Finally, Kino’s classic Argentine comic Mafalda will be released in its entirety worldwide in English. Published by Elsewhere Editions and translated by Frank Wynne, the first of five planned 120-page hardcovers will be released on April 8, 2025.
Mafalda, created by Kino (real name: Joaquín Salvador Rabado Tejon), is a comic strip that was serialized in Argentine magazines and newspapers from September 1964 to June 1973. Inspired by Charles Schulz’s Peanuts and Chic Young’s Blondie, this gag strip features six precocious characters. One-year-old Mafalda, her family, and friends appear in a story that satirizes not only Argentina, but the world at the time, which was experiencing rapid economic and social change, political instability, and intermittent military coups. . A heady mix of wholesome gags interspersed with biting satire and social commentary, the strip’s themes included progressivism, feminism, humanism, democracy, and world peace. Although the manga ended in 1973 and Mafalda’s creator passed away in 2020, it remains an important landmark in the world of comics, and its influence continues to this day.
The work has been translated and loved across borders, achieving success and enthusiastic audiences throughout Latin America, Asia, and Europe. In August, to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the character’s birth, French publisher Grenat published a tribute book featuring homages by a collective of female cartoonists, including luminaries such as Penelope Badjou, Florence Sestac and Aude Picault. was released. Languages available in this comic include French, German, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, Armenian, and Hebrew. Although an English translation was produced in Argentina, it has not been released internationally to date.
This manga has also been made into an anime and a movie. In the 1970s, 260 cartoon shorts featuring the character were produced, which were later compiled into a film. In August 2024, it was announced that Netflix has produced a new Mafalda animated series, created, directed and show-executed by award-winning Argentinian director Juan José Campanella.
In 2020, The Economist wrote about the comic and its influence in Latin America after the author’s death:
“Mafalda was more political than Peanuts and more modern than Asterix, but enjoyed similar popularity…Mafalda sold more than 20 million books, as well as T-shirts, mugs, and other memorabilia. The original cartoon reflected a specific environment and era: middle-class Argentina in the turbulent 1960s and 1970s, but much of Mafalda’s wit is universal and remains fresh today. She plays an important role in a long tradition of political satire in Latin America.
The English version is by award-winning Irish author and translator Frank Wynne. Much of his career to date has been in literary translation, but in the 1980s and 1990s he worked as a comics editor at the London-based British publisher Fleetway, where he published the influential comics magazine “ Deadline” (best known for introducing Alan Martin and Jamie Hewlett’s Tank Girl to comics). world).
Elsewhere Editions, an imprint of Archipelago Books, is a children’s book publisher specializing in translated works. Founded in 2017, we’ve built a strong catalog of visually eclectic children’s picture books from around the world. The ambitious five-book Mafalda Collection marks the company’s first foray into comics publishing.
Here is a synopsis of the first book in the upcoming translation:
“Six-year-old Mafalda loves democracy and hates soup. Which democratic branch does the cat belong to?” she asked, rolling out a red carpet of toilet paper and delivering her own presidential address. Mafalda’s precociousness and passion confuse all the adults around her. Subversive and rebellious, she refuses to abandon the world to her parents’ generation, which seems to have lost its way.
“Readers will meet short-tempered Mafalda and her colorful entourage, including the dreamy Felipe, the gossipy Susanita, the young financier Manolito, and the rebellious Miguelito. When Mafalda is dreaming or flying through the air on a swing, you can clearly see how small Mafalda is. “As always, the fun ends the moment I hit the ground.” Mafalda grumbles, but she has hope for the world and for it. Her heart is as big as it can be. Generations of readers discovered Mafalda’s boundless sense of adventure and learned to question, rebel, and hope. ”
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