Nicolas, Swami and friends
October 25, 2009
Hey, have you met Nicolas? He’s somewhere between 6 and 8 years old, small for his age, an only child, and french as you can get. He was born in a Belgian magazine 50 years ago, under the writing of René Goscinny and the drawings of Sempé. He isn’t too fond of lessons, report cards, the supervisor or Agnan (the first of the class… unfortunately nobody’s allowed to hit him, “cause he wears glasses”) but he loves his teacher and getting up to no good with his friends: Alceste, who eats all the time, Rufus, son of a policeman, Clotaire, last in class, Eudes, who communicates with his fists, Geoffroy, who’s dad is very rich… and all the others. All in all, his life’s “really great”.
What about Swami? He’s slightly older, 10 years old, but not much taller, and comes from Malgudy… Don’t take out your atlas, it’s a fictious town in south India, fathered by R.K. Narayan and illustrated by R.K. Laxman. He… well, he isn’t too fond of school either but gets up to lots of adventures with his friends: Mani, last in class, Rajam, son of a very well off police officer, Shankar… and all the others.
6000 km apart both of them have to deal with petty supervisors, anxious mothers, unfriendly neighbours and unwelcome exams… and think more than once of running away! Of course, the adults around them have their own troubles, rather more serious in Malgudi, where the rebellion against the British rule is rising, than in France where Nicolas’s dad awaits anxiously for a promotion and his mum takes a step towards emancipation by learning to drive. But the boys, unwitting witnesses of their time and culture, are rather more interested by their upcoming match of foottball or cricket.
So different and yet universal, their stories make for a very refreshing read… for kids and grown-ups alike! And if you’re not a reader (*shudder* 
), they’re also available on screen: Swami and Malgudi’s other inhabitants are the heroes of a television series while Nicolas has just been brought on screen in a new film.
Enjoy! And if you know of any other Nicolas or Swami around the world, please let me know!
