The Village Teacher

April 3, 2026

As I was saying a few days ago, some of Cixin Liu’s short stories have been adapted into wonderful graphic novels.

This one is a heartfelt story that touches many topics that are dear to the author’s heart, mainly the importance of knowledge and the impact of teaching, but also involves some other topics that recur in classic science fiction, like silicate-based aliens and planet destruction as a form of cosmic hygiene. Of course, being the subject what it is, it was bound to move me.

The drawings of space sceneries and of the alien civilisations are absolutely beautiful. Sometimes I cringed at people’s expressions, particularly the children, but a very enjoyable issue nonetheless.
I haven’t read the original short story yet, it’s in the collection “Hold up the Sky” in my to-read bucket, so I can’t speak to the differences with the original.

comics and illustration

Leo Ortolani, Tapum

A un certo punto ci sarà una battuta, in questo fumetto, e riderete. Sappiate che è l’unica. Com’è giusto che sia. Se devo paragonare quest’opera a qualcosa, il confronto più azzeccato è probabilmente lo spettacolo che Marco Paolini trasse dal Sergente nella neve di Rigoni

August 9, 2026 9:00 am

Summertime

Omeros in the Caribbeans

Derek Walcott was a Saint Lucian poet, playwright, and painter, and one of the major voices of Caribbean literature. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1992, and his work often explores Caribbean history, identity, colonial inheritance, and the meeting of European and African

August 9, 2026 6:00 am

books and literature

Ioanna Papadopoulou’s The Castaway and the Witch

I had a genuine “oh shit” moment when I read the author’s preface saying this was darker than “Winter Harvest” because – and I absolutely ADORED “Winter Harvest” – that was pitch-black dark. I thought “we’re all going to die”. This maybe has something to

August 8, 2026 9:00 am