Craig Thompson at Book Expo America

Yesterday’s conversation with Craig Thompson and Calvin Reid, an editor for Publishers Weekly, provided great insight into Thompson’s forthcoming graphic novel, Habibi.

When you pick up your copy of Habibi in September, you’ll see pages embroidered with ornate borders—each one drawn painstakingly by hand, even when the borders repeat themselves over several pages.

Thompson spoke to the meditative quality of repeating these designs, which became a call to preserve handcrafting against the tide of digitalization.

Habibi was six years in the making, and readers of Craig Thompson will find much to consider between the autobiography and Christianity of Blankets and the metaphors and esoteric take on Islam in his latest work.

Pre-order Habibi: Amazon | B&N | Borders | Random House