365 samurai and a few bowls of rice - Jean-Philippe Kalonji

J. P. Kalonji wields a clean, street-informed style to deliver a tale that glistens with blood and drama, yet is ultimately uplifting. Nearly four hundred pages long, this graphic novel employs full-page panels to tell the story of an Edo-era swordsman's quest for survival and enlightenment. When Ningen leaves his dojo at the request of his master -- to travel the world and grow as a swordsman -- he embarks on a journey that becomes a metaphor for the cycle of life and every human's possibility for spiritual growth.