C’is a first list always eagerly awaited in the world of comics. A bit like those of the Prix Goncourt or, let's be modest, of the Renaudot: the list of 15 albums nominated by the Association of Comic Strip Critics and Journalists(ACBD, of which the author of these lines is a part, to be completely transparent) for its annual Grand Prix.
At the end of a first round of voting, the members of the ACBD selected these fifteen titles from among the production of the year 2024 (from November 2023 to the end of October 2024 to be precise).
This year we will note a great diversity of origin, with mainly French authors but also an American, a British and even an Egyptian. And the same editorial variety, with 14 different publishers for 15 albums (only Casterman editions have a “double”), large houses (Delcourt, Dargaud, Casterman, Le Lombard) but also smaller structures, independent publishers (Cornelius , ça et Là, Sarbacane, etc.) and more general publishing houses (Albin Michel).
The 15 albums in the running for this 2025 Grand Prix, in alphabetical order
- Inside, by Will McPhail (404 ÉDITIONS),
the first graphic novel by a New Yorker cartoonist, centered on a very withdrawn young man who, through various encounters – and drama – will open up to the world. Intimate and moving, with an original and judicious integration of color. - Tonight is a nightmare, by Nicole Claveloux (CORNÉLIUS)welcome into the head of Nicolas Claveloux, the young octogenarian author, pillar of Screaming Metal et Oh lookwho then focused on children's books before making a spectacular comeback this year with this dreamlike work, an ode to imagination, around the intrusion of a head of the “Logic and Reason” department coming disrupt the making of dreams, always with its very personal design.
- Two naked girls, from Luz (ALBIN MICHEL),
the rise of Nazism, the dispossession of the Jews, the underside of the art market of the time, all this seen from a painting by a somewhat forgotten painter from the early 1920s. Much more than an exercise in style (successful), a remarkable, well-documented story, in a less caricatured and more refined style of Charlie's ex-cartoonist. - Ideal, by Baptiste Chaubard and Thomas Hayman (SARBACANE)a story of light anticipation, in a Japan now invaded by androids, except on the island of Kino, where the life of the son of the founder of the local community will be turned upside down, following the accident of his wife, a pianist renowned. Combining a clear line style and a very Japanese atmosphere, the story combines romantic drama and reflection on new technologies.
- The Illuminated, by Laurent-Frédéric Bollée and Jean Dytar (DELCOURT), between Rimbaud and Verlaine, the third of his “Illuminated”, Germain Nouveau, less known, forms the link in this trio who will meet, separate, get lost and find each other again for around fifteen years. A very beautiful light on the bohemian milieu of Parisian artists and poets at the end of the 19th century carried by a very original narration device, in the form of a “split screen” in horizontal bands.
- Impenetrable, by Alix Garin (LE LOMBARD)an intimate and moving story where the author evokes the twists and turns of her sexuality and her process of emancipation.
- It’s lonely at the centre of the Earth, de Zoe Thorogood (HI COMICS),
a copious autobiographical (according to the term chosen by the author), introspective autofiction based on the story of six months of her life, between Leicester and the United States, in the middle of the Covid pandemic and in deep depressive melancholy. A serious and hard background but transfigured by the self-deprecation, the intelligence, the fantasy of Zoe Thorogood and a stunning virtuosity in moving from one graphic style to another. - Les Julys, by Nylso, (MISMA),
little beings in white hats, imaginary friends or little geniuses who emerge come summer, a father confronted with a son who grows up too quickly… a dreamlike story also giving pride of place (like Nicole Claveloux, in another style), to dream and imagination. - Oh, Lenny, by Aurélien Maury, (TANIBIS),
A young woman, idle in her anonymous American housing estate, takes in a strange creature, vaguely octopus-like. A complex relationship will develop between them, as will the interpretations that can be drawn from it (madness, influence, addiction?). A big graphic novel that can be read in one go, thanks to a well-controlled rhythm and its light and elegant clear line drawing. - The Jellyfish King T1, the Brecht Evens (ACTES SUD),
A father and his son sink deeper into their isolation, against a backdrop of conspiracy and a form of unhealthy control. And always the very personal, colorful and dazzling graphic style of the Belgian author. - The Route, by Manu Larcenet (DARGAUD),
An impressive adaptation of Cormack McCarthy's masterpiece, a distressing and terrifying post-apocalyptic survival story, following the tragic wandering of a father and son in a devastated and ash-covered world. An icy journey to the end of horror magnified by the masterful drawing of Manu Larcenet. - New blood, by Jean-Christophe Chauzy (CASTERMAN)the author of Rest of the world, which tells of the collapse of society after a cataclysm, is in turn confronted with a collapse, personal and interior, with the diagnosis made of a blood disease. Here he describes, directly but also metaphorically, the entire medical process he endured. A powerful and moving testimony, without concession, but which is also a story of determination and hope.
- Shubeik Lubeik, your desires are orders, by Deena Mohamed (STEINKIS),
When wishes become commodities, things can quickly go haywire, especially when you're offered third-rate geniuses. An allegorical critique of capitalism, in the streets of Cairo, with a round and effective drawing, in black and white – in the spirit of US independent comics. A real discovery, to be read in the original (Arabic) sense, like a manga, from right to left. - Ulysse & Cyrano, of Antoine Cristau, Xavier Dorison and Stéphane Servain (CASTERMAN),
Between a “feel-good book” and a historical story in post-war France, a story of learning (in this case of cooking) cooked to perfection and which will make you salivate. With a large album format which allows you to appreciate even more the beauty of Stéphane Servain's boards. “ Truth in pleasure », in pleasure the truth, as one of the protagonists says. - Walicho, by Sole Otero (HERE AND THERE)
Over nearly three centuries, from Argentina from 1740 to the present day, different stories that appear distinct at first glance but which ultimately converge around a trio of timeless witches. By an author already noted for her previous work, Naphtaline.
The next stage of the prize will take place in Blois, on the sidelines of the BD Boum festival, on November 23, where following a debate between the members the list of 5 finalists will be revealed. The winner, subsequently chosen by a final vote, will be revealed on December 3, 2024.
Remember that this ACBD Criticism Grand Prize aims to “ support and highlight, in a spirit of discovery, a comic book, published in French, with strong narrative and graphic demands, marking by its power, its originality, the novelty of its subject or the means that the author deploys there. »
