PERRAMUS

Fantagraphics collects the graphic novel Perramus ― winner of an Amnesty International prize ― in English for the first time.

This graphic novel follows the existential odyssey of a political dissident. When he voluntarily loses his memory, he's dubbed "Perramus" from the brand of his raincoat. During his absurdist travels, he teams up with the gruff Cannelloni; a foreign aviator dubbed "The Enemy" by despot Mr. Whitesnow; and the blind author "Borges" (based on the real-life literary figure), who comes to be a guide. This motley crew journeys to outlandish locales where they encounter a variety of eccentric characters ― including a director of trailers for films that will never exist; a guerilla  fbeforce of circus folk, clowns, and puppeteers; a tin-pot dictator with a vast fortune built on an empire of excrement; and Ronald Reagan. This highly anticipated collection is an act of resistance in and of itself ― it was created while Argentina's military dictatorship was still in power. Perramus is a cartooning tour de force, with a revolutionary message that remains vital to this day. Black & white illustrations.

Alberto Breccia (b. 1919; Montevideo, Uruguay; d. 1993, Buenos Aires, Argentina) is an influential, internationally acclaimed comics artist and cartoonist. His career began in the 1940s, during the golden age of Argentine comics. From 1962–1964, he drew Mort Cinder, written by Héctor Germán Oesterheld, which is considered a masterpiece of the form. He took a break from comics to teach and co-found the interdisciplinary art school IDA (Instituto de directores de Arte) but returned in 1968 to draw graphic biographies of Che Guevara and Eva Perón, and a reboot of Oesterheld’s seminal 1959 graphic novel, The Eternaut. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s ― when Argentina suffered under a series of military dictatorships ― and beyond, Breccia drew serialized comics for the European market, working with and adapting writers such as Poe, Lovecraft, Borges, Trillo, Sasturain, and many others. In 2021, he was inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame.

Born Adolfo González Chaves in 1945) Juan Sasturain lives in Buenos Aires. His many professions include university professor, TV host, editor, journalist, and writer. He is a recipient of the prestigious Konex award, one of Argentina’s highest honors.

Erica Mena is a Puerto Rican poet, translator, and book artist, who holds an MFA in poetry from Brown University and an MFA in literary translation from the University of Iowa. Their English translation of the Argentine graphic novel The Eternaut won a 2016 Eisner Award.