São Paulo – The book As Viagens de Dom Pedro II – Oriente Médio e África do Norte, 1871 e 1876 [loosely translated as The Travels of Dom Pedro II – Middle East and North Africa, 1871 and 1876], by Roberto Khatlab (pictured above), released in 2015, now has a new graphic novel version launched by Audax Editorial publishing house in Brazil. The work in Portuguese brings readers an adventure through the emperor’s travels to Middle Eastern countries in dialogues and drawings by Jamile do Carmo.
Khatlab said in a release that Carmo read his book and accepted the invitation to take the monarch’s travels to the Middle East into the comics. “Here is Carmo’s beautiful work, with drawings and dialogues full of humor, intelligence, and fun — made in a purposefully rustic way and easy language for children, teens, and adults,” said the writer.
Pedro II was the emperor of Brazil from 1840 to 1889. He returned to Portugal and then moved to Paris, where he died in 1891. In the 1870s and 1880s, he made three trips – in 1871 to Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East; in 1876, to North America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa; and, in 1887, to Europe again. During his travels in 1871 and 1876, he visited Beirut, Mount Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Egypt. He studied and learned several languages, including Arabic.
These trips resulted in the book that the researcher, writer, and director of the Latin American Studies and Cultures Center (CECAL) of the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) in Lebanon, Roberto Khatlab, wrote and published in 2015. Khatlab’s stories are now presented to graphic novel lovers through Carmo’s adaptation. She holds a master’s degree in Visual Arts from the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) and a Ph.D. in Romance Sciences from the Friedrich-Alexander Erlangen-Nürnberg University (FAU).
“Despite so many talents, he was a very humble person – he was respected around the world and upheld the image of Brazil. Still, very little is known about this great figure. After all, who was the real Pedro II? We talk about him here, through two important trips of his, 1871 and 1876,” said Carmo. Maria Gabriela de Orleans e Bragança, great-granddaughter of Pedro II, pens the preface. The work has the support of the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC), Arab House, and Grupo Sidon.
Quick facts:
Dom Pedro II e suas aventuras no Oriente Médio
Authors: Jamile do Carmo & Roberto Khatlab
72 pages
For more information, click here.
Translated by Elúsio Brasileiro
