Parade with Fireworks 1 NM Image Comics Mike Cavallaro 1st print

Description

Parade with Fireworks (2007) #1
Published Sep 2007 by Image

by Mike Cavallaro

In 1923, Italy was pulling itself from the wreckage of one World War while unknowingly plummeting towards another. The Nation seemed to be holding its breath, and the slightest perceived transgression could result in violence. On the evening of The Feast of the Epiphany, it did. Young Paolo is caught between a rowdy group of local Fascist Party members and his family. And the choice he’s about to make will change his life forever!

Mike Cavallaro retells a story from his family in Calabria, Italy, from the 1920s and 30s. Three brothers leave their farm to serve in World War I, and return to a country divided by politics and idealism. As the socialists and the fascists argue over which government would be better for the nation and the working class, their fights escalate from friendly debates to fist fights. Paolo Cavallaro is walking with one of his brothers, a police officer, as he escorts a group of musicians home from a parade one holiday. When the band plays socialist party songs, and refuses to play the fascists’ party tunes, a fight breaks out and guns are drawn. Mike Cavallaro presents a story of family and beliefs, and some of the reasons an otherwise peaceful man might be driven to violence.

Stunning art in a compelling real-life drama torn from the pages of history! A tale in the tradition of historical epics such as AGE OF BRONZE and PERSEPOLIS!

By focusing on one family’s struggle with the rise of fascism, Mike Cavallaro illustrates how this period tore the country apart, creating rifts that take a whole generation to heal. After reading this book you will have a much better understanding of how small villages got tangled in the web of intimidation and corruption coming from Rome. The dialogue is well written. If you speak any Italian, you will “hear” the lilt and the humor of that language even thought it’s written in English. And if all that sounds too heavy, don’t worry. It’s also beautifully drawn, and the action moves along swiftly, just like in a regular comic book. 32 pages.

Near mint, 1st print.