The Sorrowful Putto of Prague

Late last year I was proud to announce that the acclaimed Czech publishing house Argo was planning to publish The Sorrowful Putto of Prague in print form in 2016.

Last week that was confirmed with the signing of the contract in a wonderful Bistro in Letna, Prague. Among a fiercely assembled pack of polka dot shirt wearing gang members (quite an experience), ink was spilled, dried and formalised.

Pivo, cacti, Ghostbusters and contracts in Letna.

Argo has an outstanding reputation in the Czech market and I’m thrilled to be having them turn an online project into the print project I always dreamt of.

The Žižkov based booklovers have a hugely impressive catalogue of literature to their name – ranging from the best of ‘local’ authors to world-class translation of international literature. Genuine lovers of books and everything about them, Argo has rightly won plenty of awards for the design and style of its publications.

Argo’s latest graphic novel

Argo’s latest graphic novel release encapsulates that quality – a stunning biography of Czech sporting legend Emil Zátopek illustrated by Jaromír 99 and written by Jan Novák.

The first edition of The Putto should be on shelves in all good Czech bookshops by the winter.

I took the chance to celebrate into the Prague night with a pilgrimage to the statue that inspired the comic’s distinct logo. And pizza. There always has to be Prague pizza.

Contract, logo inspiration and pizza (already eaten)

The ink is dry, now onwards to Bohemian glory! (But beware the Polka Dot Shirt Gang that roam The Republic!)

By Lenka Šimečková