Description
Praise
About the Author

Winner, Quai des Bulles – Ouest France 2011, St. Malo, France
Winner, Best Asian Album, Prix-Asie ACBD, France 2011
Nominated for Best New Album, Will Eisner Industry Awards, USA, 2011

Look inside the book

Chickens have inexplicably gained sapience and the United Nations officially recognises the species Gallus Gallus as newest members of the human race. This is the world that Jake Gallo knows, but he still has a chip on his shoulder towards mankind—he chides an employer for her biased hiring practices, scoffs at a woman who sits on him on the bus and criticises his sister when he learns she’s engaged to a man. When he gets a call early one morning, Jake rushes to the bedside of his ailing father, Elmer. Upon his death, Jake’s mother passes him Elmer’s diary, which documented his first moments of consciousness. By discovering the trauma and triumphs of his parents during the tumultuous transition period, Jake finds closure with this father and also makes peace with his own identity.
"One of my favourite comics. It's just heartbreaking and funny and so beautifully drawn."
—Neil Gaiman

"Gorgeously drawn, black-and-white artwork combines with outstanding storytelling in this modern-day fable of ethnic strife, identity, friendship and family."
—Francisca Goldsmith, author and critic

"The gorgeous b&w art, full of lush pen work and strong expressions, takes what should be a self-evidently ludicrous proposition and somehow imbues it with plausibility ... A peculiar but engaging work that deserves attention."
—Publishers Weekly

"Elmer is a beautifully drawn and tightly scripted family drama set in a world where the advantaged and disadvantaged live in a state of mutual distrust.”
—Forbidden Planet, UK

“This is Alanguilan’s greatest achievement, constructing a thoroughly plausible setting where fowl and man live side-by-side, if not, always in harmony.”
—Ruel S. De Vera, Philippine Daily Inquirer
Originally trained in the Philippines as an architect, Gerry Alanguilan (1968–2019) became a comic book artist in 1992. He began his comic career as an inker for Marvel, DC and Image, working on titles such as Wolverine, X-Men, Superman, Batman, Avengers, Hulk and Superior. In his own work, Alanguilan’s comics are tinged with social commentary. They include Wasted, Bakokak, Humanis Rex!, Timawa, Where Bold Stars Go To Die and Rodski Patotski: Ang Dalagang Baby.

Authors

Elmer