Tintin Forums

You may have a point though. I get the impression from the books that have been published about him, that Herge really did not hold racist hate filled views, but that the insensitive and sometimes ignorant ways in which he portrayed various ethnic groups (early on anyway)was something that really was a genuine act of ignorance rather than malice.

I think that he was probably a stubborn man in some ways too and perhaps refused to 'pander' to what he may have seen as unjustified and harshly critical over-analysis of his works and motives. So maybe he just thought that if people wanted to percieve his attitudes as being racist then they could do so when he felt that he had simply been young and unquestioning which led to his portrayal of other ethnic groups in the way that he did. Sorry if this is getting convoluted - there may have been a better way to put this, but I hope you get what I mean.

Someone else in his position may have decided to change the offendings strips and attitudes and plots considerably in later years, but his reason for not doing so may hve been that as he didn't harbour racist feelings in himself that he should not have to bother too much with changing those things which he just saw as a part of the past and instead wanted to get on with the work at hand?

Kam

Just thought I'd mention that I spotted a copy of the book in my local Waterstones today, complete with bellyband. Seems like it's finally getting out there!

Tintin in puttees and shorts, ... what a sight! Were they still wearing puttees in the 1930’s? - I guess so.

On the momentous occasion of this books release I feel compelled to add a few of my own impressions.

Is it just me, or does this book have an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ quality about it? (In the nick of time, a rope ladder appears from the sky and plucks Tintin to safety...) All of the characters – blacks and whites – seem to me like they’re in a fantasy world. I suspect any small children reading this book are likely to see things in that light also.

The pages are packed with glorious Hergé artwork. My favourites – check out the waterfall on page 44. The cliff scene a few pages later (47) is enough to make anyone’s pulse race.

For so many years I’ve been reading how unlikely it is that this book would ever appear in an English translation. It’s almost a surreal experience now to find it on a bookshop shelf around town – I want to buy it every time I see a copy!

Good on ya EGMONT BOOKS LTD

-Harry-

Finally got a copy, thanks to Borders in York whilst I was up there over Christmas. Still no sign of it down here in darkest Somerset!

The phrases on the band are telling; "Collector's Edition", "An essential volume for collectors", "placing it in its historical context" and so on. It's obviously being stocked in the childrens' sections of bookshops, but that, along with the fact that the band's there at all (thus preventing casual browsers being exposed to the potentially offensive contents) seems to be Egmont's get-out clause. If someone buys it for little Jimmy, gets upset and complains (or worse), they can always say, "Well, we did warn you what it was like!"

As for the book itself, it's great to have it in English at long last! I did find the translation a little "flat" for the most part, but I suppose there's only so much that can be done with the source material. It's an odd hybrid really - with the relatively unsophisticated B&W artwork, the simpler wording and dialogue sits well enough, but I found it jarred a bit when applied to the more accomplished 1946 art.

It's still a lovely thing to have, and now it can sit in its rightful place at the head of the colour Tintin canon, setting up America and completing the collection. Shame they couldn't use the right font for the lettering though...

Thats all ok.But what about videos series?Whoz gonna produce it?Bellivision?Ellipse?Nelavana?BBC?

varun0883
Thats all ok.But what about videos series?Whoz gonna produce it?Bellivision?Ellipse?Nelavana?BBC?

There almost certainly won't be one. Belvision aren't producing anymore; the Ellipse-Nelvana series is over a decade old and it wouldn't be financially viable to produce one single cartoon. I doubt anywhere would pick it up, really. The animated series sits quite nicely as it is.

Just picked it up yesterday. Read the first few pages on the train but then decided to do it on the weekend when I am all relaxed in the couch.

Woo hoo...

I am also awaiting the book which I have ordered in India.

But please tell me (I am hopelessly ignorant of Publishing technicalities),Will the book be a 'first edition' ?? or will it be classified as a 'reprint' or whatever.If the former, then I will be a happy owner of a 'first edition' Tintin for the first time.

szplug
Will the book be a 'first edition' ?? or will it be classified as a 'reprint' or whatever

Well, the copy I have, which I bought in a normal book-shop in the usual way (rather than off eBay), is showing the numeral 1 in the list of small numbers below the printing information on the page with the foreword on it.

This would have been removed if there had been a second printing (likewise the 2 would get scratched off if there was to be a third printing, and so on), so in spite of the uncertainty surrounding the books which were supposedly destroyed, the book I have would be, in the normal course of things, a first edition - and so will yours if it has that as well. Congratulations!

I got my copy of Congo on 29th Jan from an international book fair held in New Delhi. I was literally stunned when I saw a giant sized cover of a Tintin book staring back at me, of whose existence I was not even aware of. They had got only the hardbound editions (thankfully on sale) with the 'Collector's edition' bellyband. Atleast the person at the stall claimed that this was the first time it had been released for sale in India.

Although I could not spot it, but anyone interested can find out from Variety Book Depot in CP whether they have got it on sale off-the-counter or not.

As for the book itself, I would go with the majority of the reader's opinion. I finised it fastest of all the Tintin books I've read till-to-date (22) & more than the reading pleasure, it seemed to have a historical significance for me.....I actually asked one of my Tintin-ignorant friends not to start reading Tintin from this book.


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