The current print issue of Time Magazine (cover date February 7th) includes an illustrated feature story by Andrew D. Arnold, Toko Sekiguchi and Grant Rosenberg that highlights four emerging graphic novelists from four different countries:  Paul Hornschemeier from the U.S., Marjane Satrapi, who was born in Iran, Joann Sofar from France and Rieko Saibara from Japan.  While the works of each of these artists would probably be classified as 'alternative' in the parlance of most U.S. comic retailers, their inclusion in this Time Magazine article speaks to a growing internationalism that is increasingly apparent as we enter the age of the graphic novel. 

Coverage such as this in Time can only help to increase the domestic audience for 'serious' graphic novels -- and there is no denying that Marjane Satrapi has already created a couple of major hits with her Persepolis graphic novels -- Persepolis was the surprise graphic novel success of 2003 (see 'Persepolis -- The Stealth Hit') and the book remains an extremely strong seller (it was the top non-manga title on a BookScan graphic novel list in January 2005).

Paul Hornschemeier's next graphic novel, The Three Paradoxes, is due out from Fantagraphics Books in June, but his Collected Sequential (Adhouse Books) and Mother, Come Home (Dark Horse) are available now.  Both of Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis graphic novels are currently available and a new nonfiction graphic novel, Embroideries, is due out from Pantheon in April.  While Rieko Siabara's innovative manga titles have not yet reached the U.S., Joann Sfar's Le Chat du Rabbin (The Rabbi's Cat) is due out here in an English translation in August.