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Growing up in France means reading BD or "Bande Dessinées" (cartoons, graphic novels) before even knowing how to read properly. You start with Astérix & Obélix, Tintin, Spirou & Fantasio, Lucky Luke, Gaston Lagaffe... and as you become older, you start reading BDs dealing with more serious topics.

BDs are recognised as being an important part of French litterature, and adults read them as much as children. In fact, my grand-father is the person I know who owns the most BDs! More then 350 on the last count...

Graphic novels follow the same idea, but do not stick to same constraints as conventional BDs: different formats & sizes, not necessarily structured in strips, full page art & most often in black & white, not colour.

Here a couple fine example from France, Japan & the US. Click on the legend below the image to access the author's blog.

Trois Ombres by Cyril Pedrosa

Haruka-na machi e (遥かな町へ) by Jiro Taniguchi

Blankets by Craig Thompson

I just finished reading "Blankets" and really recommend it. Fantastic artwork & great - but dark - story. Graphic novels seem to be a great way of expressing emotions which are not well conveyed when they are just written down in words...