Mad With joy

Tom is a stand-up comedian with a burgeoning career. At one point everyone thought his sister would join him to make up a comedy duo but Ellen was always more minded towards drawing and art in general. But she remained the driving force behind Tom’s chosen path. Then one day she came to Tom with some cruel news – she had pancreatic cancer. Surgery was followed by hospitalization. Nothing to laugh at you’d imagine, but Tom and Ellen continued to bounce humour off each other with Tom running the gauntlet of the doctor’s ire to take Ellen out to see the trees and her favourite statue – The Mad Maiden by Rik Wouters inspired by the dancer Isadora Duncan. To her dying day Ellen thought the statue looked mad with joy!

Praise for Mad with Joy in Belgian and Dutch media

“As much a celebration of life as an ode to intimacy” - brokenfrontier.com

“Gripping graphic novel” - De Standaard

“A must read for any graphic novel lover” - cobra.be

“Beautiful and moving” - De Morgen

“Mad with Joy is his first graphic novel and an instant masterpiece” - guido.be

“True, emotional scenes” - VPRO Boeken

“Poignant and funny” - NRC Handelsblad

“Deeply moving, never boring, getting to the heart of the matter” - Gazet van Antwerpen

“Brilliant graphic novel!” - comic journalist Patrick Van Gompel on Twitter

“It takes a stout fellow to keep his eyes dry after reading this wonderful book” - cuttingedge.be

“A bittersweet story” - boekenkrant.com

“Completely and utterly blown away” - stripspeciaalzaak.be