The works of French comic artist and illustrator Blexbolex took a while to catch on, and his first creations were self-published. But in 2009, Blexbolex received a prize for “Best Book Design of the World” for his L'Imagier des gens (2008) at the Book Fair of Leipzig.
People is not just a simple picture book. About 200 pages long, each page sports a simple, stylized portrait of various kinds of people, identifying each in bold blue letters, including Farmer, Explorer, Soloist, Hermit, Gypsy, and Sandwich-Board Man. The facing pages usually correspond somehow, as with Fisherman and Fishmonger, Movie Watcher and Movie Director, Corpse and Retiree. The colors are bright, the shapes are simple, and there is no story involved, but People is engaging and fun.
On every page, you'll likely laugh at the subtle (sometimes obvious) humor embedded in the pictures. Everyone is a sunburned shade of bright orangeish-pink, the Mermaid and the Nudist aren't wearing enough clothes, and there aren't any Librarians, Airplane Pilots, Archeologists, or Crazy Cat Ladies, but People is a thoroughly enjoyable book worth adding to your already groaning bookshelves.
—Adapted from the Afterwords review (linked at left)
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