Excursion to the Spanish Civil War

Belchite. Guided tour through the ruins of the village.
Belchite. Guided tour through the ruins of the village.

One of the first people I met in Spain was Sento Llobell a fellow worker in art. Over the years he and his wife have become very good friends of ours. Sento is a famous cartoonist, he has published quite a few albums of his own work.  He received international recognition for the graphic novel “Un Médico Novato” for which he won the Premio Internacional VI Fnac Sins Entido. The story is based on a true narrative of Sento’s father in law Pablo Uriel, who was starting his career as a doctor during the civil war (1936-1939).  Under his own auspices Sento has published the second part of this history “Atrapado en Belchite” and yesterday the book was launched  in Belchite, a town in Zaragoza where in 1937 a bloody battle took place between the republicans and the army of the future dictator Francisco Franco. For propaganda reasons Franco never rebuilt the place and to this day it is a gruesome reminder of the Spanish Civil War. Part of  Sento´s story takes place in this city during that combat and hence he chose this place to present the book.

sento Lllobell
Battle of Belchite