Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Agent, Armaveni, graphic novel, Nadine Takvorian

Armaveni by Nadine Takvorian, a Graphic Novel About Armenian Genocide

Armaveni will be a a semi-autobiographical YA graphic novel by Nadine Takvorian that weaves two stories linked by the generational trauma of the Armenian genocide.

Published Fri, 10 Feb 2023 10:57:10 -0600

by Rich Johnston

Last updated Sun, 09 Jul 2023 07:37:48 -0500

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In 2019, graphic novelist Nadine Takvorian tweeted a photograph. "Today I remember my great-grandmother Armaveni, pictured top-center, who was locked in the French School of Marsovan, Turkey with other women and children, and the building was set on fire. A Turkish soldier took pity and freed them before they were burned alive. #ArmenianGenocide"

Now Armaveni will be a new a semi-autobiographical YA graphic novel by Nadine Takvorian that weaves two stories linked by the generational trauma of the Armenian genocide: Armaveni, a girl from the dying Ottoman Empire, struggles to survive vicious persecution; and Nadine, a contemporary first-gen teen in a far-flung diaspora, searches for her true identity and home.

Armaveni will be published by Meghan Maria McCullough at Levine Querido in the spring of 2025 and Nadine Takvorian's agent Sara Crowe at Pippin Properties brokered the deal for world rights.

On her blog, she wrote "It's been my longtime dream to create a graphic novel about the Armenian genocide and my own experiences dealing with the repercussions of this massive human tragedy. Two more years of blood, sweat and tears to go. Many thanks to Meghan Maria McCullough at Levine Querido and my agent Sara Crowe for believing in me and this story! I hope you join me on this journey as I do my best to make this story what it needs to be. I will be setting up a newsletter soon to update people on progress of this GN." Here are the first eleven pages of the book.

Nadine Takvorian is a first-generation Armenian-American author and illustrator of children's books and graphic novels, who lives with her husband and two children in Berkeley, California. From within the Armenian diaspora, Nadine's family is *Bolsahye* — from Istanbul, Turkey. She says she is passionate about exploring identity and history, and battling cultural erasure and that she also nourishes a soft spot for fantasy and alternate worlds.

Founded in 2019 by Arthur A. Levine, Levine Querido is an independent publisher of the children's books , with two lists. The Arthur A. Levine list, seeking out the writing and artwork of creators, with a distinct focus on building a platform for previously underrepresented voices, and the Em Querido list, a partnership with the Dutch publisher to find the outstanding authors and artists from around the world, aiming to keep the legacy of Emanuel Querido alive.

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