Rock Heaven

Samedi et Dimanche #1

by Fabien Vehlmann, Gwénaël de Bonneval (Artist), Edward Gauvin (Translator)

Saturday and Sunday are a pair of lizards living the good life, lazing around on a tropical atoll and fishing off the beach. But when Saturday comes down with a case of acute questionitis, the big mysteries—why are we here? how did we get here?—won't leave him alone. Only travel can cure his ills, and he sets off with Sunday in tow. What's a best friend to do but tag along? Together, the indefatigable duo have encounters both fanciful and philosophical in this charming and freewheeling paean to simple joys, curiosity, and friendship, fit for all ages.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics

49 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 2001

About the author

Usually uses the pseudonym Vehlmann

Fabien Vehlmann est comme son héros : pétillant, engagé et plein d'humour.

Après avoir patiemment suivi les cours d'une école de commerce nantaise, Fabien Vehlmann réalise que sa voie est ailleurs. Bien décidé à se lancer dans la bande dessinée, il se consacre à l'écriture de manière intensive durant une année entière. Il empile les projets et inonde scrupuleusement la rédaction du journal Spirou. Sa ténacité est récompensée : il y fait ses débuts dans le courant de l'année 1998. Dans les pages du beau journal, il apprend son métier en scénarisant des animations, puis ses premières séries dont le fameux "Green Manor" avec Denis Bodart.

Curieux et enthousiaste, Vehlmann touche à tous les genres : humour, science-fiction, aventure, conte,... Il multiplie les collaborations avec des dessinateurs aux styles aussi divers que Matthieu Bonhomme ("Le Marquis d'Anaon"), Frantz Duchazeau ("Les Cinq conteurs de Bagdad") ou Bruno Gazzotti ("Seuls"). En 2006, il réalise une première aventure de Spirou et Fantasio avec Yoann : "Les Géants Pétrifiés". Quatre ans plus tard, les deux compères reprennent en main la destinée du plus célèbre héros des Editions Dupuis...

Les albums de Spirou qu'il emmènerait sur une île déserte : Le Nid des Marsupilamis, Le Voyageur du Mésozoïque et Virus.

Source: http://www.dupuis.com/catalogue/FR/au...

Reviews

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two lizards, called Saturday and Sunday, live on an atoll, and Saturday suddenly realises he doesn't really know how they came to be on that atoll. Hey kids, it's existential crisis time!

This leads to more questions, regarding the meaning of life, what is the point of it all and so on. Sunday doesn't have the answers, so they start looking for other people (well, creatures) who perhaps can help them.



There's the suggestion they might come from the other side of the atoll, which they can't remember ever having been to, and so they start traveling.



It's all very gentle, told with a lot of humour and in a cute art style. Where they end up is no surprise, but this book is definitely a case of it's about the road traveled, not the destination.

3.5 stars

(Received a review copy through NetGalley)

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

A delightful little tale about two lizards who go on a existential quest to find out where they come from. It's irreverent and, of course, they don't get any real answers, but they do come to accept their lot in life.

Received a review copy from Europe Comics and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.

[Geoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute set of vignettes focused on two lizards attempting to understand the meaning of existence. Wholesome, not very deep, but engages with lots of different perspectives (religion! science! hedonism! fear!) and the art is really gorgeously cartoonish - reminds me of Jeff Smith's Bone crossed with Dr. Seuss. Fun and diverting.

**Thanks to the author, artist, publisher, and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Saturday and Sunday: Rock Heaven Part 1' by Fabian Vehlmann with art by Gwen de Bonneval is a series of short comics about 2 lizards having an existential crisis.

Saturday and Sunday live on a beach on an atoll. One morning, questions cross their minds like "how did we get here?" and "what is this atoll we live on?" This sends them on a journey to meet other strange creatures that seem to have the answers. Many don't. The questions lead to more questions.

This is funny cartoons, with some interesting cleverness woven in. It's not deep philosophically, but I like what the author did here. the illustrations are clever and colorful.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Sabrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the artwork but I found that the story was a bit confusing. We never do find any the answers.

[Joanna McQueen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saturday and Sunday are lizards who embark on an adventure. The adventure begins when Saturday suffers from a case of acute questionitis. They travel all over in order to find the answers and they meet some interesting characters along the way.

I really enjoyed this book. The illustrations are lovely. Saturday and Sunday are inquisitive characters who were engaging and fun. The story is interesting and it has elements of humour. What I especially like is the relationship between the characters and how they knew each other so well. They were both open to new opportunities and showed courage while on their journey.

As a teacher, I would recommend this book to use in lessons that talk about acceptance and friendship. I felt these were prominent topics throughout the book. Saturday and Sunday exhibit the ability to accept the characters they met for who they were and I feel this is a positive message to share. The illustrations are bright, colourful and engaging.

Thanks to Cathryn Grant, NetGalley and Europe Comics for this ARC.

[Jolien ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher for giving me this copy for free in exchange for an honest review.

In this comic we follow Saturday and Sunday on many small adventures around the world. They are having quite what you could say an existential crisis in the beginning which leads them to go on said adventures.

I wasn't a huge fan of the artstyle, usually I love it all but this one was a bit of a bummer for me. Like I always appreciate many art styles but for some reason I couldn't really find myself comfortable with this one.

The story itself is very cute. I think it's fun how they go on all these adventures to find out where they came from and to basically find their identity. I also enjoyed that they kept meeting new characters through their journey and making new friends here and there, I thought it was very cute.

Overal I would rate this a 3 out of 5 stars, I would recommend it though!

[Kara (bookishskippy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars.

This is a Hilarious read about 2 lizards named Saturday and Sunday. They were both travelling around to find out where they came from. I enjoyed the lovely characters with the different scene in this graphic novel. The fact that each one of the journey they met new characters was so cool! i loved when they were both running and had to like take turns to sleep and carry one another, while one was forced to be dragged all over the place when he was sleeping! hehe!

I adored the dedication this author has placed in his or her work. Highly recommend you to check it out!

*Thank you so much for the arc, Netgallery!*

[Brooke's Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story follows Saturday and Sunday on their journey around the atoll for answers to their many questions in hopes of finding where they came from.
This story gently handled the discussion of life and death well and would therefore be a great book for young children and paired with the vivid art style, is bound to keep them interested.
For me, I enjoyed the pictures and the story but found it somewhat confusing and extremely unsatisfying as no answers are given at the end.
Would thoroughly recommend for children and teens but as a young adult, it didn't appeal to me in the same way unfortunately!

[Ije the Devourer of Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

An amusing story about two lizards called Saturday and Sunday. They live a peaceful life on a tropical atoll and life is good, until the day Saturday begins to question the meaning of their existence.

And then the adventure starts because they decide to travel actoss the atoll to find the answers to Saturday's questions. As they do so they make new friends, fall into trouble and out of it again.

This is a story which is suitable for all ages. The artwork is OK and the graphics are suitably quirky for a quirky and enjoyable story.

Copy provided by Europe Comics via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Theediscerning · Rating 1 out of 5]

My long-established rule where translated books is concerned, is that they are adapted at the pace at which they deserve to be. So I could end the write-up of this piffle right away, with the fact it took NINETEEN YEARS before anyone got to the bottom of the pile and took to turning it into English. Yes, nineteen years. In that timespan we can see our children leave the cradle behind and more or less have kids of their own. Chances are the creators of this book have forgotten all about it already.

I read it five minutes ago, after all, and I've forgotten all about it already. Some kind of piss-take of philosophy, in a style that makes Bone look like the Mona Lisa.

[Radwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saturday and Sunday are a pair of lizards living the good life, until they start questioning their life and how they came to be at the beach they currently at.
This sends them on a journey of questions where the see different places like Rock Heaven where there's nothing but rocks and a tyrannosaurus valley with a CEO dinosaurs and they find more about life and themselves.
It's really philosophical in a charming way, and I guess I'll keep an eye out for the 2nd volume (which I hope would be coming!)


I thank Netgalley and Europe Comics for the free digital ARC

[Natalie all_books_great_and_small · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an advance reader copy of this book to book in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This is a cute comic about two lizards called Saturday and Sunday who want to know what is on the other side of the atol where they live as they want to know where they came from and how they got here. They have many unanswered questions and ultimately find out that its the road travelled not the destination that counts.
This book is a gentle telling of life, death and religion too.

[Sarah Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quirky philosophical read for children of all ages. Readers follow lizards named Saturday and Sunday as they explore their atoll in search of answers to the big questions of life. In a journey reminiscent of Gulliver's Travels, the friends encounter a range of creatures living life in their own ways, ranging from mystic religiosity to mindless pleasure. With its simple plot and abstract nature, some young readers will get bored. But readers with a philosophical bent will enjoy this colorful graphic novel.

[Persephone Jayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Completely enjoyable!
A quest for answers is so relatable. Saturday and Sunday make their way around their entire world meeting new people and learning new things... even if it's not the answers they thought they were looking for ;)

I also read this book with a certain 8 year old son peeking over my shoulder asking how he could read it. He's pretty excited to read it next!

[august · Rating 4 out of 5]

The ARC of this graphic novel was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a pretty cute book about the questions we all have at some point or another. I really liked the art style and the ending was nice. Definitely something fun for, well anyone to read. I had a lot of fun reading it!!

[Geeket · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed going on the quest for knowledge with Saturday and Sunday. What an adorable, well draw, relatable experience, for anyone who’s ever questioned where we come from, and what our place is in the world.

[Soumya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating - 2.5.

[Andréa]

Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

[StrictlySequential · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Poisson Pilote" Series = D.L. June 2001 = eo

[Zandt McCue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saturday and Sunday are the names of the main characters, who happen to be lizards. These comics have definite Calvin and Hobbes vibes to them. The humor itself is very self aware. There's a scene near the beginning where one character asks another what his earliest memory is, and in a thought bubble it shows the first panel of the comic between them. Also it was very surprising how developed the world itself was. There are tons of places and characters that you run into. You wouldn't expect what at first seems like a simple comic to be epic in scope. Lots of care and dedication went into it's creation. I would recommend this to people who like Calvin and Hobbes, Bones, and other such comics.

[François Vigneault · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light and breezy, with the episodic rhythms of a classic newspaper strip. This book, the first in a series, chronicles the adventures of a pair of anthropomorphic lizards, one grumpy and questioning (Saturday), the other laid-back and accepting (Sunday), who go on a quest to learn more about their place in the world. Do they find answers? Not really, but this is more of a "journey-is-the-destination" type of tale. Along the ways our heroes encounter a range of lightly philosophical dangers, from an over-worked, entrepreneurial T-rex to a visit to a "Valley of Unspeakable Happiness" that calls to mind the Lotus Eaters from the Odyssey. The story has the feel of being almost wholly improvisational in nature, and each short, picaresque episode resolves itself without really building to something bigger. The art by Gwen de Bonneval is airy and reminiscent of old-school newspaper strips and Franco-Belgian classics like "The Smurfs." This is an early work from the author Fabien Vehlmann (it was first published in French way back in 2001), like many anglophone readers I was first exposed to his work with the much more complex and intense album "Beautiful Darkness," so the purely light charms of "Saturday and Sunday" were a bit unexpected, but no complaints, this book is what it is: short, simple, and silly.

*Book provided by Europe Comics and NetGalley.

[Reagan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was absolutely adorable. The art was so fun, and the plot was super lighthearted. It follows two lizards on their quest to find answers about where they came from. They make a lot of friends and learn so much traveling around their area. Overall, this comic was a super fun read, and I just wish it was longer! Thanks to the author and publisher for allowing me early access to this book through netgalley.