The Cardboard Valise

A single, self-contained graphic novel from Pantheon, The Cardboard Valise (2011–present) is a surreal, globe-trotting travelogue by the acclaimed cartoonist Ben Katchor. The story follows the adventures of a restless businessman whose obsessive collecting of cardboard valises leads him on a journey through a dreamlike, half-remembered cityscape. Katchor’s signature melancholic wit and intricate, cross-hatched drawings bring to life a world of forgotten architecture and peculiar commerce. It stands as a singular, masterful meditation on memory, place, and the detritus of modern life.