From the author of The Arab of the Future, comes the first book in a series of graphic novels that follow the hilarious, heartbreaking, and all painfully true life of a real girl growing up in Paris.

Every week, the comic book artist Riad Sattouf has a chat with his friend’s 10-year-old daughter, Esther. She tells him about her life, her family, her school, her friends, her hopes, her dreams and her fears. And then he creates a one-page comic strip based on what she says.
 
This book is a collection of 156 of those strips, comprising the first three volumes as they appeared in Europe, spanning Esther’s life from age 10 to 12. 
 
As The Guardian noted: “Each page of Esther’s Notebooks is self-contained—there’s usually a neat punchline—but read them all, and you come to see that Sattouf has drawn a portrait of a generation: their hopes, dreams and cultural references; the way that their personalities, backgrounds—many of the children portrayed have parents who are immigrants—and preconceived ideas about sexuality begin to play out even before they’ve begun secondary school. The result is a bit like a cartoon version of Michael Apted’s landmark TV series, Up. These funny, well-observed comics are fantastically daring.”

“Funny, well-observed . . . contains immense daring and depth. . . . Sattouf has drawn a portrait of a generation.” —Observer, “Graphic Novel of the Month”

"Genius. . . . Everything you wanted to know about your kids but were afraid to ask.” —Leïla Slimani, author of The Perfect Nanny

“Riad Sattouf is one the great creators of our time.” —Alain De Botton, author of The Course of Love
© Courtesy of the Author
RIAD SATTOUF is a best-selling cartoonist and filmmaker who grew up in Libya and Syria and now lives in Paris. Esther’s Notebooks has been adapted for a popular animated series in France and has been translated into eight languages. In 2016, Sattouf was named a Knight in France’s Order of Arts and Letters.
 
riadsattouf.com View titles by Riad Sattouf
"Funny, well-observed...contains immense daring and depth...Sattouf has drawn a portrait of a generation." Observer, "Graphic Novel of the Month"

"Genius...Everything you wanted to know about your kids but were afraid to ask..." —Leïla Slimani, best-selling author of The Perfect Nanny

“Riad Sattouf is one the great creators of our time” —Alain De Botton, author of The Course of Love

About

From the author of The Arab of the Future, comes the first book in a series of graphic novels that follow the hilarious, heartbreaking, and all painfully true life of a real girl growing up in Paris.

Every week, the comic book artist Riad Sattouf has a chat with his friend’s 10-year-old daughter, Esther. She tells him about her life, her family, her school, her friends, her hopes, her dreams and her fears. And then he creates a one-page comic strip based on what she says.
 
This book is a collection of 156 of those strips, comprising the first three volumes as they appeared in Europe, spanning Esther’s life from age 10 to 12. 
 
As The Guardian noted: “Each page of Esther’s Notebooks is self-contained—there’s usually a neat punchline—but read them all, and you come to see that Sattouf has drawn a portrait of a generation: their hopes, dreams and cultural references; the way that their personalities, backgrounds—many of the children portrayed have parents who are immigrants—and preconceived ideas about sexuality begin to play out even before they’ve begun secondary school. The result is a bit like a cartoon version of Michael Apted’s landmark TV series, Up. These funny, well-observed comics are fantastically daring.”

“Funny, well-observed . . . contains immense daring and depth. . . . Sattouf has drawn a portrait of a generation.” —Observer, “Graphic Novel of the Month”

"Genius. . . . Everything you wanted to know about your kids but were afraid to ask.” —Leïla Slimani, author of The Perfect Nanny

“Riad Sattouf is one the great creators of our time.” —Alain De Botton, author of The Course of Love

Author

© Courtesy of the Author
RIAD SATTOUF is a best-selling cartoonist and filmmaker who grew up in Libya and Syria and now lives in Paris. Esther’s Notebooks has been adapted for a popular animated series in France and has been translated into eight languages. In 2016, Sattouf was named a Knight in France’s Order of Arts and Letters.
 
riadsattouf.com View titles by Riad Sattouf

Praise

"Funny, well-observed...contains immense daring and depth...Sattouf has drawn a portrait of a generation." Observer, "Graphic Novel of the Month"

"Genius...Everything you wanted to know about your kids but were afraid to ask..." —Leïla Slimani, best-selling author of The Perfect Nanny

“Riad Sattouf is one the great creators of our time” —Alain De Botton, author of The Course of Love

Celebrate 100 years of James Baldwin

We’re celebrating the centennial of James Baldwin’s birth by sharing a collection of his work. Explore titles and learn more about the literary legend and civil rights champion.   James Baldwin (1924–1987) was a novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic. His first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain, appeared in 1953 to excellent reviews, and his

Read more

The New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century

The New York Times recently published their list “100 Best Books of the 21st Century.” We are pleased to announce that there are 49 titles published from Penguin Random House and its distribution clients included in this list. Browse our collection of Penguin Random House titles here. Browse the full list from The New York

Read more

2024 Middle and High School Collections

The Penguin Random House Education Middle School and High School Digital Collections feature outstanding fiction and nonfiction from the children’s, adult, DK, and Grupo Editorial divisions, as well as publishers distributed by Penguin Random House. Peruse online or download these valuable resources to discover great books in specific topic areas such as: English Language Arts,

Read more

PRH Education High School Collections

All reading communities should contain protected time for the sake of reading. Independent reading practices emphasize the process of making meaning through reading, not an end product. The school culture (teachers, administration, etc.) should affirm this daily practice time as inherently important instructional time for all readers. (NCTE, 2019)   The Penguin Random House High

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

PRH Education Classroom Libraries

“Books are a students’ passport to entering and actively participating in a global society with the empathy, compassion, and knowledge it takes to become the problem solvers the world needs.” –Laura Robb   Research shows that reading and literacy directly impacts students’ academic success and personal growth. To help promote the importance of daily independent

Read more