about the book
When did the roots of Democracy actually begin? This graphic novel takes the reader back in time to uncover the truth, which turns out to be a funny, thought-provoking, and tragic tale full of lively debates, sarcastic commentaries from Greek gods, peaceful domestic scenes, epic dramas, terrible violence, and Hollywood style climaxes.
It begins in 490 B.C., when Athens is at war with the Persian tyrant Darius. Around a late-night campfire, a young man, Leander. tells his tale. A common man, he has to face a tidal wave of change brought on by cataclysmic events, and he is working hard to make sense of it all.
Tomorrow, he and the other soldiers will go into battle against a mighty army. To encourage the frightened men, he recounts his life and the evils he witnessed that were perpetrated by the old, repressive regime. He starts with his childhood and how society put their utter faith in the Greek gods. He tells of the powerful and uncaring men who caught his family up in their violence.
Leander relates how he met the aristocrat Cleisthenes who schooled him on the principles of democracy. Leander talks of alliances, political machinations, and the vivid personalities of the men who fought for the birth of democracy. Revolts arise and rioting follows as the influence of the gods falls away and democracy finally arises from the ashes of battles waged by daring, cunning, and driven individuals.
To aid in understanding the complex ideas in this graphic novel, turn to the afterward. It offers commentary about the novel’s characters, important places, and the Athenian culture.
about the author/illustrator
Alecos Papadatos, born in 1959 in Greece, studied economics at the Aristotle University and earned a postgraduate degree in marketing at the University of Sorbonne. Thankfully, business was not his passion.
In 1986, Alecos began to draw. This new passion led to studies in animation and cartoon design. He found work as an animator, story boarder, and animation director for French TV and went on to produce and direct short animated films, animated TV cartoon series including Babar, and a great many cartoon commercials. He became one of the cartoonists at the Greek newspaper To Vima. He currently lives in Athens with his family and draws comics for two Greek newspapers as well as working on all his other projects.
Alecos is probably best known for his illustrations for the award-winning international phenomenon Logicomix : An Epic Search for Truth, a graphic novel written by Apostolos Dixiadis and Christos Papadimitriou. On that project, he worked closely with colorist Annie Di Donna, who also did the bold coloring on Democracy.
Democracy began as a homework assignment for his six-year-old daughter, who was supposed to use the computer to learn about Pericles. Since Alecos thought he was pretty knowledgeable about the statesman and general, he was floored when he read that Cleisthenes was considered the founder of democracy, not Pericles. How could that be! There isn’t even a statue of Cleisthenes in all of Greece!
Papadatos was intrigued and wondered if there could be a graphic novel in this. He decided to write about the man, and it turned out to be a highly ambitious project!
Sources:
Author website
Author biography: Bloomsbury Publishing
Author interview: Herald Scotland
Author blog: WordPress
Also by Alecos Papadatos:
Logicomix : The Search for Truth by Apostolos Doxiadis. Bloomsbury USA. 2009.
about the co-author
Abraham Kawa is a cultural studies theorist and is also passionate about comics and graphic novels. So when Alecos Papadatos, a cartoonist and animator, asked him in 2009 to join him on a project, Abraham knew it was going to be interesting.
Alecos had become fascinated with the birth of democracy and was taking on an epic graphic novel project by turning a lot of facts into a personal story told long ago. Alecos had the scope of the story pretty much figured out, but he wanted Abraham to write the text in graphic novel format.
Abraham had never done that before, so he researched everything he could get his hands on by Neil Gaiman, Grant Morrison, and Alan Moore, all famous comic authors. He also turned to the historian of ancient Greece, Herodotus. This scholarly man knew how to hone down a major event to its nitty-gritty, and that was what Abraham had to do.
The challenge came when Abraham realized modern-day Greek politics was influencing his writing. The time of Leander and the current situation were so closely related!
With the project all done and the great reviews coming in, Abraham has caught the bug! He wants to write more graphic novels. Abraham loves that a reader can pause and reread favorite bits. He finds that they are like a personal cinema, minus the actual sound effects! It’s like having you own tote-able Blu-Ray!
Abraham, a native of Athens, currently lives in Volos, a beautiful port city.
Source:
Author interview: Herald Scotland
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