Archaia to Publish Marjane Satrapi’s ‘The Sigh’

Marjane Satrapi, author of the critically acclaimed, bestselling 2000 graphic memoir, Persepolis, will publish the first English edition of her new graphic work, The Sigh, with L.A.-based indie comics house Archaia this November. The book is Archaia’s initial effort to expand its list to include a greater number of foreign titles as well as new graphic books that challenge the conventional notion of what a graphic novel should look like.

Hailed for Persepolis, an award-winning comics memoir about growing up during the Iranian revolution, she followed with the equally acclaimed works, Embroideries (2005) and Chicken With Plums (2006). In 2007 she released an animated version of Persepolis co-written and codirected by Vincent Paronnaud. Satrapi’s fans have waited patiently since, as The Sigh was published first in France in 2004 and more recently in Spain. The project came to Archaia through a deal with the Spanish publisher, Norma Editorial.

“We’ve had a pretty good working relationship with Norma Editorial over the past few years,” said Mark Smylie, founder and CCO of Archaia Entertainment in a phone interview. “They published Mouse Guard [another Archaia series created by David Petersen] in Spain and we’re doing a couple of their books here. Somehow Norma ended up representing the internationals on the side, and I can only assume Pantheon [who published Persepolis] decided to pass on the book and so the rights were available. We are all fans of Satrapi’s work, so when we found out that it was available it was a very easy decision on our part.”

The Sigh will be available nationwide in November. It can be ordered in the direct comic market through Diamond Comics Distribution and in bookstores through Publishers Group West. Because The Sigh is not exactly a “textbook” graphic novel, a digital distributor has yet to be worked out. Satrapi will not be touring in association with the book since she is busy promoting her new movie across Europe. There is no word on whether or not the book will be available at the upcoming New York Comic Con.

The Sigh is a unique project because it does not follow the format of what people might consider a traditional graphic novel. The book is laid out more like a children’s storybook than a panel-to-panel story. While it resembles an illustrated prose story, there are extensive drawings throughout the work. And according to Smylie, this is exactly the kind of book that Archaia wants to be publishing.

“How you define a graphic novel or a comic book or whatever you call it has been and interesting question for a long time. When you look at the research in question of what actually constitutes a graphic novel or a comic book, it’s almost like you have so many different definitions,” Smylie said. “Does it have to have a word balloon, for example, for it to constitute a comic book or graphic novel? We like to take the broadest possible definition when it comes to a graphic novel for what we’re going to publish.”

Archaia is following through on that goal with a trio of books that are more illustrated novel than comic book. This past summer they released their first illustrated novel, Conspiracy of the Planet of the Apes. This winter, along with The Sigh, they are also releasing an illustrated collection of Edgar Allen Poe stories titled, Tales of the Macabre, by French illustrator Benjamin Lacombe.

“I think that as long as there’s art and a narrative in it, we consider it to be fair game for us as a publishing company. And we’ve got some more on tap for next year,” Smylie said.

The Sigh is also just one of many foreign titles that Archaia will be publishing in the coming season. Smylie also mentioned Billy Fog—young Billy has “trouble sight”, he sees a worldghosts and ghouls, vampires, that other kids can’t see—another unusual graphic work, saying, “Some of it is narrative sequential art, some of it is traditional storytelling, parts of it are done as pages from a bestiary or an encyclopedia… But the basic story is a kind of Calvin & Hobbes if it was done by Edward Gorey,” said Smylie. Coming out for the Halloween/Christmas season, the book is written and illustrated by French creator Guillaume Bianco.

Next year Archaia will also release Judge Bao & The Jade Phoenix, a historical fiction piece described by Smylie as “a Medieval Chinese version of Sherlock Holmes,” from French writer Patrick Marty and Indian-born Beijing-raised illustrator Congrui Nie. They have also acquired The Last Days of an Immortal, the critically acclaimed French graphic novel from writer Fabien Vehlmann and illustrator Gwen de Bonneval.