Skandalon

Julie Maroh burst onto the scene in 2013 with "Blue Is the Warmest Color," a tender, bittersweet graphic novel about lesbian love, in which a young woman named Clementine becomes infatuated with Emma, a girl with blue hair. The book spawned a controversial and acclaimed feature film that won the Palme d'Or at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival as well as accolades for its stars Adele Exarchopoulos and Lea Seydoux; the book itself is a "New York Times" bestseller and received starred reviews from "Publishers Weekly" and "Library Journal." Julie's follow-up graphic novel, "Skandalon," marks a startling change of pace: a fiery, intense story about the recklessness of fame. "Skandalon," found in the Gospels, refers to a persistent trap or obstacle, such as the one that confounds the mesmerizing, Jim Morrison-like lead character Tazane. He is a true rock icon: passionate, arrogant, selfish, and sometimes violent, the charismatic singer is a beacon for controversy and scandal. But the public that worships him and the media that lavishes attention on him are waiting for him to fall from grace. At times shocking, "Skandalon" is a powerful and relentless meditation on the high cost of fame, and the demons awaiting anyone who refuses to be wary of them. Julie Maroh is an author and illustrator originally from northern France. She studied comic art at the Institute Saint-Luc in Brussels and lithography and engraving at the Royal Academy of Arts in Brussels.