Description
The English translation of this bestselling graphic novel tells the story of Nok, an old blind man who sells lottery tickets in Bangkok, as he decides to leave the city and return to his native village. Through reflections on contemporary Bangkok and flashbacks to his past, Nok reconstructs a journey through the slums of migrant workers, the rice fields of Isaan, the tourist villages of Ko Pha Ngan, and the Red Shirt protests of 2010. Based on a decade of anthropological research, The King of Bangkok is a story of migration to the city, distant families in the countryside, economic development eroding the land, and violent political protest. Ultimately, it is a story about contemporary Thailand and how the waves of history lift, engulf, and crash against ordinary people.
About the Author
Claudio Sopranzetti is an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the Central European University. He is the author of Owners of the Map, winner of the 2019 Margaret Mead Award. Sara Fabbri is an illustrator and editorial designer, currently working as Art Director for Linus, an Italian comics magazine. Chiara Natalucci is an interpreter and translator of Russian and English, currently teaching English at a secondary school in Italy.
Reviews
"The artwork is at least as important as text. Sara Fabbri's colored line drawings give the tale an urgency that words themselves cannot convey." -- Peter Gordon * Asian Review of Books *
"Shades of hope and humor glimmer amid the forces of inequity and impunity depicted in this memorable book that homes in on the rich lives of ordinary people, those who the country's rulers are meant to serve." -- David Hopkins * Nikkei Asia *
"Well informed and captivating. Much more than a didactic good-versus-evil tale, The King of Bangkok does justice to the complex people who animate a country that many of us would do well to know better." -- Rosalie Metro, University of Missouri-Columbia * Los Angeles Review of Books *
"This book is a triumph." -- Chris Baker * Bangkok Post *
Awards
Winner of 2022 PROSE Award awarded by the American Association of Publishers 2022 (United States). Runner-up for Foreword INDIES 2021 Bronze Medal for Graphic Novels & Comics 2022 (United States).
Book Information
ISBN 9781487526412
Author Claudio Sopranzetti
Format Paperback
Page Count 296
Imprint University of Toronto Press
Publisher University of Toronto Press
Series ethnoGRAPHIC
Weight(grams) 640g
Dimensions(mm) 241mm * 171mm * 19mm
About the Author
Claudio Sopranzetti is an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the Central European University. He is the author of Owners of the Map, winner of the 2019 Margaret Mead Award. Sara Fabbri is an illustrator and editorial designer, currently working as Art Director for Linus, an Italian comics magazine. Chiara Natalucci is an interpreter and translator of Russian and English, currently teaching English at a secondary school in Italy.
Reviews
"The artwork is at least as important as text. Sara Fabbri's colored line drawings give the tale an urgency that words themselves cannot convey." -- Peter Gordon * Asian Review of Books *
"Shades of hope and humor glimmer amid the forces of inequity and impunity depicted in this memorable book that homes in on the rich lives of ordinary people, those who the country's rulers are meant to serve." -- David Hopkins * Nikkei Asia *
"Well informed and captivating. Much more than a didactic good-versus-evil tale, The King of Bangkok does justice to the complex people who animate a country that many of us would do well to know better." -- Rosalie Metro, University of Missouri-Columbia * Los Angeles Review of Books *
"This book is a triumph." -- Chris Baker * Bangkok Post *
Awards
Winner of 2022 PROSE Award awarded by the American Association of Publishers 2022 (United States). Runner-up for Foreword INDIES 2021 Bronze Medal for Graphic Novels & Comics 2022 (United States).
Book Information
ISBN 9781487526412
Author Claudio Sopranzetti
Format Paperback
Page Count 296
Imprint University of Toronto Press
Publisher University of Toronto Press
Series ethnoGRAPHIC
Weight(grams) 640g
Dimensions(mm) 241mm * 171mm * 19mm
