Safe Area Gorazde: The Special Edition
by Joe Sacco
272-page black & white 7.75" x 10.25" hardcover • $29.99
ISBN: 978-1-60699-396-5
Ships in: April 2011 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now
First released in 2000, Safe Area Gorazde confirmed Sacco as one of the pre-eminent journalists of his time, and earned him a 2001 Guggenheim Fellowship. Now for its 10th anniversary, Fantagraphics is releasing an expanded hardcover edition which, much like 2007’s Palestine: The Special Edition, supplements the original work with page after page of special features, listed below.
In the wake of his acclaimed Palestine, Joe Sacco spent four months in Bosnia in 1995-1996, immersing himself in the human side of life during wartime, researching stories rarely found in conventional news coverage. The book focuses on the Muslim enclave of Gorazde, which was besieged by Bosnian Serbs during the war; Sacco spent four weeks in Gorazde, entering before the Muslims trapped inside had access to the outside world, electricity or running water.
Features of this special deluxe edition include:
• A lengthy illustrated essay by Joe Sacco on how the project came together.
• A side-by-side comparison of Sacco's reference photos and the final comics panels drawn from them.
• A "Where Are they Now?" update on Gorazde's most colorful characters.
• A long interview with Sacco on Safe Area Gorazde from The Comics Journal.
• Plus of course the complete Safe Area Gorazde including Christopher Hitchens's introduction from the first edition.
Download an EXCLUSIVE 21-page PDF excerpt (5.6 MB).
Video & Photo Slideshow Preview (view in new window):
Praise for the original edition:
2001 Eisner Award WINNER: Best Graphic Album – New
"Of the myriad of books that have appeared about Bosnia, few have told the truth more bravely than Sacco's. He is an immense talent." – The New York Times Book Review
"Harrowing and bleakly humorous, Sacco's account of life during the Balkan conflict is a timeless portrait of ordinary people caught in desperate circumstances. It's also a work of genius in an unlikely genre: journalism in comic book form." – Utne Reader
"Sacco's detailed, personal reporting captures his subject matter more convincingly than photographs or Christiane Amanpour." – Time
"Graphic in every sense of the term, Sacco’s account of everyday life in a city under siege puts one of the twentieth century’s least understood catastrophes in perspective; it’s the best argument around for comics as a journalistic medium." – GQ
Free Bonus: This book is available with an exclusive signed bookplate (pictured above) at no extra charge! See product description for details.