Letters: A bande dessinée helped me understand a serious issue in France
Reader shows how the French culture of graphic novels is useful as well as enjoyable
Classics such as Asterix are a good entry point into the universe of bandes dessinées
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To the Editor,
I enjoyed your article on bandes dessinées (BDs) and I also enjoy BDs. I would recommend Asterix and Tintin since they are classics and easy to read.
I also like ‘L’histoire De France Pour Les Nuls En Bd’ as a relatively easy guide to French history, and the Thorgal fiction series which is a mixture of Norse mythology and Science Fiction.
Read also: Discover Angoulême: The Heart of French Comic Art and Graphic Novels
My favourite BD at the moment is ‘Algues vertes : l’histoire interdite’.
This describes the problem of rotting seaweed on Breton beaches releasing hydrogen sulphide gas which can and was fatal to humans and animals; it also describes the failure of local public health and local government to address the problem.
I now understand why this issue appears on national news.
We have a great mediatheque nearby from which I often borrow BDs, which saves on money and storage.
Simon Croxson, by email
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