Corto Maltese – The secret rose

The Secret Rose, is the ninth of the twelve titles of Corto Maltese that narrate the adventures of the romantic sailor created by Hugo Pratt in 1967 and now published by IDW Publisher in the USA.

“It often happens that i’ve forgotten the first word by the time i get to the last one of the same line. Sleepiness is a big thief.”
– Corto Maltese

Corto Maltese’s adventure this time is indeed highly surreal and dreamlike and is packed with references to a mythological background that changes according to the varied actions that involve the Holy Grail, Death, the Devil, the Sandman and others. There is a whole range of strange characters pitted against Corto, who is finally acquitted at the end of a long (and very amusing) debate.

A quiet stay in Switzerland opens the door to a surprising exploration of the subconscious. The myths of Parsifal and the Holy Grail, the wanderings of Hermann Hesse, and the Middle-European alchemical tradition weave their way into Corto Maltese’s path in a journey that begins on the pages of an ancient poem.

A story dedicated to the magic of reading and of its symbols, in which Pratt makes his eternal curiosity dance, and ties together the plots of thousand-year-old legends. As he himself said: “I wanted to tell myself this fable and leave a testament of all those things that have been important to me.”

IDW Publishing, San Diego. CA
9.25” x 11.625” Trade Paperback, 80pp.
ISBN: 978-1684054022
$19.99

For more information:
IDW – Corto maltese – The secret rose

Corto Maltese collection by IDW Publisching

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