La Douce #[nn]

A haunting close-up of a woman's face — rendered in brooding earth tones of rust, brown, and black — dominates this French graphic novel adaptation of Dostoevsky's novella, with a small inset portrait nestled in the lower corner and a silhouetted cityscape bordering the top. Published in 2007 by Éditions Carabas, La Douce brings together the work of Loïc Dauvillier and Mikhaël Alléache for a visually atmospheric interpretation of the Russian classic. The cover's raw, textured linework immediately signals a deeply felt, literary sensibility that sets this album apart on any shelf.