Sophie's World - by Jostein Gaarder (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Sophie's World: A Graphic Novel About the History of Philosophy, Vol II: From Descartes to the Present Day is the second adaptation continuing Jostein Gaarder's worldwide philosophy bestseller reimagined by writer Vincent Zabus and artist Nicoby.

Sophie's come a long way since the day she received that cryptic letter with its intriguing question: "Who are you?" The mysterious correspondence sweeps our curious young heroine off on a tour of Western philosophy from its ancient foundations through the Renaissance. But it also prompts more personal reflection: What is my place in the world, my purpose in life? And just who is that girl, a stranger and yet so familiar, I glimpse in the mirror?

Sophie's quest for answers will see her explore major schools of modern thought from Descartes and Locke to Freud and Marx. She and her quizzical philosophy teacher Alberto, now unmasked, struggles with the possibility that they are characters in a book. As ever, our intrepid heroine remains forthright and open-hearted.

In this witty comics adaptation, Zabus and Nicoby reinvent Jostein Gaarder's novel of ideas--a beloved bestseller that has already won the hearts of over 50 million readers around the world--to bring Sophie's charming quest for meaning to a whole new medium and a new generation.

About the Author

Jostein Gaarder was born in Oslo, Norway, in 1952. After teaching philosophy and the history of ideas in Bergen, he devoted himself to writing. His worldwide bestseller Sophie's World: A Novel About the History of Philosophy was hailed as a masterpiece by critics and readers alike. He put a significant portion of his rights earnings toward establishing a foundation for sustainable environmental development.

Playwright and comics writer Vincent Zabus lives in Namur, Belgium. He became well known for penning children's series for the long-running and beloved Spirou magazine. He went on to create the prizewinning tales Les Ombres and Incroyable!, which debuted as plays and then became graphic novels in collaboration with the artist Hippolyte. His adaptation of Sophie's World combines his passions for storytelling and philosophy.

A product of the mid-1970s, artist Nicoby has published over 40 works in a variety of genres, styles, and formats, ranging from memoir to humor to adventure to reportage to observations of social foibles, both in book form and in periodicals such as La Revue Dessinée and Spirou, to which he is a regular contributor. He lives in the Breton countryside near Rennes, far from car exhaust and electric scooters.