Last of the Giants: An Ultra Running Graphic Novel

Trail runner and radio producer Mayer (The Race That Changed Running) teams up with artist and filmmaker Windrestin for a bracing comics debut that follows fictional extreme athlete Sam Hill as he competes in the Tor des Géants, a real five-day, 200-mile race through the mountains of the Aosta Valley in Italy. The narrative picks up in the present day as Hill makes his third attempt to successfully finish the race. Though he basks in the majesty of the landscape and the camaraderie of fellow racers, he grapples throughout with the daunting challenges of heat and cold, treacherous climbs and descents, and exhaustion-induced hallucinations. Along the way, he experiences intense self-doubt and physical pain: “I hated the race. I hated my body.... And I hated myself.” But with steely determination and the help of other participants—notably Frankie, an eccentric fellow runner he meets on the trail (she sticks her tongue out at him and declares, “Ciao, amigo”)—Sam endures. Windrestin’s art elegantly captures the action, from the sweeping beauty of the wild terrain to Sam’s surreal visions of dragons in the sky. The result is a hypnotic and inspiring tale of a man overcoming adversity. (Sept.)