of old-school comics, which he colors in a full palette that evokes light, emotion, and memory. An easy recommendation for fans of literary comics.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
A moving saga of artistic rivalry, guilt, and redemption, this elegantly drawn graphic novel frames a famous pianist's life story as a narrative reluctantly spilled to Adeline, an intern from French newspaper Le Monde. Growing up in 1930s France, Julien Dubois is a musical prodigy with a hard-driving single mother. But his talent can't compare to that of François Samson, a poor janitor's son, who physically levitates in his transcendent performances. Julien fixates on François, but François is more interested in protesting the occupying Nazis. Julien's mother, on the other hand, is literally in bed with the invaders. Julien struggles to escape his mother and his old music teacher, Hubert Triton, drawn as a devilish goat who transforms Julien into a cheesy pop sensation renamed Eric Bonjour. After a lifetime of mental and moral torment, Julien tries to make amends and revive François's name after his brooding rival's quiet death. The final section reveals that Adeline has been concealing her own true identity, leading to a touching conclusion. Cavia gives each section its own muted, retro color palette and depicts his characters with fine, expressive angular lines. The result is a sweeping, enjoyably soapy story of frailty and reconciliation. (Sept.)
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