Courtesy of Oni Press, AIPT can exclusively announce In the Shadow of Stalin: The Story of Mr. Jones, a new historical graphic novel by screenwriter Andrea Chalupa (host of the hit podcast Gaslist Nation and writer of Orwell and the Refugees: The Untold Story of Animal Farm) and artist Ivan Rodriguez. Available in stores September 4th, the thriller reexamines the bravery and tragedy that first thrust Ukraine into the international spotlight in the years before World War II through the real-life hero journalist Gareth Jones.
“The timing of this book could not be more relevant given what has been going on in Ukraine for the past year-plus. Gareth Jones’s story, and the warnings he gave in his writings and reporting, seem to only have been temporarily heeded,” said Chris Cerasi, managing editor.
Cerasi added, “We seem doomed to repeat history as a result; therefore, we could not be happier to be releasing this book now, in the hope of furthering Gareth Jones’s message so that humanity can be reminded of the consequences of turning a blind eye and a deaf ear to the suffering of others.”
So what’s In the Shadow of Stalin: The Story of Mr. Jones about?
In the early 1930s, Gareth Jones is a young journalist with powerful connections after a groundbreaking interview with Adolf Hitler and his chief propagandist, Joseph Goebbels. This notoriety gains him permission to travel to the Soviet Union for a potential interview with Joseph Stalin. Jones hopes to learn more about the Soviets’ mass economic gains but finds himself stonewalled and trapped in Moscow. While looking for a way out, he meets new allies that alert him to the growing man-made famine, or Holodomor, happening in Ukraine under the government’s guidance. Jones, seeking the truth in all its ugliness, embarks on a journey of discovery, strife, and a cover-up of the deaths of millions of people. Can the unrelenting power of truth expose one of Stalin’s greatest crimes to a world that refuses to bear witness?
Check out a preview of the graphic novel below!
For more on this news, read the official press release below.
Oni Press, the multiple Eisner and Harvey Award–winning publisher of bestselling comic books and graphic novels for all ages, is proud to announce the powerful new historical graphic novel In the Shadow of Stalin: The Story of Mr. Jones from journalist and screenwriter Andrea Chalupa (host of the hit podcast Gaslist Nation and writer of Orwell and the Refugees: The Untold Story of Animal Farm) and artist Ivan Rodriguez. The tension-filled historical thriller reexamines the bravery and tragedy that first thrust Ukraine into the international spotlight in the years before World War II through the real-life hero journalist Gareth Jones.
In the early 1930s, Gareth Jones is a young journalist with powerful connections after a groundbreaking interview with Adolf Hitler and his chief propagandist, Joseph Goebbels. This notoriety gains him permission to travel to the Soviet Union for a potential interview with Joseph Stalin. Jones hopes to learn more about the Soviets’ mass economic gains but finds himself stonewalled and trapped in Moscow. While looking for a way out, he meets new allies that alert him to the growing man-made famine, or Holodomor, happening in Ukraine under the government’s guidance. Jones, seeking the truth in all its ugliness, embarks on a journey of discovery, strife, and a cover-up of the deaths of millions of people. Can the unrelenting power of truth expose one of Stalin’s greatest crimes to a world that refuses to bear witness?
In The Shadow of Stalin is the story of the same Mr. Jones from the 2019 Mr. Jones film, written by Chalupa, which earned rave reviews. Described as a mix of Indiana Jones, Ernest Hemingway, and Edward Snowden, Jones’s account of the Soviet famine known as Holodomor would posthumously earn him a Ukrainian order of merit, among other honors. Jones defied Soviet authorities’ ban on journalists to record eyewitness testimonies firsthand and became the first to bring worldwide attention to the famine genocide happening during Stalin’s regime—and ended up paying for it with his life as he was mysteriously murdered two years after the publication of his article.
“The timing of this book could not be more relevant given what has been going on in Ukraine for the past year-plus. Gareth Jones’s story, and the warnings he gave in his writings and reporting, seem to only have been temporarily heeded,” said Chris Cerasi, managing editor. “We seem doomed to repeat history as a result; therefore, we could not be happier to be releasing this book now, in the hope of furthering Gareth Jones’s message so that humanity can be reminded of the consequences of turning a blind eye and a deaf ear to the suffering of others.”
In the Shadow of Stalin: The Story of Mr. Jones will be available in stores on September 4.
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