Balilla, les enfants du Duce #[nn]

Nathalie Baillot's Balilla — les enfants du Duce presents a quietly haunting image right on its cover: a young girl in a dark fascist youth uniform stands alone on a vast wooden floor, her shadow stretching away from her like something she cannot escape, a closed door looming behind her. The composition, rendered in spare ink and warm amber tones, speaks to childhood caught inside the machinery of ideology. Published by Des ronds dans l'O in 2013, this is thoughtful, visually assured bande dessinée that earns your attention.