Lägg till bokmärkeThe Rabbi's Cat
The preeminent work by one of France’s most celebrated young comics artists, The Rabbi’s Cat tells the wholly unique story of a rabbi, his daughter, and their talking cat–a philosopher brimming with scathing humor and surprising tenderness.
In Algeria in the 1930s, a cat belonging to a widowed rabbi and his beautiful daughter, Zlabya, eats the family parrot and gains the ability to speak. To his master’s consternation, the cat immediately begins to tell lies (the fir... (show more)
The preeminent work by one of France’s most celebrated young comics artists, The Rabbi’s Cat tells the wholly unique story of a rabbi, his daughter, and their talking cat–a philosopher brimming with scathing humor and surprising tenderness.
In Algeria in the 1930s, a cat belonging to a widowed rabbi and his beautiful daughter, Zlabya, eats the family parrot and gains the ability to speak. To his master’s consternation, the cat immediately begins to tell lies (the first being that he didn’t eat the parrot). The rabbi vows to educate him in the ways of the Torah, while the cat insists on studying the kabbalah and having a Bar Mitzvah. They consult the rabbi’s rabbi, who maintains that a cat can’t be Jewish–but the cat, as always, knows better.
Zlabya falls in love with a dashing young rabbi from Paris, and soon master and cat, having overcome their shared self-pity and jealousy, are accompanying the newlyweds to France to meet Zlabya’s cosmopolitan in-laws. Full of drama and adventure, their trip invites countless opportunities for the rabbi and his cat to grapple with all the important–and trivial–details of life.
Rich with the colors, textures, and flavors of Algeria’s Jewish community, The Rabbi’s Cat brings a lost world vibrantly to life–a time and place where Jews and Arabs coexisted–and peoples it with endearing and thoroughly human characters, and one truly unforgettable cat. (show less)
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I'm not very familiar with European comic artists and cartoonists, so Sfar's novel was a good introduction. His style is very loose and sketchy, but what really stood out to me was his use of color. With a limited color scheme he was able to create an incredible amount of detail and depth, and create a true world for his characters to live in.
The story focuses on a Jewish Algerian family prior to WWII (I think, the novel never really establishes a time period), and the unusual cat who live... (show more)
I'm not very familiar with European comic artists and cartoonists, so Sfar's novel was a good introduction. His style is very loose and sketchy, but what really stood out to me was his use of color. With a limited color scheme he was able to create an incredible amount of detail and depth, and create a true world for his characters to live in.
The story focuses on a Jewish Algerian family prior to WWII (I think, the novel never really establishes a time period), and the unusual cat who lives with them that can sometimes talk. The story covers bits of Judaic teaching when the cat wants to have a bar mitzvah, and cultural relations between Algerians and Parisians when the family visits in-laws in Paris. However, the ending is a bit soft and doesn't really conclude anything. Apparently, though, there is a sequel which may help to bring the story to a more satisfying conclusion. And I certainly won't mind visiting this world once again. (show less)
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I love almost everything about this graphic novel, which is why it has such a high rating. I won't expand, because I'd overdo it and when you read it you'd be disappointed.
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