SAND

CASTLE
Frederik Peeters
Pierre Oscar Lévy
First published in English in 2011
This edition printed in 2021
by SelfMadeHero
139–141 Pancras Road
London NW1 1UN
www.selfmadehero.com

English translation © 2011 SelfMadeHero

Written by: Pierre Oscar Lévy

Illustrated by: Frederik Peeters
Translated from the French edition by Nora Mahony
Preface translated from French by Edward Gauvin

Publishing Director: Emma Hayley

With thanks to: Txabi Jones, Dan Lockwood, Stefano Mancin,
Guillaume Rater, and Paul Smith

Château de sable © 2010, 2013 Atrabile.

All rights reserved. Published by arrangement with eddy agency.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced,

stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by
any means, mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording,
or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher.
A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-906838-38-6

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed and bound in Slovenia

 Look
how big my
baby is!

Felix! What’s happened

to you?
OK, what
Felix!
is it...?
Robert!
Come see! He’s…
Robert! grown!

What are
you on
about?

28
 So where are you from?
Algeria.

You’re Arab?
I’m Kabyle...

From a village called Tas’aout,

in Ath Yenni.

Oh?

The Kabyles were Not really... Be nice, stay with me!

there before I’m so bored here
the Arabs. with my family.

Honestly, we
should both go!
There’s something
strange here!

I’m a jeweller,
but I don’t have
Are you on any work...
holiday?
Anyway,
I should go...

look!
Don’t
with Charles!k!
Come Jesus, Come qu
ic
me... Mary and
Joseph!

Don’t
touch it,
Louis!

don’t
touch!

29
Shit!

30
 Get back, This isn’t
something you
kids!
should see!

I’m a Jesus,
doctor... Mary
She’s and
dead. Joseph!

We should call
(Sig h)
the police!

I’ll get
my mobile...

31
 You, sir...

Do you
know her?

I asked you
a question,
SNIFF....
sir!

?!

Where did this young

man come from? He was here
when we arrived... Did you
..
hit him? IFF.
he slunk off over SN
there, and now
here he is again...

No, of
course
not!

Shame...

32
 What do you mean Sophie,
Daddy!
by that? let the
grown-ups
look after
grown-up
matters!

This man
raped this girl,
beat her up and
drowned her to
keep her quiet...
and we arrived
before he had
a chance to
I mean
escape!
that you’re
being
naive.

You... You don’t have the No, no, tilt your

right to – head forward. If you
tilt it back, the blood
Sit down! might get into your
throat...

Straight on,
and look down
a bit.

That’s
good.
Now give
me those
bloody
tissues.

Now very
gently blow
your nose
to clear all
the blood
clots...

33
 Sophie, if you want to
make yourself useful,
go and throw that away
somewhere.

Right... Now that we’ve got

a few minutes’ peace away
Now pinch
from that young man...
just above your
nostrils with
your thumb and Felix!
index finger for
ten minutes...

and no
cheating!

Hello? I’d like to speak to Superintendent Gaulier,

please... Yes... It’s personal... Yes, I’ll hold... Yes... I’ve got a lovely
Hello, corpse for you!
Olivier? It’s Charles. Hi,
sorry to bother
you...

Yes...
ha ha!

No, you might say

it’s a professional
call, actually...

34
 hh...
hh... hh...

hh... hh.
..
hh...
hh...

It’ll be
OK, Mum,
don’t worry.

I’m going to find

Charles...

hh... hh...

You must explain

yourself, man! Charles, could
you come here
for a moment?

It’s you who

killed her!

Can’t you
see I’m
busy?!

35
 Right.
Mum’s taken No
Keep an
a turn... eye on that problem...
oddball
for me.

You’ll still
get what’s
It’s no coming to
wonder, you!
considering
what she
But I
found!
didn’t do
anything!

ck
Give me ba
re...
my treasu

Toffee-
nosed
land-
lubbers!

nity, You know what Doctor!

Have some dig dignity is, don’t you?!
d’s Doctor!
Felix, for Go ?!
sake!

I’m sorry to
trouble you,
but I have a
question!

36
 Calm down, my dear lady!
I can listen for a moment, but
my mother-in-law has taken a
turn... and it’s not
the first time!

Certainly,
Madam,
certainly...

It’s my son...
I have
to –
Look, he’s just
over there...
Is it possible
for children to
have growth spurts, He’s 3.
Doctor?

Ah... Well... That’s exactly why

Yes... I was asking if
He is big
it was normal...
for his age...

But you Honestly,

shouldn’t let I don’t
him walk around understand...
naked on the beach
like that...

Well... my son... he... Uh, excuse me, Madam, but this

he grew so fast... all at little joke has gone
once today... that his new (Sig h) on long enough...
trunks... they split!
...My mother-
in-law...

But...
it’s... it’s...
horrible, Doctor.
What is happening
to my baby?!

37
 Calm down... I’m going to get my
bag. I’ll take care of my mother- Oh, thank
in-law, and then I’ll come back you, Doctor,
and have a look at thank you!
your son...

Ah, good!
You got
here fast.

Sorry?

That’s not it at all! Let me Do you write murder

I’m congratulating you on introduce myself: Henry Lascaride. mysteries?
your speed, Inspector...
Good
God, no,
absolutely
not! What a
horrible
thought!

You... might
have heard
of me... I’m
a writer…
It’s my friend,
Superintendent And I
Gaulier, who sent wasn’t sent by
you... anyone...

38
 Shame...

Because
you’d have
found a great
subject for
a novel
today...
with the
murder that
was committed
on the beach!
We’ve already caught the culprit, mind you...
A North African...

Come on,
Florence,
let’s go!

No...
you can’t go
now... the police
are on their
way...

They’ll need to Yes,

interview all the witnesses let’s go!
to reveal the truth...

es! Mum isn’t

I said you Don’t make me angry! Charl breathing!
es!
can’t Charl
leave! Come quickly!

39
 She stopped all of Right... Everyone
a sudden, Charles!
move back!
It was so
fast! This is no
joke!

(Sigh...
)

Want me to It’s no use.

take a turn? MUM!
I’m a MUM!
She’s
nurse.
dead. God
Almighty!

Can someone
take the kids to
the other end of
the beach, please?!

40
 OHOOHOOOO!
BOOHO

I’m so
sorry,
darling.
I...
I don’t
under-
stand...

So, what’s
your name?

Felix.

41
 Let me
And
you’re... guess...

You’re
10!

No,
no!
My brother
is 3!

But I swear! He’s 3

years old! Excuse
And
I’m 5! me...

Have
you seen my
children?

It’s not
very polite
to tell
fibs!

Just ask my
mother!

But... I’m
Are...
right
Sorry? here, Mum!
are you
joking?

42
About the Writer
Pierre Oscar Lévy is an accomplished
documentary filmmaker whose work
includes a series on the Chauvet cave,
Premier Convoi, Georges Perec – Un parmi
eux and Je sais que j’ai tort mais demandez
à mes copains, ils vous diront la même chose
(Short Film Palme d’Or, 1983). He met
Frederik Peeters on a development project
for a film adaptation of Blue Pills. Sandcastle
is his first graphic novel script.

About the Artist

Frederik Peeters is an award-winning
Swiss comic book artist best known for
his autobiographical graphic novel Blue
Pills. He has received five nominations in
the Best Book category at the Angoulême
International Comics Festival. In 2013, he
won the Best Series prize at the same event
for the first two volumes of his science-
fiction series Aama. Peeters is also the author
of The Smell of Starving Boys (with Loo
Hui Phang), Pachyderme, Lupus and Koma.
For information on more recent projects,
see http://frederikpeeters.tumblr.com.

111